China will officially launch its K-visa programme on October 1, 2025, a new initiative aimed at attracting global talent, particularly in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields.
The programme, targeting young professionals, allows applicants to enter China without employer sponsorship and offers long-term residency, tax benefits, housing support, streamlined administrative procedures, and access to international-standard schooling for dependents.
The move comes amid sweeping changes to the US H‑1B visa programme. On September 19, 2025, US President Donald Trump announced a $100,000 fee for new H‑1B visa applications — a measure widely seen as further restricting America’s ability to attract foreign talent. While renewals and existing H‑1B holders are exempt, the announcement has sparked global concern — especially in India, the largest beneficiary of the visa.
In 2024, 283,397 Indian nationals received H‑1B approvals, representing roughly 71 per cent of the total. Chinese applicants were second, with 46,680 visas, or about 11.7 per cent. Other countries, including the Philippines, Canada, and South Korea, accounted for much smaller shares, each representing between 1 and 1.3 per cent of approvals.
Although Beijing announced the K-visa on August 7, 2025, analysts note that the timing of the rollout — just weeks after Trump’s H-1B changes — is particularly significant.
Former Kyrgyz Prime Minister Djoomart Otorbaev calls Trump’s move “one of the most scandalous policy blunders in recent memory” and describes Beijing’s K-visa as a “masterstroke” in the battle for global talent. “The US is saying: We don’t need you. China is saying: We welcome you,” Otorbaev notes, highlighting the stark contrast in political signalling.
Swaran Singh, Professor of International Relations at Jawaharlal Nehru University, echoes this view: “The K-visa at best can be described as one of the many tools that Beijing has introduced undergirding its rise as a great power of the 21st century,” he tells TRT World.
Global competition for talent intensifies
China’s K-visa is part of a broader scramble to attract skilled professionals affected by US visa restrictions. Countries like Germany, the UK, Canada and South Korea have already announced initiatives targeting Indian and other talent displaced by H‑1B restrictions.
But China’s move is particularly notable because it is part of a long-term strategy to position the country as a global innovation hub.
Gao Jian, Professor at Shanghai International Studies University, describes the policy as a proactive, open, and inclusive international talent strategy. “International talent is a key strategic resource for gaining initiative in global scientific competition,” Gao tells TRT World, noting that the K-visa complements existing visa programmes for top-tier experts.
Otorbaev highlights the visa’s revolutionary design: “Unlike the suffocating US system, no employer sponsorship or invitation letter is required. Flexibility, multiple entries, and a broad scope of activity are built in. This is a radical reversal of the traditional Chinese approach to foreigners.”
China has eased entry regulations, expanded visa-free travel, and signed reciprocal visa waiver agreements with 75 countries — efforts reflected in the first half of 2025, when international trips to and from China surged 30.2 percent, with visa-free entries rising 53.9 percent.
“Through top-level strategic design, continuous institutional innovation, and meticulous service optimisation, China’s international talent policy is demonstrating a powerful magnetic effect to inject a continuous stream of international intellectual support into the nation’s innovative development,” adds Gao, who is also a visiting fellow at Tsinghua University’s Center for International Strategy and Security Studies.
