0.5% of nurses trained outside Hong Kong, authorities say amid hiring row
Por Theodora Yu — South China Morning Post – News feed
Advertisement Hong Kong healthcare and hospitals Hong Kong Society 0.5% of nurses trained outside Hong Kong, authorities say amid hiring row
Dispute began after a caller claimed an ‘unwritten rule’ reserving some Hospital Authority recruitment quotas for mainland Chinese nurses
3 -MIN READ 3 -MIN 1 Listen
Theodora Yu Published: 3:18pm, 29 Sep 2026 Updated: 3:30pm, 29 Sep 2026
Less than 0.5 per cent of registered Hong Kong nurses received their training outside the city, while 99.8 per cent of those working in public hospitals are locally trained, health authorities have said amid a growing row with a trade union over employment concerns.
The latest figures were released on Tuesday after the city’s health minister repeatedly rejected claims that authorities had favoured mainland Chinese nurses over local candidates. On Saturday, the Association of Hong Kong Nursing Staff issued five demands, including a call to prioritise the hiring of local graduates.
A government spokesman said the number of non-locally trained registered nurses admitted to Hong Kong through limited and special registration pathways was “very small” as of the end of 2025, accounting for “less than 0.5 per cent” of all registered nurses.
“About 99.8 per cent of registered nurses serving in the Hospital Authority are locally trained, reflecting that locally trained nurses remain the backbone of the public healthcare system,” he said.
Select Voice Select Speed 0.8x 0.9x 1.0x 1.1x 1.2x 1.5x 1.75x 00:00 00:00 1x AI-generated voice
