Applications are now open for the "Taihu Lake Talent Plan" Leading Talents for Industrial Upgrading and Innovation for 2017, says the Wuxi Municipal Bureau of Human Resources and Social Security.

Qualified talents are supposed to be under age 60, and must assume a position as chief scientist, chief technology officer or others at the same level, lead a company's core projects and have made breakthroughs in addressing core technological issues.

The applicant must meet the following requirements:

Is introduced by a Wuxi-based company independently or jointly with universities or research institutes in Wuxi;

Should, in principle, hold a master's or doctoral degree with more than five years' working experience, or be hired as associate professor, associate research fellow, senior engineer or above;

Came to work in Wuxi after January 1, 2015 and signed an employment contract with the enterprise filing this application for a valid period of at least 24 months. In principle, the applicant will continue to work at the same enterprise for at least 12 months after getting accredited, and is offered an annual salary of no less than 300,000 yuan;

Must pay personal income tax totaling 300,000 yuan or more within the 12 months since winning accreditation.

For approved applicants, their enterprise will receive a one-time subsidy of 10,000 yuan for each of the leading talents introduced, along with a salary subsidy worth 30 percent of their taxable monthly income for 12 consecutive months, which should not exceed 300,000 yuan. For accredited leading talents who buy a home in Wuxi, each will be offered a settlement subsidy of 300,000 yuan.

Applicants should prepare materials according to requirements, and log onto the online application-filing system at jswx.hrss.gov.cn to submit their applications after May 10.