Hong Kong Visas Made Easy

Interview: Has Hong Kong Ever Been Used as a Kind of Stepping Stone Into Another Immigration Jurisdiction?

Posted by The Visa Geeza / in Employment Visas, Family Visas, Investment Visas, Long Stay & PR, Musing, Special Programmes, Visitor Visas / 2 responses

On June 6th, 2013 I was interviewed by five law students from the Chinese University of Hong Kong about my experiences practicing immigration here over the last 20 years.

We covered a great deal of ground in the 90 minutes we spent together and over the next few weeks I will be posting the interview broken down into 31 different segments, covering almost every Hong Kong related visa and immigration topic there is.

The students were: Dickens Roy Ken Lam, Sunny Wong, Toby Yip, Margaret Wo and the lady who asked most of the questions and organised the session on behalf of the group, Jacqueline Cheng.

In this segment the question posed was:

Has Hong Kong ever been used as a kind of stepping stone into another immigration jurisdiction?

My friends and colleagues over at Astus Services Group very kindly hosted us in their facilities in Central for this interview.

 Other Questions Asked During the Session

How has the experience of Hong Kong immigration policy changed over the last 20 years?

Do you personally find Hong Kong an attractive place to live, work and do business?

How has Hong Kong’s attractiveness changed for you over the last 27 years?

Do your clients typically find Hong Kong’s attractiveness today as it was to you 27 years ago?

Do Mainlanders typically enjoy the same kind of immigration experience as other foreign nationals do in Hong Kong?

In what ways do you think the different entry schemes may affect Hong Kong’s socio-economic development?

Do you think the relatively low number of foreigners coming to live and work in Hong Kong is due to it being hard to get a visa? 

Do you think that the Immigration Department suitably promote and encourage participation in the various schemes designed to attract foreign national talent to Hong Kong?

How effective is the Hong Kong Immigration Department’s website in educating and promoting Hong Kong to the outside world as a place to live and work and do business?

In the last 20 years which visa type has been most in demand and easiest to anticipate an approval for?

Has Hong Kong’s effort to forge a particular social fabric through the constructs of its immigration policy been successful do you think?

In real terms what is the difference between the General Employment Policy and the Admission of Mainland Talents & Professionals Scheme?

Has there been any demographic change since the introduction of the Admission of Mainland Talents and Quality Migrant Admission Schemes?

What do you think about the Immigration Arrangement for Non-local graduates?

Do you think that IANG actually allows a loophole for foreign graduates to game the immigration system here?

Has Hong Kong ever been used as a kind of stepping stone into another immigration jurisdiction?

Do you think the special programmes designed  for Mainland residents are as attractive now as they were when they were first introduced?

Is there a threshold to attaining a visa under the General Employment Policy?

What’s actually involved in getting a Hong Kong investment visa approved?

Can it be said ImmD are sometimes lax in enforcing immigration policy? 

Which visa program would be most beneficial for Hong Kong’s society?

What was it like being an immigration consultant in Hong Kong during the time of SARS?

We hypothesize that while the influx of non-residents into Hong Kong may benefit the economy in the short-term, the long-term negative impacts outweigh any short-term positives.  Do you agree with this statement?

Do you think that there is preferential treatment to non-resident workers?

What do you think is the most difficult challenge facing Hong Kong now, when it comes to competing for foreign talents and workers? (i.e. as compared to the 3 other Asian Tigers)

What’s your view on Hong Kong’s liberal visitor visa arrangements, especially regarding the large numbers of Mainlanders who come here now?

So we have 20,000 vacancies in the F+B industry but we don’t have people to fill these spots – what are ImmD doing about it?

What about the possibility of a graduate management trainee visa for a foreign national applicant?

How well does ImmD respond to the lack of skills in Hong Kong through adjustments to the General Employment Policy from time to time?

Do you think any improvements could be made on the entry schemes? If so, how?

What do you think is the biggest problem in dealing with ImmD as an organisation tasked with the dual role of providing a public service yet serving as the gatekeeper to Hong Kong?

More Stuff You Might Find Interesting or Useful

How important is the support of InvestHK in your Hong Kong investment visa application?

Is it actually getting harder to get your Hong Kong investment or employment visa approved?

What’s the minimum capital required for a Hong Kong investment visa approval?

I have a socially advantageous yet modestly capitalised business plan – can I get an investment visa for Hong Kong?

What does it take to get a Hong Kong investment visa approved?

How To Apply for the Right of Abode in Hong Kong – Without Any Professional Help – Losing It!

Posted by The Visa Geeza / in Long Stay & PR, Musing / 4 responses

10 Must Have Resources for A Successful Hong Kong Right of Abode Application

Alas, the Right of Abode for foreign nationals is not strictly speaking a full and complete right as such – in one respect it is only a partial right.

Essentially as a non Chinese citizen, once you have secured PR in Hong Kong, you can lose it, although it is easy enough to maintain – you just need to be physically present in Hong Kong on at least one occasion in any three year given period.

However, if for any reason you are away from Hong Kong for more than 1095 days continuously you will, by operation of law, be automatically downgraded to the right to land only.

This means that you will not be eligible to vote, can be deported from Hong Kong and will not be availed of the privileges associated with property tax and other concessions generally available only to permanent residents.

It also impacts on availing your future children of their eligibility for the right of abode if they are born in Hong Kong too.

In all other respects you are free from any conditions or limit of stay – so the day to day practicalities of the loss of your right of abode are marginal all things considered.

That said, the single condition for maintaining your right of abode is simple enough. Just come to Hong Kong once in a three year period, pass through immigration and the 3 year clock then starts ticking all over again.

And if you do lose it, you can reacquire it by qualifying under the 7 years ordinary residence rule once again.

More In This Series

1. How To Apply for the Right of Abode in Hong Kong – Without Any Professional Help – Introduction

2. How To Apply for the Right of Abode in Hong Kong – Without Any Professional Help – Relax, No Need To Takes Notes!

3. How To Apply for the Right of Abode in Hong Kong – Without Any Professional Help – Order of Business

4. How To Apply for the Right of Abode in Hong Kong – Without Any Professional Help – Must Have Resources

5. How To Apply for the Right of Abode in Hong Kong – Without Any Professional Help – Are You a Foreign National?

6. How to Apply for the Right of Abode in Hong Kong – Without Any Professional Help – The Approvability Test

7.  How to Apply for the Right of Abode in Hong Kong – Without Any Professional Help – Continuous Ordinary Residence

8. How to Apply for the Right of Abode in Hong Kong – Without Any Professional Help – 7 Years? Starting When?

9. How to Apply for the Right of Abode in Hong Kong – Without Any Professional Help – What is “Qualifying Residence”?

10. How to Apply for the Right of Abode in Hong Kong – Without Any Professional Help – Are You Truly Settled in Hong Kong?

11.  How to Apply for the Right of Abode in Hong Kong – Without Any Professional Help – Is Hong Kong Your Only Place of Permanent Residence?

12.  How to Apply for the Right of Abode in Hong Kong – Without Any Professional Help – Security Objections & Outstanding Taxation Liabilities

13.  How to Apply for the Right of Abode in Hong Kong – Without Any Professional Help – Paperwork, Process, Patience

14.  How to Apply for the Right of Abode in Hong Kong – Without Any Professional Help – Losing It!

15.  How to Apply for the Right of Abode in Hong Kong – Without Any Professional Help – Documents Required

More Stuff You May Find Interesting or Helpful

Will a criminal record for shoplifting compromise your immediate and long term plans for residence in Hong Kong?

What happens if you inadvertently breach your conditions of stay by taking up an unauthorized employment in Hong Kong without first applying for a change of sponsorship?

The perils of contriving a job offer just for the purposes of a Hong Kong employment visa application

100% visa application success rate? Take it all with a pinch of salt

Is it better to apply for your visa before or after you relocate to Hong Kong?

A Public Thank You to the Hong Kong Immigration Department

Posted by The Visa Geeza / in Employment Visas, Family Visas, Feature Article, Investment Visas, Long Stay & PR, Musing, Refusals & Appeals, Special Programmes, Visitor Visas / 1 response

A few weeks ago we received instructions from a client who was needing to extend a Quality Migrant Admission Scheme visa on the strength of a new business she was in the process of implementing here in Hong Kong (after a few years of working as an employee under the QMAS programme).

Still relatively new, the business had only just fully coalesced to the point where the client was ready to start trading, when she got really ill, very suddenly: fighting-for-life-ill.

I will not go into any further details. There’s no need to do so for the purpose of this post.

But what is especially noteworthy was the tremendous support the Hong Kong Immigration Department QMAS extension team in Wanchai provided to us as we navigated the extension process in the full knowledge of our client’s  parlous state of health.

They were sympathetic, sensitive, involved, concerned and incredibly supportive.  And very very quick.

Actually, they were magnificent.

Thank you ImmD. Let no one in Hong Kong say that you do not care.

We know you do.

How To Apply for the Right of Abode in Hong Kong – Without Any Professional Help – Paperwork, Process & Patience

Posted by The Visa Geeza / in Long Stay & PR, Musing / 4 responses

10 Must Have Resources for A Successful Hong Kong Right of Abode Application

You must apply to verify your eligibility for a Permanent Hong Kong Identity Card via form ROP145.

This is submitted to the HKID at Immigration Tower via the Right of Abode section along with the completed the declaration on Form ROP146.

Alternatively you can initiate your application on line via the dedicated online submission process.

To speed up the exercise, it is preferable to submit all of your supporting documents at the same time as you file your application thereby enabling ImmD to  efficiently assess your eligibility allowing you anticipate approval in the fastest time possible.

This can be very important if your present residence visa is due to expire on the same date as, or very soon after, your formal 7 year anniversary date.

The rules say you need to have a valid residence visa on the day you make your Right of Abode application and also on the date the Immigration Department approve your application.

So if your current limit of stay is set to expire just around your 7 year anniversary, it is undoubtedly best to have all your ducks lined up so that you can make an application 30 days before your 7 year anniversary, anticipating that ImmD might be prepared to quickly finalise your application on or soon after the formal 7 year date, thereby saving them the hassle of having to administer an extension to your present residence visa just so that the qualifying conditions for verification of your eligibility  for PR can then be met.

By the same token, you need to be physically present in Hong Kong on the day you file your Right of Abode application and also again on the day that your eligibility is formally verified by the Right of Abode Officer at the time he inspects your original documents and signs off on your approval during the short interview which marks the completion of formalities.

Most ‘verification’ interviews do not require any formal question and answer session per se, but merely allow the originals of certain of your documents submitted in support to be examined for authenticity.

This is normally your passport and Hong Kong ID card – but can include other documents which ImmD believe are critical to your approval – it just depends on all the circumstances of your case.

Whilst you can apply 30 days before your 7 years are up, ImmD will not finalise your case until the 7 year anniversary has arrived or passed – this is a hard and fast rule.

Finally, you may find yourself out of work yet still in possession of an employment visa at the 7 year mark and the question is begged as to how ImmD assess you in these circumstances.

So long as you can demonstrate earnestness in your life circumstances, that you are settled in Hong Kong and have manifestly taken Hong Kong as your only place of permanent residence, present Immigration Department practice appears to mean that being ‘out of work’ yet still resident here is not held against you in the PR eligibility verification exercise.

Similarly, there is no enquiry as to financial means when you make your PR application so if you find yourself temporarily struggling financially at the time you apply, this too should not preclude you from qualifying for the Right of Abode.

More In This Series

1. How To Apply for the Right of Abode in Hong Kong – Without Any Professional Help – Introduction

2. How To Apply for the Right of Abode in Hong Kong – Without Any Professional Help – Relax, No Need To Takes Notes!

3. How To Apply for the Right of Abode in Hong Kong – Without Any Professional Help – Order of Business

4. How To Apply for the Right of Abode in Hong Kong – Without Any Professional Help – Must Have Resources

5. How To Apply for the Right of Abode in Hong Kong – Without Any Professional Help – Are You a Foreign National?

6. How to Apply for the Right of Abode in Hong Kong – Without Any Professional Help – The Approvability Test

7.  How to Apply for the Right of Abode in Hong Kong – Without Any Professional Help – Continuous Ordinary Residence

8. How to Apply for the Right of Abode in Hong Kong – Without Any Professional Help – 7 Years? Starting When?

9. How to Apply for the Right of Abode in Hong Kong – Without Any Professional Help – What is “Qualifying Residence”?

10. How to Apply for the Right of Abode in Hong Kong – Without Any Professional Help – Are You Truly Settled in Hong Kong?

11.  How to Apply for the Right of Abode in Hong Kong – Without Any Professional Help – Is Hong Kong Your Only Place of Permanent Residence?

12.  How to Apply for the Right of Abode in Hong Kong – Without Any Professional Help – Security Objections & Outstanding Taxation Liabilities

13.  How to Apply for the Right of Abode in Hong Kong – Without Any Professional Help – Paperwork, Process, Patience

14.  How to Apply for the Right of Abode in Hong Kong – Without Any Professional Help – Losing It!

15.  How to Apply for the Right of Abode in Hong Kong – Without Any Professional Help – Documents Required

More Stuff You May Find Interesting or Helpful

The Visa Geeza on RTHK Radio 3 – August 2013

INTERVIEW: Do mainlanders typically enjoy the same kind of immigration experience as other foreign nationals in Hong Kong?

I possess an APEC Travel Card – will it significantly advantage me in my application for a Hong Kong investment visa?

Hong Kong immigration advice for free – why a counter intuitive business model is proving so successful

The industry secret most Hong Kong immigration consultantgs don’t want you to discover

How To Apply for the Right of Abode in Hong Kong – Without Any Professional Help – Security Objections & Outstanding Taxation Liabilities

Posted by The Visa Geeza / in Long Stay & PR, Musing / 3 responses

10 Must Have Resources for A Successful Hong Kong Right of Abode Application

Some foreign national applicants for permanent residency are extremely concerned that certain transgressions of the law during their time in Hong Kong could serve as a barrier to them qualifying for the right of abode here.

Namely, will a criminal conviction in Hong Kong automatically preclude your eligibility for permanent residency in the HKSAR?

Whilst the Immigration Department refuse to discuss any matter relating to security as part of the right of abode consideration exercise and so no specific body of knowledge or experience can serve as a guide in any particular application outcome, the general rule of thumb is that if you have been convicted in Hong Kong of a single offence not entailing imprisonment AND an application for an extension of stay in the wake of that conviction was approved by ImmD subsequently, then it is a fair assumption that such a criminal conviction will not represent any security objection and you can then go on to make Hong Kong your permanent home.

However, ImmD hold all the cards in this regard so it should never be taken as given that such a conviction  will not be held against you.

The Right of Abode is, after all, a question of State when all is said and done.

Moreover, if you have any outstanding taxation liabilities at the point of applying for your PR, arrangements will have to be made to clear these up before you can go on to have your eligibility approved – and this is a hard and fast rule, so best get your taxation arrears all sorted prior to submitting your application.

More In This Series

1. How To Apply for the Right of Abode in Hong Kong – Without Any Professional Help – Introduction

2. How To Apply for the Right of Abode in Hong Kong – Without Any Professional Help – Relax, No Need To Takes Notes!

3. How To Apply for the Right of Abode in Hong Kong – Without Any Professional Help – Order of Business

4. How To Apply for the Right of Abode in Hong Kong – Without Any Professional Help – Must Have Resources

5. How To Apply for the Right of Abode in Hong Kong – Without Any Professional Help – Are You a Foreign National?

6. How to Apply for the Right of Abode in Hong Kong – Without Any Professional Help – The Approvability Test

7.  How to Apply for the Right of Abode in Hong Kong – Without Any Professional Help – Continuous Ordinary Residence

8. How to Apply for the Right of Abode in Hong Kong – Without Any Professional Help – 7 Years? Starting When?

9. How to Apply for the Right of Abode in Hong Kong – Without Any Professional Help – What is “Qualifying Residence”?

10. How to Apply for the Right of Abode in Hong Kong – Without Any Professional Help – Are You Truly Settled in Hong Kong?

11.  How to Apply for the Right of Abode in Hong Kong – Without Any Professional Help – Is Hong Kong Your Only Place of Permanent Residence?

12.  How to Apply for the Right of Abode in Hong Kong – Without Any Professional Help – Security Objections & Outstanding Taxation Liabilities

13.  How to Apply for the Right of Abode in Hong Kong – Without Any Professional Help – Paperwork, Process, Patience

14.  How to Apply for the Right of Abode in Hong Kong – Without Any Professional Help – Losing It!

15.  How to Apply for the Right of Abode in Hong Kong – Without Any Professional Help – Documents Required

More Stuff You May Find Interesting or Helpful

What will the Immigration Department make of a third party objection to a Hong Kong investment visa application?

The case management engine of the Hong Kong Visa Centre – June 2013

I have sworn an MPF declaration that I am leaving Hong Kong – will this now preclude me from making a right of abode application?

When there really is no need to spend any money with a Hong Kong immigration services provider

What’s the deal if you’re in Hong Kong with a depedant visa and your employment visa holding spouse wants to leave but you want to stay? 

Interview: Is the Hong Kong Immigration Department Website Actually Fit For Purpose?

Posted by The Visa Geeza / in Employment Visas, Family Visas, Investment Visas, Long Stay & PR, Musing, Refusals & Appeals, Special Programmes, Visitor Visas / 16 responses

On June 6th, 2013 I was interviewed by five law students from the Chinese University of Hong Kong about my experiences practicing immigration here over the last 20 years.

We covered a great deal of ground in the 90 minutes we spent together and over the next few weeks I will be posting the interview broken down into 31 different segments, covering almost every Hong Kong related visa and immigration topic there is.

The students were: Dickens Roy Ken Lam, Sunny Wong, Toby Yip, Margaret Wo and the lady who asked most of the questions and organised the session on behalf of the group, Jacqueline Cheng.

In this segment the question posed was:

How effective is the Hong Kong Immigration Department website in educating and promoting Hong Kong for the outside world as a place to live and work and do business?

My friends and colleagues over at Astus Services Group very kindly hosted us in their facilities in Central for this interview.

 Other Questions Asked During the Session

How has the experience of Hong Kong immigration policy changed over the last 20 years?

Do you personally find Hong Kong an attractive place to live, work and do business?

How has Hong Kong’s attractiveness changed for you over the last 27 years?

Do your clients typically find Hong Kong’s attractiveness today as it was to you 27 years ago?

Do Mainlanders typically enjoy the same kind of immigration experience as other foreign nationals do in Hong Kong?

In what ways do you think the different entry schemes may affect Hong Kong’s socio-economic development?

Do you think the relatively low number of foreigners coming to live and work in Hong Kong is due to it being hard to get a visa? 

Do you think that the Immigration Department suitably promote and encourage participation in the various schemes designed to attract foreign national talent to Hong Kong?

How effective is the Hong Kong Immigration Department website in educating and promoting Hong Kong to the outside world as a place to live and work and do business?

In the last 20 years which visa type has been most in demand and easiest to anticipate an approval for?

Has Hong Kong’s effort to forge a particular social fabric through the constructs of its immigration policy been successful do you think?

In real terms what is the difference between the General Employment Policy and the Admission of Mainland Talents & Professionals Scheme?

Has there been any demographic change since the introduction of the Admission of Mainland Talents and Quality Migrant Admission Schemes?

What do you think about the Immigration Arrangement for Non-local graduates?

Do you think that IANG actually allows a loophole for foreign graduates to game the immigration system here?

Has Hong Kong ever been used as a kind of stepping stone into another immigration jurisdiction?

Do you think the special programmes designed  for Mainland residents are as attractive now as they were when they were first introduced?

Is there a threshold to attaining a visa under the General Employment Policy?

What’s actually involved in getting a Hong Kong investment visa approved?

Can it be said ImmD are sometimes lax in enforcing immigration policy? 

Which visa program would be most beneficial for Hong Kong’s society?

What was it like being an immigration consultant in Hong Kong during the time of SARS?

We hypothesize that while the influx of non-residents into Hong Kong may benefit the economy in the short-term, the long-term negative impacts outweigh any short-term positives.  Do you agree with this statement?

Do you think that there is preferential treatment to non-resident workers?

What do you think is the most difficult challenge facing Hong Kong now, when it comes to competing for foreign talents and workers? (i.e. as compared to the 3 other Asian Tigers)

What’s your view on Hong Kong’s liberal visitor visa arrangements, especially regarding the large numbers of Mainlanders who come here now?

SSo we have 20,000 vacancies in the F+B industry but we don’t have people to fill these spots – what are ImmD doing about it?

What about the possibility of a graduate management trainee visa for a foreign national applicant?

How well does ImmD respond to the lack of skills in Hong Kong through adjustments to the General Employment Policy from time to time?

Do you think any improvements could be made on the entry schemes? If so, how?

What do you think is the biggest problem in dealing with ImmD as an organisation tasked with the dual role of providing a public service yet serving as the gatekeeper to Hong Kong?

More Stuff You Might Find Interesting or Useful

What visa category should I use to expand my SME business operations from Gibraltar to Hong Kong?

How a Hong Kong employment visa application can go completely wrong if you don’t know what you’re doing!

The anatomy of a Hong Kong investment visa application taking just 7 weeks to approval

Is there any advantage in being an existing resident of Hong Kong when you make an application for a Hong Kong investment visa?

Hong Kong investment visa wrongly applied for – clearing up the confusion and getting the correct employment visa instead

The Visa Geeza on RTHK Radio Three – August 2013

Posted by The Visa Geeza / in Employment Visas, Investment Visas, Long Stay & PR, Musing / 1 response

 

Phil Whelan was on holiday in Bali  last week when we coordinated my visit to him on his Morning Brew show over at RTHK Radio 3 yesterday.

It was clear that he’d been thinking about a few things visa and immigration related whilst sunning himself by the pool as no sooner had I sat down in the hot seat did he lay into me about a whole barrage of  topics, not least how hard it is for F&B venues to secure employment visas under the General Employment Policy for foreign national staff  in Hong Kong.

You can listen to our discussion here.

Jason Black, celebrity chef (and all round good guy) will talking more about the dire state of Hong Kong visa approvals for foreign national F&B staff on Morning Brew this coming Friday, August 9, 2013  at 10:10 am. 

Even if you’re nowhere near a radio at that time, you can listen in via the web here. This is RTHK’ Radio 3’s live web feed (and Phil is always there from 9~1 every week day).

Definitely worth a listen.

Also, check out the Morning Brew Facebook page. This is an ongoing record of part of the social fabric of Hong Kong. Support it – for posterity’s sake!

More Stuff You Might Like

The Visa Geeza Previously on RTHK Radio 3 Morning Brew

Eligibility criteria for the Hong Kong working holiday visa

I want to live in Hong Kong with my boyfriend – is the working holiday visa a good option?

Hong Kong Travel Pass used to keep an extended family together – quite lawfully!

Hong Kong visa information, help and guidance on your mobile – 100% free!

 

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