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The Director of Immigration, Mr. Peh Yun-lu, on behalf of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR), in Beijing today (April 23) signed the Agreement on Mutual Exemption of Visa Requirements with the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Russia to China, Ambassador Sergey Razov. The agreement provides visa-free access to HKSAR passport holders visiting Russia for a stay of up to 14 days. Likewise, Russian nationals will also enjoy 14 days' visa-free access to Hong Kong.
"The agreement will enter into force after completion of the internal procedures required for its entry into force. Both the contracting parties aim to complete the outstanding formalities by mid 2009 and shall make further announcement of the implementation date in the near future," a spokesman for the Immigration Department said.
"We warmly welcome the signing of the agreement, which makes the HKSAR one of the few advanced economies whose residents will enjoy visa-free access to Russia. This is a significant stepforward for the travel convenience of Hong Kong travellers and helps promote trade, business and tourism links between the HKSAR and Russia," he said.
The availability of visa-free access to Russia has brought the total number of countries/territories agreeing to grant visa-free access or visa-on-arrival to HKSAR passport holders to 138.
Ends/Thursday, April 23, 2009
Issued at HKT 19:16
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