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The Government announced today (June 30) new immigration policy governing the entry of dependants for residence in Hong Kong.
"The existing dependant policy has been thoroughly reviewed to ensure that it continues to meet Hong Kong's needs and help attract people with the right talent and skills to come to Hong Kong whilst minimizing the associated immigration and security risks," a Security Bureau spokesman said.
"In conducting the review, we have taken into account the evolving policies on the importation of talents and professionals, especially those from the Mainland, as well as the new scheme to attract capital investment entrants to Hong Kong," he added.
The following policy changes will take effect from July 1, 2003:
(a) the age limit for unmarried dependent children applying to enter Hong Kong for residence as dependants would be lowered from under the age of 21 to under the age of 18;
(b) the age requirement for dependent parents would be raised from aged 50 or above to aged 60 or above;
(c) for persons admitted into Hong Kong to take up employment or study in full-time undergraduate or post-graduate programmes in local degree-awarding institutions, or as capital investment entrants, their spouses and unmarried dependent children, but not their parents, would be eligible to apply for entry to take up residence in Hong Kong as their dependants;
(d) whilst the policy excluding Mainland residents from entering Hong Kong as dependants should be continued, such an exclusion should not apply where the sponsors have been admitted into Hong Kong to take up employment or full-time tertiary study under schemes or arrangements catering for Mainland residents. Furthermore, the present prohibition precluding such sponsors to bring in their overseas dependants, where any, should be discontinued;
(e) dependants of persons granted entry into Hong Kong to take up employment or study or as capital investment entrants would be required to apply for permission from the Director of Immigration to take up employment in Hong Kong. Such applications would be considered on the basis of criteria similar to those under the General Employment Policy;
(f) the previous restriction on the entry of nationals or residents from certain countries or regions has been removed. Nationals of Bulgaria, Romania, Mongolia, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam and ex-Mainland residents in Macao may apply for entry for residence under the new dependant policy; and
(g) under existing policy, for humanitarian and compassionate reasons, widows of any age or widowers over the age of 50 may apply to enter Hong Kong as dependants to join their nearest or only surviving relatives who are residents in Hong Kong. Under the new policy, both widows and widowers would be subject to the same age requirement i.e. they must be aged 60 or above before being eligible for exceptional treatment as dependants;
The tightening up of certain aspects of existing policy, namely the revised age requirements for unmarried dependent children and dependent parents, prohibiting certain categories of sponsors from bringing in their parents as dependants and requiring the dependants of certain categories of sponsors to obtain prior permission from the Director of Immigration before they can take up employment in Hong Kong, are fully in line with the international practice.
The spokesman stressed that requiring the dependants of certain categories of sponsors to obtain prior permission before they took up employment was not a wholesale prohibition. Dependants would still be allowed to work if they meet the relevant eligibility criteria which apply to all overseas persons seeking to enter Hong Kong for employment. This new policy would be a timely and necessary move to underscore serious concerns attached by the Government to tackle unemployment in Hong Kong.
"The relaxation to allow persons admitted to study full-time undergraduate or post-graduate programmes in local degree-awarding institutions to bring in their dependants will facilitate Hong Kong's development as a regional education centre. Allowing the admission of dependants of successful applicants of the future Capital Investment Entrant Scheme and dependants of Mainland residents approved to take up employment in Hong Kong will help to attract quality immigrants to come to Hong Kong," the spokesman said.
The new dependant policy would be implemented on July 1, 2003. As transitional arrangements, the policy changes would only apply to dependants whose applications reach the Director of Immigration on or after July 1, 2003.
Separately, the existing practice whereby spouses and unmarried dependent children of Hong Kong permanent residents will be able to apply for unconditional stay after they have resided in Hong Kong for three years will also be changed.
Effective from July 1, 2003, spouses and children of Hong Kong permanent residents will only become eligible for unconditional stay on completion of seven years residence in Hong Kong. The change is to bring the eligibility criteria in line with that applicable to spouses and children of non-permanent Hong Kong residents.
This new policy will apply to spouses and unmarried dependent children who enter Hong Kong on or after July 1, 2003 and those who entered Hong Kong before July 1, 2003 but yet to be eligible for unconditional stay under the practice then in force.
End/Monday, June 30, 2003
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