Following is a question by the Hon Lai Tung-kwok and a written reply by the Secretary for Transport and Logistics, Ms Mable Chan, in the Legislative Council today (July 30):

Question: 

     It has been reported that some individuals holding Exit-entry Permits for Travelling to and from Hong Kong and Macao (commonly known as Two-way Exit Permits) have been driving vehicles in Hong Kong as tourists for illegal carriage of passengers for reward (commonly known as white licence cars). There are views that the Transport Department's current practice of allowing individuals with valid travel documents to apply for direct issue of full Hong Kong Driving Licences without test (direct issue of HKDLs) may encourage Two-way Exit Permit holders, or even non-refoulement claimants holding (commonly known as going-out passes), to illegally engage in work such as driving for carriage of passengers or food delivery in Hong Kong for reward. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1) of the number of non-Hong Kong residents who applied for direct issue of HKDLs in each of the past five years, with a breakdown by the type of documents/papers held by the applicants (i.e. foreign passports, Two-way Exit Permits and going-out passes);

(2) of the number of illegal worker cases handled by the Government in each of the past five years; among such cases, the number of those involving driving for carriage of passengers or food delivery, and the immigration status of individuals involved in these cases; and

(3) whether it will consider revising the policy of direct issue of HKDLs in order to plug the loophole that allows visitors holding valid travel documents or individuals with going-out passes to obtain direct issue of HKDLs and subsequently illegally engage in work such as driving and delivery?

Reply:

President,

     According to section 52(3) of the Road Traffic Ordinance (Cap. 374), no person shall drive or use a motor vehicle, or suffer or permit a motor vehicle to be driven or used, for the carriage of passengers for hire or reward unless a hire car permit (HCP) is in force in respect of the vehicle. The Government has all along been very concerned about the use of motor vehicles by any person for illegal carriage of passengers for hire or reward, and has been taking targeted enforcement actions to combat illegal carriage of passengers for hire or reward activities. 

     Regarding direct issue of a Hong Kong full driving licence without test (direct issue), the Transport Department handles direct issue applications in accordance with regulation 11(3) of the Road Traffic (Driving Licences) Regulations (Cap. 374B) (the Regulations), which allows a person holding a driving licence issued by one of the 32 countries and places specified in the Fourth Schedule to the Regulations (recognised countries or places), and provided that specified conditions are met, to be directly issued with a Hong Kong full driving licence without taking a local driving test for driving four classes of vehicles: private cars, light goods vehicles, motor cycles and motor tricycles.

     To apply for direct issue, the driving licence issued by the relevant recognised country or place must still be valid or expired for not more than three years, and be obtained by the applicant after successful completion of a driving test conducted in the issuing country or place. Also, the applicant must be aged 18 years or above and meet one of the following requirements: (1) the driving licence held was issued during a period of the applicant's residence of not less than six months in the issuing country or place; or (2) the applicant has been holding the driving licence issued by the recognised country or place for not less than five years immediately prior to the application; or (3) the applicant is the holder of a passport or other equivalent travel document issued in the country or place in which the driving licence was issued.

     In consultation with the Security Bureau and the Transport Department (TD), our reply to the various parts of the question raised by the Hon Lai Tung-kwok is as follows:

(1) According to regulation 10 of the Regulations, an applicant for direct issue who is not a holder of Hong Kong identity card shall submit a valid travel document as defined in section 2(1) of the Immigration Ordinance (Cap. 115) (for example, a passport or equivalent valid travel document) as his/her identity document. The TD does not accept any person on recognisance holding form no. 8 issued by the Immigration Department (ImmD) as a valid identity document for submitting a driving licence application. If the TD has doubts about the supporting documents submitted by the applicant, it will verify and confirm with the relevant agencies.

     According to TD's record, over the past five years, the number of direct issue applications approved by the types of identity documents other than Hong Kong identity card including passports, Exit/Entry Permit for Travelling to and from Hong Kong and Macao (commonly known as Two-way Permits) etc., are tabulated below:
 

Year	Exit/Entry Permit for Travelling to and from Hong Kong and Macao	Passport	Others (Note 1)
2020	3 300	2 307	119
2021	4 279	3 522	188
2022	5 498	4 656	128
2023	25 589	13 127	407
2024	27 917	12 776	254
2025 (As at end of June)	15 095	4 553	89

Note 1: Other identity documents include the Consular Corps Identity Card.

(2) The Government is committed to combatting illegal employment, with a view to protecting job opportunities for the local workforce. It is a serious offence to engage in illegal employment. Employers, illegal workers as well as aiders and abettors of illegal employment will be liable to prosecution in accordance with the Immigration Ordinance (Cap. 115). Illegal immigrants and non-refoulement claimants, etc., who take any employment, whether paid or unpaid, or establish or join in any business, are liable upon conviction to a maximum fine of $50,000 and up to three years' imprisonment. Besides, any person who takes up any employment, whether paid or unpaid, in contravention of a condition of stay, shall be guilty of an offence. Upon conviction, he/she is liable to a maximum fine of $50,000 and up to two years' imprisonment.

     According to ImmD's record, the number of illegal workers prosecuted over the past five years is tabulated below:
 

Year	Number of illegal workers prosecuted
2020	615
2021	815
2022	539
2023	943
2024	1 013
2025 (up to June)	528

     According to ImmD's record, of the prosecuted illegal workers mentioned above, those who were prosecuted for engaging in delivery work and their status in Hong Kong are tabulated below:
 

Year	Number of illegal workers prosecuted for engaging in delivery work	Status in Hong Kong
		Visitors	Persons on recognisance holding form no. 8	Others
2020 (Note 2)	0	0	0	0
2021	7	0	6	1
2022	7	0	6	1
2023	1	0	1	0
2024	17	0	17	0
2025 (up to June)	16	1	14	1

Note 2: ImmD has maintained the relevant statistics since October 20, 2020.

     On the other hand, according to the Hong Kong Police Force's record, of the cases involving the use of a motor vehicle for illegal carriage of passengers for hire or reward in the past five years, the number of persons who were also prosecuted for suspected illegal employment and their status in Hong Kong are tabulated below:
 

Year	Number of persons prosecuted for suspected illegal employment in cases involving the use of a motor vehicle for illegal carriage of passengers for hire or reward	Status in Hong Kong
		Visitors	Persons on recognisance holding form no. 8	Others
2020	0	0	0	0
2021	0	0	0	0
2022	0	0	0	0
2023	1	1	0	0
2024	3	3	0	0
2025 (up to June)	4	4	0	0

(3) Mutual recognition of driving qualifications and the issuance of driving licences without test are common practices in many countries or places, and direct issue has also been implemented in Hong Kong for many years, with a view to facilitating citizens in different places to obtain driving licences for relevant vehicle classes in accordance with local application criteria, saving the resources and time of taking assessments and obtaining local driving licences afresh. As mentioned above, the TD does not accept a recognisance form as a valid identity document for applying for direct issue. For holders of passports or equivalent travel documents that meet the conditions mentioned above, they can apply for direct issue. In fact, Hong Kong residents holding a valid Hong Kong driving licence and a Mainland Travel Permit for Hong Kong and Macao Residents can also obtain a Mainland driving licence without test in Guangdong Province.

     The TD will continue to collaborate with relevant policy bureaux and departments on driving licence-related matters, including referring any suspected cases of illegal carriage of passengers for reward to relevant law enforcement agencies for follow-up, fully co-operating with relevant investigations.

Ends/Wednesday, July 30, 2025
Issued at HKT 14:52

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