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Select Committee · Home Affairs Committee

The UK’s offer of visa and settlement routes for residents of Hong Kong

Status: Closed Opened: 4 Jan 2021 Closed: 1 Feb 2024 11 recommendations 11 conclusions 1 report

The Committee took evidence in January 2021 on visa and settlement routes for the residents of Hong Kong.

Clear

Reports

1 report
Title HC No. Published Items Response
Second Report - The UK’s offer of visa and settlement route… HC 191 7 Jul 2021 22 Responded

Recommendations & Conclusions

3 items
3 Recommendation Second Report - The UK’s offer of visa … Rejected

Remove or raise Youth Mobility Scheme cap and assure bilateral agreement effectiveness for Hong Kongers

We also agree with witnesses that the current provisions of the Youth Mobility Scheme—places on which are allotted through a lottery—are inadequate to support the size and needs of this cohort. The Government must provide assurances about the continuing feasibility and effectiveness of the bilateral agreement with the Hong Kong …

Government response. The government rejects increasing the quota for Hong Kong nationals on the Youth Mobility Scheme, citing that each agreement is subject to a reciprocal quota based on UK nationals' usage.
Home Office
4 Conclusion Second Report - The UK’s offer of visa … Rejected

Government asked to urgently consider five-year settlement pathway for this group

In order to provide consistency with other pathways to the UK we ask the Government as a matter of urgency to consider, and to report to Parliament, how a five-year pathway to settlement might be made available to this group.

Government response. The government rejected the recommendation to make a five-year pathway to settlement available through the Youth Mobility Scheme, stating that YMS is a temporary cultural exchange route that does not lead to settlement.
Home Office
9 Recommendation Second Report - The UK’s offer of visa … Rejected

Assess young people affected and extend BN(O) visa route for eligible unregistered applicants

Young people who were eligible but too young to register themselves before handover on 1 July 1997 are being denied access to the Hong Kong BN(O) visa route because, for whatever reason, their parents failed to complete the process. The Government should assess how many young people are likely to …

Government response. The government rejects assessing affected young people or extending the BN(O) visa route further, stating they have no plans to expand eligibility beyond adult children already in a BN(O) status holder's household, and point to alternative existing immigration routes.
Home Office

Oral evidence sessions

1 session
Date Witnesses
6 Jan 2021 Session View ↗

Correspondence

3 letters
DateDirectionTitle
19 Apr 2023 To cttee Letter from the Minister for Immigration on the Hong Kong British National (Ove…
28 Apr 2021 From cttee Letter to the Minister for Future Borders and Immigration on the the new Hong K…
28 Apr 2021 To cttee Letter from the Minister for Future Borders and Immigration on the new Hong Kon…