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Immigration and Tourism
NEARLY 10.6 million people passed through immigration control as they entered or left Hong Kong during 1976. This was about 14 per cent more than in the previous year, reflecting the strong improvement in the economic climate. About 56 per cent of the travellers were local residents, with most of the remainder being tourists. The tourist industry is Hong Kong's second largest source of foreign exchange and it yielded $3,750 million in 1976.
Immigration
The Immigration Department has a staff of 1,201, of whom 771 are uniformed officers. The work of the department falls into two main streams: the control of people moving in and out of Hong Kong and investigations into breaches of this control; and the documentation of local residents to facilitate overseas travel and to process those who wish to be naturalised or registered as British subjects.
The 10,575,546 people who passed through immigration control points in 1976 were recorded at: Kai Tak airport, 4,162,380; the Sino-British border, 1,779,982; the Hong Kong-Macau ferry terminal, 4,612,793; and harbour control, 20,391.
Immigration Control
A significant development in immigration control took place on October 1 with the changeover of passenger movement records from punched cards to computer, and the introduction of pre-numbered two-part arrival and departure cards. The com- puter matches arrivals with departures and enables overstayers to be identified quickly and accurately. Statistical information is also now much more readily available.
The aftermath of the political changes that took place in Indo-China in 1975 continued to affect Hong Kong. All but 31 of the 3,900 refugees from Vietnam who arrived in 1975 had been settled overseas or in Hong Kong by 1976 and the last refugee camp was closed on May 20. But the problem re-emerged as six groups of refugees totalling 165 people were rescued at sea by merchant ships and brought to Hong Kong. Another 26 refugees arrived direct from Vietnam in small boats, and at least one other group is known to have landed illegally. The United Nations High Com- mission for Refugees agreed to accept responsibility for these refugees and by the end of the year 100 of them had left for settlement in the United States.
Apart from the refugees, more than 5,200 illegal immigrants from Vietnam were permitted to stay in Hong Kong after they had surfaced by registering for identity cards. This led to a sharp increase in applications for the entry of dependants from