TNAG-0318-FCO40-354-Legislation-for-immigration-and-deportation-in-Hong-Kong-1971 — Page 255

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XCC(71)34

- 2.

in Hong Kong. This accords with existing practice, though not with the existing law. It is also intended, after the enactment of the United Kingdom Immigration Bill, that Commonwealth citizens who are registered in Hong Kong as citizens of the United Kingdom and Colonies under the proposed new section 5A of the British Nationality Act should be accepted as belongers. This is because the registration of Commonwealth citizens will then be a discretionary act of the Governor like naturalisation, and no longer an en- titlement subject only to compliance with a residential qualification. An amendment to the Ordinance to provide for this will be required when the United Kingdom Immigration Bill is enacted and comes into force. All other persons are classified as immigrants (clause 2).

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Clause 3 empowers an immigration officer to examine any person on his arrival in or prior to his departure from Hong Kong, and to examine at any time a person whom he believes to have entered illegally or to be in breach of a condition of stay. Clause 5(1) confers on an immigration officer a general discretion to grant or refuse permission to land to any immigrant upon his examination. (At present under the Immigration (Control and Offences) Ordinance only certain classes of immigrants specified in section 11 of the Ordinance may be refused permission to land). In addition:

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(a)

(b)

permission to land may be subject to a limitation of stay or such other conditions as may be imposed by an immigration officer, in addition to conditions of stay which may be prescribed by the Governor as applying to all immigrants or to any class or description of immigrants. (Clause 5(2), (3) and (7) );

the Director may at any time cancel or vary a

condition of stay, other than by curtailing limit of stay. The power to curtail a stay is reserved to the Governor (Clause 5(5), (6)). The power of the Governor to curtail a limit of stay will allow the removal of undesirable immigrants.

Serving members, other than those locally engaged, of Her Majesty's regular naval, military or air force service, will not require permission to land, nor will their stay be subject to conditions. A person who ceases to be a serviceman will, however, be required to submit him- self to examination by an immigration officer within 28 days, and will be- come subject to normal immigration control (clause 8).

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Citizens of the United Kingdom and Colonies who have been ordinarily resident in Hong Kong for a continuous period of 10 years will be exempt from conditions of stay, although they may be refused per- mission to land in the same way as other immigrants (clause 19). The reason for this exception, (and their exemption from deportation referred to in paragraph 9 below), is that such persons can never become belongers, unlike aliens, who will be able to apply for naturalisation after a minimum of 5 years residence in Hong Kong, and unlike other Commonwealth citizens whom it is proposed should be accepted as belongers if they are registered in Hong Kong as citizens of the United Kingdom and Colonies under the proposed new section 5A of the British Nationality Act. It is considered that citizens of

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