TNAG-1408-FCO40-1883-Future-of-Hong-Kong-passports-and-visas-1985 — Page 42

CONFIDENTIAL

ROUTINE

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which BN (0)

3.

a)

b)

status comes into effect and the date on which we had

hoped to begin the process of issuing Common Format Passports.

On the specific points raised in para 3 of your TUR: the number of BN (0) passports to be issued in the first

year in Hong Kong does not affect whether or not we

should issue the new CFP from that date. We are however

interested in your estimate that there will probably be

no more than a few thousand applications for BN (0)

passports in the first year. Given the intense interest

in BN (0) status we would be grateful to know how you

arrive at such a low figure. Would such a low take-up

rate be seen as a failure for the BN (0) passport?

Holders of BN (0) passports will not have to switch to

passports in the new format at a later date (see para 4

below). As virtually all other BCs, BDTCs and BOCs will

not be receiving the new format passport until 1988, it

is difficult to believe that the fact that BN (0)s will

also have to wait will cause much surprise in Hong Kong.

there appears to be some confusion. The Home Office have

recently decided that there will only be one new format

passport: this will be CFP which will be machine- readable and computer issued. A non-machine-readable

format is not therefore an option. We assume that you

will also be introducing a computer issued CFP/MRP in

1988. We have of course told the Chinese during the

discussion of the right of abode endorsement in the JLG that we would be issuing computer-issued passports from 1988. We would be grateful for confirmation of this.

Nor can we accept your argument for free passport replacement. A BDTC will not be charged twice for the transfer to the new BN (0) passports. The new BN (0) passport issued in 1987 will not be "an interim passport". It will be the standard British passport issued in the United Kingdom and by Consular

c)

4.

3

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