21 January 1992
I Mills Esq MP House of Commons LONDON
SW1A OAA
Foreign Abode.
MWD 341 !
Foreign & Commonwealth
Office
London SWIA 2AH
HKD 341/B
RECEIVE!
12FEB 1992
DESK OFFIC INDEX
PA
From The Minister of State
Dear lari
128.
Thank you for your letter of 19 December to Lynda Chalker enclosing one from your constituent, Mr A Davies of
3 Armstrong Drive, Smithswood, Birmingham, about the reported emigration of Hong Kong residents to St Kitts. I am sorry that we were unable to send a substantive reply before Mr Davies' visit to St Kitts. We wanted to consult our High Commission to St Kitts (resident in Antigua) before replying.
From the information we now have, it seems that the report of 3000 Hong Kong people emigrating to St Kitts is exaggerated. The Government of St Kitts have proposed a scheme designed to attract investment, though not necessarily immigration (there is no obligation for a successful applicant to settle in St Kitts). In return for a commitment to invest a substantial amount of capital in St Kitts plus a US$25,000 registration fee, a person can obtain right of abode and, subsequently, subject to conditions, become a "non-voting citizen" of St Kitts. There is an additional registration fee of $10,000 for wives and children. So far there has been little response to the scheme. There have been very few enquiries from Hong Kong and no actual cases of settlement of which we
are aware.
In any case this scheme is a matter for the Government of St Kitts, an independent country and member of the Commonwealth. The people of Hong Kong are of course free to avail themselves of it if they wish (though it appears that few have wanted to do so). If Mr Davis wishes to pursue the matter I suggest he takes it up directly with the Government of St Kitts, whom he may contact through:
The High Commission for Eastern Caribbean States 10 Kensington Court LONDON
W8
You fine
Maled
THE EARL OF CAITHNESS
1
No comments yet.
Private notes are available after approval.