Government felt that special measures had to be devised to
give key people in the public and private sectors of the
community the confidence to remain in Hong Kong. These
measures took the form of the British Nationality (Hong Kong)
Act 1990, which came into force on 7 November 1990. Under
this scheme full British citizen passports are being offered to a maximum of 50,000 key personnel (plus spouses and children under 18) both in the public and private sectors, without the beneficiaries having to leave the territory and
take up residence in Britain to acquire citizenship. The
Selection Scheme under the Act operates in two tranches. The projection is for 38,000 places to be allocated in the first
tranche which closes at the end of 1993. The remaining places
will be allocated in the second tranche. The second tranche
opens in January 1994 (enabling those who have moved into key positions since 1991 to apply).
28. The three month period for applications for British citizenship under the first tranche ended on 28 February 1991. The total number of applications received was over 66,500, ie
the scheme was over 50% oversubscribed. Over 92,000
registrations had been authorised under the Selection Scheme
by the middle of September 1993 (34,741 principal beneficiaries and 57,535 dependants as at 11 September).
29. The Government are confident that the scheme has
successfully targeted the key people whose presence is essential for the future success of the territory, ie key
people in the public and private sectors. The announcement of the scheme, at a time when confidence in Hong Kong was at a
low ebb, undoubtedly had a stabilising effect on the public mood in Hong Kong. It has also helped encourage other Governments to provide similar assurances for Hong Kong people.
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