TNAG-2950-FCO40-4227-Hong-Kong-visa-free-travel-for-British-Nationals-(Overseas)--1993 — Page 94

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Mr Stephens

Migration and Visa Department

ACCEPTABILITY OF BN (0) PASSPORTS

1.

Thank you for your minute of 2 February on the question of visas for BN (O) passport holders. I have also just seen your useful minute of 3 February to Debbie Barnes Jones in reply to hers of 17 November. We agree that it would indeed be a good idea to have a meeting together with NTCD in order to discuss these matters. Mrs Barnes Jones and I would plan to attend we could come to you. To allow us to digest the back papers you have alerted us to, could we plan it for two weeks from now? Grateful if you could let us know when and where.

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2.

I can well appreciate the difficulties, explained in Mr Stephenson's minute to you of 2 February, of raising this issue with certain countries. However if the problem of visa free entry lies in their not understanding the right of abode of BN (0) and BOC passport holders this can be surely easily clarified. Under the Joint Declaration signed with China in 1984 all BN (0)s and BOCS with a Hong Kong connection have the right of abode in Hong Kong. Furthermore Ministers have given an undertaking that any solely British National who comes under pressure to leave Hong Kong could expect to have his case to settle in this country considered by the Government of the day with special considerable sympathy. BN (0)s and Hong Kong BOCS therefore do have returnability. agree that we would not get very far in persuading countries like France, who operate a blanket worldwide visa requirement for countries outside the EEC, to change their minds. (However we should wish to be sure that France's policy does indeed apply to all those countries and that it does not in fact discriminate against certain passport holders).

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J Woodrow

Hong Kong Department

RF

L HID 345/3

9 February 1993

12 FEE 1993

visas.bnoppts

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CODE 18-77