Whether the person concerned is regarded as a Chinese citizen in Hong Kong does not depend on what travel document he/she has. It depends on whether he/she has made a declaration of change of nationality to the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Immigration Department.
As long as a person remains a Chinese citizen (i.e., not having declared change of nationality), he/she will retain the status as a permanent resident and enjoy the right of abode in the HKSAR irrespective of whether he/she was physically present in Hong Kong on 1 July 1997 or whether he/she had returned to settle within the time permitted under the “Transitional Arrangements”
More on transitional arrangements
| The person concerned will not lose his/her status as a permanent resident even if he/she is absent from Hong Kong for long periods. |
He/She can still use his/her foreign passport as a travel document but will not enjoy consular protection in the HKSAR.
If a person chooses to remain in the HKSAR as a foreign national by making a declaration of change of nationality to the HKSAR Immigration Department and the declaration has been approved -
The person can enjoy the right of abode in the HKSAR if:
| A person can enjoy consular protection in the HKSAR from the country of his/her declared nationality. |
If the person concerned is not able to satisfy the requirements under any of the above classes, he/she will lose his/her status as a permanent resident but will automatically acquire the right to land. He/She will still be able to enter the HKSAR freely to live, study and work, without any restriction. He/She will also be able to re-acquire the right of abode in the HKSAR if he/she subsequently satisfies the requirements of categories (d) or (e) for non-Chinese citizens.
A person can enjoy the right of abode in the HKSAR when he/she returns if:
He/She may, however, choose to be regarded as a foreign national when he/she returns to the HKSAR by making a declaration of change of nationality. When the declaration has been approved, he/she will enjoy consular protection in the HKSAR. However, he/she may lose the status as a permanent resident if he/she has been absent from Hong Kong for a continuous period of more than 36 months counting back from the date he/she returned to settle in Hong Kong. In that event, he/she will automatically acquire the right to land. He/She will still be able to enter the HKSAR freely to live, study and work, without any restriction. He/She will also be able to re-acquire the right of abode in the HKSAR if he/she subsequently satisfies the requirements of categories (d) or (e) for non-Chinese citizens.