Enforcement Branch

To further strengthen law enforcement action against the use of forged travel documents and human smuggling activities at the Airport, the department established an Airport Investigation Group (AIG) when Hong Kong International Airport at Chek Lap Kok came into operation on 6 July 1998. The AIG and the Tactical Intelligence Group (TIG) were put under the management of the Anti-Illegal Migration Agency (AIM), which was formed on 28 June 2004. The main charter of AIM includes investigations of forgery and illegal migration cases intercepted at Hong Kong International Airport and other control points, focused investigations of forgery syndicates involved in the abuse of HKSAR passports, and collection and analysis of the latest modus operandi of forgery syndicates and users.

In 2019, the number of Mainland illegal immigrants intercepted was 284 and none of them was involved in sex work. There was no surrendered pregnant Mainland illegal immigrant in 2018 and 2019.

Since the gazettal of the application procedures for the Certificate of Entitlement in July 1999, the number of surrendered minor illegal immigrants from the Mainland has declined sharply. In 2019, there were two cases of surrendered minor, while there was no case in 2018.

Our officers conduct surprise checks on unlawful employment.

In 2019, the department continued to maintain high vigilance against illegal workers and actively took tough and effective enforcement action against unlawful employment of illegal immigrants, visitors, foreign domestic helpers (FDHs) and imported workers who were subject to specific employment conditions so as to protect the local labour market. Measures taken included propagation of related government policies and regulations, and frequent surprise checks on factories, restaurants, laundry factories, shops, markets, foot reflexology centres, residential and commercial premises under renovation, construction sites, refuse collection points, and waste materials recycling factories, container depots and warehouses situated in the border and remote areas in the New Territories. In 2019, 5,444 illegal workers, including 3,756 persons engaged in sex work, were arrested. Most of the illegal workers were prosecuted and fined or imprisoned before repatriation to their places of domicile. Moreover, section 38AA of the Immigration Ordinance came into effect on 14 November 2009, which prohibits illegal immigrants or people who are the subject of a removal order or deportation order from taking any employment, whether paid or unpaid, or from establishing or joining in any business. Since the Ordinance came into effect till the end of 2019, 2,347 persons were arrested on suspicion of breaching the Ordinance.

To combat offences relating to parallel trading activities, the department has stepped up enforcement action by mounting a series of anti-illegal worker operations codenamed 'Windsand' since September 2012. As at the end of 2019, a total of 690 operations were conducted with the apprehension of 3,612 Mainland visitors for breaching their conditions of stay by suspected involvement in parallel goods trading, and 20 local employers suspected of employing illegal workers. Among them, 233 Mainland visitors were convicted and sentenced to imprisonment ranging from four weeks to three months. According to the existing mechanism, the department will pass the particulars of those Mainland visitors convicted of illegal employment in Hong Kong to the Mainland authorities for cancellation of their exit endorsements and they are prohibited from visiting Hong Kong for two years. For persons suspected of being involved in parallel goods trading but are not prosecuted, their future arrival will be closely scrutinised. They will be refused entry and repatriated to the Mainland immediately if their purposes of visit are dubious.

To strengthen crime prevention measures and enforcement action against illegal activities, including unlawful employment, an inter-departmental task force comprising the Immigration Department, the Hong Kong Police Force (HKPF), the Customs and Excise Department, the Labour Department, the Correctional Services Department and the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department was set up in April 2003.

Furthermore, in order to enhance the effectiveness in curbing unlawful employment activities, the department set up an Anti-illegal Workers Combat Squad in January 2005 as a speedy and robust force to combat illegal workers and their employers. The squad conducts plain-clothes patrols at black spots of illegal workers and makes prompt response to reports of unlawful employment.

'Don't employ illegal workers' poster

Employers of illegal workers were also subject to prosecution. In 2019, 246 employers were prosecuted for employing illegal workers. Many of the prosecuted employers were sentenced to jail. As a deterrent measure against unlawful employment, the Court of Appeal (CA) laid down a sentencing guideline in September 2004 reaffirming that employing a person not lawfully employable is a serious offence and the employer of an illegal worker should be given an immediate custodial sentence even for the first offence. The CA also stated that the presence of other aggravating factors, such as exploitation of illegal workers, employment of multiple illegal workers or repeated offences, will in most cases substantially increase the sentence. In addition, the government is considering amending the relevant provisions of the Immigration Ordinance to increase the penalties for employing persons who are not lawfully employable.

To prevent illegal workers from taking up renovation work in public and private housing estates, the department issued guidelines to the parties concerned to enhance proper record keeping of flats under renovation and the particulars of the flat owners, contractors and workers. Consequently, there has been an obvious decrease in the number of illegal workers taking up renovation work in well-managed housing estates.

On the issue of illegal workers using or possessing a forged or other person's identity card, the CA handed down a sentencing guideline in March 2005. The Court found that for an offence of possession of a forged/other person's identity card, even when the offender's presence in Hong Kong is legal, the sentence should be 12 months' imprisonment after a guilty plea. If the forged/other person's identity card had been presented/used to conceal one's status, so as to seek unlawful employment or to further one's illegal stay in Hong Kong, the sentence should be 15 months' imprisonment after a guilty plea.

Apart from the Announcement in the Public Interest (API) on television to remind the public not to employ illegal workers, the department has also launched an API on radio in Punti dialect, Putonghua and English to arouse public awareness of the serious consequences of employing illegal workers who are holders of immigration recognizance forms. The API highlights the sentencing guideline and aims to disseminate the message to members of the public that employers of illegal workers will be given immediate custodial sentence. In 2019, the department continued to enhance publicity by producing an API entitled 'Don't Hire Illegal Workers' to remind employers that employing persons who are not lawfully employable is a serious criminal offence liable to immediate imprisonment. The API has been broadcast on television and uploaded to the ImmD's YouTube channel.

An Announcement of Public Interest reminding employers about the consequence of hiring illegal workers.

'Online Reporting of Immigration Offences' service

The department encourages members of the public to report immigration offences such as overstaying or employment of illegal workers by mail (address: 5/F, Skyline Tower, 39 Wang Kwong Road, Kowloon Bay, Kowloon), by calling the department's 24-hour hotline (2824 1551), by fax (2824 1166), by e-mail (anti_crime@immd.gov.hk) or by online reporting (www.gov.hk/orio). The department will continue to combat unlawful employment through various channels and appeals to members of the public not to employ illegal workers.

The Immigration Task Force conducts enforcement operations at various locations.

Apart from conducting enforcement operations against immigration offenders, the Immigration Task Force also reinforces offices which require additional manpower resources to cope with an upsurge in workload. In 2019, 13,759 enforcement operations, including 397 large-scale joint operations with other government departments, were conducted. A total of 5,153 immigration offenders were arrested.

During the year, in order to curb the prevailing trend of unlawful employment, the Task Force also conducted a number of special operations codenamed 'Twilight', 'Contribute', 'Fastrack', 'Greenlane', 'Interrupt', 'Powerplayer', 'Rally', 'Champion' and 'Flabbergast' against illegal workers in various businesses. The Task Force will continue to step up enforcement action against illegal workers and their employers to safeguard job opportunities for the local workforce.

To step up publicity campaigns against the hiring of persons not lawfully employable and to raise public awareness of the serious consequences of unlawful employment, the department from time to time distributes 'Don't Employ Illegal Workers' leaflets to store-keepers and disseminates the message in talks or seminars organised by estate management companies, other government departments and public organisations when necessary.

Our staff distributes 'Don't Employ Illegal Workers' leaflets to store-keepers.

Our staff using Video Spectral Comparator in the detection of forged documents.

The department is highly concerned about the use of forged travel documents, either for illegal migration, crimes or terrorism. Such illicit activities pose threat to immigration control and the security of the countries concerned and undermine the probity of the passports being forged. As syndicated forgery activity is a global problem, the department works closely with the local, Mainland and overseas law enforcement agencies to conduct covert investigations into cases of forged documents. Resolute actions are taken to detect the use of forged travel documents by travellers and illegal migrants who are in transit through Hong Kong to other countries. In 2019, the department conducted 29,074 anti-forgery operations. The number of forged documents detected was 572, representing an increase of 27.4 per cent as compared to 449 in 2018.

Since its issue, the Hong Kong smart identity card has become a target of forgery syndicates. In 2019, a total of 112 forged Hong Kong smart identity cards were seized during various operations conducted by the department. To tackle the problem, the department will continue to conduct various operations, intelligence collation and information exchange with relevant parties.

For more accurate detection of forged documents, the department uses sophisticated equipment to assist in investigations. Such equipment includes the Electronic Documentation of Information System on Networks (EDISON), which is a computerised system keeping a large collection of digitised colour images of genuine travel document specimens. The department is also equipped with Video Spectral Comparators, which are particularly useful in the immediate detection of forged and unlawfully altered documents.

The department also makes use of compact hand-held forensic devices and forged document detectors to facilitate quick examination of doubtful documents on the spot by frontline officers. Its Face Recognition System (FACES) can also enhance the detection of cases of multiple identities effectively.

In addition, the department uses advanced investigative analysis software and forensic system to assist in the investigation and for detailed analysis of intelligence on forgery and human smuggling syndicate activities.

Talks on detection points of forged Hong Kong smart identity cards are delivered from time to time.

The Operational Research Section is responsible for collecting, analysing and disseminating information relating to matters of interest to the department. It keeps track of the modus operandi of human smuggling and the trends on the use of forged travel documents.

The work of the section not only enables the provision of intelligence on immigration matters to the staff within the department but also enhances the exchange of intelligence with other government bodies, consulates and Mainland and overseas counterparts.

During the year, workshops on identification of forged travel documents and forged Hong Kong smart identity cards were conducted for our in-service officers, and local and overseas enforcement agencies. Moreover, talks on security features of Hong Kong smart identity cards and techniques for identifying forged Hong Kong smart identity cards were delivered to personnel of other government departments, financial institutions and the legal sector who were regularly involved in the handling of identification documents.

The section also maintains an Enforcement Exhibition Gallery, which highlights the diversity of work and various achievements of the Enforcement Division through the display of photographs, reports of enforcement action, seized exhibits and various kinds of enforcement equipment. Moreover, the gallery stores over 37,300 forgery items unearthed by the department. These items include forged documents such as passports, identity cards, certificates and implements fit for forgery such as stamps and dies. Specimens are also displayed for training and exhibition purposes.

In 2019, 5,408 charges were laid against persons who had committed offences under the Immigration Ordinance and the Registration of Persons Ordinance, and offences relating to the registration of births, deaths and marriages in Hong Kong. Under section 38AA of the Immigration Ordinance, which came into effect on 14 November 2009, illegal immigrants or persons who are subject to a removal order or deportation order must not take any employment or establish or join any business. A person committing the offence is liable to a fine of $50,000 and to three years' imprisonment. As at the end of 2019, 2,212 such offenders were prosecuted.

The department also processes deportation and removal order applications to keep out undesirables. In 2019, 427 and 1,066 persons were deported and removed respectively from Hong Kong.

The department's detention centre at Ma Tau Kok has been operating since February 1998. The centre runs round-the-clock and can accommodate up to 87 detainees at any one time. In 2019, 12,217 immigration offenders were admitted to the detention centre.

Ma Tau Kok Detention Centre

The CIC is an immigration detention facility for detaining immigration offenders (18 years old or above) who are awaiting repatriation/removal/deportation in accordance with the Immigration Ordinance. In 2019, 5,353 detainees were admitted to the CIC pending removal/deportation.

In view of the different nature of work between managing the CIC and other immigration work, members of the Immigration Service responsible for the operation of the CIC have to receive necessary training in relation to the management of a detention centre. The training courses last for three weeks, including a one-week Detention Centre Management Course and a two-week tactical training. The Detention Centre Management Course focuses on the daily operation of a detention centre while the tactical training is concerned with staff's response during riotous situation. As a requisite for the renewal of the exemption permit under the Firearms and Ammunition Ordinance by the Police Licensing Office, members of the Immigration Service are required to undergo refresher training organised by the Correctional Services Department four times annually so that they are qualified to carry and use anti-riot equipment in the centre.

Castle Peak Bay Immigration Centre provides round-the-clock detention facilities for immigration offenders.

Foreign Domestic Helpers Special Investigation Section was set up in 2019 to conduct initial screening before vetting visa applications from foreign domestic helpers.

In response to the 'Action Plan to Tackle Trafficking in Persons and to Enhance Protection of Foreign Domestic Helpers in Hong Kong' promulgated by the government, FIS was set up on 2 December 2019. The key tasks of FIS are to conduct initial screening before vetting visa applications from FDHs so as to facilitate early identification of potential TIP victims and exploitation relating to FDHs, and to conduct investigations of related immigration offences.

Immigration officers have all along been conducting screening and identification of vulnerable persons who are arrested or who put themselves forward to the authorities under the TIP victim screening mechanism, with a view to ascertaining whether they are TIP victims. With the formation of FIS, the coverage of the TIP victim screening mechanism has been extended to FDH visa applicants. FIS officers will conduct initial screening of suitable FDH visa applicants before vetting their applications.

The department has always been providing suitable and adequate training and support for frontline officers. To heighten staff's TIP awareness, the department has included the topic of TIP in the induction training for all officers. In addition, relevant enforcement officers will attend training sessions on TIP victim identification provided by the European Union Agency for Law Enforcement Cooperation and the International Organization for Migration.