LONDON • Britain's route to citizenship for almost three million people in Hong Kong will open in January next year, and applicants will not need a job to come to the country, Home Secretary Priti Patel has said.
The British move comes after it declared that China had broken the terms of a 1984 handover treaty for its former colony by imposing a new national security law for Hong Kong.
"We are planning to open the Hong Kong BN(O) (British National Overseas) Visa for applications from January 2021," Ms Patel said yesterday in a written statement to Parliament. "There will be no skills tests or minimum income requirements, economic needs tests or caps on numbers. I am giving BN(O) citizens the opportunity to acquire full British citizenship.
"They do not need to have a job before coming to the UK - they can look for work once here. They may bring their immediate dependants, including non-BN(O) citizens."
REUTERS