Visa requirements for Chinese citizens of Hong Kong are administrative entry restrictions by the authorities of other states placed on holders of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region passports.
As of 10 July 2018, Chinese citizens who are permanent residents of Hong Kong (hereafter called Chinese citizens of Hong Kong) holding HKSAR passports had visa-free or visa on arrival access to 169 countries and territories, ranking the HKSAR passport 16th in terms of travel freedom according to the Henley Passport Index. The official figure provided by the Hong Kong Immigration Department of countries and territories granting visa-free access to Hong Kong SAR passport holders was 162 as of 28 March 2018. (However, this figure excludes countries and territories which are not officially recognised by the People's Republic of China, such as Kosovo and Taiwan so the practical figure relevant to travellers is actually higher.)
Due to its one country, two systems stance, the Government of Hong Kong can make a visa-waiver agreement for Chinese residents of Hong Kong with other countries. As a result of both bilateral visa abolition agreements (e.g. between Hong Kong and Russia) and unilateral decisions to grant visa exemptions (e.g. by Nicaragua), Hong Kong Special Administrative Region passport holders enjoy visa exemptions and simplified visa procedures to a large number of destinations worldwide. Whilst the visa exemptions mostly only apply when Chinese citizens of Hong Kong are visiting on short trips for pleasure or on business, a number of countries extend the visa exemption to short stays involving paid activities (e.g. Belgium and Luxembourg).
Video Visa requirements for Chinese citizens of Hong Kong
Visa requirements map
Maps Visa requirements for Chinese citizens of Hong Kong
Visa requirements
Visa requirements for holders of normal passports travelling for tourist purposes:
Territories
Visa requirements for Chinese citizens of Hong Kong for visits to various territories, disputed areas, partially recognised countries and restricted zones:
Greater China
APEC Business Travel Card
Holders of an APEC Business Travel Card (ABTC) travelling on business do not require a visa to the following countries:
1 - up to 90 days
2 - up to 60 days
3 - up to 59 days
Permanent residents with Chinese nationality are required to use their Home Return Permits instead. Only holders of non-Chinese passports can use the card to enter Mainland China.
The card must be used in conjunction with a passport and has the following advantages:
- no need to apply for a visa or entry permit to APEC countries, as the card is treated as such (except by Canada and United States)
- undertake legitimate business in participating economies
- expedited border crossing in all member economies, including transitional members
- expedited scheduling of visa interview (United States)
Non-visa restrictions
Many countries have entry restrictions on foreigners that go beyond the common requirement of having either a valid visa or a visa exemption. Such restrictions may be health related or impose additional documentation requirements on certain classes of people for diplomatic or political purposes.
Passport validity length
Many countries require passports to be valid for at least 6 months upon arrival. However, some countries have bilateral agreements with other countries to shorten the period of passport validity required for each other's citizens or even accept passports that have already expired (but not been cancelled).
In the absence of specific bilateral agreements, countries requiring passports to be valid at least 6 months on arrival include Afghanistan, Algeria, Anguilla, Bahrain, Bhutan, Botswana, British Virgin Islands, Brunei, Cambodia, Cameroon, Cayman Islands, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Côte d'Ivoire, Curaçao, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Fiji, Gabon, Guinea Bissau, Guyana, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq (except when arriving at Basra and Erbil or Sulaimaniyah), Israel, Jordan, Kenya, Kiribati, Laos, Madagascar, Malaysia, Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Myanmar, Namibia, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Oman, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Qatar, Rwanda, Saint Lucia, Samoa, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Solomon Islands, Somalia, Somaliland, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Suriname, Taiwan, Tanzania, Thailand, Timor-Leste, Tokelau, Tonga, Tuvalu, Uganda, United Arab Emirates, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Vietnam, Yemen and Zimbabwe.
Countries requiring passports valid for at least 4 months on arrival include Micronesia and Zambia.
Countries requiring passports valid for at least 3 months on arrival include European Union countries (except Denmark, Republic of Ireland and the United Kingdom), and always excepting EU/EEA/Swiss nationals); Albania; Belarus; Georgia; Honduras; Iceland; Jordan; Kuwait, Lebanon; Liechtenstein; Moldova; Monaco; Nauru; Panama, Saint Barthélemy; San Marino; Switzerland and the United Arab Emirates.
Bermuda requires passports to be valid for at least 45 days upon entry.
Countries that require a passport validity of at least one month on arrival include Eritrea, Hong Kong, Macao, New Zealand and South Africa.
Other countries require either a passport valid on arrival or a passport valid throughout the period of the intended stay.
Blank passport pages
Many countries require a minimum number of blank pages in the passport being presented, generally one or two pages. Endorsement pages, which often appear after the visa pages, are not counted as being available.
Vaccination
Many African countries, including Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Republic of the Congo, Côte d'Ivoire, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Rwanda, São Tomé and Príncipe, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Uganda, and Zambia, require all incoming passengers to have a current International Certificate of Vaccination.
Some other countries require vaccination only if the passenger is coming from an infected area or has recently visited one.
Israeli stamps
Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen do not allow entry to people with passport stamps from Israel or whose passports have either a used or an unused Israeli visa, or where there is evidence of previous travel to Israel such as entry or exit stamps from neighbouring border posts in transit countries such as Jordan and Egypt.
To circumvent this Arab League boycott of Israel, the Israeli immigration services have now mostly ceased to stamp foreign nationals' passports on either entry to or exit from Israel. Since 15 January 2013, Israel no longer stamps foreign passports at Ben Gurion Airport, giving passengers a card instead that reads: "Since January 2013 a pilot scheme has been introduced whereby visitors are given an entry card instead of an entry stamp on arrival. You should keep this card with your passport until you leave. This is evidence of your legal entry into Israel and may be required, particularly at any crossing points into the Occupied Palestinian Territories." Passports are still (as of 22 June 2017) stamped at Erez when travelling into and out of Gaza. Also, passports are still stamped (as of 22 June 2017) at the Jordan Valley/Sheikh Hussein and Yitzhak Rabin/Arava land borders with Jordan.
Iran refuses admission to holders of passports containing an Israeli visa or stamp that is less than 12 months old.
Armenian ethnicity
Due to a state of war existing between Armenia and Azerbaijan, the government of Azerbaijan not only bans entry of citizens from Armenia, but also all citizens and nationals of any other country who are of Armenian descent, to the Republic of Azerbaijan (although there have been exceptions, notably for Armenia's participation at the 2015 European Games held in Azerbaijan).
Azerbaijan also strictly bans any visit by foreign citizens to the separatist region of Nagorno-Karabakh (the de facto independent Republic of Artsakh), its surrounding territories and the Azerbaijani exclaves of Karki, Yuxar? ?skipara, Barxudarl? and Sofulu which are de jure part of Azerbaijan but under control of Armenia, without the prior consent of the government of Azerbaijan. Foreign citizens who enter these occupied territories will be permanently banned from entering the Republic of Azerbaijan and will be included in their "list of personae non gratae". As of late 2017 the list contains 699 persons.
Upon request, the authorities of the largely unrecognized Republic of Artsakh may attach their visa and/or stamps to a separate piece of paper in order to avoid detection of travel to their country.
Criminal record
Some countries (for example, Canada and the United States) routinely deny entry to non-citizens who have a criminal record.
Persona non grata
The government of a country can declare a diplomat persona non grata, banning their entry into that country. In non-diplomatic use, the authorities of a country may also declare a foreigner persona non grata permanently or temporarily, usually because of unlawful activity. Attempts to enter the Gaza strip by sea may attract a 10-year ban on entering Israel.
Fingerprinting
Several countries mandate that all travellers, or all foreign travellers, be fingerprinted on arrival and will refuse admission to or even arrest those travellers that refuse to comply. In some countries, such as the United States, this may apply even to transit passengers who merely wish to quickly change planes rather than go landside.
Fingerprinting countries include Afghanistan, Argentina,Brunei, Cambodia, China when entering through Shenzhen airport, Ethiopia, Ghana, India, Japan, Malaysia upon entry and departure, Paraguay, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan and the United States.
Additionally, the United Arab Emirates conducts iris scanning on visitors that need to apply for a visa.
See also
- Visa requirements for British Nationals (Overseas)
- Visa requirements for Chinese citizens of Macau
- Visa requirements for Chinese citizens (mainland)
- Visa policy of Hong Kong
- Hong Kong Special Administrative Region passport
External links
- Official GovHK list of countries/territories offering visa-free access for Hong Kong SAR passport holders (Note: This list is not comprehensive as it excludes countries/territories without diplomatic relations with China)
Notes
References
Source of article : Wikipedia
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