What documents are actually required to obtain a HKG permanent residence ID?

Question

The Hong Kong Government lists the following requirements for foreign residents that want to get a permanent HKG ID:

• Proof of 7 years continuous ordinary residence in Hong Kong immediately before the date of the application for permanent resident status, such as school documents, employment proof, official receipts, bank statements or income tax receipts
• Travel document showing entry to Hong Kong and your current condition of stay in the HKSAR

Assuming that I do not have the travel documents and bank statements anymore, how important are these and how important are those? Can someone with experience of not having full documentation of their stay in Hong Kong confirm what the minimum requirements are?

Answer 1

You will need a bill, showing a HK address, or a letter from a property owner saying you live there (or lease agreements or something). You will need to prove that you've been in HK for a continuous 7 years, not leaving for more than 2 years at a time. You will probably require a bank account statement, or proof of income tax payment. For travel documents, your passport with entrance and exit stamps showing continuous 7 years should be sufficient (Now that we're not using stamps, it's important to keep those little paper slips!). A lease agreement, or phone bill or something (mailed to your address) works too. You don't need to prove that you've been here for 7 years, as you renewed your ID card a few years ago, so you just have to prove from that time until now really.

That said, you can get away with not having all of these requirements in certain situations. If you are married to a HK National, it will be easier to slough off some of these requirements, especially if you have a child. The HK government is pretty adherent to rules, but if you write a long winded essay about why you don't have the necessary documentation, and alleviate the concerns of the immigration agent, then exceptions can be made. If you are not married to a HK national, or you don't have HK residence or employment, your chances aren't going to be great.