Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what guidance is provided to BN(O) caseworkers on assessing the provenance, completeness and reliability of Hong Kong court judgments and prosecution records used in visa suitability decisions.

Applications to the BN(O) route are subject to the same suitability requirements that apply across the immigration system. These provisions provide important safeguards against serious criminality, deception and other conduct. Caseworkers consider suitability in accordance with the Immigration Rules and published BN(O) route and suitability caseworker guidance, which can be found here:

Hong Kong British National (Overseas) (BNO) route: caseworker guidance - GOV.UK

Grounds for refusal – criminality: caseworker guidance - GOV.UK

All applications are considered on a case by case. Caseworker guidance for the BN(O) route provides flexibility to ensure that overseas convictions for offences not recognised in UK law, or offences that attract substantially higher penalties overseas than they would in the UK, do not result in the automatic refusal of an application. Ministers also have residual discretion to grant leave outside the rules in exceptional cases.

There are no specific transitional arrangements relating to previously disclosed Hong Kong convictions. Applications are assessed against the Immigration Rules and guidance in force at the date of decision.

We are aware of concerns that some Hong Kongers may have been refused on suitability grounds following convictions arising from politically motivated prosecutions in Hong Kong. The Government is keeping the operation of the BN(O) route under careful review to ensure it continues to reflect its policy intent and the UK's commitment to the Hong Kong community.