UK to offer financial aid to special BN(O) visa holders in dire straits
The United Kingdom will offer public funds to those special British National (Overseas) visa holders who are considered in extreme poverty or at imminent risk of destitution, waiving a prerequisite that denies those Hongkongers’ access to any financial assistance.
The British authorities will also amend the immigration regulations in order to enable those Hongkongers to apply for help, according to a document published by the Home Office on Thursday.
“A person in the U.K. with permission on the Hong Kong BN(O) route may have that permission varied to remove a no access to public funds condition,” the document read, adding that they have to provide proof that the assistance is needed to ensure “the welfare of a child of a parent in receipt of a very low income or the applicant is facing exceptional financial circumstances relating to a very low income.”
The application for the waiver will be considered on a case-by-case basis, the Home Office added.
The British government on Jan. 31 started the so-called 5+1 program, a special five-year visa for BN(O) passport holders and their close family members that can pave the way to U.K. citizenship. The decision was made in response to Beijing’s recent crackdown on the former British colony’s high degree of autonomy as set out in the Basic Law — the city’s mini-constitution — following months of anti-government protests in 2019.
Many, however, have expressed concerns about the difficulties Hongkongers will face finding a job during the pandemic in the U.K. The organization Hongkongers in Britain has repeatedly expressed concerns over the financial difficulties people might face in the U.K.
Hongkongers in Britain “would like to extend our sincere gratitude to the Home Office for responding to our concerns,” the group said in a statement, “and consistently supporting grassroots families based on compassionate grounds, which is a principle at the core of the BN(O) visa policy.”
Meanwhile, the Home Office has opened a Cantonese hotline at +44 (0)300 790 6268, which runs from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Hong Kong time, to help visa applicants.
Calls are charged at 69 pence (95 US cents) per minute on top of the standard network charges, while each email inquiry costs 2.74 pounds and will take two working days to process. There will be no additional charge for follow-up emails on the same inquiry.
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