This article provides an overview of the permissible activities as a standard visitor in Hong Kong.

Hong Kong

General

Regulation 2(1) of the Immigration Regulations (Chapter 115A), Laws of Hong Kong, stipulates that permission given to a person to land in Hong Kong as a visitor shall be subject to the following conditions of stay:

• he shall not take any employment, whether paid or unpaid;

• he shall not establish or join in any business; and

• he shall not become a student at a school, university or other educational institution.

Any person who contravenes a condition of stay in force in respect of him shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction to a maximum fine of HK$50,000 and to imprisonment for 2 years under section 41 of the Immigration Ordinance (Chapter 115), Laws of Hong Kong.

Permissible Activities for Visitors

Business-related activities

A person permitted to enter the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (“HKSAR”) as a visitor may generally engage in the following business-related activities:

• concluding contracts or submitting tenders;

• examining or supervising the installation/packaging of goods or equipment;

• participating in exhibitions or trade fairs (except selling goods or supplying services direct to the general public, or constructing exhibition booths);

• settling compensation or other civil proceedings;

• participating in product orientation; and

• attending short-term seminars or other business meetings.

Speech(es) / presentation(s)

Besides, a person permitted to enter the HKSAR as a visitor may also attend event(s) to deliver speech(es)/presentation(s) subject to the following conditions being met:

• he/she will not be remunerated for speaking/presenting at the event (other than provision of accommodation, passage, meals, etc. relating to the event, or the reimbursement of such expenses), unless he/she participates in sector-specific speaking engagements under the Pilot Scheme on Immigration Facilitation for Visitors Participating in Short-term Activities (“the Pilot Scheme for STV”) where remuneration is allowed for individual sectors as recommended by the subject Government Bureaux / Departments; and

• during each period of permitted stay, there is no maximum limit on the number of event(s), he/she can attend to deliver speech(es)/presentation(s) up to 14 consecutive calendar days, counting from the day when he/she starts to participate in such event(s).