Who Has the Right of Abode in Hong Kong in 2026? The Six Categories
Six groups of people hold the right of abode in Hong Kong. The list comes from Schedule 1, paragraph 2 of the Immigration Ordinance (Cap. 115), which has applied since 1 July 1997, and the Immigration Department's "Right of Abode" FAQ page sets out all six. Fall into any one of them and you are a Hong Kong Special Administrative Region permanent resident with the right of abode. For readers abroad holding a foreign passport, three details decide most cases: where you were born, whether you completed seven continuous years of ordinary residence in Hong Kong, and whether you are still a Chinese national.
What are the six categories of people with the right of abode?
| Item | Who it covers |
|---|---|
| 1 | Chinese citizens born in Hong Kong, before or after the establishment of the HKSAR |
| 2 | Chinese citizens who have ordinarily resided in Hong Kong for a continuous period of seven years or more, before or after the establishment of the HKSAR |
| 3 | Children of Chinese nationality born outside Hong Kong, before or after the establishment of the HKSAR, to a Chinese citizen who at the time of the birth met item 1 or item 2 |
| 4 | Non-Chinese nationals who entered Hong Kong with a valid travel document, have ordinarily resided there for a continuous period of seven years or more, and have taken Hong Kong as their place of permanent residence |
| 5 | Children under 21 born in Hong Kong to a permanent resident described in item 4, where at the time of the birth, or at any time before the child turns 21, the father or mother already had the right of abode |
| 6 | People other than those in items 1 to 5 who, before the establishment of the HKSAR, had the right of abode in Hong Kong only |
Items 1 to 3 turn on Chinese nationality. Items 4 and 5 are the routes open to people who are not Chinese nationals, and item 6 preserves the position of people whose only right of abode, before 1 July 1997, was in Hong Kong.
Am I still a Chinese citizen if I hold a foreign passport?
Possibly yes. Take the situation the Immigration Department addresses in its FAQ: a person born in Hong Kong before the HKSAR was established, who emigrated in the 1980s and now travels on a foreign passport. Unless that person applied to the Immigration Department for a change of nationality and the application was approved, they remain a Chinese citizen. Length of absence makes no difference, and they stay a permanent resident with the right of abode under paragraph 2(a).
Approval is the turning point. Once a change of nationality is approved, the person is no longer treated as a Chinese citizen, and the six categories apply to them as a non-Chinese national. In the department's second example, a Hong Kong-born person who had been a permanent resident before 1 July 1997, had not returned to settle under the transitional provision in paragraph 6 of Schedule 1, and had been away for 36 months or more no longer held the right of abode — but kept the right to land, and could become a permanent resident again by meeting the non-Chinese conditions in item 4.
What does seven years of ordinary residence actually require?
Two items use the test. Item 2 covers Chinese citizens who have ordinarily resided in Hong Kong for seven continuous years or more. Item 4 covers non-Chinese nationals who entered Hong Kong with a valid travel document, have ordinarily resided there for seven continuous years or more, and have taken Hong Kong as their place of permanent residence.
For a non-Chinese applicant, the department states that the seven years must be the seven years immediately before the date of the application to the Director of Immigration, and that the applicant must be in Hong Kong and lawfully staying when applying. The application has to include a declaration that Hong Kong is the only place of permanent residence, supported by things such as a habitual residence in Hong Kong, whether the spouse and minor children are in Hong Kong, whether there is reasonable income to support the applicant and family, and whether taxes have been paid.
Absences during those seven years are not automatically fatal. The department treats a person as still ordinarily resident where the absence is temporary, weighing the reason, duration and frequency of the absence, whether the person keeps a habitual residence in Hong Kong, whether they are employed by a Hong Kong-based company, and where their spouse and minor children live.
Do children born abroad inherit the right of abode from a parent?
Only if they are Chinese nationals. Item 3 covers children of Chinese nationality born outside Hong Kong to a Chinese citizen who, at the time of the birth, met item 1 or item 2.
The nationality question is where many overseas families misjudge their position. Article 5 of the PRC Nationality Law gives Chinese nationality to a child born abroad with one or both parents Chinese citizens, but excludes a child who acquired foreign nationality at birth while a Chinese-national parent was already settled abroad. Holding foreign permanent resident status — living there ordinarily and free of any limit on stay — is generally treated as settled abroad. A child born in the United States to a parent who had settled there, and who holds US citizenship from birth, is therefore not a Chinese national and cannot claim the right of abode through that parent.
Item 5 works differently. It covers children under 21 born in Hong Kong to a non-Chinese permanent resident described in item 4, where the father or mother held the right of abode at the birth or at any time before the child turns 21. Birth in Hong Kong is part of the condition.
Can my spouse get the right of abode by marrying me?
No. The Immigration Department states that the spouse of a Hong Kong permanent resident does not acquire the right of abode through marriage. A spouse qualifies only by meeting one of the six categories personally — in practice, item 4, after seven continuous years of ordinary residence in Hong Kong as a non-Chinese national.
How do non-Chinese permanent residents lose the right of abode?
The trigger is 36 months of absence, once ordinary residence has ended. The department lists these cases:
- Item 4 residents — after ceasing to ordinarily reside in Hong Kong, 36 months or more of continuous absence.
- Item 5 children — the same 36-month rule, and in any event they stop being permanent residents at 21 unless they personally meet item 4; if they do, they may apply to the Director of Immigration for verification.
- Item 6 residents — 36 months or more away, after acquiring a right of abode in any place outside Hong Kong and ceasing to ordinarily reside in Hong Kong.
- Children under 21 born in Hong Kong on or after 1 July 1997 to item 6 residents, who at birth had no right of abode anywhere, including Hong Kong, other than a right of abode obtained under this provision — the same rule, plus the age-21 cut-off.
- Non-Chinese people who were already permanent residents before 1 July 1997 — 36 months or more away, after ceasing to ordinarily reside.
No discretion exists to extend or waive the period. Under paragraph 7(a) of Schedule 1, the 36 months apply even where the absence was caused by something unforeseen — the department has said so in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. What section 2(6) of the Immigration Ordinance does allow is a decision on whether the person ever ceased to ordinarily reside, using the same four factors listed above; a person the department is satisfied had not ceased to ordinarily reside does not lose their status.
Chinese nationals sit differently. They do not lose permanent resident status through absence, however long, unless they have applied for and been approved to renounce Chinese nationality or change nationality.
Losing the right of abode is not the same as losing access to Hong Kong. A person who loses it automatically has the right to land, which allows them to enter and leave Hong Kong freely and to live, study or work there without any limit. The department handles questions about whether status has been lost through the same verification application described below.
How is permanent resident status verified?
A valid permanent identity card is the evidence that its holder has the right of abode. To be registered for one, a person must show they are eligible to register under the Registration of Persons Ordinance and its regulations; the department runs an administrative arrangement that lets people apply first for verification of eligibility for a permanent identity card.
Applications go to the Immigration Department's Right of Abode Section, online or by post with copies of supporting documents, on form ROP145 for applicants generally, and on forms ROP169 or ROP170 for one-way permit holders aged 18 or over and under 18 respectively. The applicant must be in Hong Kong when applying, and applications from overseas are not processed. With complete documents the department normally takes six weeks, though the time depends on the complexity of the case and the number of applications being handled. If an applicant leaves Hong Kong before the result, the department issues a letter confirming that eligibility has been verified, which can be taken to a registration office on the next return.
Verification of eligibility and the first issue of a permanent identity card are both free. A child under 11 who holds a valid foreign travel document can instead have the verified status endorsed on that document, which carries a fee set out in the Immigration Department's fee tables; the child must be in Hong Kong for the verification and the endorsement, and can apply for a permanent identity card from age 11 if they have not lost the right of abode.
This is general information about how the ordinance and the department's published answers read, not an assessment of any individual's status — the department decides each application on its own facts, so for your own position rely on official information or advice from a qualified practitioner.
Frequently Asked Questions
I was born in Hong Kong and now hold a foreign passport. Do I still have the right of abode?
If you were born in Hong Kong as a Chinese citizen, a foreign passport on its own does not end your status. You remain a Chinese citizen unless you applied to the Immigration Department for a change of nationality and it was approved, and you keep the right of abode under paragraph 2(a) however long you have been away. Approval of a change of nationality is the turning point, after which you are assessed as a non-Chinese national.
I am not a Chinese national and have lived in Hong Kong for more than seven years. Do I have the right of abode automatically?
No — you have to apply to the Director of Immigration for verification, and you must be in Hong Kong and lawfully staying when you apply. The seven years must be the seven years immediately before the application date, and you must declare Hong Kong as your only place of permanent residence. Residence length alone does not confer the status.
My child was born abroad after I settled overseas. Can they get the right of abode through me?
Only if they are a Chinese national. Under Article 5 of the PRC Nationality Law, a child born abroad who acquired foreign nationality at birth, while a Chinese-national parent was settled abroad, does not have Chinese nationality and cannot claim the right of abode through that parent. Holding foreign permanent resident status is generally treated as being settled abroad.
Can my foreign spouse get the right of abode through our marriage?
No. Marriage to a Hong Kong permanent resident does not confer the right of abode. A spouse qualifies only by meeting one of the six categories personally, usually item 4 after seven continuous years of ordinary residence in Hong Kong as a non-Chinese national.
I have been outside Hong Kong for more than three years. Have I lost my permanent resident status?
For non-Chinese permanent residents, the rule is 36 months or more of continuous absence after ceasing to ordinarily reside in Hong Kong. The department can still decide that you had not ceased to ordinarily reside, weighing the reason and pattern of your absences, a habitual residence in Hong Kong, employment by a Hong Kong-based company, and where your spouse and minor children live. Even if the right of abode is lost, the right to land remains, allowing you to live, study or work in Hong Kong freely.
Does the Immigration Department make exceptions for events like the pandemic?
No discretion exists to extend or waive the 36-month period, including for COVID-19-related absence; the department has stated this in relation to paragraph 7(a) of Schedule 1. What it can decide, under section 2(6), is whether a person ceased to ordinarily reside at all. Chinese nationals are unaffected by absence in any case, unless an approved renunciation or change of nationality applies.
Is there a fee to have permanent resident status verified?
Verification of eligibility for a permanent identity card and the first issue of the card are free. An endorsement on a child's foreign travel document carries a fee set out in the Immigration Department's fee tables.