Canada’s lifeboat scheme for Hong Kongers: HKW explainer
Summary
On 12 November, the Canadian Immigration Minister Marco Mendicino announced the creation of lifeboat scheme for Hong Kongers after intense calls from Hong Kong groups for the Government to implement a similar scheme to the UK or Australia.
The announcement followed the decision by the Hong Kong authorities to disqualify four pro-democracy lawmakers from the Legislative Council after the China's National People's Congress Standing Committee passed a resolution stating that ‘lawmakers should be disqualified if they support Hong Kong independence, refuse to acknowledge China's sovereignty, ask foreign forces to interfere in the city's affairs or in other ways threaten national security.’
Canada is now the third country, including the UK and Australia, to offer some form of lifeboat scheme to Hong Kongers in response to the introduction of the National Security Law in July 2020.
Details of the scheme
The Canadian Government’s announcement on lifeboat was split into three distinctive components:
1. Young talents: A new youth work visa scheme targeted at Hong Kong students and their dependents, which would allow a pathway to Canadian citizenship.
2. Asylum: Changes to Canada’s asylum rules for Hong Kongers, including waiving the usual one-year period for failed asylum claimants and ensuring Hong Kongers will not be disqualified from making a claim by virtue of a charge under the National Security Law.
3. Family reunification: The announcement of additional resources to process to speed up processing of permanent residence applications, including for family sponsorship.[1]
A new pathway for ‘young talents’
The most substantive part of the Canadian Government’s announcement regards the creation of a new three-year work visa scheme that would allow Hong Kongers to work in Canada as a pathway to citizenship.
Considering the Hong Kong Government’s records of Hong Kongers aged between 21-28 with post-secondary education, it realistic that at least 200,000 Hong Kongers could potentially be eligible to move to Canada to take up the scheme[2].
Background regarding the UK’s BNO scheme
This follows the announcement by the UK Government in July 2020 of a BNO visa that would allow 2.9 million Hong Kongers with British National Overseas status to apply to work and live in the UK as a pathway to citizenship.
While generous, only Hong Kongers born before the handover in 1997 and their dependents are entitled to apply for BNO status. The youngest BNOs are 23 and ‘outside of exceptional circumstances’, only dependents under the age of 18 will be able to move to the UK with their parents who are BNOs.
Canada’s ‘young talents’ pathway for Hong Kong graduates and their dependents would go some way to filling this gap in the UK’s BNO scheme.
Who qualifies?
The scheme is targeted at individuals with a Hong Kong passport or BNO passport holders who have graduated from post-secondary institutions in the past five years.
Principal applicants will be able to include spouses, partners, and dependent children in their application.
How does the work permit operate?
Those eligible will receive a three-year work visa. They will not need to have a job offer or employer sponsorship to receive the work permit.
What about Hong Kongers currently in Canada who want to apply for this new pathway?
The Canadian Government has announced it will waive processing fees for Hong Kong residents in Canada on a temporary basis who apply to renew their status to extend their stay.
This includes waiving the application fees for temporary resident visas ($100), work visas ($155), and student visas ($150).[3]
The Canadian Government has yet to announce when the scheme will open in 2021, beyond making it clear that the scheme will open in early 2021.
In the meantime, the Canadian Government has announced that it will give priority processing to student visa applications from Hong Kongers.[4]
Hong Kongers who have gained a minimum of 1 year of authorized work experience in Canada and meet other criteria such as minimum language and education levels already are eligible to apply for permanent resident status in Canada.
Asylum
The Canadian Government’s announcement also included modifications to the asylum process to make it easier for individual Hong Kongers to claim asylum in Canada, which local Hong Kong groups in Canada have previously campaigned for.
Background
There are two asylum routes into Canada:
- The Government sponsored route, which normally requires a blanket designation from the UN High Commissioner for Refugees that there is a humanitarian crisis taking place in the asylum applicant’s home country.
- Refugees can also receive private sponsorship from community groups within Canada that have signed sponsorship agreements with the Canadian Government to help support refugees from abroad when they resettle in the country.[5]
Individuals who are already in the country can claim for the In-Canada Asylum Program for refugee protection, if they ‘have a well-founded a well-founded fear of persecution or are at risk of torture, or cruel or unusual punishment in their home countries.’[6]
In October 2020, Canada granted asylum to two Hong Kong activists who fled to the country citing political persecution if they stayed in Hong Kong.
According to statistics from the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, authorities registered 25 referred cases from Hong Kong of alleged persecution from January to June – 37 claims were pending as of June 30. None of the claims was finalised as of the end of June.
Hong Kongers without Canadian citizenship or a relevant work or student visa are unable to travel to Canada as a result of COVID-19 border restrictions. This has impacted on the number who have been able to physically make it to the country to claim asylum.
What are the changes to the asylum process?
The Canadian Government has announced that arrests and convictions in Hong Kong for actions not considered an offence in Canada will not be grounds for inadmissibility for Hong Kongers to apply for asylum, this includes any convictions under the National Security Law.
Ministers have also announced that Hong Kong applicants will be exempt from the 12 month-bar on reapplying for a pre-removal risk assessment, which examines the risk an individual may face if they are returned to their home country.
Family reunification
In terms of family reunification, the Canadian Government has pledged to increase the promotion of ‘super-visas’ for parents and grandparents and promised to speed up the processing of permanent residence applications, including for family sponsorship.
The Canadian Government has also expanded the definition of family relations that are able to apply for family reunification to cover extended family. This means that Hong Kongers who have a Canadian relative or partner will have a pathway to move to Canada and claim temporary resident status.
Currently immediate family of a Canadian citizen is defined as:
· ‘the spouse or common-law partner;
· the dependent children of the person or of the person’s spouse or common-law partner;
· any dependent children of a dependent child;
· parents or step-parents;
· parents or step-parents of the spouse or common-law partner;
· guardians or tutors;
· Guardians and tutors are individuals who are responsible for caring for a foreign national minor who is living apart from a parent for an extended period of time, for example to attend a secondary school in Canada. The guardian or tutor should be able to demonstrate that they habitually reside at the same address as the minor. Officers should be flexible in accepting documentary evidence.’
The Canadian Government’s definition of extended family in respect to a Canadian citizen will now include:
· ‘an individual who is in an exclusive dating relationship with the person, has been in such a relationship for at least 1 year and has spent time in the physical presence of the person during the course of the relationship
· a dependent child of the person in the exclusive dating relationship
· a child of the person, of their spouse or common-law partner or of the person in the exclusive dating relationship
· a dependent child of a child (that is, a grandchild)
· a sibling, half-sibling or step-sibling of the person or of the person’s spouse or common-law partner
· a grandparent of the person or of the person’s spouse or common-law partner.’[7]
Background
There are estimated to be over 300,000 Canadians living in Hong Kong and over 500,000 Hong Kong Canadians living in Canada, making family reunification policy a vital part of any lifeboat scheme for Hong Kongers.
Outstanding issues
Timeline
The Minister for Immigration has confirmed that the scheme will likely open in early 2021, but has yet to announce the specific date.
To meet the rationale for a targeted scheme aimed at young Hong Kongers not covered by the UK’s BNO scheme and to maximise its effectiveness, the Canadian Government must ensure its timeline for opening is in sync with other lifeboat schemes.
Fees and other costs
The Canadian Government has yet to announce the fees for the new visa scheme and the costs that Hong Kongers will need to pay to support themselves, including the ability to pay for their accommodation, tuition fees for their studies, and in some cases for health insurance.
Given the humanitarian rationale for the scheme and the fact that the Canadian Government has waived application fees for Hong Kongers already resident in Canada wishing to apply for the new visa, the Canadian Government should ensure that fees and costs do not become an obstacle for young Hong Kongers being able to take up the scheme.
One area that deserves further consideration, is whether Hong Kongers who take up this new work visa scheme will be entitled to student finance to help cover the cost of their studies.
Accessibility for Hong Kongers without post-secondary qualifications
Around half of Hong Kongers aged between 21-28 do not have post-secondary qualifications and will struggle under Canada’s current youth working holiday visa to gain the one year of work experience to allow them to apply for permanent resident status.
Asylum processing
Currently Hong Kongers are unable to travel to Canada as a result of COVID-19 border restrictions, this has hampered the ability of vulnerable Hong Kong activists to claim asylum with many ending up in the UK or other Western countries that still have their borders open.
The Canadian Government should consider waving travel restrictions for Hong Kongers wishing to claim asylum or alternatively allow them to begin their application process in a Canadian Embassy or Consulate outside of Hong Kong.
Family reunification
Given the substantial size of the Hong Kong diaspora in Canada and the number of Canadians living in Hong Kong, barriers to family reunification will continue to be a persistent issue. The Canadian Government should consider reviewing its family reunification policy regarding Hong Kong, to make it easier for Hong Kongers with family in Canada to move, including the introduction of a special temporary resident visa issued as part of the family sponsorship process.
Recommendations
1. Extending Canada’s youth working holiday visa
The Canadian Government should extend its youth working holiday visa from one year to two years and expand the age group from 18-30 to 18-35. This would bring it into line with Australia’s working holiday scheme and ensure that Hong Kongers without post-secondary education have the opportunity to apply for permanent resident status.
2. Reviewing COVID-travel restrictions
The Canadian Government should urgently review the impact of COVID-19 travel restrictions on the ability of Hong Kongers to claim asylum. This should include examining whether it would be possible to allow Hong Kongers to start their asylum application in Canadian embassies and consulates outside of Hong Kong.
3. Extending family reunification
The Canadian Government should extend the criteria for family reunification to include Hong Kongers who have a Canadian aunt or uncle.
4. Extending the exemption for asylum applicants convicted of crimes in Hong Kong
The Canadian Government should commit to ensuring that convictions for ‘rioting’ or ‘unlawful assembly’ both of which are crimes in Canada will not be grounds for inadmissibility for Hong Kongers to apply for asylum.
Reference
[1] https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/news/2020/11/measures-to-support-hong-kong-residents-including-youth-to-come-to-canada.html
[2] https://www.statistics.gov.hk/pub/B11201042016XXXXB0100.pdf
[3] https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/corporate/publications-manuals/operational-bulletins-manuals/service-delivery/hong-kong.html?fbclid=IwAR3UkjRq7bJ-rIIxspJGl6oPqVNcztNiwyVFK68zCiV7in2ymzXoS4XASAw
[4] https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/corporate/publications-manuals/operational-bulletins-manuals/service-delivery/hong-kong.html?fbclid=IwAR3UkjRq7bJ-rIIxspJGl6oPqVNcztNiwyVFK68zCiV7in2ymzXoS4XASAw
[5] https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/refugees/canada-role.html
[6] https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/refugees/canada-role.html
[7] https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/corporate/publications-manuals/operational-bulletins-manuals/service-delivery/coronavirus/travel-restrictions.html#immediate-family-members