Hong Kong Watch hosts Cantonese workshop on the BNO visa and services in London

On Saturday, Hong Kong Watch hosted a Cantonese workshop on the BNO visa and services in central London, aiming to help Hong Kongers in London to understand issues around the BNO visa, access to healthcare services, and taxation in the UK.

The workshop, which attracted around 30 BNO Hong Kongers from across London, brought together representatives from local services and non-profit groups, including Hong Kong Aid, Hong Kong Nursing Association UK, and Barnardo’s. We were also joined by Thomas Fung, a chartered professional accountant and Hong Kong community volunteer.

Together, our four speakers discussed various topics surrounding the BNO visa and government services in the UK. These included questions on BNO visa renewal and application for settlement status, access to NHS healthcare, issues surrounding taxation and tax law in the UK, and Barnardo’s mental health and wellbeing programme, which offers a Cantonese hotline for BNOs.

Our speakers gave a brief overview of their work and services, and had the chance to meet and speak with Hong Kongers individually over light refreshments. They each handled questions from the audience related to their individual expertise and background. The discussion was lively with plenty of questions from the audience, reflecting the interest among the BNO community in better understanding the services available to them under the BNO visa policy.

We would like to thank our four speakers and all attendees for participating in this event.

This event is part of Hong Kong Watch’s civic and political engagement series, which aims to encourage community building and provide resources for BNOs to participate in civic spaces. This event is supported by the GLA’s Hong Kong Welcome Hub Empowerment Fund, and is part of a strictly cross-party and impartial series.

香港監察舉辦廣東話BNO工作坊 解答BNO簽證政策、國民保健及稅務疑難

上週六，香港監察在倫敦市中心就BNO簽證政策和服務舉辦廣東話工作坊，活動旨在為倫敦港人解答有關BNO簽證政策、國民保健服務和稅務的問題。

工作坊吸引了約30名來自倫敦各區的BNO港人參與，同時邀請了分別來自港援、英國香港護士協會和 Barnardo’s等本地服務機構和非牟利組織的代表。我們亦邀請了特許專業會計師兼香港社區義工Thomas Fung。

四位講者的分享圍繞有關BNO簽證和BNO港人可享用的服務等主題，其中包括BNO簽證續期和申請定居身分、如何獲得國民保健（NHS）服務、英國稅務和稅制問題，以及Barnardo’s提供的心理健康和福祉計劃，有關計劃特別為BNO設立了廣東話服務熱線。

四位講者先簡單分享他們的工作和提供的服務，然後與參加者個別見面交流，一邊享用茶點，一邊以個人專業知識和背​​景回應參加者的問題。現場氣氛生動熱烈，參加者提出了眾多問題，反映出BNO社群有意深入了解BNO簽證政策下他們能使用的服務。

香港監察非常感謝四位講者和所有參加者參與今次活動。

今次活動香港監察公民及政治參與系列的一部分，計劃旨在促進社區連繫，並向BNO社群提供資源，鼓勵參與公民活動。活動由大倫敦政府Hong Kong Welcome Hub Empowerment Fund贊助，所屬系列完全跨黨派和中立。