Updated briefing: Hong Kongers who have fled to the UK are being denied access to over £3 billion in savings
Hong Kongers who have fled to the UK on the BNO visa scheme are being denied access to over £3 billion held in Mandatory Provident Fund (MPF) retirement savings schemes by banks, including by the UK-headquartered HSBC and Standard Chartered, an updated Hong Kong Watch briefing estimates.
Hong Kong Watch continues to see several letters from banks to individuals, rejecting their early MPF withdrawal claims based on guidance from the Hong Kong government to the Mandatory Provident Fund Authority (MPFA) which supervises the provision of MPF schemes. The latest briefing includes five case studies which illustrate how the withholding of Hong Kongers’ hard-earned savings has affected their families in the UK and Hong Kong, as well as various aspects of their integration into the UK.
The MPF is a compulsory retirement saving scheme for the people of Hong Kong and ordinarily anyone permanently leaving Hong Kong is entitled to withdraw their savings. However, a unilateral declaration from the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs in response to the opening of the BNO visa scheme in January 2021 to no longer recognise the BNO identity has blocked access for hundreds of thousands of Hong Kongers. This retaliatory action was conducted by fiat with no laws or regulations being changed in Hong Kong regarding the operation of the Mandatory Provident Fund.
Hong Kong Watch continues to actively engage in discussions with MPF trustees as well as cross-department government and parliamentary representatives to ultimately release the MPF savings of BNO visa holders. In the briefing, Hong Kong Watch’s recommendations include:
MPF trustees should release the MPF savings of Hong Kongers, recognising that the statement from the MPFA refusing to accept the BNO passport of a valid form of identification for the early withdrawal of MPF is a retaliatory action conducted by fiat with no laws or regulations being changed in Hong Kong regarding the operation of the MPF.
MPF trustees, including UK-headquartered HSBC and Standard Chartered, should meet with Hong Kong Watch to increase their understanding of MPF-related issues affecting the Hong Kong community.
The UK government should provide a formalised statement of the intention of BNO visa holders to apply for British citizenship, which BNO visa holders can present to UK-based MPF trustees should they be denied access to their MPF savings, given that 99% of Hong Kongers who hold a BNO visa intend to apply for British citizenship.
These updated findings follow Hong Kong Watch research from April 2023 showing that Hong Kongers who have fled to the UK are being denied access to over £2.2 billion in savings held in the MPF.
The full briefing can be read here.
Megan Khoo, Research and Policy Advisor of Hong Kong Watch, said:
“Hong Kong Watch continues to make every effort to release the hard-earned Mandatory Provident Fund savings of BNO visa holders who have fled to the UK. We have met with the appropriate business executives to address this issue, and hope to meet with representatives from HSBC and Standard Chartered to explain how the withholding of MPF is affecting the Hong Kong community. It is important that these London-headquartered trustees explain to its customers why they continue to block access to their savings under a fickle mandate from an authoritarian government.”
香港監察最新簡報估計移英港人被扣起逾30億英鎊強積金
香港監察最新簡報估計，總部設於英國的滙豐和渣打銀行等金融機構拒絕讓經BNO簽證計劃移居英國的香港人提取總值超過30億英鎊的強積金儲蓄。
香港監察繼續查看若干銀行致個別港人的信函，發現銀行按照香港政府向強制性公積金計劃管理局（積金局）發出的指引，拒絕個別港人提早提取強積金的申請。最新簡報載有五項個案研究，說明扣押香港人的血汗儲蓄如何影響他們在英國和香港的家庭，以及融入英國的各方面事宜。
強積金制度是香港當局為就業人士而設的強制性退休儲蓄計劃。任何人擬永久離開香港，一般有權提取強積金儲蓄。然而，中國外交部因應英國政府在2021年1月開放BNO簽證計劃，單方面宣布不再承認BNO身分，導致數十萬港人無法提取強積金。肇事者聽命展開這種報復行動，有關強積金運作的香港法律或法規並沒有改變。
上述最新調查結果跟進香港監察在2023年4月發表的研究，有關研究顯示移英港人被扣起高達22億英鎊強積金儲蓄。
請在此處閱覽簡報全文。
香港監察研究及政策顧問Megan Khoo表示：
「香港監察繼續竭力協助移居英國的BNO簽證持有人取回辛苦賺來的強積金儲蓄。我們已與相關企業高層會面，務求解決這個問題，並希望會見滙豐和渣打銀行的代表，解釋扣押強積金對香港社群有何影響。這些英國受託人必須向客戶解釋為何持續按照獨裁政府反覆無常的命令，阻撓他們提取儲蓄。」