Student Exchange
Student
Visa
If you wish to enter Hong Kong for education and you do not have the
right of abode or right to land in Hong Kong, you MUST obtain a
student visa from the Immigration Department (of the Government of
the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region) BEFORE coming to Hong
Kong. Application Procedure To apply for such a visa, you should complete the application form ID995A "Application for Entry for Study in Hong Kong" in BLOCK (CAPITAL) LETTERS with (i) your photograph affixed on it; (ii) photocopies of your travel document containing your personal particulars, its issuance and expiry dates and details of any re-entry visa held (if applicable); and (iii) evidence of your financial standing, e.g. bank statements, savings account passbooks, scholarship letters, etc. Your travel document should be valid for at least six months beyond the intended stay in Hong Kong. The completed application form should be returned TOGETHER with your HKBU "Application for Enrollment - Study Abroad/Exchange Students" to us. Do NOT submit your visa application directly to the Hong Kong Immigration Department as that will slow down the process. As your sponsor, HKBU will complete form ID995B "Application for Entry for Study (Sponsor)". The whole set of documents will then be submitted to the Hong Kong Immigration Department on your behalf. It normally takes six weeks for the Immigration Department to process a visa application. If your application is successful, a student visa will be issued to you. HKBU will collect the visa for you, and will mail it to you. When you receive the visa, please attach it to a blank page in your travel document. Be sure that the immigration officer sees the visa and enters you into Hong Kong on the student status. Otherwise, the officer may issue you a tourist visa which will not allow you to begin studies in Hong Kong. Do draw attention to the visa; sometimes the immigration officer might overlook it. Conditions for a Person holding Student Visa Status It is clearly stipulated by the Immigration Department that any person entering Hong Kong as a student shall be subject to the following conditions of stay that: (a) he/she shall become a student only at a specified school, university or other educational institution and undertake such course of study as may be approved by the Director of Immigration; and (b) he/she shall not (i) take any employment, whether paid or unpaid; or (ii) establish or join in any business. Useful Link/Information The Immigration Department http://www.info.gov.hk/immd/ |