Number of HK migrants to Britain falls

Mark O'Neill September 08, 2025 22:31

The number of Hong Kong BNO migrants to Britain has fallen this year, a result of uncertainty over when they will obtain full citizenship and the difficulties of finding good employment.

Latest figures from the British Home Office said that it granted 11,804 visas in the year ending June 2025, a fall of 47 percent compared to 22,219 grants in the year-earlier period. An estimated 5,000 have migrated this year.

The Home Office said that, since the launch of the BNO visa scheme in 2021, it had granted 181,609 visas, of whom over 166,300 have arrived in the UK.

There are several factors for the slowdown. One is the announcement in an Immigration White Paper on May 12 this year that doubled the standard time for immigrants to achieve settled status – citizenship -- from five years to ten.

It is not clear whether this will apply to Hong Kongers who arrived in Britain before that date. Many believe it will, because of the increasingly anti-foreign sentiment among the public.

So far only 600 Hong Kongers on the BNO have received settled status – but all of them had a UK visa before the start of the BNO scheme in January 2021.

In late August, the UK government published an in-depth survey of 50 HK migrants in the UK conducted by social research agency Verian in December 2023 and January 2024.

It found both positive and negative views. The two most negative were on employment and housing.

“Some participants benefitted professionally from moving to the UK, with the slower pace of work, better work-life balance and more reasonable management styles improving their experience at work.

“In contrast, others had reluctantly accepted lower salary levels compared to their earnings in Hong Kong or could not secure a role in the UK at the level for which they were qualified or had prior experience in Hong Kong. This prompted concerns around low social status and the risk of losing professional skills,” it said.

This corresponds with what many Hong Kong people here say. “Ten of my friends have emigrated to Britain,” said Leung Wing, a civil servant. “One couple was a nurse and a manager. The nurse found similar employment in Britain, but the manager is now driving a delivery van.

“He accepts that as the price of moving. You have to adapt to the new country you are in. It is a price worth paying to save their children from the education system here that is deteriorating,” he said.

“Financially, they are in good shape. They sold their home here at the top of the market, for HK$20 million. They have bought two properties there. They live in one and rent out the other. This is a common model for Hong Kong migrants,” he said.

The Verian study also found that many HKers faced systemic challenges in renting or buying accommodation. “Lack of knowledge about the process of buying a house caused issues for some, with exchange of contracts, buyer chains and audit requirements causing confusion,” it said.

“Most participants felt welcome in the UK and in their local community,” it said. It found four levels of integration. The top two were those who identified as British and those who felt very integrated in UK society.

The bottom two were “those who felt distant from UK locals and society and those who felt very isolated from UK society”. Those in these lower categories had poorer command of English, had been in the UK for a shorter time and had not so positive reasons for migrating.

A small but important minority had experienced discrimination, including verbal and physical abuse, as well as cultural, language and workplace discrimination. In some cases, this had long-lasting impact on them, including lower living standards, limited progression in the workplace and negative effect on self-esteem and sense of safety.

On September 8, the UK Parliament will debate a petition signed by 108,134 people that urges the government to exclude HK BNO migrants from the new 10-year rule for citizenship. It reads:

“Many Hongkongers on the BN(O) visa, including retired seniors, have started a new life in the UK after the imposition of the National Security Law. They followed the rules with the understanding that after five years, they could settle permanently if they met the English and civic knowledge requirements. We think changing these terms would break the UK's promises and cause stress and uncertainty for those who trusted in this humanitarian route. We urge the Government to honour its original commitment.”

This summer Britain has seen many protests against illegal immigrants, demanding that they be repatriated. This opposition is fuelled by the right-wing media and the Reform UK party. So far the Hong Kong migrants have not been targetted by this anger.

Mark O'Neill

A Hong Kong-based writer, teacher and speaker.