Visa question regarding overseas consultants / employee exchange

[tifbs]

Hello all!

I have some general questions regarding visas that some of you may have experience in or can advise.

Scenario: So, lets say, company with UK headquarters and office in HK. The company is sending a staff from UK to their HK office to oversee/work on a project(s) for 1 month period only. The employee they send over is Brit, with no HKID. This employee however will still continue to be paid by the UK office as per normal.

1. Would this employee need a work visa?

2. Could a training visa be applied for instead (depending on the role/responsibilities expected for the duration)? Is this type of visa easier in any way to get?

3. As a Brit, since you get 6 months holiday visa, could that person simply not mention this at all and just turn up at the HK office for a month? How advisable would this situation be?! Does the company (HK office) need to in any way register with local authorities that an oversees staff will be working temporary for 1 month?

4. Slightly different scenario - what if two different companies in different countries were trying to arrange some sort of employee exchange? Literally, like for like, to take over the role of the other for 1 month? Officially, the parent companies in the home countries will still continue to pay for the salary, so will a work or training visa still be required?

Good to hear your thoughts on this!

Thank you for reading.

[PDLM]

1. Probably not, but formally it depends on exactly what they are doing (see below). In practice, no they don't unless they are selling to the general public or being paid in Hong Kong.

2. N/A

3. No - you get a 6 month Visitor Visa. From ImmD:

A person permitted to enter Hong Kong as a visitor may generally engage in the following business-related activities:
(a) concluding contracts or submitting tenders;
(b) examining or supervising the installation/packaging of goods or equipment;
(c) participating in exhibitions or trade fairs (except selling goods or supplying services direct to the general public, or constructing exhibition booths),
(d) settling compensation or other civil proceedings;
(e) participating in product orientation; and
(f) attending short-term seminars or other business meetings.

Overseas employees of multinationals work on short-term projects in Hong Kong all the time on Visitor Visas. It's not a big deal.

4. Not sure, but similar to above in practice I would say not.