Extension of Stay: HKPR Dependent Not Living in HK

[shree711]

Hello All,

My brother-in-law has a dependant visa for HK but does not live in HK. He's a dependant of my sister, who is a HK PR. Now it's been almost a year since his 1st entry into Hong Kong on the dependant visa and therefore time to apply for the extension of stay. Most of the forms seem quite straightforward, however there is one form (Form ID481A), which has a point like this:

I have been away from the HKSAR in the past 12 months for: 9 months or more
And then underneath it asks to provide a reason (with supporting documents, if any).




Does anyone know what kind of reasons appear to be reasonable? Is this point a major issue at all?

[PLamHK]

If he has no reason then I'd say that the chances of an extension are slim. The purpose of the visa is to take up residence in Hong Kong. He has apparently not done that, so unless you can show clear plans that he will do so in the near future I would expect it to be refused. Presumably he is trying to get a backdoor route to PR here, but that simply won't work. Even if the Dependent Visa is extended, when it comes to apply for PR the onus is on the applicant to show that they have ordinarily resided in HK for a continuous period of 7 years, not simply that they have wangled a visa to cover that period. That needs proof of residence, bank accounts, taxes paid etc.

[shree711]

If he has no reason then I'd say that the chances of an extension are slim. The purpose of the visa is to take up residence in Hong Kong. He has apparently not done that, so unless you can show clear plans that he will do so in the near future I would expect it to be refused. Presumably he is trying to get a backdoor route to PR here, but that simply won't work. Even if the Dependent Visa is extended, when it comes to apply for PR the onus is on the applicant to show that they have ordinarily resided in HK for a continuous period of 7 years, not simply that they have wangled a visa to cover that period. That needs proof of residence, bank accounts, taxes paid etc.

Thank you for your feedback. He has no interest in getting PR, just keeping the visa intact.

Would anyone who has actually gone through such a process be able to give any feedback?

[shri]

The case is similar in the sense that many PRs apply for dependant visas for their elderly, which get renewed without too many residency complications.

Best to apply and explain it away - business needs, family needs etc ...

It is an edge case, you're unlikely to find someone with very similar renewal experience through randomish targetting.

[waiming]

Thank you for your feedback. He has no interest in getting PR, just keeping the visa intact.

Would anyone who has actually gone through such a process be able to give any feedback?

Sure. The form is asking how long the SPONSOR (=your sister) has spent outside Hong Kong. So in order for the extension to succeed, the answers need to be consistent with the sponsor ordinarily residing in Hong Kong. If the sponsor was away for 9+ months, they might still count as ordinarily resident if there's some temporary reason for the long absence (e.g. sick relatives, temporary work contract, university course).

It's not important how long the DEPENDANT has spent outside Hong Kong.