Do I Need Transit Visa For Hong Kong
Hong Kong is a special administrative region of China and it actively maintains strong trade with the modern world. Tourists travelling to any country under the visa-free agreement have to ensure that they know if they need a transit visa or travel visa for HKG, especially as many travellers do not know much about Hong Kong even though it has been a prosperous region for many years. In this article, we will find out whether you will need transit visa for HKG or not.
Traditionally, transit visas to Hong Kong were required only for those staying more than 24 hours in the city. Your passport must have at least six months of validity, with at least two blank visa pages. However, all this changed on April 30th 2008, when China stopped giving ‘transit without visa’ privileges to visitors flying through their airports.
Do I Need Transit Visa For Hong Kong
A transit visa to Hong Kong is only required for citizens of foreign countries, who wish to transverse or pass through Hong Kong International Airport. When you consider that almost 100 million passengers and 660,000 flights come in and out of the airport, every year it becomes clear that a lot of people do pass through here without visas.
Transit Visa Required for Hong Kong
Nationals of countries who require a consular visa for Hong Kong must have a visa when transiting through the HKSAR.
Overseas travelers from some countries only need a Hong Kong visa for transit if they pass through immigration, for example if their onward flight is some time away and they wish to leave the airport.
However, if such foreign nationals remain in the airport transit area, they do not require a visa.
On the other hand, travelers of certain nationalities require a transit visa for Hong Kong even if they remain airside and do not pass through immigration.
See which nationalities fall into this category below.
Visa Not Required for Hong Kong
International travelers of over 140 nationalities are eligible to enter Hong Kong without a visa and stay in the HKSAR for a certain length of time.
Different nationalities have different limits on the maximum period of time they can spend in the Special Administrative Region.
Citizens of around 35 countries may stay in the HKSAR visa-free for up to 14 days; citizens of around 25 countries can stay for a maximum of 30 days; around 85 nationalities can remain in Hong Kong for up to 90 days.
Visitors from a select few countries and territories may stay for as long as 180 days, while a small number of others have a limit of only 7 days.
Travelers of all of these nationalities only enjoy visa exemption for visits as tourists or for certain business purposes. If such an individual wishes to go to Hong Kong for other purposes, such as to live or work there, or stay for longer than the permitted visa-free time, they must obtain the relevant type of Hong Kong visa.
Check which nationalities can visit the HKSAR without a visa for the purposes of tourism or business in the list below.
Visa Not Required for Hong Kong: Country list
- Albania
- Algeria
- Andorra
- Antigua and Barbuda
- Argentina
- Armenia
- Australia
- Austria
- Bahamas
- Bahrain
- Barbados
- Belarus
- Belgium
- Belize
- Benin
- Bhutan
- Bolivia
- Bosnia and Herzegovina
- Botswana
- Brazil
- Brunei Darussalam
- Bulgaria
- Burkina Faso
- Canada
- Cape Verde
- Chad
- Chile
- Colombia
- Comoros
- Costa Rica
- Croatia
- Czech Republic
- Denmark
- Djibouti
- Dominica
- Dominican Republic
- Ecuador
- Egypt
- El Salvador
- Equatorial Guinea
- Estonia
- Federated States of Micronesia
- Fiji
- Finland
- France
- Gabon
- Germany
- Greece
- Grenada
- Guatemala
- Guinea
- Guyana
- Haiti
- Honduras
- Hungary
- Iceland
- Indonesia
- Ireland
- Israel
- Italy
- Jamaica
- Japan
- Jordan
- Kazakhstan
- Kenya
- Kiribati
- Kuwait
- Latvia
- Lesotho
- Liechtenstein
- Lithuania
- Luxembourg
- Macau
- Macedonia
- Madagascar
- Malawi
- Malaysia
- Maldives
- Mali
- Malta
- Marshall Islands
- Mauritania
- Mauritius
- Mexico
- Monaco
- Mongolia
- Montenegro
- Morocco
- Mozambique
- Namibia
- Nauru
- Netherlands
- New Zealand
- Niger
- Norway
- Oman
- Palau
- Panama
- Papua New Guinea
- Paraguay
- Peru
- Philippines
- Poland
- Portugal
- Qatar
- Republic of Cyprus
- Romania
- Russian Federation
- Saint Kitts and Nevis
- Saint Lucia
- Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
- Samoa
- San Marino
- Sao Tome and Principe
- Saudi Arabia
- Serbia
- Seychelles
- Singapore
- Slovakia
- Slovenia
- South Africa
- South Korea
- Spain
- Suriname
- Swaziland
- Sweden
- Switzerland
- Tanzania
- Thailand
- Timor-Leste
- Tonga
- Trinidad and Tobago
- Tunisia
- Turkey
- Tuvalu
- Uganda
- Ukraine
- United Arab Emirates
- United Kingdom
- United States
- Uruguay
- Vanuatu
- Vatican City
- Venezuela
- Zambia
- Zimbabwe
Other Visa Information for Hong Kong
Nationals of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) who are not Hong Kong residents require special travel documents in order to visit the Special Administrative Region, despite the fact that it is part of the PRC.
This is due to Hong Kong’s special political status and autonomy to decide its own immigration laws.
Chinese citizens from mainland China may enter the HKSAR and stay there for up to 7 days with an Exit-Entry Permit for Travelling to and from Hong Kong and Macau (Two-way Permit).
Residents of the Macao Special Administrative Region are visa-exempt and may use a Macao passport or travel permit to spend up to 7 days in Hong Kong. Alternatively, a Macau Permanent Resident Identity Card or a Visit Permit for Residents of Macao to HKSAR may be used to stay in the HKSAR for up to 180 days.
Chinese nationals living in a third country must instead obtain an HKSAR Entry Permit, which can be obtained from Chinese embassies and consulates. The length of stay allowed with this permit varies between 2 weeks and 30 days.