Do you need a visa to Hong Kong?

Hong Kong – the main transport hub of Southeast Asia and on the way to many popular resorts is often a transit place of transplant, especially when using regular flights. Despite the fact that it is formally under the jurisdiction of the PRC, Hong Kong – "Special Administrative Region", in which their visa rules are different from the mainland China. However, Hong Kong in itself is a very interesting city, without a doubt of the attention of any traveler, and many tourists prefer to stay here for a couple of days, on the way to a beach holiday, to plunge into a stormy Syangan life, enjoy the exciting species, to make a profitable shopping or visit one from numerous sectoral exhibitions. About what to see in Hong Kong, we have Separate Cheat Sheet, And now we will tell if a visa need a visa to Hong Kong for Russians, Ukrainians, Belarusians and citizens of other countries of the former USSR, and whether a transit visa is needed to Hong Kong.

Visa to Hong Kong for Russians

Since mid-2009 For short visits, the owners of a Russian passport Visa is not required. Citizens of the Russian Federation are allowed to stay in Hong Kong without a visa for 14 days from the date of crossing the border.

Until March 2013, Hong Kong border guards put inbound and away stamps directly into the passport, as they do in most other countries, but now they are either pinned with a stapler to one of the passport pages of a small piece of paper, or insert the "brand", which indicates the entry date, extreme Departure date and stamp. When leaving the territory of Hong Kong, there is no marks to the passport, only the root filled with you in the entrance of the immigration card.

In the photo below, you can see both options at the same time. Plogging paper is applied now, and stamps under it – "old" version of the border crossing.

It is strictly not recommended to lose this paper, as this can lead to very serious problems with immigration authorities. It is not necessary to disconnect it from the passport until the border crossing, since without it, the border guards will not be able to quickly determine the date of your entrance and you are waiting for an unnecessary time and nerves, because the term of visa-free stay in Hong Kong is limited to 14 days.

Theoretically, you may ask the number of money available for their sufficiency for the period of stay in the country, however, there are no official regulatory documents on this topic now, and on our experience of border guards it is not interested.

The required term of passport is also not registered anywhere and is not limited, but still it is worth having a monthly reserve since the planned date of departure.

Hong Kong for Russians

Restrictions on the number of intersections of the Border of Hong Kong within the framework of visa-free short-term visits is also not written anywhere else, but if you often choose a limit of 14 days, while doing "visa-wounds", briefly leaving Siangan to any neighboring country to reset the allowed stay of stay then you should expect problems from border guards. Since the accounting of citizens’ movements across the border is excellent computerized and is conducted in a single database, then any employee of the immigration service will see your feats without any problems, which, ultimately, can lead to a refusal to enter Hong Kong with the "Recommendation" to issue a long-term visa.

If you still need to spend more than two weeks in Hong Kong, it is recommended to issue a full-fledged tourist or business visa in one of the consulates of the People’s Republic of China, which is in Moscow, St. Petersburg, Khabarovsk, Yekaterinburg and Irkutsk. Official prices (consular fees) for registration of a visa in the picture below.

Visa Registration in Hong Kong

If you decide to independently get a long-term visa to Hong Kong through the consulate, then the rules for registration, information about the location of the consulates, the time of their work and other necessary information you can find on Official website Embassies of the PRC in the Russian Federation. However, if for some reason you cannot (or do not want) to deal with the visa department yourself, you can use the services of numerous tourist companies that help in obtaining a Chinese visa.

It is worth noting that a long-term visa to Hong Kong and Visa to China is two different visas, drawn up separately. China for citizens of Russia at the moment there are no visiting visits options (with the exception of a group trip through travel agencies and transit during a couple of days in some cities), so if a visit implies a visit to the PRC, you will have to additionally arrange a full-fledged Chinese visa. Chinese visa can also be issued directly in Hong Kong, but about it in a separate material.

Visa to Hong Kong for Ukrainians

Since Ukraine also signed a bilateral agreement with Hong Kong on the short-term (up to 14 days) visa-visiting, the entire information given for Russians is valid for the Russians of Ukraine. Information on the procedure for registration of a long-term visa, rates for it and the location of the Visa Department of the PRC embassy can be viewed on his Official website.

Visa to Hong Kong for citizens of Kazakhstan

For the Kazakhs visa to Hong Kong for short-term visits (up to 14 days) is not required. For a longer stay, it is necessary to issue a full-fledged visa in the Consulate of the PRC. Read more about visa to Hong Kong for Kazakhstan can be read on the official website Chinese Embassies in Kazakhstan.

Visa to Hong Kong for Belarusians

Since August 2019, Belarusians can visit Hong Kong without a visa if their stay does not exceed 30 days.

Visa to Hong Kong for Armenians

Citizens of Armenia can also be on the territory of Hong Kong without a visa for up to 180 days.

Visa to Hong Kong for Moldova

Moldova’s citizens can visit Hong Kong without a visa if their trip does not exceed 90 days.

Visa to Hong Kong for citizens of other countries

Check you need a visa to Hong Kong for other countries link.

Hong Kong – Transit Visa

With a transit flight (without leaving the airport) or flight-sea (airport-ferry / motor ship, without leaving the airport) via Hong Kong is not required when all the following items are met:

You have tickets for your hands confirming the departure from Hong Kong no later than 48 hours after arrival.
You do not leave the transit airport zone.

Conclusion

Hong Kong for an ordinary European tourist is really a very unusual and interesting place where there is something to see and where to have fun. It would be an ideal place to travel for a weekend, if not a distance – from Moscow to Hong Kong to fly about 9 hours. For residents of Vladivostok, the flight time is much less, which makes it a very attractive option, especially considering the fact that for Russians a visa to Hong Kong is not required.

Going to Hong Kong? Cheapest flights to Hong Kong here!