Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether the Government’s visa support for young people from Hong Kong will extend to allowing those people to include years spent in the UK on a student visa toward the five year route to settlement for British National (Overseas) visa holders.

On 24 February 2022, the Government announced in a Written Ministerial Statement a change to the Hong Kong British National (Overseas) (BN(O)) route which will allow adult children of BN(O) status holders born on or after the 1 July 1997, who are currently unable to apply for the BN(O) route independently to do so. The statement is available at: Written statements - Written questions, answers and statements - UK Parliament

The change to allow adult children of BN(O) status holders born on or after 1 July 1997 to apply to the route independently of their parents is currently scheduled to come into effect this Autumn at which point further information, including full eligibility criteria, will be published on GOV.UK.

Under the new provisions, children born on or after 1 July 1997, whose deceased parent held BN(O) status, will be able to qualify for the route, providing they meet all other requirements for the route. Applicants will need to show evidence of the BN(O) status of at least one parent.

As is the case on the BN(O) route now, those who enter the UK with a Student or Visitor visa will be able to apply to switch into the BN(O) route. They will need to apply before the expiry of their current visa or grant of permission. Under the Immigration Rules, individuals applying for the BN(O) route must not be in breach of immigration laws. This includes overstaying, except where certain limited circumstances apply as set out paragraph 39E of the Immigration Rules.

Only time spent in the UK on either the BN(O) route or another route which leads to settlement can count towards the five-year qualifying period for settlement as a BN(O), with the most recent grant of permission required to be on the BN(O) route. Time spent in the UK on a Student visa does not count towards settlement.

All applicants to the BN(O) route need to demonstrate they can maintain and accommodate themselves and their family members for at least six months without access to public funds. Applicants can rely on credible offers of financial support and/or accommodation from a third party (for example, a relative or friend) to meet this requirement.

Individuals with an outstanding asylum claim must write to the Home Office to withdraw their claim before they can apply to the BN(O) route. Further information is available here: Withdrawing asylum applications - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).