Will Hong Kong Chinese need to use home-return permits when travelling to the mainland after the handover? Yes. Although going to the mainland will become 'domestic' travel, there will still be border controls for entering and leaving the future Special Administrative Region (SAR). Hong Kong residents can use their identity cards to cross the SAR border but will still have to use another travel document to go to the mainland. There have been suggestions the home-return permit be replaced with a smart card. But the China Travel Service, the sole agent appointed by Beijing to issue the permits, says it has not been told to cease using the travel documents. What about foreign passport-holders? Will they be exempted from a Chinese visa if they can get an entry visa to Hong Kong? Anyone's guess. London and Beijing are struggling to resolve the issue of right of abode. It is hoped uncertainties about overseas passport-holders will be cleared up when an agreement is reached on the issue. But officials here think that under the principle of 'one country, two systems', those holding overseas passports might still have to apply for another entry visa to China, as they do now. Will flights to China become domestic services? Hong Kong might see its first 'domestic' flights across the border after the handover. There are 40 flights between 14 mainland cities and Hong Kong each day, operated by the China National Aviation Corporation - the commercial arm of the Civil Aviation Administration of China - and Hong Kong-based Dragonair. But the Civil Aviation Department believes travellers checking in at domestic counters may be the only change to expect. Will there be more through-train services to the mainland? There are already non-stop, return train services to Guangdong. The KCRC, which partners Guangshen Railway Company in operating the through-train, says it is looking at opportunities to expand the service to other Guangdong cities. Plans are underway to introduce more high-speed trains to increase frequency of services. Currently, it takes about one hour and 55 minutes to go from Hong Kong to Guangzhou. When will there be a direct train to Beijing? The through-train line to Beijing, which ends at Shenzhen, is expected to be extended to Hunghom station in Kowloon by July this year. Long-distance train services on the mainland are cheaper than our through-train. So will the through-train fares be lowered? Guangshen Railway says the fare system is subject to the board of directors and it is not related to the pricing structure on the mainland.
