Number of Hongkongers applying for BN(O) visas this quarter drops to 10,100 as inflation in Britain rises, experts say
- Britain receives lowest number of BN(O) applications from July to September since scheme opened
- A drop in Hong Kong housing prices may have contributed to decline, says immigration consultant
Just over 10,100 Hongkongers applied for a route to British citizenship in the third quarter of the year, marking the sharpest decline since the visa programme was launched last year, official data released on Thursday showed.
The number of applications received between July and September – down by 8,000 compared with the April to June period– was also the lowest since the British National (Overseas) visa scheme was launched in January 2021.
Immigration specialists attributed the decline to the worsening economic situation in Britain and that Hongkongers who were most eager to migrate would have done so in the first year of the scheme.
According to the data released by the Home Office, 10,100 Hongkongers applied for the pathway to British citizenship in the third quarter, taking the total to more than 150,600 from its launch on January 31 last year up until September. About 96 per cent of them – or 144,576 – were approved.
Almost all of the applications in the third quarter – 93 per cent – were filed from outside Britain and the remainder were made from inside the United Kingdom. There were 6,300 main applicants, with 3,800 dependents.
