[Conni]

Dear Forum, I am so worried for the moment and I hope, I can get some positive comments, although I am much older than the most forum members.
I try to make it short: 3 years ago I decided to change my life, to leave Germany and I followed my daughter (already 6 years in china now) to Shanghai after the birth of my first grandchild, as I firstly wanted to be close to the family and secondly learn more about Asia. I have spent nearly 3 wonderful years in a new culture and with my family. Furthermore I got a good job in Shanghai and all paperworks with visa and working permit have not been a problem there.
In summer my son in law got a better position in his company in HK and we decided to move alltogether, as I don't want to miss my family anymore and my family me. Meanwhile a second grandchild was born. My idea was to continue like in Shanghai, but I have been not well prepared about the strong rules in HK. Here I couldnt get a job, but ok, for me it is more worth to be with the kids and my family has no problem to finance me. Meanwhile I have been to several Consulting companies, at the Immigration tower and the result is, that I am too young to stay here with my family. The rule is, that I need to be 60 years at least to apply for a dependent visa ( I am 52). The stuff at the Immigration adviced me to write a letter to the director with my special reasons. It is done and today I had an interwiev there, which gave me more depression than hope. they handled me without any human feelings and the first word was "no" without reading the application and 30 other documents before, I was requested to bring with me. Instead they told me to bring more and more documents and they told me, that I shouldn't have hope. I can not believe, that it is impossible to stay here. I need to find a way. My grandchildren are the sense of my life now and they need me like I need them. We are practising an unusal expat family life, but it is working so well and I can not accept and understand, that a family will be destroyed about crazy rules. May be somebody could give me a useful advice...I would be so happy.
Thank you very much in advance.
Conni

[dropdedfwed]

Can u swing it such that your family "employs" you as a nanny or domestic helper??

i dunno, just a suggestion!!

[Baron]

I know this isn't what your family wants to do, but if you and the grandkids being together is so important, you may need to move somewhere else. Money or not, being together seems to be whats most important here.

[KnowItAll]

*sigh*

This story is told over and over again in virtually every country.

I'd say travel in and out as a visitor for as long as you can. With a german passport you should get a fair amount of leeway -- 90 days. That should carry you over for a while and your family can apply for extensions.

Now, I may come off as unduly harsh, but think about how for example, a young Indian / Chinese couple working in Germany might bring their parents in from India / China to live with them. See what I mean.... you're in far better a position that over half the population in the world.

Just treat it positively and don't get too carried away with the emotions.

By the way, you can extend the 90 days

http://www.immd.gov.hk/ehtml/id91.htm

[PAT CORRIGAN]

YOU HAVE MY PRAYERS . NOW I AM GLAD I AM AGE 71 WHEN I HEAR OF YOUR PLIGHT. HOPE THE NANNY IDEA WORKS.I AM COMING TO HK WITH MY GRANDAUGHTER WHO (SOON) HAS A CONTRACT AND WORK VISA WITH ICON MODELING AGENCY. HOPE TO MEET YOU I AM
PATTICORRIGANN@YAHOO.COM. THE AGENCY SAYS SHE CAN GO TO HK WITHOUT THE VISA WITH USA PASSPORT AS LONG AS THEY ARE IN APPLICATION. I THINK NOT . I THINK THIS IS RISKY RISKY WE DO NOT NEED IMMIGRATION PROBLEMS

[MovingIn07]

Pat - can I suggest you do not put your email address in a public forum? Anyone can see it and use it - if you want to be contacted you can use the Private Message function on Geoexpat - it works very well, they send you an email so you can check your messages.

[MovingIn07]

Re the OP - has your China visa now expired? Is there any chance of getting a visa for, say, Shenzhen, that you can use to come into HK regularly to see the grandchildren?

I think the idea of being "employed" by your relatives is a great one - I hope that works out.

Do you have any money? Can you start a business? say, looking after (grand) children! And thus get an investment visa (or whatever they are called).

[Football16]

KIA is right - do the tourist thing to start if this is critical for you and your family and you can't find work before arriving.

The hiring of you as a domestic avenue is another good avenue to explore too.

All I know is that they have tight rules here and from what I understand if you can't put it in writing and prove it, no talking to them is going to help. It is not about feelings, it is a rules-based system that is not flexible.

The issue is to focus on a way to achieve your goals which in the short term a tourist visa will achieve for you. Also, being on a western European passport should make it far easier than for many other nationalities when you exit and re-enter HK if you need to renew it.

If you did start a business, you will need to get a work investment visa but it won't work for just taking care of grand children and even then it will be granted for one year to start.

If you have lots of money to buy property here/invest, that will get you in but I assume you have looked at that and it won't work for you.

[Sigga]

Conni - can you not just find a job and get sponsored? Not as easy as I've breezily set out, I know, but isn't it possible?

If you have money and are willing to invest here, you could try for an investment visa.

Capital Investment Entrant Scheme

To qualify for admission under the Scheme, the entrant must :

(a) be aged 18 or above when applying for entry under the Scheme;

(b) have net assets of not less than HK$6.5 million to which he is absolutely beneficially entitled throughout the two years preceding his application;

(c) have invested within six months before submission of his application to the Immigration Department, or will invest within six months after the granting of approval in principle by the Immigration Department, not less than HK$6.5 million in permissible investment asset classes (except Certificates of Deposit which must be invested within the latter period) as detailed in page "Permissible Investment Asset Classes";

(d) have no adverse record both in Hong Kong and country/region of residence; and

(e) be able to demonstrate that he is capable of supporting and accommodating himself and his dependants, if any, on his own without relying on any return on the permissible investment assets, employment or public assistance in Hong Kong.

[Mat]

3 years old thread guys....