[Sir Bob]

Hi there, posted a few days ago, just another question if thats alright. Im going to be coming to Hong Kong for a few weeks in Feb and my wife is hoping to get me a HK ID card, she is a perm resident in HK (Im a UK citizen), she has been told by the Gov that it will take about 4 to 6 weeks for them to process it. Any idea how long it takes in reality? We are hoping to sort this out in Feb and then make the move in May/June together, obviously its a lot easier if this is already sorted out prior. As far as we've read online, I should be able to get a HK ID because she is currently a perm citizen working in HK and will sposor me, and this in turn will allow me to work with no probs.

And people said she was marring me for a passport

Many Thanks in advance for any help or suggestions.

[pizzaMui]

Hi Sir Bob,

I went through the same situation and must say it took only 5 weeks for my ID to process. Somewhere along the path both my husband and I had to go in for a scheduled interview with the immigration officer in charge of our case.

As long as all the documents, paperwork, and pics are completed as requested, then it should be approved in the slotted time. I guess that means you'll be applying for the new smart id cards by then.

[Sir Bob]

Smart ID cards eyh, those 'll be fun. They are trying to get them going over here in ther UK. Think I might leave the ID card untill I move to HK as we will only have a 4 week window when we visit in Feb. Many thanks for the info, thought it might be better to check than have a fudged application.

Cheers

[KnowItAll]

You can apply for a ID card and come back and collect it.

Most people forget that the ID card is given on approval of your visa to stay in HK. So, if you have a proper dependant visa, your ID card is fairly automatic.

[Sir Bob]

I think I might be getting confused here, I thought that if you were issued a HK ID you wouldnt need a dependants visa/

[pizzaMui]

You first get approved for the dependant visa- documented on your passport- which you'll have to renew by a 2/3/2 yr period to get permanent residency status. With the approval you get issued an ID card.

[Sir Bob]

I thought that because we are married, I shouldnt need a visa, I would just become a temporary resident? with an ID card, then after 7 years I would automatically become a permanant resident. Bit confusing.

[Bum]

as soon as you get married, you can apply for a dependant visa.
after you are granted the visa, you will get a ID card which means you are a HK resident.
7 years later, you will be a HK permanent resident who is entitled to enjoy all the citizen rights.

[Sir Bob]

Gotcha, cheers for that.

[CanuckHK1989]

MY ID card took 2 weeks. It was a easy case, both my parents had HKSAR passports, both had thier PR ID cards, birth certificates, my birth certificate, marriage certificate. I was born in Canada. The symbols on my ID card as I am under 18, *AO