Refugees are people who have fled war, violence, conflict or persecution and have crossed an international border to find safety in another country.* Such a person may be considered a “non-refoulement claimant” or an “asylum seeker” until their claim for refugee status has been granted.
Non-refoulement claimant refers to individuals who sought protection against being returned to a country where they face a well-founded fear of persecution, tourture, or other serious human rights violations. It’s a principle of international law that prevents states from expelling or deporting individuals to places where their life or freedom would be threatened.
*Source: UNHCR
According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), as at mid-2022, there were 103 forcibly displaced people worldwide. They are people forcibly displaced due to war, conflict, persecution, human rights violations and events seriously disturbing public order. 72% of all refugees come from Syrian Arab Republic, Venezuela, Ukraine, Afghanistan and South Sudan.
According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), “an asylum seeker is someone who says he or she is a refugee, but whose claim has not yet been definitively evaluated.” People seeking international protection in Hong Kong are called non-refoulement claimants. Should their claims be substantiated by the local authorities, they are not to be returned to their home countries.
According to statistics made public by the government, there are around 15,000 protection claimants in Hong Kong*. There are 293 substantiated claimants out of the 26,935 torture/non-refoulement claims in the past 13 years. That is a substantiation rate of 1%. On the contrary, during the last 10 years, 67% of asylum seekers are granted asylum under the 1951 Refugee Convention globally. Europe’s rate is 38%. Most claimants in Hong Kong come from countries in Africa, Middle East and South Asia. *As in December 2021
To seek asylum in Hong Kong, individuals usually enter as tourists. They have to stay until their visas expired before they can voluntarily surrender themselves to the Immigration Department’s General Investigation Section (GIS) and submit a written statement—known as a signification—detailing the reasons they fear returning to their home country and the potential harm they may face. After verification and investigation, a Recognizance Document (RD) may be issued, granting conditional release.
Although it does not legalize their stay, the RD allows claimants to access basic support such as social assistance and healthcare fee waivers. Periodic reporting to immigration authorities is required.
Claimants then enter the Unified Screening Mechanism to file a non-refoulement claim. This process can take several years, during which they are probihited from working or volunteering, leaving them dependent on government subsidies and often living below the poverty line.
Despite an average annual inflation rate of 2.44% since 2015, subsidy amounts for asylum seekers have remained unchanged since 2014. The support includes:
Families also encounter delays and financial barriers when applying for kindergarten tuition waivers. The approval process typically takes at least three months, during which families are expected to pay fees upfront despite lacking a legal source of income.
Substantiated claimants do not enjoy blanket permission to engage in paid employment in Hong Kong. Instead, they must submit applications to the Immigration Department, which are assessed on a case-by-case basis.
While substantiated claimants may apply for permission to take up employment, such approval is limited to a six-month period. As a result, they must frequently reapply for work authorization, which can deter potential employers and place additional strain on Hong’s resources to maintain ongoing support for this population.’