Next batch of HK residents who can get new smart ID cards announced

 

Hong Kong residents born in 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999 or 2000 and holding the old form of smart identity card should bring along their identity cards and apply for new smart identity cards, the Immigration Department announced today.

They can do this in person at a Smart Identity Card Replacement Centre (SIDCC) from October 7 (Friday) to December 10 (Saturday). The SIDCCs are open from 8am to 10pm and from Monday to Saturday (except public holidays).

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The Territory-wide Identity Card Replacement Exercise covers all Hong Kong residents, whether they are permanent residents or non-permanent residents who are permitted to take up employment, make investment, reside or study in Hong Kong.

To avoid the gathering of crowds, Immigration appeals to applicants to make appointments via its  mobile application, the Internet (www.gov.hk/newicbooking), or the 24-hour telephone booking hotline 2121 1234.

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Residents may scan the QR codes below to download its mobile application or to make an appointment for identity card replacement via the Internet. Immigration also appeals to applicants to pre-fill the application form when making appointments through the mobile application or the Internet for faster identity card replacement service.

For this exercise, Immigration is also implementing a caring arrangement under which each eligible applicant for identity card replacement may bring along up to two persons with disabilities to replace their identity cards together during the same visit to an SIDCC.

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For Hong Kong residents born in 1992, 1993, 1994 or 1995, their specified period for identity card replacement will end on October 6 (Thursday), while that for residents born in 1954 or before will end on January 14, 2023 (Saturday).

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The Replacement Exercise will end in early 2023 and those who have not yet applied for a new smart identity card should do so as soon as possible. Eligible Hong Kong residents who cannot have their identity cards replaced during the specified call-up periods due to their absence from Hong Kong can apply within 30 days upon their return to Hong Kong.

For details, visit the website www.smartid.gov.hk or call Immigration’s enquiry hotline at 2824 6111.

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Filipina, Indonesian jailed 28 and 30 months for job scam

 

Marijane Biscocho and Lennis Ibrahim got jail terms of 28 ang 30 months, respectively.

A Filipina domestic helper and an Indonesian job recruiter were sentenced today to 28 and 30 months in prison, respectively, for 21 charges that included collecting placement fees for non-existent jobs in Hong Kong and Macau and money laundering.         

Marijane Biscocho, 44, and Lennis Ibrahim, 57, were declared guilty on all counts by District Court Judge Kathie Cheung in the previous hearing on Sept. 16.

The case arose from complaints by Filipino domestic helpers that they were tricked into paying an unlicensed recruitment firm, WHT Consulting Company in Kwun Tong, Kowloon, for non-existent jobs for family and friends back home, as waiter and factory worker in Hong Kong and Macau.

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They were initially charged by the Customs and Excise Department with violation of Trade Description Ordinance.

In a statement, Customs said this is the first unfair trade practice case involving the employment agency industry since the TDO was amended in July 2013. 

"This is also the first time that an offender of unfair trade practice has been prosecuted for money laundering at the same time," it added.

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Customs arrested the two after receiving complaints that they had falsely claimed to seven customers that their two employment agencies in Kwun Tong and To Kwa Wan were licensed. 

Judge Kathie Cheung sentenced Biscocho to varying prison sentences for three categories of offenses:

• 18 months’ imprisonment for 14 counts of engaging in a commercial practice that constitutes wrongly accepting payment for a product, 2 counts of applying a false trade description to a service supplied or offered to be supplied to a consumer, and one count of wrongly accepting payment where she was jointly-charged with Ibrahim.

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• 3 months for breach of condition of stay, having worked for Ibrahim while she was holding a domestic helper’s visa, and working as such for an employer for 15 years.

• 28 months imprisonment for 2 counts of dealing with property known or believed to represent proceeds of an indictable offence, or money laundering.

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Since these sentences would run concurrently, Biscocho’s total sentence is 28 months.

Ibrahim, who owned both companies, was handed a 30-month imprisonment for money laundering and 12 months for wrongly accepting payment, which would run concurrently.

In addition, she was ordered to pay back $6,000 to one of the victims, from whom she received the amount as illegal payment.

Judge Cheung explained that Ibrahim received a longer sentence because it was she “who was responsible for the management of WHT and Remy and it was she who approached the first defendant to get her involved in the scam.”

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She added: “It is clear the second defendant played a leading role in the scam and she was the major beneficiary of the scam in terms of the amount of money that was passed to her for her disposal.”

Judge Cheung noted that all the victims were Filipino domestic helpers who paid $6,000 to $9,000, and “the loss suffered by each victim ranges from slightly about 1.5 months’ to almost 5 months’ hard earned salary, which in any sense is a huge sum to each of them. “

She added: “There is evidence that some victims took out a loan to pay for the fees or was under pressure and tense relationship with their respective relative due to the unsuccessful applications and loss of the monies.  I consider the facts are serious despite on the face of it the amount involved is not huge.”

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Philippine peso hits new record low of P58.49 to US$1

By The SUN

 

Graphic from ABS-CBN

The Philippine peso fell to a new record low against the US dollar for the third straight day, closing on Thursday at P58.49.

Yesterday it dropped to P58 to the greenback, and on Tuesday, it was down to P57.48. It hovered around this mark from Sept 16 to 19, before going on a steep slide.

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As the HK dollar is pegged to the US dollar, the peso also fell to P7.45 to HK$1.

The peso opened weak at P58.1 and hit a new intraday low of P58.50, before closing just 51 centavos higher despite Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ expected interest rate hike from 3.75 percent to 4.25 percent on the same day.

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Despite this, BSP Deputy Governor Francisco G. Dakila Jr. said at a news conference today the economy is strong enough to withstand the continuing decline, citing so called “buffers” like exports, remittances and income from BPOs, tourism and foreign investments.

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Dakila also said the current movement of the peso vis-à-vis the US dollar is expected as the greenback continues to strengthen with the rise in US interest rates.

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Concerns over the Russia-Ukraine war and its impact on the global supply chain as well as the rising inflation across most countries are also said to drive investors to pick the US dollar as a “safe haven asset.”

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Reports say ‘0+7’ to be announced next week

By The SUN

 

An announcement on the scrapping of quarantine for hotel arrivals is expected next week

Various media reports say Hong Kong will announce next week at the earliest its decision to scrap hotel quarantines for inbound travelers, and instead require them to undergo self-surveillance for seven days.

But the so-called 0+7 scheme could only be implemented by next month, after all the necessary preparations have been made.

In line with what most experts have advised, the negative PCR test for Covid-17 will also be scrapped to make it easier for travelers to come to Hong Kong. However, they will still be tested on their arrival in Hong Kong.

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Those who come under the current 3+4 (three days hotel quarantine and four days medical surveillance) will be allowed to leave their hotels as soon as the new scheme takes effect.

However, other potential problem areas still need to be addressed, such as whether new arrivals will be required to wait for the result of their PCR test at the airport or allowed to go home in the meantime.

Chief Executive John Lee said at a press briefing on Tuesday that the city was actively looking at connecting with the world “to allow an orderly opening up” but did not mention any dates.

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Earlier on Thursday, Secretary for Health Lo Chung-mau said the government is still looking at various options to relax pandemic restrictions to stimulate the economy and restore the city’s connectivity to the outside world.

Lo said an announcement will be made on the new arrangements “at the right time” when all the details have been ironed out.

This was repeated at the press briefing held by health authorities this afternoon.

CHP's Dr Albert Au and HA's Dr Sara Ho at today's press briefing say the infection has peaked

Dr Albert Au of the Centre for Health Protection acknowledged that the infection rate seems to have peaked, although it is easing down at a slow pace.

Au also said that any change in the quarantine restrictions for new arrivals will be announced once the government is ready.

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“Once a decision is made it will be announced soon enough,” he said, adding that a relaxation of gathering restrictions could also be made.

Au reported the number of infections rising slightly to 5,998 today, including 163 imported cases.

There were also 17 related deaths, involving patients aged 55 to 99. They took the death toll in the fifth wave to 9,721.

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With the declining number of cases, hospital admissions went down to about 2,200 today. They included 20 patients in intensive care.

The Hospital Authority said it is gradually resuming non-emergency services that were halted when the cases peaked to around 11,000 about two weeks ago.

Of the 163 imported cases, 58 were caught at the airport, 57 during hotel quarantine and 43 between days 4 and 7. Five cases, possibly re-infections, were detected after this period.

The countries with more than one positive cases were the United Kingdom with 29, Nepal and Thailand with 21 each, and the Philippines with 20.

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Be wary of scammers posing as health officials, police say

By The SUN

Police say there has been a 60% surge in phone scams in the past 7 months (RTHK photo)

Police on Wednesday warned of a surge in telephone scams in which swindlers pose as government officials, in particular those with the Centre for Health Protection.

At a press conference, police said 213 such cases were reported to them in the first months of the year alone.

They were among 956 phone scam cases recorded during this period, up 60% from the same period last year, with the victims losing a total of $400 million.

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CHP’s Dr Albert Au said that health authorities only call people for contact-tracing or investigations, including to check whether they complied with compulsory testing notices.

 Au said they will never ask anyone to provide sensitive information such as bank accounts or credit card numbers.

He advised people to be cautious when they get calls from unfamiliar numbers, especially those with the prefix “+852", to avoid falling prey to scammers.

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Meanwhile, CHP also announced that an additional 5,687 new Covid infections were recorded, including 146 imported cases.

Dr Gladys Kwan of the Hospital Authority said nine more patients, – aged between 66 and 92 – were reported to have passed away on Tuesday. Seven of them did not complete three doses of a vaccine.

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A total of 2,402 patients are currently being treated in public hospitals, including 54 who are in critical condition, of whom18 are in intensive care, and 46 with severe symptoms.

Kwan again said that the HA is looking at resuming non-essential services since there have been improvements in the number of hospital admissions, bed occupancy rate, and the percentage of serious cases.

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"For non-essential services suspended previously, there may be room for some of them to be resumed. We are discussing that. We do not have any hard indicators whereby we will activate a certain stage, because this is a rather mobile decision, it depends on a basket of factors and also data we have," Kwan said.

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Mass repatriation of ‘unsubstantiated’ torture claimants held

 By The SUN

 

Those repatriated were said to have made 'unsubstantiated' applications for non-refoulement

In what appears to be a toughening of its stance towards non-refoulement claimants or those resisting their return to their places of origin on the ground that their lives would be put in danger, Immigration officers sent back a total of 45 “unsubstantiated” such claimants over the past eight days.

A statement issued by Immigration on Wednesday said the repatriation of the claimants, comprising 33 males and 12 females, was held from Sept 13 to Sept 20.

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The failed claimants were said to be illegal immigrants, overstayers and passengers refused landing. They also included persons who had committed criminal offences and had served their sentence.

No other details were given, such as the nationalities of those repatriated.

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However, the High Court was told on Tuesday that the last of the returnees should have included 73-year-old Brudencio J. Bolanos, who had completed serving his sentence for using a false instrument in December 2021, but tried to stop being sent back by filing an application for non-refoulement.

In the statement, Immigration said that “depending on the circumstances and needs,” it will continue to repatriate unsubstantiated non-refoulement claimants from Hong Kong as soon as practicable “through all appropriate measures.”

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This indicates that Immigration would now be determining at the outset whether an application for non-refoulement is "unsubstantiated" or whether it is backed by some sort of proof.

This could prevent overstayers, illegal immigrants or even defendants in criminal cases from using the procedure to stop being sentenced or sent back home, by filing a last-minute application for non-refoulement. 

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Currently, the High Court's dockets are full of related cases - from appealing a decision by Immigration or Torture Claims Board rejecting a claim for non-refoulement, to leave to appeal the decision of both or either bodies. 

Such cases take years to resolve because claimants are able to exploit various legal options to stop them being returned home.

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Immigration again allows FDH visa extensions, home leave deferments

By The SUN

 

Immigration is again allowing expiring visas extended and FDHs to postpone their return home

The Immigration Department has again allowed employers to extend the validity period of their existing contracts with their foreign domestic helpers who are leaving their employ.

In a statement issued Wednesday, Immigration said all visas expiring on or before Dec 31 this year will be allowed to be extended for a maximum of six months, provided it is with the consent of both the employer and the worker.

However, contracts already extended previously will no longer be allowed a further extension.

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If the incoming FDH cannot arrive in Hong Kong within the six-month extension period, the employer should consider renewing the contract with the existing FDH.

The last time the government made this concession was for contracts that were due to expire on or before the end of the current month.

In addition, FDHs whose visas have been extended for a year after renewing with the same employer or moving to a new one, can apply to defer returning to their place or origin for another year, or up to the expiration of the contract.

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Again, this should be with the concurrence of both parties.

Such applications can be made within eight weeks prior to the expiry of the existing limit of stay of the FDHs, same as those for contract renewal.

Both concessions are part of the flexibility arrangement that the government has allowed from time to time in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.

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Immigration also said the requirement that FDHs must return to their place of origin remains in force. It will continue to closely monitor the situation and review the flexibility arrangements whenever necessary.     

As much as possible, visa applications for FDHs must be submitted online to reduce the flow of people amid the continuing pandemic. These can be done through Immigration’s mobile application or the "e-Visa" arrangement.

They may also enquire about the application status and submit supplementary documents and notification of premature termination of an employment contract via a dedicated "Online Services for Foreign Domestic Helpers" webpage set up by the ImmD at www.immd.gov.hk/fdh.

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Employers and their FDHs are also advised to take note of the limit of stay and the passport validity of the FDHs and arrange for applications for visas and replacement of passports in advance.
 
For enquiries on employment rights and benefits of FDHs, please contact the Labour Department (LD) at the dedicated FDH hotline at 2157 9537 (manned by 1823) or by email to fdh-enquiry@labour.gov.hk. The dedicated FDH portal (www.fdh.labour.gov.hk) set up by the LD also provides information and useful links relating to the employment of FDHs.

For enquiries on FDH visa applications, please contact the ImmD by calling the enquiry hotline at 2824 6111 or by sending email to enquiry@immd.gov.hk.

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