It will be easier for the city’s 250,000 foreign domestic helpers to renew their visas from next week, with online, mail and drop-in applications offered as alternatives to standing in long queues in the Immigration Department.
The new measures have been announced by the department ahead of an expected peak from next month to the end of the year, when about 60,000 contracts expire.
Under the new arrangements, applicants will normally be notified by letter within 10 working days of the lodging of the application when they can collect the extension label.
The department says it should take only about 30 minutes to collect the label, eliminating the need to queue in person for an hour or more to make the application,
The new facilities apply to an extension of stay for helpers sponsored by the same employer.
“The new arrangement will give the employers or the applicants greater flexibility and save the time waiting at our office for the process of application of extension of stay on contract renewal,” said Chan Man-lang, an assistant director in the Immigration Department.
The surge is expected because many employers renewed their helpers’ contracts for two years to benefit from a two-year suspension of the HK$400-a-month levy on contracts that began in August 2008.
In another streamlining measure, the number of supporting documents required with an application will be reduced from eight to four.
Applications will also be accepted earlier – up to eight weeks before expiry instead of the present four.
The levy was waived for visas issued from August 1, 2008, to July 31 2010, as part of Chief Executive Donald Tsang Yam-kuen’s inflation relief measures. Thousands of helpers and employers rushed to immigration headquarters in Wan Chai to renew contracts and save HK$9,600.
The department said yesterday it expected to receive about 12,000 renewal applications a month from August to the end of the year, double the usual number.
Joseph Law, chairman of the Hong Kong Employers of Overseas Domestic Helpers Association, said he welcomed the new arrangement because it saved time for employers, employees and the department.
Rowena dela Cruz, vice-chairwoman of the Migrante Sectoral Party of Overseas Filipinos, said though it was now more convenient to renew a contract, not many maids in Hong Kong had computer access or the knowledge to apply online.
“Many employers will just give all the necessary documents to us and let us finish the renewal procedure ourselves,” she said.
Teresa Liu Tsui-lan, head of an agency that provides a renewal service, said it would not reduce its charges.
Liu, managing director of the Technic Employment Service Centre, said the new arrangement did save time but made little difference to its staff, who had to go to the Immigration Department daily to deal with routine issues.
Ario Adityo, of the Asia Migrant Centre, said the new arrangement did not help Indonesians because they required by their government to renew through an agency.
New rules
1. Contract renewal applications can be made by post, drop-in, or online submission from July 12, on top of the current in-person submissions.
2. Applicants can submit applications within eight weeks, instead of the current four, before the expiry of a domestic helper’s limit of stay.
3. Fewer documents are required for the application, down from the current eight documents to only four.
4. Applicants will receive a collection letter within 10 working days.
5. Applicants or employers (or authorised representative) should bring along the letter and applicant’s travel document to the Immigration Department, pay the fee and collect an extension label.
6. Documents required for an extension of stay sponsored by the same employer (from July 12): two application forms, an original copy of the new employment contract, copy of the helper’s travel document, proof of employer’s financial position and residential address (if there is change since last contract).
For more information visit the Immigration Department website
Source: SCMP
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