UK opens door to thousands more Hongkongers under visa scheme following Jimmy Lai jailing

2026-02-09 - 11:47

London has opened the door for thousands more Hongkongers to move to Britain in light of the jailing of media tycoon Jimmy Lai. Founder of Hong Kong pro-democracy tabloid Apple Daily Jimmy Lai in September 2020. Photo: HKFP. A statement by the UK Home Office on Monday said Britain had a historic commitment to Hong Kong: “Adult children of British National (Overseas) status holders who were under 18 at the time of Hong Kong’s 1997 handover to China will now be eligible to apply for the route independently of their parents. Their partners and children will also be able to move to the UK under the expanded route. It is estimated 26,000 people will arrive in the UK over the next five years.” See also: Authorities hail 20-year prison term, as NGOs decry ‘effective death sentence’ The change puts an end to situations where some children of British National (Overseas) passport holders were able to resettle in Britain, whilst others were not. The 78-year-old Apple Daily founder – a British national – was found guilty in December 2025 of two counts of conspiring to collude with foreign forces under the Beijing-imposed national security law, and a third count of sedition under colonial-era legislation. He faced judges – handpicked to oversee national security cases – at West Kowloon Law Courts alongside eight other co-defendants, who each received up to 10 years in prison. A British National (Overseas) passport. File photo: Hillary Leung/HKFP. Since the British National (Overseas) “lifeboat” scheme was launched by the UK in 2021, 230,000 people have been granted a visa and almost 170,000 have moved to Britain, the press release said. It is unclear when the changes will go into effect. UK calls for Lai’s release “Today’s sentencing of Jimmy Lai, a British citizen, for 20 years, shows how the Beijing-imposed National Security Law has criminalised dissent, prompting many to leave the territory, ” the UK statement added following the sentencing. “The Prime Minister raised Mr Lai’s case directly with President Xi during his visit, opening up discussion of the UK’s most acute concerns directly with the Chinese government, at the highest levels. Now that the sentencing has happened, the government will rapidly engage further on Mr Lai’s case.” The UK’s Keir Starmer met with Xi in Beijing two weeks ago for talks focused on trade. UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper. File photo: Yvette Cooper, via X. Earlier Monday, UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper called for Lai’s release: “For the 78-year-old, this is tantamount to a life sentence. I remain deeply concerned for Mr Lai’s health, and I again call on the Hong Kong authorities to end his appalling ordeal and release him on humanitarian grounds, so that he may be reunited with his family.” Ex-British leader David Cameron echoed the calls. Lai was accused of using his tabloid, Apple Daily, to lobby foreign nations to impose sanctions, blockades, or other hostile activities upon China and Hong Kong. He was also accused of inciting hatred against the authorities with 161 op-eds he allegedly wrote and published in the now-shuttered newspaper. Media tycoon Jimmy Lai and co-defendants were sentenced on February 9, 2026. Graphic: Hans Tse/HKFP. Beijing inserted national security legislation directly into Hong Kong’s mini-constitution in June 2020 following a year of pro-democracy protests and unrest. It criminalised subversion, secession, collusion with foreign forces and terrorist acts – broadly defined to include disruption to transport and other infrastructure. The move gave police sweeping new powers and led to hundreds of arrests amid new legal precedents, while dozens of civil society groups disappeared. The authorities say it restored stability and peace to the city, rejecting criticism from trade partners, the UN and NGOs.