UK Tightens Residency Rules: What’s Next for Hong Kong BNO Holders?

The UK government has been shaking things up for Hong Kong BNO holders living there. Apart from the usual 10 + 1 years before applying for permanent residency (ILR – Indefinite Leave to Remain), the Reform UK party even proposed to abolish the “right of permanent residence”.

UK Home Secretary Mahmood’s BNO hand just got tougher. The “Squid Game” for Hong Kong BNO holders is on. At least the “5+1” stay rule survives… for now.

While there’s a hint that BNO holders might keep the current "5+1" rule, Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood warns tougher hurdles are coming. If you’re seen as not contributing enough economically or socially, you’re probably out. A friend who’s living in the UK says the devil’s really in the details—which haven’t been made clear yet. But it’s clear that some BNO holders won’t make the cut. And those who supported riots, the so-called “siblings,” especially if they have criminal records from Hong Kong, face an uphill battle.

The Labour Party's public support has been tanking, in part because Reform UK is winning with a sharp anti-immigration stance. So, Home Secretary Mahmood is trying to score points with voters by promising stricter rules on permanent residency. She’s basically saying: even if you waited 10 years, you might still get kicked out if you don’t bring value or contribute to the UK economy and society.

Six Conditions to Make the Cut

So, how does the UK decide if you’re valuable enough? Mahmood lays down six conditions: You must have a job and income in the UK, pay National Insurance, don’t claim benefits, show intermediate English skills, clean police record, volunteer or donate to charity.

This means anyone lazy, low-tax-paying, welfare-dependent, or breaking the law gets shown the door during ILR screening.

The Real-Life ‘Squid Game’ for BNO Holders

This is basically a real-life Squid Game for BNO holders: pass these tests and you stay; fail and you’re sent packing. The uncertainty weighs heavily, and the Devil is in the details.

Take the “having a job and income in the UK” rule, for instance. The government hasn’t said what income you actually need or whether “social contribution” counts at all. If they go by the book and are rigid about it, low-income, low-tax-paying Hong Kong people are basically screwed—labeled as “not contributing enough” and kicked out. The UK government once floated a points-based system that scores salary, qualifications, and job type to decide who qualifies for permanent residency. If they bring that in full force, a lot of Hong Kong BNO holders could be out of luck.  

And what about the English bar? Will it, then, be raised from B1 to B2? If yes, some might fall short.

Most BNO holders have spotless police records, but those protest supporters—the “siblings” caught up in the 2019 Black Riots—are in real trouble. Any arrest or conviction from that period could easily sink their permanent residency chances. A friend in the UK told me that “good character” is the golden ticket for ILR approval, and a criminal record from Hong Kong even of political reasons would make things seriously grim. Some of these folks might try to switch tracks and seek refugee asylum, but the system’s clogged, with long delays and tough rejections becoming the norm.

Playing It Safe to Keep Dreams Alive

If “siblings” commit crimes after arriving in the UK, they immediately fail the no-criminal-record condition and lose ILR eligibility. They know this, which explains why many have been careful during recent protests—to avoid arrests that would crush their hopes of staying for good.

Clean record or bust. Protest supporters with 2019 political files risk getting booted.

On the bright side, the UK government hinted BNO holders might be excluded from the new “10+1” rule, keeping the current “5+1” residency requirement. Ukranians reportedly get the same treatment. No official confirmation yet, but silence indicates it might be true.

Still, Labour’s political battle with Reform UK means more “Devils” might sneak into the requirements of ILR application, tightening the screws to reduce the number of successful applicants and win back voter support. So even if five years remain the standard, getting permanent residency will get much harder.

The Bitter Endgame

Those filtered out will feel like they were so close to the finish line, only to be kicked off mid-journey. Naturally, that’s a bitter pill for anyone dreaming of a new life in the UK.

Home Secretary Mahmood just dropped the UK’s BNO hand: tougher permanent residency rules ahead. The devil’s still in the details, and the UK’s Hong Kong BNO holders are now in a real “Squid Game.” At least the “5+1” rule isn’t changing… yet.

One ILR prerequisite: a clean criminal record. Protest supporters with HK political files from 2019 face a high chance of being booted out.

Lai Ting-yiu

What Say You?

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It’s not just talk – a Hong Kong resident who’s spent years living in the UK recently posted about nine big headaches with life there, and public safety shot straight to the top of the list.

It struck a nerve with lots of folks. Take it from a friend in the legal game who’s spent time in Britain: crooks there are growing bolder by the year, and their antics are getting wild.

Two recent cases are enough to make anyone flinch.

First, thieves snatched pricey watches from the wealthy right outside an exclusive club in a buzzing neighbourhood – this isn’t an isolated event, mind you, it’s become routine and Rolex is the big target.

Crooks snatch high-end watches from America’s elite right outside London’s Mayfair Club – Rolexes are their favourite catch.

Second, some bandits wheeled in a crane truck and hoisted an ATM right off the street from inside a shop, loaded it onto a lorry, and poof – gone. What do both incidents have in common? No police in sight, criminals acting without fear, and now they’re even more daring after tasting easy success.

Thieves roll up with a crane truck, haul an ATM clear out of a supermarket, and vanish – can you believe it?

Hong Kong, on the other hand, stands firm with “police deterrence” – crooks here actually have to think twice before acting out, and it shows. On the “Global Safety Rankings,” the UK sits rungs below Hong Kong, proving exactly why we edge them out.

Rolex Ripped in Mayfair: High Society Targeted

Let’s dig into the luxury watch robbery first.

A US business exec headed to London for meetings at the famous Mayfair Club, where the members are the crème de la crème – kind of like the Hong Kong Club in Central. The exec hops off a cab nearby, walks toward the entrance, only to have two men tracking him. As he reaches the main door, they pounce and fight for his watch. After a few seconds of chaos, his Rolex is gone – thieves sprint to a waiting car and speed off.

The shocked exec put it all on Instagram later, admitting his watch is still missing. London police handling the case say this outside-Mayfair-club-watch-snatched routine keeps happening. His advice? Anyone visiting these glitzy spots especially with Christmas and New Year around the corner – watch your back, quite literally.

Media in Britain quickly dug up fresh stats from the Metropolitan Police: rich watches have eclipsed smartphones as the new criminal jackpot. From Jan 2022 to July 2025, a whopping 5,280 high-end watches have been swiped or stolen, each worth about £3,000 (HK$31,000). The robbers’ top pick? Rolex – 1,788 snatched, followed by Cartier (285), then Omega, Breitling, and Hublot. These guys know exactly what sells and, rumor has it, the loot goes overseas for fat profits.

ATM Gone by Crane: Nighttime Heist Stuns Residents

Now for the story that really makes your jaw drop. Last Sunday near 1 AM, folks upstairs hear weird noises and, peeking out, spot a crane truck with its boom lifting a seriously large chunk. Turns out it’s an ATM from inside a Sainsbury’s. The crooks smash doors, drag the ATM out, swing it onto a white lorry, and calmly drive off into the night.

The resident filming the whole thing calls the cops, but the masked thieves only need seven minutes to vanish, leaving the stolen crane truck behind. By the time police arrive, the lorry’s disappeared – still missing, as I write.

Brazen robberies in London aren’t news anymore. Last year, over 100,000 phones were stolen or snatched from locals and tourists, with barely any recovered. Under mounting public pressure, the police finally took action and smashed a phone-stealing gang that’s believed to have shipped 40,000 stolen phones out of the country last year alone.

Thieves get away with so much because police are simply ineffective. Most times, officers just record reports and let things slide. A British Retail Consortium survey found 61% of shop owners rate cops’ case handling as “poor” or “very poor.” If criminals know they’re unlikely to get caught, why wouldn’t they keep pushing the limit?

Hong Kong’s Policing: Quick Action, Real Results

There’s cause and effect here – Hong Kong’s police solve crimes fast and have arrest rates to match, which is why our global safety ranking towers over the UK. Consider this: the global database Numbeo published its mid-2025 “Safe Index by Country 2025 Mid-Year”, putting Hong Kong at 8th in the world, the Chinese Mainland at 12th, with the UK trailing at 86th and the US even worse at 91st.

TVB has just rolled out a show called “Discover Hong Kong’s Finest.” Frankly, Hong Kong beating the UK on public security by miles is a “Finest” we should all be talking about.

Lai Ting-yiu