Registration
Visa Application

The Immigration Ordinance of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) stipulates that unless a person has the right of abode or right to land in the HKSAR, s/he requires a valid visa/entry permit from the Immigration Department to study in the HKSAR.

Student Visa Application Process 

Non‐local students who are not in possession of any valid visa/entry permit to study in the HKSAR are required to apply for a student visa. The application process normally takes around 6‐8 weeks. The Immigration Department will take longer time during the summer peak season.  Students are advised to submit visa applications with all documents required within 3 weeks from the issuance date of the admission notification for offers made before the month of May, after when students have to submit visa application materials as soon as possible.  Please refer to the student visa application process listed below.

Non‐local students who are unable to present a valid visa at the time of registration will not be allowed to register.

 

Latest Student Visa Activation Arrangement 

To activate a new student visa, it is the requirement of the Immigration Department that non-local students already in Hong Kong have to exit and re-enter Hong Kong.  Therefore, students should plan and arrange their trip to Hong Kong accordingly by taking into account the time required for the health quarantine before they commence their studies at CUHK. Students should refer to the Guidebook for Entry for Study in Hong Kong for more information.

Student Visa Application Process
Step 1:

Apply for Student Visa1
Step 2:
Duly completed application with the supporting documents will be sent to the Immigration Department for handling

The Immigration Department will take around 6-8 weeks to handle a duly completed visa application with all required supporting documents.
Step 3:

Visa Application Approved

  • The Immigration Department will issue the electronic version of “Notification Slip for Entry Visa / Permit” (e-Visa).2
Step 4:

Graduate School completes the “e-Visa” collection process and informs students by email3

  • Since you have previously paid the visa application fees, you are not required to pay the visa fee for downloading the e-Visa. Graduate School will settle the fee on your behalf.

*Please do not download the “e-visa” before you are informed. Please note that if you pay the fee the second time via the Immigration Department webpage, duplicated visa fee will not be refunded.
Step 5:

Receive and activate the “e-visa”

  • Students from Mainland China: apply for an “Exit‐entry Permit for Travelling to and from Hong Kong and Macao” (EEP) (往來港澳通行證) with the relevant “exit endorsement” issued by the relevant Public Security Bureau Office in the Mainland.
  • Upon arrival clearance, all students should present his/her valid travel document, an exit endorsement issued by the relevant Mainland authorities (where applicable), and the “e-Visa” saved on a personal mobile device or printed on a sheet of A4 white paper, and scan the encrypted QR code on the “e-Visa” with the optical reader at an immigration counter.
  • “e-visa" will be activated upon students' arrival at Hong Kong. Please take note of the Non‐stamping Immigration Clearance Arrangement for Hong Kong Non‐permanent Residents. A landing slip will be issued to you upon arrival. Students should keep the landing slip as it is a proof of their condition of stay in Hong Kong.
Notes:
  1. Students who would like to apply for a dependant visa for their spouse or unmarried dependant children under the age of 18 are required to submit the application directly to the Immigration Department.
  2. The Immigration Department issues a visa label with a validity period of 6 months upon collection for the batch approved before 1 May 2023. The visa label approved on or after 1 May 2023 will be valid for 3 months upon collection.  Students please pay attention to the expiry date stated on your “e-Visa” and activate the visa label within the visa validity period. The University will complete the “e-Visa” collection process and inform students to download the “e-visa” around six weeks prior to their admission date, provided that all application materials were previously submitted timely and in full. Thus, there is no need to check with the Graduate School even if you notice from the Immigration Department's website that the visa is already approved.
  3. Newly admitted students will be informed via the email address provided in the application at Online Application System for Postgraduate Programmes. Current students will be informed via your @Link mailbox (i.e., CU student email).
 
List of Supporting Documents for Student Visa Application
List of Supporting Documents for Student Visa Application
List of Supporting Documents for Student Visa Application
  1. “Application for Visa Sponsorship”
  2. Original Form ID995A (Sample)
  3. Copy of the identify document(s):
    • Students from Mainland China:
      • People’s Republic of China Resident Identity Card (front and back)
      • Permit for Travelling to and from Hong Kong and Macau (if applicable)
      • Passport (if applicable)
    • Students from Macau:
      • Macao Identity Card (front and back)
      • Passport (if applicable)
      • Visit Permit for Residents of Macao SAR to HKSAR (澳門居民往來香港特別行政區旅遊證) (if applicable)
    • Students from Taiwan:
      • Taiwan Identity Card (front and back pages)
      • Passport (if applicable)
      • Household Registration Transcript (front and back pages) (台灣戶籍影印本)
    • Students from other countries/regions:
      • Passport
  4. A copy of the Admission Notification.
  5. A copy of the Letter of Award of your Postgraduate Studentship (only for Research Postgraduate Students who have been awarded a studentship).
  6. Evidence of your financial standing to prove that you will be able to support your study and living in Hong Kong, e.g. a clear copy of bank statements, savings account passbooks or tax receipts.
    Research postgraduate students who are awarded a studentship are not required to provide evidence of their financial standing.
    For taught postgraduate students, if the financial proof belongs to a person who will support you financially, please also provide:
    - proof of the relationship between you and that person, e.g. birth certificate, marriage certificate; and
    - an undertaking signed by that person that s/he will support you financially.
  7. Visa handling fee (HK$450) by credit card payment via the Application System (please select “Visa status checking/change visa address”).

In addition to the above documents, part‐time students are required to provide the following additional documents:

  1. a plan of your travel between Hong Kong and your residence;
  2. explanation on why you select to study the Programme at this University instead of programmes in your home country/region;
  3. an undertaking that you will depart from Hong Kong after you complete the programme; and
  4. a support letter from your current employer, if applicable.

For more information about student visa/entry permits, please refer to the FAQs.