Agreement between the European Community and the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China on the readmission of persons residing without authorisation
Date: 2002-11-27
Institutions: European Community, Hong Kong
Subjects: EU visa policy, Hong Kong, agreement (EU), illegal migration, residence permit, return migration

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between the European Community and the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative
Region of the People's Republic of China on the readmission of persons residing without
authorisation

AGREEMENT

THE CONTRACTING PARTIES,

THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITY,

hereinafter referred to as ‘the Community’,

and

THE GOVERNMENT OF THE HONG KONG SPECIAL ADMINISTRATIVE REGION OF THE PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF
CHINA,

hereinafter referred to as ‘the Hong Kong SAR’,

DETERMINED to strengthen their cooperation in order to combat illegal immigration more effectively,

REFERRING to Council Regulation (EC) No 539/2001 (1), and in particular Article 1(2) in conjunction with Annex II
thereof, exempting holders of a ‘Hong Kong Special Administrative Region’ passport from the requirement, for stays of
no more than three months in all, to be in possession of a visa when crossing the external borders of the Member States
of the European Union,

DESIRING to establish, by means of this Agreement and on the basis of reciprocity, rapid and effective procedures for
the identification and return of persons who do not, or no longer, fulfil the conditions for entry to, presence in, or resi-
dence on the territories of the Hong Kong SAR or one of the Member States of the European Union, and to facilitate the
transit of such persons in a spirit of cooperation,

CONSIDERING that the provisions of this Agreement, which falls within the scope of Title IV of the Treaty establishing
the European Community, do not apply to the Kingdom of Denmark, in accordance with the Protocol on the position
of Denmark annexed to the Treaty on European Union and the Treaty establishing the European Community,

HAVE AGREED AS FOLLOWS:

Article 1

Definitions

For the purpose of this Agreement:

(a) ‘Member State’ shall mean any Member State of the Euro-
the Kingdom of

pean Union, with the exception of
Denmark;

(b) ‘national of a Member State’ shall mean any person who
holds the nationality, as defined for Community purposes,
of a Member State;

(c) ‘permanent resident of the Hong Kong SAR’ shall mean any
person who has the right of abode, that is the right to
reside permanently, in the Hong Kong SAR;

(d) ‘person of another jurisdiction’ shall mean any person who
is neither a permanent resident of the Hong Kong SAR, nor
a national of a Member State. This shall
include third-
country nationals and stateless persons;

(e) ‘stateless person’ shall mean any person who does not hold

a nationality;

(f) ‘residence authorisation’ shall mean a permit of any type
issued by the Hong Kong SAR or one of the Member States
entitling a person to reside on its territory. This shall not
include an application for a residence authorisation or

(1) Council Regulation (EC) No 539/2001 of 15 March 2001 listing the
third countries whose nationals must be in possession of visas when
crossing the external borders and those whose nationals are exempt
from that requirement (OJ L 81, 23.3.2001, p. 1).

temporary permissions to remain on its territory as a visitor
or in connection with the processing of an asylum applica-
tion;

(g) ‘visa’ shall mean an authorisation issued or a decision taken
by the Hong Kong SAR or one of the Member States which
permits a person's entry in, or transit through, its territory
and which has been issued or taken prior to the person's
arrival at its border. This shall not include an airside transit
visa.

SECTION I

READMISSION BY THE HONG KONG SAR

Article 2

Readmission of permanent residents and former perma-
nent residents

1.
The Hong Kong SAR shall readmit, upon application by a
Member State and without any formalities other than those
specified in this Agreement, all persons who do not, or who no
longer, fulfil the conditions in force for entry to, presence in,
or residence on, the territory of the requesting Member State
provided that it is proved, or may be validly assumed on the
basis of prima facie evidence furnished, that they are perma-
nent residents of the Hong Kong SAR. The same shall apply to
persons who, since entering the territory of a Member State,
have lost their right to permanent residence in the Hong Kong
SAR, unless such persons have at least been promised naturali-
sation by that Member State.

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At the request of a Member State, the Hong Kong SAR
2.
shall, as necessary and without delay, issue the person to be
readmitted with the travel document required for his or her
return that is of a period of validity of at least six months. If,
for legal or factual reasons, the person concerned cannot be
transferred within the period of validity of the travel document
that was initially issued, the Hong Kong SAR shall issue a new
travel document with the same period of validity within 14
days. If the Hong Kong SAR does not issue the travel document
requested within 15 days of the date of the request it shall be
deemed to accept use of the EU standard travel document for
the purposes of readmission.

Article 3

Readmission of persons of another jurisdiction

1.
The Hong Kong SAR shall readmit, upon application by a
Member State and without any formalities other than those
specified in this Agreement, all persons of another jurisdiction
who do not, or who no longer, fulfil the conditions in force for
entry to, presence in, or residence on, the territory of the
requesting Member State provided that it is proved, or may be
validly assumed on the basis of prima facie evidence furnished,
that such persons:

(a) at the time of entry held a valid visa or residence authorisa-

tion issued by the Hong Kong SAR; or

(b) after having entered the territory of the Hong Kong SAR,
proceed to enter unlawfully the territory of the Member
States, coming directly from the territory of the Hong Kong
SAR.

The readmission obligation in paragraph 1 shall not

2.
apply if:

(a) the person of another jurisdiction has been in airside transit

via the Hong Kong International Airport; or

(b) the requesting Member State has issued to the person of
another jurisdiction a visa or residence authorisation before
or after entering its territory, which has a longer period of
validity than any visa or residence authorisation issued by
the Hong Kong SAR; or

(c) the person of another jurisdiction enjoyed visa-free access

to the territory of the requesting Member State.

3.
At the request of a Member State, the Hong Kong SAR
shall, as necessary and without delay, issue the person to be
readmitted with the travel document required for his or her
return that is of a period of validity of at least six months. If,
for legal or factual reasons, the person concerned cannot be
transferred within the period of validity of the travel document
that was initially issued, the Hong Kong SAR shall issue a new
travel document with the same period of validity within 14
days. If the Hong Kong SAR does not issue the travel docu-
ments requested within 15 days of the date of the request it
shall be deemed to accept use of the EU standard travel docu-
ment for the purposes of readmission.

SECTION II

READMISSION BY THE COMMUNITY

Article 4

Readmission of own and former own nationals

1.
A Member State shall readmit, upon application by the
Hong Kong SAR and without any formalities other than those
specified in this Agreement, all persons who do not, or who no
longer, fulfil the conditions in force for entry to, presence in,
or residence on, the territory of the Hong Kong SAR provided
that it is proved, or may be validly assumed on the basis of
prima facie evidence furnished, that they are nationals of that
Member State.

The same shall apply to persons who have been deprived of, or
who have renounced, the nationality of a Member State since
entering the territory of
the Hong Kong SAR unless such
persons have at least been promised permanent residence in
the latter.

2.
At the request of the Hong Kong SAR, a Member State
shall, as necessary and without delay, issue the person to be
readmitted with the travel document required for his or her
return that is of a period of validity of at least six months. If,
for legal or factual reasons, the person concerned cannot be
transferred within the period of validity of the travel document
that was initially issued, the Member State concerned shall issue
a new travel document with the same period of validity within
14 days.

Article 5

Readmission of persons of another jurisdiction

1.
A Member State shall readmit, upon application by the
Hong Kong SAR and without any formalities other than those
specified in this Agreement, all persons of another jurisdiction
who do not, or who no longer, fulfil the conditions in force for
entry to, presence in, or residence on, the territory of the Hong
Kong SAR provided that
is proved, or may be validly
assumed on the basis of prima facie evidence furnished, that
such persons:

it

(a) at the time of entry held a valid visa or residence authorisa-

tion issued by the requested Member State; or

(b) after having entered the territory of the requested Member
State, proceed to enter unlawfully the territory of the Hong
Kong SAR, coming directly from the territory of
the
requested Member State.

The readmission obligation in paragraph 1 shall not

2.
apply if:

(a) the person of another jurisdiction has been in airside transit
via an international airport of the requested Member State;
or

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(b) the Hong Kong SAR has issued to the person of another
jurisdiction a visa or residence authorisation before or after
entering its territory, which has a longer period of validity
than any visa or residence authorisation issued by the
requested Member State; or

(c) the person of another jurisdiction enjoyed visa-free access

to the territory of the Hong Kong SAR.

3.
If two or more Member States issued a visa or residence
authorisation, the readmission obligation in paragraph 1 is for
the Member State that issued the document with a longer
period of validity or, if one or several of them have already
expired, the document that is still valid. If all of the documents
have already expired, the readmission obligation in paragraph
1 is for the Member State that issued the document with the
most recent expiry date.

4.
At the request of the Hong Kong SAR, a Member State
shall, as necessary and without delay, issue the person to be
readmitted with the travel document required for his or her
return that is of a period of validity of at least six months. If,
for legal or factual reasons, the person concerned cannot be
transferred within the period of validity of the travel document
that was initially issued, the Member State concerned shall issue
a new travel document with the same period of validity within
14 days.

SECTION III

READMISSION PROCEDURE

Article 6

Principle

1.
Subject to paragraph 2, a transfer of a person to be read-
mitted on the basis of one of the obligations contained in Arti-
cles 2 to 5 shall require the submission of a readmission appli-
cation to the competent authority of the requested Contracting
Party.

2.
The readmission application may be replaced by a written
communication to the requested Contracting Party within a
the person
reasonable time period prior to the return of
concerned provided that

(a) the person to be readmitted is in possession of a valid travel
document and, where applicable, a valid visa or residence
authorisation of the requested Contracting Party; and

(b) the person to be readmitted is willing to return to the

requested Contracting Party.

(b) copies of documents which provide proof or prima facie

evidence of nationality or permanent residence.

To the extent possible, the readmission application should

2.
also contain the following information:

(a) statement indicating that the person to be transferred may
need help or care, provided the person concerned has expli-
citly consented to the statement;

(b) any other protection or security measure which may be

necessary in the individual transfer case.

A common form to be used for readmission applications

3.
is attached as Annex 5 to this Agreement.

Article 8

Means of evidence regarding nationality and permanent
residence

1.
Proof of nationality or permanent residence pursuant to
Article 2(1) and Article 4(1) can be furnished through the
documents listed in Annex 1 to this Agreement, even if their
period of validity has expired. If such documents are presented,
the Member States shall recognise the nationality, and the Hong
Kong SAR shall recognise the permanent residence, without
further formalities. Proof of nationality or permanent residence
cannot be furnished through false documents.

Prima facie evidence of nationality or permanent resi-
2.
dence pursuant to Article 2(1) and Article 4(1) can be furnished
through the documents listed in Annex 2 to this Agreement,
even if their period of validity has expired. If such documents
are presented, the Member States shall deem the nationality,
and the Hong Kong SAR shall deem the permanent residence,
to be established unless they can prove otherwise.

3.
If none of the documents listed in Annexes 1 or 2 can be
presented, the competent authorities of the Hong Kong SAR or
the Member State concerned shall, upon request, make the
necessary arrangements in order to establish his or her nation-
ality or permanent residence.

Article 9

Article 7

Readmission application

Means of

evidence

regarding persons of
jurisdiction

another

Any readmission application is to contain the following

1.
information:

(a) the particulars of the person to be readmitted (e.g. given
names, surnames, date of birth, and, where possible, place
of birth, and the last place of residence);

1.
Proof of the conditions for the readmission of persons of
another jurisdiction laid down in Article 3(1) and Article 5(1)
can be furnished through the means of evidence listed in
Annex 3 to this Agreement;
it cannot be furnished through
false documents. Any such proof shall be mutually recognised
by the Contracting Parties without further formalities.

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Prima facie evidence of the conditions for the readmission
2.
of persons of another jurisdiction laid down in Article 3(1) and
Article 5(1) can be furnished through the means of evidence
listed in Annex 4 to this Agreement. Where such prima facie
evidence is presented, the Contracting Parties shall deem the
conditions to be established unless they can prove otherwise.

3.
The unlawfulness of entry, presence or residence may be
established by means of the travel documents of the person
concerned in which the necessary visa or other residence
authorisation for the territory of the requesting Member State
or the Hong Kong SAR are missing. A statement by the compe-
tent authority of the requesting Contracting Party that
the
person concerned has been found not having the necessary
travel documents, visa or residence authorisation shall likewise
provide prima facie evidence of the unlawful entry, presence or
residence.

Article 10

Time limits

1.
The application for readmission must be submitted to the
competent authority of the requested Contracting Party within
a maximum of one year after the requesting authority has
gained knowledge that a person of another jurisdiction does
not, or does no longer, fulfil the conditions in force for entry,
presence or residence. Where there are legal or factual obstacles
to the application being submitted in time, the time limit shall,
upon request, be extended but only until the obstacles have
ceased to exist.

2.
A readmission application must be replied to without
undue delay, and in any event within a maximum of one
month; reasons shall be given for refusal of a readmission
request. This time limit begins to run with the date of receipt
of the readmission request. Upon expiry of this time limit the
transfer shall be deemed to have been agreed to.

3.
After agreement has been given or, where appropriate,
upon expiry of the one month time limit, the person concerned
shall be transferred without undue delay and, at the most,
within three months. Upon application, this time limit may be
extended by the time taken to deal with legal or practical obsta-
cles.

Article 11

SECTION IV

TRANSIT OPERATIONS

Article 12

Principles

1.
The Hong Kong SAR shall allow the transit of persons of
another jurisdiction through its territory if a Member State so
requests, and a Member State shall authorise the transit of
persons of another jurisdiction through its territory if the Hong
Kong SAR so requests, if the onward journey in possible other
States of transit and the readmission by the State of destination
is assured.

2.
The Member States and the Hong Kong SAR shall endea-
vour to restrict the transit of persons of another jurisdiction to
cases where such persons cannot be returned to the State of
destination directly.

Transit can be refused by the Hong Kong SAR or a

3.
Member State:

(a) if the person of another jurisdiction runs the risk of perse-
cution, or could be subjected to criminal prosecution or
sanctions in another State of transit or in the State of desti-
nation, or could be threatened by criminal prosecution on
the territory of the requested Member State or the Hong
Kong SAR;

(b) on grounds of public health, domestic security, public order

or other national interests.

4.
The Hong Kong SAR or a Member State may revoke any
authorisation issued if circumstances referred to in paragraph 3
subsequently arise or come to light which stand in the way of
the transit operation, or if the onward journey in possible
States of transit or the readmission by the State of destination
is no longer assured.

Article 13

Transit procedure

Transfer modalities and modes of transportation

1.
Before returning a person, the competent authorities of
the Hong Kong SAR and the Member State concerned shall
make arrangements in writing in advance regarding the transfer
date, the border crossing point and possible escorts.

2.
No means of transportation, whether by air, land or sea,
shall be prohibited but, as a rule, return shall take place by air.
Return by air is not restricted to the use of national carriers or
security staff of the requesting Contracting Party, and may take
place by using scheduled flights as well as charter flights.

1.
An application for transit must be submitted to the
competent authorities in writing and is to contain the following
information:

(a) type of transit (by air, land or sea), possible other States of

transit and intended final destination;

(b) the particulars of the person concerned (e.g. given name,
surname, date of birth, and — where possible — place of
birth, nationality, type and number of travel document);

(c) envisaged border crossing point,

time of

transfer and

possible use of escorts;

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(d) a declaration that in the view of the requesting Contracting
Party the conditions pursuant to Article 12(2) are met, and
that no reasons for a refusal pursuant to Article 12(3) are
known of.

A common form to be used for transit applications is attached
as Annex 6 to this Agreement.

The competent authority of the requested Contracting
2.
Party shall, without undue delay and in writing,
inform the
requesting competent authority of the admission, confirming
the border crossing point and the envisaged time of admission,
or inform it of the admission refusal and of the reasons for
such refusal.

3.
If the transit takes place by air, the person to be read-
mitted and possible escorts shall be exempted from having to
obtain an airport transit visa.

4.
The competent authorities of the requested Contracting
Party shall, subject to mutual consultations, assist in the transit,
in particular through the surveillance of the persons in question
and the provision of suitable amenities for that purpose.

SECTION V

COSTS

Article 14

Transport and transit costs

Without prejudice to the right of the competent authorities to
recover the costs associated with the readmission from the
person to be readmitted or third parties, all transport costs
incurred in connection with readmission and transit pursuant
to this Agreement as far as the border of the State of final desti-
nation shall be borne by the requesting Contracting Party.

SECTION VI

DATA PROTECTION AND NON-AFFECTION CLAUSE

The processing and treatment of personal data in a particular
case shall be subject to the domestic laws of the Hong Kong
SAR and, where the controller is a competent authority of a
Member State, to the provisions of Directive 95/46/EC (1) and
of
that Member State adopted
pursuant to this Directive. Additionally the following principles
shall apply:

legislation of

the national

(a) personal data must be processed fairly and lawfully;

(b) personal data must be collected for the specified, explicit
and legitimate purpose of implementing this Agreement
and may not be further processed by the communicating
authority nor by the receiving authority in a way incompa-
tible with that purpose;

(c) personal data must be adequate, relevant and not excessive
in relation to the purpose for which they are collected and/
or further processed; in particular, personal data communi-
cated may concern only the following:

— the particulars of the person to be transferred (e.g.
surname, given name, any previous names, nicknames
or pseudonyms, date and place of birth, sex, current
and any previous nationality),

— identity card or passport (number, period of validity,

date of issue, issuing authority, place of issue),

— stop-overs and itineraries,

— other information needed to identify the person to be
transferred or to examine the readmission requirements
pursuant to this Agreement;

(d) personal data must be accurate and, where necessary, kept

up to date;

(e) personal data must be kept in a form which permits identi-
fication of data subjects for no longer than is necessary for
the purpose for which the data were collected or for which
they are further processed;

the

rectification,

(f) both the communicating authority and the receiving
authority shall
take every reasonable step to ensure as
erasure or blocking of
appropriate
personal data where the processing does not comply with
the provisions of this article, in particular because that data
are not adequate, relevant, accurate, or they are excessive in
relation to the purpose of processing. This includes the
notification of any rectification, erasure or blocking to the
other Party;

(g) upon request,

the receiving authority shall

inform the
communicating authority of the use of the communicated
data and of the results obtained therefrom;

Article 15

Data protection

(h) personal data may only be communicated to the competent
authorities. Further communication to other bodies requires
the prior consent of the communicating authority;

The communication of personal data shall only take place if
such communication is necessary for the implementation of
this Agreement by the competent authorities of the Hong Kong
SAR or a Member State as the case may be.

(1) Directive 95/46/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council
of 24 October 1995 on the protection of individuals with regard to
the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such
data (OJ L 281, 23.11.1995, p. 31).

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(i) the communicating and the receiving authorities are under
an obligation to make a written record of the communica-
tion and receipt of personal data.

Article 18

Implementing protocols

Article 16

Non-affection clause

1.
This Agreement shall be without prejudice to rights, obli-
gations and responsibilities arising from International Law
applicable to the Community, the Member States and the Hong
Kong SAR.

The Hong Kong SAR and a Member State may draw up

1.
implementing protocols which shall cover rules on:

(a) designation of the competent authorities, border crossing

points and exchange of contact points;

(b) conditions for transit of persons of another jurisdiction

under escort;

(c) means and documents additional to those listed in Annexes

1 to 4 to this Agreement.

Nothing in this Agreement shall prevent the return of a

2.
person under other formal or informal arrangements.

2.
The implementing protocols referred to in paragraph 1
shall enter into force only after the Readmission Committee
referred to in Article 17 has been notified.

SECTION VII

IMPLEMENTATION AND APPLICATION

Article 17

Readmission Committee

1.
The Contracting Parties shall provide each other with
mutual assistance in the application and interpretation of this
Agreement. To this end,
they shall set up a Readmission
Committee which will, in particular, have the task:

(a) to monitor the application of this Agreement;

(b) to decide on implementing arrangements necessary for the

uniform application of this Agreement;

(c) to have regular exchanges of information on any imple-
menting Protocols drawn up by individual Member States
and the Hong Kong SAR pursuant to Article 18;

(d) to recommend amendments to this Agreement.

Recommendations of

2.
the Readmission Committee for
amendment of the annexes to this Agreement may be approved
by the Parties through a simplified procedure.

3.
The Readmission Committee shall be composed of repre-
sentatives of the Community and the Hong Kong SAR; the
Community shall be represented by the Commission of the
European Communities, assisted by experts from Member
States.

The Readmission Committee shall meet where necessary

4.
at the request of one of the Contracting Parties.

The Readmission Committee shall establish its rules of

5.
procedures.

3.
The Hong Kong SAR agrees to apply any provision of an
implementing protocol drawn up with one Member State also
in its relations with any other Member State upon request of
the latter.

Article 19

Relation to bilateral readmission agreements or arrange-
ments of Member States

The provisions of this Agreement shall take precedence over
the provisions of any bilateral agreement or arrangement on
the readmission of persons residing without authorisation
which have been or may, under Article 18, be concluded
between individual Member States and the Hong Kong SAR, in
so far as the provisions of the latter are incompatible with
those of this Agreement.

SECTION VIII

FINAL PROVISIONS

Article 20

Entry into force, duration and termination

This Agreement shall be ratified or approved by the
1.
Contracting Parties in accordance with their respective proce-
dures.

This Agreement shall enter into force on the first day of
2.
the second month following the date on which the Contracting
Parties notify each other that the procedures referred to in the
first paragraph have been completed.

3.

This Agreement is concluded for an unlimited period.

4.
Each Contracting Party may denounce this Agreement by
officially notifying the other Contracting Party. This Agreement
shall cease to apply six months after the date of such notifica-
tion.

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Annexes 1 to 6 shall form an integral part of this Agreement.

Article 21

Annexes

Done at Brussels on the twenty-seventh day of November in the year two thousand and two in duplicate in
the Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish and Swedish
languages, each of these texts being equally authentic

Por la Comunidad Europea

For Det Europæiske Fællesskab

Für die Europäische Gemeinschaft

Για την Ευρωπαϊκή Κοινότητα

For the European Community

Pour la Communauté européenne

Per la Comunità europea

Voor de Europese Gemeenschap

Pela Comunidade Europeia

Euroopan yhteisön puolesta

För Europeiska gemenskapen

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Por el Gobierno de la Región Administrativa Especial de Hong Kong de la República Popular China

På regeringen for Folkerepublikken Kinas særlige administrative region Hongkongs vegne

Im Namen der Regierung der Sonderverwaltungsregion Hongkong der Volksrepublik China

Για την κυβέρνηση της ειδικής διοικητικής περιοχής Χονγκ Κονγκ της Λαϊκής ∆ηµοκρατίας της Κίνας

For the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China

Pour le gouvernement de la région administrative spéciale de Hong Kong de la République populaire de
Chine

Per il governo della regione ad amministrazione speciale di Hong Kong della Repubblica popolare cinese

Voor de regering van de Speciale Administratieve Regio Hong Kong van de Volksrepubliek China

Pelo Governo da Região Administrativa Especial de Hong Kong da República Popular da China

Kiinan kansantasavallan erityishallintoalueen Hongkongin hallituksen puolesta

För regeringen i Folkrepubliken Kinas särskilda administrativa region Hongkong

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ANNEX 1

Common list of documents the presentation of which is considered as proof of nationality or permanent
residence (Article 2(1), Article 3(1), Article 4(1) and Article 5(1))

Member States:

— passports of any kind (national passports, diplomatic passports, service passports, collective passports and surrogate

passports including children's passports);

— identity cards of any kind (including temporary and provisional ones);

— service books and military identity cards;

— seaman's registration books and skippers' service cards;

— official documents indicating the nationality of the person concerned.

Hong Kong:

— Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Passports;

— Hong Kong Certificate of Identity;

— Hong Kong Permanent Identity Card;

— official documents indicating the permanent residence status of the person concerned.

Common list of documents the presentation of which is considered as prima facie evidence of nationality or
permanent residence (Article 2(1), Article 3(1), Article 4(1) and Article 5(1))

ANNEX 2

— photocopies of any of the documents listed in Annex 1 to this Agreement;

— driving licenses or photocopies thereof;

— birth certificates and photocopies thereof;

— company identity cards or photocopies thereof;

— statements by witnesses;

— statements made by the person concerned and language spoken by him or her, including by means of an official test

result;

— any other document which may help to establish the nationality or the permanent residence status of the person

concerned.

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ANNEX 3

Common list of documents which are considered as proof of the conditions for the readmission of persons of
another jurisdiction (Article 3(1), Article 5(1))

— entry/departure stamps or similar endorsement in the travel document of the person concerned;

— tickets as well as certificates and bills of any kind (e.g. hotel bills, appointment cards for doctors/dentists, entry cards
for public/private institutions, etc.) which clearly show that the person concerned stayed on the territory of the
requested Member State or the Hong Kong SAR;

— railway tickets and tickets and/or passenger lists of air or boat passages which show the itinerary on the territory of

the requested State;

— information showing that the person concerned has used the services of a courier or travel agency.

ANNEX 4

Common list of documents which are considered as prima facie evidence of the conditions for the readmission
of persons of another jurisdiction (Article 3(1), Article 5(1))

— official statements made, in particular, by border authority staff and other witnesses who can testify to the person

concerned crossing the border;

— description of place and circumstances under which the person concerned has been intercepted after entering the

territory of the requesting Member State or the Hong Kong SAR;

— information related to the identity and/or stay of a person which has been provided by an international organisation;

— reports/confirmation of information by family members, travelling companions, etc.;

— statement by the person concerned.

24.1.2004

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

L 17/35

ANNEX 5

L 17/36

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

24.1.2004

24.1.2004

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

L 17/37

ANNEX 6

L 17/38

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

24.1.2004

24.1.2004

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

L 17/39

JOINT DECLARATION ON ARTICLE 1(f)

The Contracting Parties take note that, under the Hong Kong SAR's current immigration laws, a ‘residence
authorisation’ in the meaning of Article 1(f) is, in particular, issued in all cases where a person is given
permission to land in Hong Kong:

— as a student at a specified and officially approved school, university or other educational institution, or

— for paid employment and self-employed economic activities (professionals, investors, talents, imported

workers, domestic helpers etc.), or

— for the purpose of joining residents in Hong Kong as dependants (family reunion).

JOINT DECLARATION CONCERNING DENMARK

The Contracting Parties take note that this Agreement does not apply to the territory of the Kingdom of
Denmark. In such circumstances it is appropriate that the Hong Kong SAR and Denmark conclude a
readmission agreement in the same terms as this Agreement.

JOINT DECLARATION CONCERNING ICELAND AND NORWAY

The Contracting Parties take note of the close relationship between the European Community and Iceland
and Norway, particularly by virtue of the Agreement of 18 May 1999 concerning the association of these
countries with the implementation, application and development of the Schengen acquis. In such circum-
stances it is appropriate that the Hong Kong SAR concludes a readmission agreement with Iceland and
Norway in the same terms as this Agreement.