International / Non-local Students - Visa
If you are a prospective postgraduate student, please visit the website of the Chow Yei Ching School of Graduate Studies for more information.
Student Visa / Entry Permit
Persons who do not have the right of abode or right to land and wish to enter Hong Kong for the purpose of education are required by law to obtain a valid student visa/entry permit issued by the Hong Kong Immigration Department before coming to Hong Kong (see Important Note 6 below). Students who hold a valid student visa/entry permit issued by the Hong Kong Immigration Department will be classified as "Non-local Students". Travellers entering Hong Kong as visitors are not allowed by law to enter school as a student nor, except in the most unusual circumstances, are visitors allowed to change their immigration status after arrival.
Students will need a local sponsor, either the University or a friend/relative aged 18 or above, for the student visa/entry permit application. Students from Mainland China must have their student entry permit applications sponsored by the University. In general, the University will act as the local sponsor of student visa/entry permit application for students if they are accepted by the University to:
Students are advised to apply well in advance as obtaining a student visa/entry permit may take as long as 6 weeks.

For details, please consult the website of the Hong Kong Immigration Department.

v Student Visa/Entry Permit Application Flow Chartv
(A quick glance at the application process via the University)

Documents Required for Application for Student Visa/Entry Permit in Hong Kong via the University:
If you need visa sponsorship from the University, please submit the following documents to the International and Non-local Students section, Mainland and External Affairs Office, 2/F, Block 2, To Yuen Building, City University of Hong Kong, Tat Chee Avenue, Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR as early as possible once you have been accepted by the University:
  1. Original copies of application forms ID995A named "Application for Entry for Study in Hong Kong", with relevant parts duly completed and signed [Before filling in the application form, please read the "Guidebook for Entry for Study in Hong Kong" carefully.]
  2. Photocopies of the following:
    • Applicant's identity card and/or valid travel document containing personal particulars
    • Letter of admission issued by the University (keep the original and bring it with you upon entering Hong Kong)
    • Applicant's reply of acceptance of the admission offer (if applicable)
    • Evidence of the financial support of the applicant, or evidence of the financial sponsor if the applicant is financially sponsored by another person, e.g. bank statements, savings account passbook, tax receipts, scholarship award documents (keep the original document with you as you may need it to facilitate account transaction)
    • Applicant's Macao identity card (for Macao residents only)
    • Applicant's household registration in Taiwan and Taiwan identity card (for Taiwan residents only)
  3. Applicant's recent photograph (affixed on page 2 of the application form ID995A)
  4. A declaration from the financial sponsor identifying his/her relationship with the applicant and undertaking that he/she will financially support the applicant's study and living in Hong Kong (if the applicant is financially sponsored by another person)
  5. If the applicant is under the age of 18, one of the applicant's parents should authorize the local sponsor or a relative/friend in Hong Kong to be the guardian of the applicant. A Letter of Consent regarding the guardianship duly signed by one of the applicant's parents and the guardian should be produced
  6. The completed and signed "Request for Visa Sponsorship and Student's Agreement" [A payment of HK$320 (non-refundable) is required for the visa fee (HK$160) charged by the Hong Kong Immigration Department and mailing cost. Please fill out the relevant section of the Form to authorize credit card payment or enclose a bank draft made payable to "City University of Hong Kong".]
Upon receiving all necessary documents and payment, the University will complete the application form ID995B named "Application for Entry for Study (Sponsor) in Hong Kong" and submit it together with the "Application for Entry for Study in Hong Kong" completed by applicant to the Hong Kong Immigration Department. When approval is granted, the University will collect the student visa/entry permit label (a self-adhesive label) from the Immigration Department and send it to the applicant, i.e. the student.
Students who are permanent residents of Mainland China will need to apply for an "Exit-entry Permit for Travelling to and from Hong Kong and Macao" (EEP) and a relevant exit endorsement from the Public Security Bureau (PSB) office after receiving the entry permit label. The entry permit label should be affixed onto a blank endorsement page of the EEP. For students from other countries, simply affix the student visa/entry permit label onto a blank page of your passport/travel document. Do not forget to validate your student visa/entry permit by presenting the page with student visa/entry permit label in your passport/travel document to the officer-on-duty for arrival clearance at the immigration checkpoint upon entry to Hong Kong.
Important Notes:
  1. The University will process the student visa/entry permit application only if all the required documents and payment are received.
  2. The processing officer of the Hong Kong Immigration Department may request for additional information/documents in support of the student visa/entry permit application on a case by case basis.
  3. Hong Kong student visa holders shall be subject to the following conditions of stay that:
    • he/she shall become a student only at a specified educational institution and undertake a specific programme or course of study as may be approved by the Director of the Hong Kong Immigration Department; and
    • he/she shall not (i) take up any employment, whether paid or unpaid; or (ii) establish or join in any business. (Students who wish to take up voluntary work or charity services are also required to seek prior approval from the Director of the Hong Kong Immigration Department.)
  4. It is the student's sole responsibility to:
    • obtain a valid student visa/entry permit before entering Hong Kong;
    • maintain a valid travel document and a valid student visa/entry permit;
    • meet the general and/or specific immigration requirements and regulations; and
    • comply with the terms and conditions of the visa/permit throughout his/her study period at the University.
  5. City University of Hong Kong reserves the rights to withdraw its sponsorship and report the case to the Hong Kong Immigration Department if there are any changes to the student's study or enrolment status in the University.
  6. Persons holding any one of the following identity/visa documents do not have to apply for a student visa/entry permit:
    • A "Hong Kong Permanent Identity Card" (as distinguished from a "Hong Kong Identity Card");
    • A valid employment visa (normally for part-time taught postgraduate programme study only and subject to the immigration regulations. If you are holding an employment visa, please consult the Hong Kong Immigration Department on visa regulations in advance); or
    • A dependant visa.
Internship, Part-time On-campus Employment & Summer Job
Non-local students of full-time, locally accredited programmes at degree level or above with a programme period of not less than one academic year (EXCLUDING Foundation Year Students, Exchange Students and Visiting Students studying on a short-term basis) may take up internship subject to the following conditions:
  1. the internship must be study/curriculum-related and is pre-arranged/pre-endorsed by the University at the time of admission, or when the student applies for extension of visa/entry permit in order to continue with the relevant full-time academic programme;
  2. the duration of the internship is up to one academic year, or one-third of the normal duration of the relevant full-time academic programme, whichever is the shorter; and
  3. the internship cannot take place before the student is officially registered with the institution and begins attending any scheduled classes of his/her registered programme in Hong Kong, nor when the student has fulfilled all the course/credit requirements for graduation, e.g. a student who has just finished his/her final year of study is not allowed to take up internship.
These students (EXCLUDING Foundation Year Students, Exchange Students and Visiting Students studying on a short-term basis) may also take up:
  1. part-time on-campus employment through the University¡¯s On-campus Service-learning Scheme (OSS) (for undergraduate students), or via the Human Resources Office (for postgraduate/research students), with City University of Hong Kong as the employer;
  2. summer employment (June, July, August only).
To facilitate eligible non-local students to take up study/curriculum-related internship and/or part-time on-campus and summer employment, eligible students will be individually issued with a "No Objection Letter (NOL)" upon approval of student visa/entry permit or extension of stay applications.

For details, please visit the website of the Hong Kong Immigration Department.
Visa Renewal
Student visa/entry permit holders who wish to stay in Hong Kong to continue with the approved programme of study should apply for extension of stay within 4 weeks before the student visa/entry permit expires. Please be reminded that non-local students are required by law to have a valid visa/entry permit throughout the entire period of their studies at the University and in Hong Kong.
Depending on your student status, the following documents are normally required for extension of stay:
  1. Applicant's travel documents
  2. Applicant's Hong Kong Identity Card
  3. Completed form ID91
  4. Document certifying that the applicant will continue his/her study at the University
Normally, applications for extension of stay will be finalized within 3 to 4 weeks upon receipt of all the necessary documents. Please note that the applicant must be in Hong Kong at the time of application and when the new visa/entry permit label is ready for collection.
For details on the application procedure for an extension of stay, please visit the website of the Hong Kong Immigration Department.