I am applying for a UK visa in Hong Kong. How do I get a criminal record check?

If you are applying for entry clearance under certain visa routes, you must provide a criminal record certificate for any country (excluding the UK) where you have lived for 12 months or more (whether continuous or in total), in the 10 years before your application, while aged 18 or over.

Which visa categories will require a criminal record check?

• Tier 1 (Entrepreneur)*
• Tier 1 (Investor)
• Skilled Worker in education, health or social care sectors
• Dependant partner of the main applicant in any of the above routes, either together with the main applicant or separately

*The Tier 1 (Entrepreneur) visa category has been closed to new applicants since March 2019.

How can I get Certificates of No Convictions (CNCC) from the Hong Kong authorities?

In order to obtain a CNCC from Hong Kong authorities to support your UK visa application, you must submit your CNCC application to Hong Kong Police Force. If your UK visa application will be processed on a standard basis, you will need to submit your visa application online prior to the submission of your CNCC application, as you are required to enclose your completed visa application form with your CNCC application.

Once your UK visa application has been submitted online, you must book an appointment with Hong Kong Police Force via their online portal or via an Auto-Telephone Answering System to submit your CNCC application. The Hong Kong Police Force are not currently accepting walk-in appointments due to Covid-19.

To the appointment you must bring the various signed application forms, proof that you have submitted a UK visa application, ID documents and, if applying alongside family members, evidence of your relationship to any other applicants. In addition, you must bring the processing fee of HK$225 per person.

The standard processing time for a CNCC is four calendar weeks. If your CNCC application cannot be completed within this timeframe in exceptional circumstances, the CNCC office will contact you accordingly. As such, you should not book any visa appointment earlier than four weeks after the date that you submit your application for a CNCC.

Once a CNCC has been issued, it will be directly forwarded to the Visa Application Centre in Hong Kong.

If you wish to choose a priority service for your visa application, you will need to apply for the CNCC first. Once the CNCC has been received by the Visa Application Centre, an e-mail will be sent to you. Thereafter, you can submit your application on a priority basis and either attend the appointment originally booked or choose to make a new earlier appointment.

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