How to determine whether the applicants have right of abode in Hong Kong

Question 1 : who can enjoy the right of abode in HKSAR ?

Answer : According to paragraph 2(a) to (f) of Schedule 1 to the Immigration Ordinance, which came into operation on 1 July 1997, you are a permanent resident of, and can enjoy the right of abode in, the HKSAR if you fall into one of the following categories:
(a) A Chinese citizen born in Hong Kong before or after the establishment of the HKSAR.
(b) A Chinese citizen who has ordinarily resided in Hong Kong for a continuous period of not less than 7 years before or after the establishment of the HKSAR.
(c) A person of Chinese nationality born outside Hong Kong before or after the establishment of the HKSAR to a parent who, at the time of birth of that person, was a Chinese citizen falling within category (a) or (b).
(d) A person not of Chinese nationality who has entered Hong Kong with a valid travel document, has ordinarily resided in Hong Kong for a continuous period of not less than 7 years and has taken Hong Kong as his or her place of permanent residence before or after the establishment of the HKSAR.
(e) A person under 21 years of age born in Hong Kong to a parent who is a permanent resident of the HKSAR in category (d) before or after the establishment of the HKSAR if at the time of his or her birth, or at any later time before he or she attains 21 years of age, one parent has the right of abode in Hong Kong.
(f) A person other than those residents in categories (a) to (e), who, before the establishment of the HKSAR, had the right of abode in Hong Kong only.

Question 2: If I have emigrated overseas and I am an overseas resident (e.g. become a US resident, holder of US green card but have not yet naturalized as a US citizen), can my child born in a foreign country (e.g. US or Canada) enjoy the right of abode in the HKSAR?

Answer : If a child has acquired a foreign nationality at birth to parents of Chinese nationality who have settled overseas (e.g. in the USA) at the time of the child’s birth, regardless of whether or not the parents have acquired the foreign nationality, the child does not have Chinese nationality in accordance with Article 5 of the Nationality Law of the People’s Republic of China. As the child is not a Chinese citizen, he or she is not eligible for Hong Kong permanent resident status.
 
Supplementary Information
Under paragraph 2(c) of Schedule 1 to the Immigration Ordinance, Cap 115, a person of Chinese nationality born outside Hong Kong before or after the establishment of the HKSAR to a parent who, at the time of birth of that person, was a Chinese citizen born in Hong Kong or has resided ordinarily in Hong Kong for a continuous period of not less than 7 years, is a permanent resident of the HKSAR and can enjoy the right of abode in Hong Kong.
However, for a Chinese citizen born in Hong Kong or has ordinarily resided in Hong Kong for a continuous period of not less than 7 years, his or her child’s eligibility for the right of abode in Hong Kong depends on whether this child has Chinese nationality at the time of birth.
Article 5 of Chinese Nationality Law states that: “Any person born abroad whose parents are both Chinese nationals or one of whose parents is a Chinese national shall have Chinese nationality. But a person whose parents are both Chinese nationals and have both settled abroad, or one of whose parents is a Chinese national and has settled abroad, and who has acquired foreign nationality at birth shall not have Chinese nationality.”
Under normal circumstances, having permanent resident status in a foreign country (that is, having resided abroad ordinarily and not being subject to any limit of stay) will be treated as having settled abroad.