In a dawn update on 2 December, the Chief Secretary-led Task Force on Emergency Support confirmed that visa fees are being waived and processing times slashed for any document lost in the Wang Fuk Court tragedy.
Three cross-departmental task forces—Investigation & Regulation, Emergency Support & Fund-raising, and Emergency Accommodation—have pooled HK$1.6 billion in public and private donations. Part of that pot has been earmarked to subsidise residents who must replace foreign passports, Hong Kong employment visas or dependent permits that were consumed by the blaze.
![Task Forces Waive Visa Fees and Fast-Track Travel Documents in Wider Fire Relief Package]()
According to the update, the Immigration Department has already issued more than 400 temporary ID receipts and 120 one-way-permits so residents can collect children studying overseas or attend urgent medical appointments abroad. Consulates have been given a dedicated help-desk inside the Tseung Kwan O headquarters to speed up foreign passport re-issuance.
Employers that provide staff housing in the complex—including several multinational electronics firms—can recover the cost of interim accommodation for expatriate assignees via a new HK$200 million reimbursement fund administered by Invest HK. Global relocation providers welcomed the move, noting that corporate-level property leases often fall outside standard insurance cover for natural disasters or fires.
The coordinated approach is being hailed as a template for future crisis management in a city where 13% of residents are foreign passport holders and more than 360,000 foreign domestic helpers rely on visa labels that cannot easily be duplicated overseas.
Three cross-departmental task forces—Investigation & Regulation, Emergency Support & Fund-raising, and Emergency Accommodation—have pooled HK$1.6 billion in public and private donations. Part of that pot has been earmarked to subsidise residents who must replace foreign passports, Hong Kong employment visas or dependent permits that were consumed by the blaze.
According to the update, the Immigration Department has already issued more than 400 temporary ID receipts and 120 one-way-permits so residents can collect children studying overseas or attend urgent medical appointments abroad. Consulates have been given a dedicated help-desk inside the Tseung Kwan O headquarters to speed up foreign passport re-issuance.
Employers that provide staff housing in the complex—including several multinational electronics firms—can recover the cost of interim accommodation for expatriate assignees via a new HK$200 million reimbursement fund administered by Invest HK. Global relocation providers welcomed the move, noting that corporate-level property leases often fall outside standard insurance cover for natural disasters or fires.
The coordinated approach is being hailed as a template for future crisis management in a city where 13% of residents are foreign passport holders and more than 360,000 foreign domestic helpers rely on visa labels that cannot easily be duplicated overseas.
