Ousted Lawmaker Backs BN(O) Documents Ban For MPF

A member of the MPF Schemes Advisory Committee, disqualified pro-democracy lawmaker Kenneth Leung, said on Thursday that it makes sense for the authorities to refuse to accept BN(O) passports and visas as proof that someone is leaving the territory and that they are entitled to empty their MPF accounts early.

Leung said on a radio show that people moving to the UK under the visa scheme might come back to Hong Kong if they don't settle in well there.

"You need to give a very high level of proof in order to withdraw your MPF early, because the aim of the set-up of the MPF is to protect retirement. That's why the legislation has been drafted in such a way to preserve accrued MPF benefits within the scheme," he said.

The former legislator said the crux of the issue is whether SAR residents with BN(O) status going to Britain can prove that they are relocating there permanently – although it is not clear how people moving away on other passports are able to do this either.

He said the decision on BN(O) documents may be "tainted with some political insinuation" but the fact that the Hong Kong government no longer recognises the BN(O) passport is not a consideration – even though the MPF Schemes Authority stressed this point in a statement on Wednesday.

"Of course the [BN(O) visa] scheme itself is highly politicised. That's why people would think that the decision could be a political decision as well. But as a regulator, I think the MPFA should maintain its neutrality and professionalism," Leung said, adding that it could be a good idea for the authority to better explain its decision.

He said people unhappy with the regulator's stance could file a legal challenge.

Leung added that he believes Hong Kong people who eventually gain British citizenship via the BN(O) visa scheme, secure work in the UK and buy property there, would at that point be allowed to access their MPF money.