e-Channel, also known as The Automated Passenger Clearance System, is an expedited border control system introduced by the

Hong Kong Immigration Department The Immigration Department of the Government of Hong Kong is responsible for immigration control of Hong Kong. After the People's Republic of China assumed sovereignty of the territory in July 1997, Hong Kong's immigration system remained la ...

in 2004, designed to speed up border immigration processes for residents of Hong Kong, Macau and frequent visitors to Hong Kong entering and exiting the territory whether it be by land, air or sea via the use of self-service kiosks employed at various border control points.http://unpan1.un.org/intradoc/groups/public/documents/unpan/unpan027893.pdf

Basic requirements

* A Hong Kong permanent resident aged 11 or above (using a smart identity card) * A Hong Kong resident aged 11 or above holding a Document of Identity for Visa Purposes (using a smart identity card and carrying a valid Document of Identity for Visa Purposes) * A person aged 11 or above who has the right to land or is on unconditional stay in Hong Kong (using a smart identity card) * A non-permanent resident issued with a notification label (using a smart identity card and carrying a valid travel document) * A registered cross-boundary primary school student under the age of 11 (using the enrolled valid travel document) * A registered frequent visitor aged 18 or above (using the enrolled valid travel document) * A registered Macau permanent resident aged 11 or above (using a Macau permanent identity card) * A registered South Korean citizen aged 17 or above and enrolled under Smart Entry Service (SES) scheme (using the Republic of Korea Passport valid for at least 6 months and having no adverse record in the HKSAR) *An enrolled holder of a Singaporean Passport aged 11 or above (using a Republic of Singapore Passport valid for at least 6 months, completed 2 trips in past 24 months and having no adverse record in the HKSAR) *An enrolled holder of a German passport aged 18 or above (using a Federal Republic of Germany Passport valid for at least 6 months and having no adverse record in the HKSAR) *An enrolled holder of an Australian Passport aged 16 or above (using an Australian Passport valid for at least 6 months and having no adverse record in the HKSAR) The user upon entrance to the e-Channel inserts their

Hong Kong Identity Card The Hong Kong identity card (officially HKIC, commonly HKID) is an official identity document issued by the Immigration Department of Hong Kong. According to the Registration of Persons Ordinance (Cap. 177), all residents of age 11 or above wh ...

into the card reader or places their registered travel document or Macau Identity Card onto the document reader. The gate opens and the user steps in, scans their fingerprint and allows entry to Hong Kong.

Locations

KCR Lok Ma Chau ImmigrationCounter 20070816

First made available on 16 December 2004 in Lo Wu Control Point, over the past several years the locations have expanded to include at the following boarder checkpoints: Air *

Hong Kong International Airport Hong Kong International Airport is Hong Kong's main airport, built on reclaimed land on the island of Chek Lap Kok, Hong Kong. The airport is also referred to as Chek Lap Kok International Airport or ''Chek Lap Kok Airport'', to distinguish ...

Hong Kong–Macau Ferry Terminal The Hong Kong–Macau Ferry Terminal is a ferry terminal and heliport, centrally located in Hong Kong. It is also known as the Macau Ferry Terminal, the Hong Kong-Macau Ferry Pier or the Shun Tak Heliport, and has an ICAO code of VHSS. The t ...

(Heliport) Land *

Lo Wu Control Point Lo Wu Control Point () is a Hong Kong immigration control point in Lo Wu, New Territories. It sits within the Frontier Closed Area that runs along the border with mainland China. Its counterpart across the border is the Luohu Port in Shenzhen, ...

Lok Ma Chau Control Point Lok Ma Chau Control Point () is an immigration control point in Lok Ma Chau, Yuen Long District, New Territories, Hong Kong, which is on the border between Hong Kong and mainland China. It opened in 1989 as the third road crossing between the ...

Lok Ma Chau Spur Line Control Point Lok or LOK may refer to: Places * Lok, Serbia, a village * Lok, Levice District, Slovakia, a village * Lok, Pakistan, a village * Loka (pronounced Lok): a plane of existence in Dharma People Surname Lok (English origin) * Anne Locke, Lock o ...

Man Kam To Control Point Man Kam To Control Point () is a border control point in Man Kam To, New Territories, Hong Kong, within the Closed Area on the border with China. It was the first vehicular clearance border crossing in Hong Kong. Its counterpart across the bord ...

Sha Tau Kok Control Point Sha Tau Kok Control Point () is a land immigration control point of Hong Kong, located in Sha Tau Kok, North District, New Territories, Hong Kong, along the border between mainland China and Hong Kong. Opening Sha Tau Kok was the second cross-b ...

Shenzhen Bay Control Point Shenzhen (; ; ; ), also historically known as Sham Chun, is a major sub-provincial city and one of the special economic zones of China. The city is located on the east bank of the Pearl River estuary on the central coast of southern province ...

Hong Kong–Zhuhai–Macau Bridge The Hong Kong–Zhuhai–Macau Bridge (HZMB) is a bridge–tunnel system consisting of a series of three cable-stayed bridges, an undersea tunnel, and four artificial islands. It is both the longest sea crossing and the longest open-sea fixe ...

Hung Hom station Hung Hom () is a railway station in Hung Hom, Kowloon, Hong Kong. It is an interchange station between the and the domestic services of the MTR network, as well as the southern terminus of cross-border through-trains to mainland China whic ...

''(for cross-border railways)'' *

West Kowloon station West Kowloon station (abbreviated WEK), also known as Hong Kong West Kowloon, is the southern terminus of and the only station on the Hong Kong section of the Guangzhou–Shenzhen–Hong Kong Express Rail Link (HSR). The station con ...

''(for cross-border railways)'' Sea *

Hong Kong China Ferry Terminal Hong Kong China Ferry Terminal is a ferry terminal, located at China Hong Kong City, 33 Canton Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon, Hong Kong. It is one of three cross-border ferry terminals in Hong Kong. The pier has operated since 8 October 1988. ...

*Hong Kong–Macau Ferry Terminal *

Kai Tak Cruise Terminal Kai Tak Cruise Terminal is a cruise ship terminal on the former Kai Tak Airport runway in Hong Kong. Its completion date was delayed into 2013 due to re-tendering. Following an international competition, Foster + Partners was chosen to d ...

* Tuen Mun Ferry Terminal By allowing registered users to utilise the self-service kiosks to pass through Hong Kong immigration, processing time averages around 12 seconds making ''E-channels'' far more efficient than traditional immigration counters.

Macau

Since its first inception where only Right to Abode Hong Kong Permanent Identity Card holders were permitted to use the self-service kiosks, the program expanded on 12 September 2006; allowing not only those of Right to Land or those with unconditional stay in Hong Kong but also to those residents and non-residents with ''notification labels'' to use the ''E-Channels''. The program was expanded further again on 10 December 2009 to allow holders of

Macau Resident Identity Card The Macau Resident Identity Card (; pt, Bilhete de Identidade de Residente) or BIR is an official identity card issued by the Identification Services Bureau of Macau. There are two types of Resident Identity Cards: one for permanent resident ...

to register for and use of the Hong Kong ''E-channels'' to enter and exit the territory. Vice versa,

Macau Macau or Macao (; ; ; ), officially the Macao Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (MSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China in the western Pearl River Delta by the South China Sea. With a pop ...

have reciprocated and have their set of ''E-Channels'' and Hong Kong ID Card holders can register for those as well. Border cities to Macau and Hong Kong on the Mainland China's side -

Zhuhai Zhuhai (, ; Yale: ''Jyūhói''), also known as Chuhai is a prefecture-level city located on the west bank of Pearl River estuary on the central coast of southern Guangdong province, People's Republic of China, on the southeastern edge of Pearl ...

and

Shenzhen Shenzhen (; ; ; ), also historically known as Sham Chun, is a major sub-provincial city and one of the special economic zones of China. The city is located on the east bank of the Pearl River estuary on the central coast of southern province ...

(respectively) have their set of E-channels for use of the

Home Return Permit The Mainland Travel Permit for Hong Kong and Macao Residents, also colloquially referred to as a Home Return Permit or Home Visit Permit , is issued to Chinese nationals who are permanent residents of or settled in Hong Kong and Macau as the ...

cards. Example: A Hong Kong resident arrives at Lo Wu and passes through Hong Kong's ''E-Channel'' with his Hong Kong Identity Card allowing him to exit Hong Kong, upon approaching a border check point at Shenzhen, he uses his Home Return Permit on China's ''E-Channel'' to enter Mainland China. Thereby cutting down time compared with using traditional immigration counters. Or A Hong Kong resident departs from the Hong Kong-Macau Ferry Terminal clearing through Hong Kong immigration via ''E-channel'', upon arrival of Macau's

Outer Harbour Ferry Terminal The Outer Harbour Ferry Terminal ( pt, Terminal Marítimo de Passageiros do Porto Exterior; ), also known as the ''Macau Maritime Ferry Terminal'', ''Macau Ferry Terminal'' or ''Hong Kong-Macau Ferry Pier'' in Chinese (), is a ferry terminal loca ...

, he can use his Hong Kong Identity Card to clear through Macau's set of ''E-Channels'', instead of queuing up at immigration counters.

Frequent Visitor Automated Passenger Clearance

Not only has Macau Resident Card holders been permitted to register for this program but frequent visitors to Hong Kong can register for this as well. The ''Frequent Visitor Automated Passenger Clearance'' would require a valid travel document with a multiple visit visa (if applicable), plus on one of the following documents: * A valid HKSAR Travel Pass or * An

APEC Business Travel Card The APEC Business Travel Card (ABTC) is a travel document issued to business travellers who are citizens of APEC participating economies. Valid for five years, the card eliminates the need for its holder to possess a visa when visiting other APEC ...

with the economy code ‘HKG’ or * Hong Kong International Airport Frequent Visitor Card or * Frequent Flyer Programme Membership Card issued by an airline which has joined this arrangement

e-Channel Service for foreign nationals

The Frequent Visitor program was further expanded to nationals of the following countries. Such arrangements are reciprocal and eligible HKSAR passport holders may also enrol for the respective automated border clearance schemes under these countries: *

Republic of Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korean Peninsula and sharing a land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed by the Yellow Sea, while its east ...

enrolled under Smart Entry Service (SES) scheme (Since 16 December 2013) *

Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...

(Since 22 September 2014) *

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

(Since 1 November 2014) *

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

(Since 20 June 2016)

References