HK Police Certificate Confusion

[magdasal 19]

Hi Folks,

Well, things are starting to roll for our NVC processing and wife and I are both still collecting what we need. The one thing that still has us both confused is the HK police clearance requirements. Wife worked there for 2 years before we got married, so we need one. HK police web site says they need an official letter from the US Govt, with wife's name on it, saying that the US requires the police certificate to process my wife's visa. Does anybody know which letter this is?

I've searched the forums for hours and read a lot of seemingly contradictory things about this. In one case I read that the letter HK needs comes in a package sent by NVC after they have forwarded the package to the consulate. In another thread, I read that the NVC needs the police certificate to complete the case in the first place, so it must be provided before you even get the letter that says that you need it (I think that's what they were saying). In another case, I read that the wife has to go to the US Embassy (Manila in this case) and get a letter from the embassy stating this requirement.

Anyway, does anybody have some light to shed on this? I would really appreciate it.

[Zharren Young 32]

Hi Folks,

Well, things are starting to roll for our NVC processing and wife and I are both still collecting what we need. The one thing that still has us both confused is the HK police clearance requirements. Wife worked there for 2 years before we got married, so we need one. HK police web site says they need an official letter from the US Govt, with wife's name on it, saying that the US requires the police certificate to process my wife's visa. Does anybody know which letter this is?

I've searched the forums for hours and read a lot of seemingly contradictory things about this. In one case I read that the letter HK needs comes in a package sent by NVC after they have forwarded the package to the consulate. In another thread, I read that the NVC needs the police certificate to complete the case in the first place, so it must be provided before you even get the letter that says that you need it (I think that's what they were saying). In another case, I read that the wife has to go to the US Embassy (Manila in this case) and get a letter from the embassy stating this requirement.

Anyway, does anybody have some light to shed on this? I would really appreciate it.

hello, is your wife in manila now?

i think she can go to HK embassy and try to request from there.

i knew someone that had to get a police clearance but its in the middle east and since she was already in manila she had to go to their embassy to request it.

not very sure how it works for HK but its worth a try. if not im sure they can provide her some useful info on how to obtain it. goodluck

[magdasal 19]

hello, is your wife in manila now?

i think she can go to HK embassy and try to request from there.

i knew someone that had to get a police clearance but its in the middle east and since she was already in manila she had to go to their embassy to request it.

not very sure how it works for HK but its worth a try. if not im sure they can provide her some useful info on how to obtain it. goodluck

Good point ERY, thanks for the reply. Actually, wife is in Mindanao...so that would be a special trip just to do that. If all else fails though, I guess we do have that option. Nice to know there is a fallback plan. Cheers!

[Zharren Young 32]

Good point ERY, thanks for the reply. Actually, wife is in Mindanao...so that would be a special trip just to do that. If all else fails though, I guess we do have that option. Nice to know there is a fallback plan. Cheers!

your welcome & goodluck

[JOHNNY5 0]

Ok, i went thru the same ordeal. Here is how to get it. The only difference was that i needed a police clearance from japan and the Japanese embassy in Manila needed a letter from Us Embassy.

Email Us Embassy in Manila, make sure you provide them with NVC MNL case number and explain your situation. they will email you back in a few days with an attachment that you can print and take to Chinese Embassy in Makati and they should accept it. Since she is in Mindanao, i would call Chinese Embassy first before going there and read them the contents of the letter to make sure they will accept it. It worked for me so give it a shot. Good luck.

http://manila.usembassy.gov/wwwh3023/contact-us.html

[magdasal 19]

Ok, i went thru the same ordeal. Here is how to get it. The only difference was that i needed a police clearance from japan and the Japanese embassy in Manila needed a letter from Us Embassy.

Email Us Embassy in Manila, make sure you provide them with NVC MNL case number and explain your situation. they will email you back in a few days with an attachment that you can print and take to Chinese Embassy in Makati and they should accept it. Since she is in Mindanao, i would call Chinese Embassy first before going there and read them the contents of the letter to make sure they will accept it. It worked for me so give it a shot. Good luck.

http://manila.usembassy.gov/wwwh3023/contact-us.html

Thanks for the information JOHNNY5. I may have to get the wife to call the Chinese Embassy. Hong Kong procedures seem markedly different though. The Chinese Embassy seems to not be involved in the process at all and the instructions don't list that as an option. Every thing has to go thru their headquarters in Hong Kong. Here is what they say in their instructions:

4. All applications must contain the following documents:

a) A completed application form .

b) A photocopy of his or her Hong Kong Identity Card / valid Travel Document.

c) A photocopy of a letter from the relevant Consulate / Immigration Authority / Government Authority, which contains his or her name and clearly indicates that the production of the Certificate is required.

d) A photocopy of the documents proving his or her relationship with the Principal Applicant for the application if the said letter does not contain his or her own name.

e) A full set of his or her fingerprints taken and certified by a recognized police or law enforcement agency where he or she presently resides. Certification of the fingerprints must clearly state:

i. The name and rank of the person taking the fingerprints

ii. The full name of the police or law enforcement agency with their official chop, and

iii. The date and place taken

Fingerprints submitted that do not clearly show certification are not acceptable. Fingerprints taken by the applicants themselves, a legal representative or private / commercial agency are also unacceptable.

f) A bank draft to the amount of HK$169 per person, made payable to "The Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region". The draft must be payable in Hong Kong. A personal cheque in Hong Kong dollar which is issued and authorized by any licenced banks in Hong Kong is also acceptable.

That's the part that is getting to me. Either way, your point about contacting USEM by e-mail may be the ticket here! So, we'll just e-mail them with the requirements from HK and see if they can attach a letter. Appreciate the information!

[meb5 1]

Our attorney just sent our documents to the NVC without the police certificate for Hong Kong and when the NVC sent the letter saying we needed the certificate. We used the request from NVC as he official letter. Hong Kong just sent my wife the receipt for the payment and the certificate should be at the embassy in about a week now.

[magdasal 19]

Our attorney just sent our documents to the NVC without the police certificate for Hong Kong and when the NVC sent the letter saying we needed the certificate. We used the request from NVC as he official letter. Hong Kong just sent my wife the receipt for the payment and the certificate should be at the embassy in about a week now.

Thanks meb5! Yep, that is the mysterious letter from NVC I'd been hearing about, but could never really identify. So, I think I get it now...NVC will send you a letter since you didn't include the HK police certificate that has your wife's name on it and requests you provide the certificate? You just send that to the HK police with your package? I assume it's not an RFE then, since they've traveled this road before and just seem to know, based on the info in your form, that you will need this letter.

BTW, how did you get the draft to pay the fee in HK dollars that can be drawn on an HK bank? That's another head scratcher for me.

Thanks again for info!

[Garryrose 0]

Hi Folks,

Well, things are starting to roll for our NVC processing and wife and I are both still collecting what we need. The one thing that still has us both confused is the HK police clearance requirements. Wife worked there for 2 years before we got married, so we need one. HK police web site says they need an official letter from the US Govt, with wife's name on it, saying that the US requires the police certificate to process my wife's visa. Does anybody know which letter this is?

I've searched the forums for hours and read a lot of seemingly contradictory things about this. In one case I read that the letter HK needs comes in a package sent by NVC after they have forwarded the package to the consulate. In another thread, I read that the NVC needs the police certificate to complete the case in the first place, so it must be provided before you even get the letter that says that you need it (I think that's what they were saying). In another case, I read that the wife has to go to the US Embassy (Manila in this case) and get a letter from the embassy stating this requirement.

Anyway, does anybody have some light to shed on this? I would really appreciate it.

Hi Magdasal,

It seems like we are in the same boat and I'm confused as well,..when I was still in HK, I thought about I getting my HK POLICE CLEARANCE before I decided to go home(phils.)And I did visited at their mean office in WANCHAI hoping to sort it out but failed to get it due to lack of documents like;a photocopy of a letter from the relevant US CONSULATE/IMMIGRATION/GOVERNMENT AUTHORITY which contains my name and clearly indicates that the production of the certificate is required.

Right,..once you received that package sent by the Consulate or NVC that required for HK CLEARANCE,then start gather your documents that HK POLICE asked for;

a) A photocopy of her Hongkong ID Card/Valid Travel Documents.

b) A photocopy of a letter from the relevant CONSULATE,her name on it.

c) A Full set of her fingerprints taken and certified by a recognized police (NBI???)

d) A Bank draft to the amount of HK$169.00

Please try to find the CHINESE EMBASSY here in MANILA as soon as possible because I went to the US EMBASSY to asked where should I get my HK POLICE CLEARANCE and they said I must go to the CHINESE EMBASSY.

Here's the address;

== Chinese Consulate==

2-3FL.The World Trade Center

330 Sen.Gil J.Puyat Ave.Makati City

Tel#(63)2-8482396 or(63)2-8482395

Goodluck guys! And I hope these will help you, I couldn't start mine right now because I'm still waiting for our NOA2...SMILE!

[James and Cynthia 70]

I had the same questions as you, except Brunei is where my fiancee worked and needed police clearance from. The embassy of Brunei in Manila told her that she needed a request letter from the US embassy. You can see my post here:

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/286013-please-help-i-dont-know-how-to-proceed-from-here/page__p__4335871#entry4335871

mrsean was nice enough to answer my questions. They went through the process personally in order to get police clearance from Hong Kong, same as you. Since they have first hand experience, I hope it helps.

After the posts, mrsean and I exchanged personal messages where they gave me a lot more detail. This detail should help you a bunch, so I'll post it here:

Hi. Thanks for your reply to my question about getting a request for police clearance. Can you tell me how long it took for you to get your police clearance from Hong Kong after your case was moved to the US Embassy in Manila? Also, how long between NOA2 and your visa? I was hoping to see this info on your timeline, but I see you don't have one. Thanks.

-James

it took about a month from time i mailed all my info and fingerprints to hong kong [dhl or lbc carrier or one of the major ones i forget which one even fed ex]with tracking number then hong kong mails it to embassy in manila but i tracked it with hong kongs carrier tracking number to manila post office then the us embassy in manila picks up there own mail from the post office with embassy personel!!!!i was on phone with every one alot!!! just making sure

Thanks for the information. I hope we can get it that quickly too. I don't think we will be mailing anything to Brunei, but instead, the Brunei embassy will do it when we give them the required documents. Hopefully they will be quick and maybe give us someway to track the delivery as you did.

I assume it did not take long to get the request letter from the US embassy after your case was transfered there.

Thanks,

James

took about an hour, go to the information then tell them you need letter saying you need a police clearance i think i went to counter x not sure

Thank you so much for the information. This will be so very helpful. I wish the best for the both of you.

-James

Good luck.

-James

Edited January 9, 2011 by James and Cynthia

[meb5 1]

Thanks meb5! Yep, that is the mysterious letter from NVC I'd been hearing about, but could never really identify. So, I think I get it now...NVC will send you a letter since you didn't include the HK police certificate that has your wife's name on it and requests you provide the certificate? You just send that to the HK police with your package? I assume it's not an RFE then, since they've traveled this road before and just seem to know, based on the info in your form, that you will need this letter.

BTW, how did you get the draft to pay the fee in HK dollars that can be drawn on an HK bank? That's another head scratcher for me.

Thanks again for info!

Hi Magdasal,

My wife went to her bank BPI and had them make one up for her but it took them about 3 hours I think. She had to leave and go back and pick it up.

Wish you luck friend.

Meb5

Edited January 9, 2011 by meb5

[magdasal 19]

Hi Magdasal,

My wife went to her bank BPI and had them make one up for her but it took them about 3 hours I think. She had to leave and go back and pick it up.

Wish you luck friend.

Meb5

Heh, at least we know how to get that! Thank you so much. I'll give wife a head's up about a potentially long wait too.

Garryrose, James and Cynthia, meb5, Johnny5, ery...everyone who replied. Fantastic information! Thank you all so much for helping me out here. There are several options I can see now. You guys have really taken a load off my mind here. Again, thank you so much.