When Wing-sun Chan left Hong Kong for the suburbs of Manchester two years ago in social and political turmoil, he embodied several trends at once.
Like many in this new expatriate, the 39-year-old father-of-two was drawn to a leafy northern suburb known for its strong education system. He also prioritized integrating into British society.
With Beijing’s crackdown on democracy in Hong Kong and the passage of national security laws in 2020, a new generation of Hong Kongers has arrived in the UK – a highly skilled workforce eager to fit in that is gradually changing the face of the UK’s suburbs.
“We don’t want an isolated new Chinatown that is only interested in internal solutions,” Cheng said. “We’re also focused on connecting and connecting with the community.”
More than 144,000 Hong Kong people have immigrated to the UK Use the government’s British National (Overseas) visa from early 2021 – a renewable five-year residence permit introduced after the Chinese government cracked down on pro-democracy protests in 2020.
Simon Cheng, founder of British community group Hongkongers, said there was a “huge difference” between these settlers and previous generations, who moved in “primarily for economic reasons” before 2020.
The latest influx also forms part of a broader rise in net migration to the UK, with a record high figure announced last week, driven by migration from outside the EU, including through humanitarian routes such as the BN(O) scheme.
“Post-2019 immigrants have a strong sense of politics and the self-awareness of Hong Kong people,” Zheng said.
Nevertheless, the British Future Think Tank last summer in a Paper Department of Upgradation, Housing and Communities.
The latest generation of settlers, mainly kids in their 30s and 40s, are drawn to the suburbs of more affordable cities outside London, especially those with strong school systems, such as the one Chen chose in Trafford. House of Sale.
“It’s a very different pattern of geographic settlement than other immigrant groups,” said Heather Rolfe, director of Futures UK, which focuses on public attitudes to diversity and equality. “The number one priority for Hong Kong people is to provide good schools for their children,” she added.
She said YouTubers in Hong Kong were influential in promoting certain places, including Trafford, nearby Warrington and Solihull in the West Midlands – all quiet towns or suburbs Both are famous for their schools.
“The appeal of the suburbs is really interesting because immigrant groups in the past avoided the suburbs, thinking they were very white and where they would stand out and be discriminated against,” she said.
Chen agreed. “I’m not saying that all Hong Kong people move because of their children’s education, but one of the main factors is that we want our children to grow up in a society that embraces freedom and liberty,” he said.
Affordability is also key, he added. “If I were in London, I would be stressed because the cost of living is so high.”
There is no accurate local data on the latest Hong Kong diaspora, but an English-speaking service for other languages run by Manchester City Council has recorded a 13-fold increase in how BN(O) visa holders seek advice between 2020 and 2023.
Already world-famous for football, the city and its suburbs have been actively pitched by Hong Kong investors in recent years.
Carl Donaldson, chief sales officer of investor and developer Select Property, which has offices in Hong Kong, said young people had been “priced out of Hong Kong” due to a lack of viable land, settling in Manchester as an alternative.
“We’ve seen this trend grow over the past five to six years and expect it to continue,” he said.
Janine Miu, founder and managing director of Hong Kong-based consultancy UK Immigration Specialist, said when she started the firm in 2014, about 80 per cent of inquiries came from clients wanting to move to London.
About half now choose Manchester, with only about 30% picking the capital, while many who head to London move to its fringes.
But she said the “peak” of the initial wave had passed. A new type of application – driven by the extension of BN(O) eligibility to adult children of parents who already have visas – is on the rise.
“This year we’ve seen more and more inquiries about such applications,” she said, adding that people were also “beginning to worry” about whether the visa scheme would survive beyond 2025.
British Future pointed out that those already in the UK could be a boon to the economy, finding that 70% were graduates and 39% had a professional career background.
“The qualifications and experience of Hong Kongers suggest that they have the potential to address skills gaps in many occupational fields and stimulate economic growth through new enterprises,” it found.
But unless qualifications are recognized or converted, some will be forced to work at lower wages or skill levels than they would at home.
Chen said he knows high-quality Hong Kong compatriots who work in warehousing, as well as teachers who work as teaching assistants.
He added that these people “are not expected to be able to hold the same positions as they would in Hong Kong”, but said Hong Kongers had a lot to offer the post-Brexit UK economy as the UK seeks to forge new relationships.
After moving to Sale, he set up a community interest company, Trafford Hongkongers, to strengthen ties with the local community.
“It’s about dialogue, talking, mutual understanding,” he said. “We’re all thinking about how we can contribute to our new country.”