Jimmy Lai Sentencing: UK Expands Hong Kong Visa Scheme, Marco Rubio Pushes For Parole

Last Updated:February 09, 2026, 23:11 IST

UK widens Hong Kong visa scheme after Jimmy Lai's 20-year sentence. Rubio urges parole. Over 230,000 visas granted; Hong Kong Watch welcomes, notes concerns.

The UK has opened up visas to thousands of people from Hong Kong in the wake of Hong Kong media tycoon and outspoken Beijing critic Jimmy Lai being sentenced to 20 years’ imprisonment. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has slammed the sentencing while calling for granting Lai humanitarian parole.

The ruling marks a dramatic moment in the downfall of the 78-year-old self-made businessman, once among the wealthiest figures in the Asian financial hub.

Also Read: Hong Kong Tycoon Jimmy Lai Jailed For 20 Years In National Security Trial

Lai, who has been held in custody for more than five years, much of it in solitary confinement, had earlier told Reuters that he would “fight on till the last day."

In a post on X, Rubio said: “The sentencing of Jimmy Lai in Hong Kong is an unjust and tragic conclusion to this case. We urge the authorities to grant Mr. Lai humanitarian parole."

Authorities in Hong Kong and in Beijing have defended the legislation, saying it restored stability after months of unrest and insisting Lai received a fair trial.

Judges ruled that his sentence was increased because they viewed him as the “mastermind" behind alleged conspiracies to collude with foreign forces.

UK Expands Hong Kong Visa Scheme

The Guardian quoted a Home Office spokesperson saying that adult children of British National (Overseas) status holders who were under 18 at the time of Hong Kong’s 1997 handover to China will be eligible to apply for the route independently of their parents. Their partners and children will also be able to move to the UK under the scheme, the Home Office said, adding that about 26,000 people will likely move to the UK over the next five years.

In 2020, the UK government announced a new visa scheme allowing BNO passport holders to move to the country and get settled status after five years, plus citizenship a year later. This was after China imposed national security law in Hong Kong.

Also Read: Hong Kong Media Mogul Jimmy Lai Convicted In Landmark National Security Trial

Since then, over 230,000 people have been granted a visa and almost 170,000 have moved to the UK, The Guardian reported.

The UK’s move to expand the visa has been lauded by Hong Kong Watch (HKW).

Thomas Benson, a senior policy adviser at HKW, said: “We are very pleased to see this expansion, which we have campaigned on for over three years."

“However, the government must know that many BNO Hong Kongers remain worried about the proposed changes to settled status on the BNO scheme, which will see the vast majority of BNOs unable to acquire settled status," he further said.

“Expanding eligibility without addressing issues around settled status requirements is, I’m afraid, only a half-measure," he added.

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