5 jailed, 20 more arrested in Hong Kong crackdown on illegal employment

2026.03.20 07:20 The Immigration Department has been cracking down on illegal employment. Photo: Sun Yeung Five people have been jailed and another 20 arrested as part of a Hong Kong Immigration Department crackdown on illegal employment this week. The department said on Friday that it had raided 23 locations, including restaurants, cleaning companies and commercial buildings, as part of an operation that ran from Monday to Thursday. Those arrested comprised 19 people found or suspected to be working illegally and six employers who allegedly hired them. The larger group consisted of six men and 13 women, aged 22 to 62. Thirteen of those arrested held tourist visas, comprising 11 from mainland China and two from Indonesia. A former domestic helper who allegedly overstayed, an illegal immigrant and four holders of recognisance forms, which prohibit them from working, were also arrested in the operation. Ng Kwun-cheong, the deputy commander of an Immigration Department task force tackling illegal employment, said five people among those apprehended over illegal employment had already received prison sentences ranging from 51 days to 14 months. “Most of the arrested illegal workers took up the jobs, including dishwashers, cleaners and working in kitchens as general workers,” he said. “Some of them had even worked for more than half a year.” Ng Kwun-cheong of the Immigration Department says the investigation is still ongoing and more may be arrested. Photo: Dickson Lee Ng said that most of those arrested were believed to have been paid a daily wage of HK$200 (US$26) to HK$600 in cash to avoid any checks. The six suspected employers were all men, aged 39 to 53, and ran the restaurants and cleaning companies targeted in the operation, he said. Ng said the investigation was still ongoing and more people might be arrested. “During the operation, we noticed that some illegal workers tried to forge copies of identity cards and used mobile phone screenshots to act as copies to

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