HONG KONG, Sept. 6 (Xinhua) -- The British Consulate General in China's Hong Kong apologized Wednesday for delays in dealing with visa applications from hundreds of Hong Kong students.
The British Consulate General said in a statement, that it "would like to apologize for any inconvenience caused by these delays."
In the statement posted on its Facebook page, the British Consulate General said that "the overall picture is that 99 percent of student visa applicants in Hong Kong are successful and the vast majority receive a decision within 15 days."
"This is the busiest time of the year for UK visa applications and for some cases recently -- not just in Hong Kong -- it has not been possible to process these within the usual timescales," it said, adding that the British Consulate has been assured by the UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) that "they are working flat out to ensure that outstanding applications are resolved as quickly as possible."
The British Consul General in Hong Kong has spoken to both the chief executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative region (HKSAR) and the chief secretary for administration of the HKSAR government about the issue, the statement said.
It said that the British Consulate General "will continue to work closely with them in the coming days."
The HKSAR government on Tuesday opened a dedicated hotline and email address for students to register their cases for assistance.
Chief Secretary for Administration of the HKSAR government Cheung Kin-chung said on Wednesday that more than 1,200 calls and 500 emails were received.
