A BNO visa or passport does not convey the right, in Canada, to permanently reside in Canada. That's a decision of the Canadian government, actually, so it is, therefore, not used to support an application for early withdrawal of MPF pension funds. There are a number of criteria that are acceptable, which.... I'm happy to go through the steps.
Just to let the honourable member know, from 2021-23 our operations in Hong Kong received 4,650 requests for early withdrawal for reason of permanent departure to Canada, and we were able to process these requests for 3,750 applicants. There were 160 customers who did not provide sufficient evidence of the right to permanently reside in Canada—that could have been a student visa or some other form of paperwork. For the remaining customers we weren't able to process, it would have been another documentation or administration issue: a mismatched signature, or perhaps they had already previously withdrawn their MPF early.
However, I will let the committee know that there's a process to reapply, so from the point of view of the trustee we abide by the laws and the regulations that are set forth in every single jurisdiction in which we operate around the world. They are similar in Canada and the United States, and we apply those laws faithfully. The question of permanent residency and citizenship is, of course, one for governments to determine.