Just to clarify that this is, in fact, an IRCC issue and not a banking regulation in Canada issue, as far as I understand it. Hong Kong Watch has a document titled “Hong Kong's Mandatory Provident Fund: BNO Visa Holders Denied Access To Their Savings”. It says:
[T]he MPFA released a statement on 10 March 2021 saying that because the British National (Overseas) (BNO) passport was no longer recognised by the Hong Kong government as a valid travel document as well as proof of identity as of the end of January 2021, those trying to withdraw their MPFs early (before retirement) cannot rely on the BNO passport as evidence in support an application for early MPF withdrawal.
Because the PR cards indicate the BNO passport, that's now being used to deny Hong Kongers the ability to withdraw their savings from Hong Kong. It's not a direct finance department issue. This is really an IRCC-connected issue, because that's how these Hong Kongers are being identified in Canada as having used a BNO passport to travel.
This is this committee's issue, and I really think it's also an international relations issue, because we're essentially allowing Canadian financial institutions, the trustees—in this case, Sun Life and Manulife—to be an extended arm of transnational repression against Hong Kongers.
I would like this voted on today. If we could just have one meeting and call on these people to explain themselves as to why this is allowed to go on.... Maybe they have fixed it, but I have not heard anything about it being fixed.