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What We Do

Our team at Justice Centre works tirelessly to help refugees, asylum seekers and other forced migrants access protection and basic services in Hong Kong SAR. We also support migrant communities to have their voices heard. Through our work, we seek to support Hong Kong SAR as an inclusive and diverse society.

Read our Theory of Change and Strategic Plan 2023-26 to explore our Vision and Mission in detail.

To learn about our activities and achievements this year, please read our Impact Report 2024.

How We Work

We provide direct support to refugees, asylum seekers and other forced migrants in Hong Kong SAR. Our holistic services enable responsive and timely access to information, representation, counselling and social welfare.

Our team provides tailored support to women, children, LGBTIQA+ individuals, racial and ethnic minorities, stateless persons and other at risk migrant groups.

Staff at Justice Centre work in partnership with civil society and the legal and medical sectors to develop cross-sector and multi-disciplinary expertise and collaborations.

Through community initiatives, Justice Centre’s team supports community voices and helps the communities we work with to participate in Hong Kong society.

We believe that supporting diverse communities help enhance social cohesion and inclusiveness in Hong Kong SAR and benefits the whole society.

Delivering Holistic Services

Community Voices

Training & Technical Assistance

Working in Partnership

Delivering Holistic Services

If you would like to refer clients to our organisation, please complete the appropriate form below:

  • Referral form for external NGOs
  • Referral form for Duty Lawyers & Pilot Lawyer Scheme Lawyers

Legal Services

We work to ensure that the refugees, asylum seekers and other forced migrants have the necessary legal information, support and representation to access protection in Hong Kong SAR.

We provide tailored and dedicated support to migrants who experience unique challenges due to gender, sexuality, sexual orientation, age, race or ethnicity, statelessness and/or other characteristics.

We work in partnership with pro bono lawyers, duty lawyers and legal aid lawyers to deliver accessible and quality legal services.

Social Welfare Services

We support refugees and other forced migrants to access social welfare, including food, clothing, shelter, healthcare and education. 

Counselling Services

We connect refugees and other forced migrants to counsellors, who provide free and professional services to support them to overcome trauma and other mental effects of persecution, torture and displacement.

COMMUNITY VOICES

We support refugees and other forced migrants participate in Hong Kong society and raise awareness of issues affecting their communities.

Empowerment initiatives

Through our refugee-led and co-designed leadership programme, we partner with and support refugee leaders to deliver projects that are responsive to community needs and enhance social cohesion and inclusion of marginalised groups.

Our community activities provide an open and safe space for refugees and other forced migrants to come together and share their experiences.

Community Leadership Academy

Our Community Leadership Academy programme is co-designed and co-delivered by refugees. The programme provides leadership training and support refugees to kickstart initiatives that enhance social cohesion and inclusiveness in Hong Kong SAR.

Applications are now closed. 

Training & Technical Assistance

If you would like to request technical assistance for a non-refoulement protection claim or a related case, please complete the appropriate form below:

  • Referral form for external NGOs
  • Referral form for Duty Lawyers

We provide technical assistance to the legal community.

We deliver regular CPD/CLE accredited training courses on refugee law, and Hong Kong SAR non-refoulement law practice and procedure. We also host legal groups to workshop specific issues, such as credibility, expert evidence, immigration detention and vulnerable witness procedures.

We work closely with pro bono lawyers, duty lawyers and legal aid lawyers to provide technical support throughout USM proceedings (first instance and appeal), legal aid proceedings, judicial review applications and other related procedures within Hong Kong SAR’s legal system (e.g., civil proceedings for unlawful detention claims). 

We also deliver Clinical Legal Education (for university law students in their penultimate year) and the Young Advocates Programme (for secondary/high school students) to grow the next generation of refugee protection professionals.

Updated Removal Policy

In light of the commencement of the Updated Removal Policy from 7 December 2022, Justice Centre has prepared a fact sheet for the refugee and asylum-seeking communities to understand how their legal rights could be affected, and what they could do. The fact sheet has been translated into a total of 10 languages for accessibility.

You may access this fact sheet at https://cutt.ly/JCHK-Factsheet-UpdatedRemovalPolicy. Please note that this is a live document that will be updated on a rolling basis as more information becomes available. You could also pass on the above link to your family, friends and others in the community.

If you would like to learn more through a community briefing, please email us at info@justicencetre.org.hk with the subject “[Updated Removal Policy] Seeking community briefing”. This is also available to any NGOs and organisations that work with asylum seekers in Hong Kong.

Working in Partnership

Collaboration is at the heart of our working model. We partner with civil society organisations, law firms, barrister chambers, law schools, private medical practices and other groups to deliver our services.

We partner with leading law firms in Hong Kong SAR, which provide invaluable pro bono support and resources, and enable us to deliver our work. Read more about our pro bono partnerships here. 

We also partner with local and international universities to deliver clinical legal education. 

We work closely with medical practitioners and other groups to fill the social welfare gap.

Areas of Work

Our direct services enable our clients to access protection, rehabilitation and redress.

Supplementing our casework, our community initiatives contribute to a harmonious and inclusive society.

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Research

We use data to raise awareness of issues facing refugees, asylum seekers and other forced migrants, with the goal of promoting social cohesion and inclusiveness.
› learn more

Access to Protection

Our team at Justice Centre supports refugees and other forced migrants access legal protection in Hong Kong SAR.
› learn more

Social Welfare & Counselling

Our social welfare and counselling services support those who need help accessing shelter, healthcare, education and material assistance, and overcoming past trauma and other mental effects of persecution, torture and displacement.
› learn more

Community Initiatives

We work with and support refugees and migrants to participate in Hong Kong society and raise awareness of issues affecting their communities.
› learn more

Community Leadership Academy

We work with and support refugees and migrants to participate in Hong Kong society and raise awareness of issues affecting their communities.
› learn more

Paralegals for Protection: Immigration Detention

We work with and support refugees and migrants to participate in Hong Kong society and raise awareness of issues affecting their communities.
› learn more

Pro Bono Programme

We partner with leading law firms and in-house counsel in Hong Kong SAR to provide quality legal services and representation to our clients.
› learn more

Educational Programmes

We invest in future generations of refugee protection practitioners through our educational programmes.
› learn more

Why it matters

We work with lawyers, social workers, medical professionals, NGO workers and community leaders across Hong Kong to ensure that the most marginalised members of Hong Kong society have access to legal help and basic services.

We believe this work is both vital and invaluable to Hong Kong SAR as a diverse and inclusive society. But don’t take our word for it; hear from some of those we’ve worked with:

When someone is so good and makes a positive impact in your life, you always remember them. I don't think I will ever forget the lawyers that helped me. I appreciate for life!
OwenA refugee client
“Working in Justice Centre was a unique and invaluable experience. I was given genuine responsibilities in conducting country of origin research and drafting legal documents, and was made to feel a valued member of the team. I especially valued every opportunity to listen to Justice Centre’s clients. Hearing of their experiences both before and after their arrivals in Hong Kong gave me an enormous appreciation of the importance of the work that the Justice Centre does in protecting the most vulnerable in society.”
Georgina PressdeeUniversity of Cambridge
“We have a passion for pro bono. Our relationship with Justice Centre Hong Kong has enabled us to identify and aid individuals that we can help with free legal services. The knowledge and expertise of the team at Justice Centre, particularly in refugee claims, has been instrumental in ensuring our help gets to those who most need it”
Mary TongAssociate, Kirkland & Ellis LLP
“The Justice Centre is truly a fantastic organisation. It has been a pleasure to work with such switched on and energetic staff, on projects that make a difference to people’s lives. It is a real asset to Hong Kong!”
Evan ManoliosLawyer at KWM

Publications

We publish many publications over on our research page. They cover various topics with in-depth analysis and case study discussions.

see all Publications
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Unit 5, 10/F, Hermes Commercial Centre, 4 Hillwood Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong
MTR: Jordan Station, Exit D
Tel: +852 3109 7359
Fax: +852 3422 3019
info@justicecentre.org.hk

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What is the Unified Screening Mechanism (USM)?
Who is a Protection Claimant?
How do we provide Individual Assistance?
What is the Unified Screening Mechanism (USM)?

The USM is the new government system for processing protection claims in Hong Kong, implemented in March 2014.

The USM brings refugee claims (referred to by the government as ‘persecution’ claims) together with torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment (CIDTP) claims under one process.

These are now collectively known as ‘non-refoulement’ claims. The government did not choose to implement this new system – they were forced to do so by a ruling of the Court of Final Appeal in March 2013.

In the USM, protection claimants appear before the Immigration Department. UNHCR (the UN Refugee Agency) no longer assesses refugee claims in Hong Kong.

Who is a Protection Claimant?

A protection claimant is anyone going through the USM, including refugees and other people seeking protection from torture, cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment (CIDTP), or persecution.

Protection claimants can be survivors of some of the most deplorable forms of human rights abuses, such as war, rape and various forms of persecution. This population faces particular vulnerabilities in Hong Kong. As they don’t receive levels of assistance suitable to support an adequate standard of living, they are forced into poverty, deprivation and social exclusion. These pressing concerns led Justice Centre to build on its services and to intensify advocacy efforts for the rights of protection claimants.

How do we provide Individual Assistance?

To address the gaps in the Unified Screening Mechanism, we provide individualised support and assistance to the most vulnerable people in need of protection to ensure their needs are met. To identify claimants in need of individualised assistance, we aim to assess every claimant who comes to our centre.

We seek to work with the Duty Lawyer Service, and duty lawyers themselves, to use our expertise to support these vulnerable claimants. Working with our in-house team and pro-bono legal partners, we assist claimants to tell their stories, a process that can take time for people who are traumatised; research country of origin information; and help arrange medical, psychological and/or other expert reports to support their claims and to ensure they have the best chance of a fair process.

Presently non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in Hong Kong cannot provide direct legal representation to individual clients in Hong Kong law. As Hong Kong Refugee Advice Centre, we represented clients before UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, in the area of international law. However, we are presently unable to provide direct legal representation in the USM. All claimants in the USM will be assigned a duty lawyer, who will be paid by the Hong Kong Government to represent claimants in the USM.

In addition to providing legal information and support, we also campaign for fairer legislation and policies, produce reports and policy papers, conduct research and work with schools, universities and the media to fight root causes and change systems and minds. Visit our Policy and Advocacy page to learn about this work.

Since the introduction of the Unified Screening Mechanism (USM) at the beginning of March 2014 – the new government system for processing protection claims in Hong Kong – the pool of people we can potentially help has expanded to over 9,000, as we extend our services to ALL people seeking protection in Hong Kong.