Such a passenger will return to arrivals immigration, if such a gate is allowed to exist from secured area.

Then it’ll be same treatment as any transit passenger who attempts to enter HK without needed visa/permit.

did that a couple of times without issue (late delay announcement) - but, a while back!

No I'm not talking about whether the person can enter Hong Kong per se. The rule is that any passenger that arrives by ferry must leave Hong Kong on a flight, even if they are a permanent resident in Hong Kong. You're not allowed to enter Hong Kong through the ferry that goes to the airport.

Similarly, no passengers entering the airport from Hong Kong can access the ferry service.

A reason might be that people in the departures area have access to duty free stores. If they then enter the country, they could give duty free merchandise to locals. Many countries (such as USA) have rules that you can bring in merchandise acquired abroad as duty free, but in principle you cannot purchase duty free in a USA airport before departure, take it abroad with you, and then bring it back unused to the USA without the rules saying that you must declare it and pay taxes.

Another reason could be that arriving passengers pay fees and taxes that are not charged to transit passengers. These are paid on tickets that aren't considered connections. NRT once had such a system. Connecting passengers were allowed to go landside to visit landside lounger but then were forced to pay an additional approximately 3,000 yen departure tax in cash (only!) before re-entering the airside departures area of the terminal.

OK, fair enough.

That is a HKG peculiarity though, an airport with a sterile connection.

Doesn't explain why stand-alone airports like TPE and SYD international terminals (again, have exit controls and departure-arrival segregation) don't have such a gate, nor otherwise make the process easy.

I'll address this comment first. I really encounter departure taxes more than arrival taxes (HK Departure Tax, UK APD, Australian departure tax). I really cannot recall any destination taxing arrivals.

I think your NRT case is more exception than norm. If I enter the UK in LHR T5 during a LHR connection, just to make use of First Wing as a faster security point, my connecting BP is not going to beep at the private security and APD will be demanded of me.

There's a number of ways to deal with this case. The most straightfoward being outright deny any passengers attempting to exit arrivals level with HKG duty free (they will be subject to customs inspection anyway). Any duty free has to be handed over or confiscated, without compensation.

In the previous NRT case, it might have technically been a departure tax that wasn't charged to passengers connecting at NRT. However, once someone entered Japan, they were then considered a departing passenger rather than a transit passenger and forced to pay the tax that wasn't included in their (connecting) ticket. IIRC at the beginning, departing passengers paid the tax of about 3,000 yen in cash as part of the check in and exit passport control procedure, then it was included in the ticket price for departing (but not connecting) passengers. Technically, I didn't pay it to enter the country, but I was forced to pay it before my next flight if I had entered the country. If I had abandoned the remainder of my ticket/PNR, I don't think there would have been any way for Japan to force me to pay the 3,000 yen, but of course I wouldn't have had a permanent residence visa and there aren't many practical ways to leave Japan without taking an international flight.

OK but I don't think it exists now.
I just generated a HKG-HND-LHR r/t fare, HND is overnight. Don't see a JP departure tax:

I've actually exited the restricted area (NRT tho, not HND) on such a overnight and JL check in next day didn't ask for any departure tax.


https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...3eff62f078.png

Hong Kong has no duty or sales tax
Airport shops here are almost always more expensive than in local shops

As usual, you are wrong. There is duty on tobacco, and on all beverages with an alcohol content greater than 30%.

I think it is rather odd that you cannot leave or that leaving would get you in any trouble. The customs argument is a strange one because you would obviously pass through customs after clearing immigration where you would need to declare your duty free purchases.

In the EU there are many airports where you can transit between Schengen / non-Schengen at will. In London you can exit, but might have to wait at the info desk (or do the T5 shuttle trick mentioned above).

I understand why airports (and customs) want to discourage such things but find it strange that they would outright forbid it. After all, changing your mind is not against the law.

I suspect OP got unlucky with the person that they asked or framed the question in a way that made it very easy to say no.

Tldr; save yourself the trouble and go out first, but I have trouble believing that anyone would hold you against your will if you really had to go out.

Which ones? Exit from non-Schengen departure secure area not that obvious to me in MUC, AGP or ARN.

LHR is a bit of a hack that's probably going to get plugged the more we talk about it.

Any airport that has an e-gate will usually do. I have done this many times in HEL (to enjoy the somewhat better although still meagre offerings of the non-schengen lounge). ZRH, DUS and FRA also allow for transfers between Schengen and Non-Schengen area if memory serves right. Madrid at least used to work in the past.

The thing to note is that this mostly works when no human contact is involved. If you have to see an agent, then they might be unwilling to let you go from Schengen to Non-Schengen for the puposes of “lounge hopping”, but they can’t stop you on the way back as long as you hold an EU passport. And I suspect the same applies if you hold a valid visa and have a sufficiently long layover.

I don’t think LHR is a hack. You are a passenger, not a prisoner. I’m sure that the airport would like it otherwise though, after all they would rather that you spend your money in the terminal.

You are of course correct but is the unwarranted insult actually necessary.

Yes some minor tax as you point out and I had forgotten -so apologies
However the broad thrust of my post stands in the context of this thread

Yes as you are in the same level as departing passengers.
Even had a chance to visit a PP lounge in SIN upon arrival using my arriving boarding pass.
Spent 3 hours to freshen up and head straight to immigration.

I just don't know the policy if you are a departing passenger from SIN then all of a sudden decided to forfeit your trip (felt sick) and head back to immigration.