E-Channel Hong Kong sticker
 

Hey there,

Yesterday I arrived at HKG and enrolled for e-Channel at the office just after the immigration desks. Due to my german citizenship I just needed to fill out the form and had my fingerprints and photo taken. Afterwards I was given a confirmation letter of my successful enrollment. Later I noticed that my passport was attached a sticker on the back saying 'Successfully enrolled for e-Channel'
I do know from other people that normally passports are attached a barcode-sticker that is read by the e-Channel scanner.
Unfortunately I cannot try the e-Channel until tommorow at Lo Wu.
Does anyone know, if I can use the e-Channel though?

ecobiz

From http://www.gov.hk/en/nonresidents/vi...el/germany.htm there is no mention of a barcode (unlike other similar sections for other nationalities). I assume that the e-readers can read the chip in your passport if it's a German one.

In fact I recall reading articles at the time saying that HK had reached a reciprocal agreement with Germany that involved each country reading the data embedded on the passport chip.

I have that sticker (ignorantly placed outside of the passport, on the back) too.

It works at Luo Hu/Lo Wu, but you might as well compare the queues for the e-channel and visitors anyway.

Scanning the sticker is much faster than scanning your photo page ime.

Eta: I don't think my (US) passport has a chip.

Hey ecobiz,

I just applied for the E-Channel (using my MH Silver FFP status) yesterday at HKG.

The officer also attached a sticker on the back of my passport saying 'Successfully enrolled for e-Channel'. I tried it this morning on my flight back to SIN and it worked fine. You just have to open up your passport to your information page, face down and slide into the scan pad and hold it there till it tells you to remove your passport. Then step in and scan your index finger (left or right). I tried twice with my right finger but didn't work so the officer told me to use my left and I passed.

If right finger don't work, use left. :D

I assume the barcode is only needed for non-biometric passports.

E-Channel Hong Kong sticker
 

I have a biometric passport and got a barcode sticker (I enrolled last May)

Okay, I guess it only applies to certain countries then.

From the GovHK website:

Cool, so these 3 countries do not need the barcode sticker then.

Not sure about that, but the barcode sticker on the back of passport reads very fast at e-channel. Can any one from these 3-country successfully applied and enrolled for the e-channel service elaborate if a sticker existed?

+1. MUCH faster than scanning your passport info page.

The scanning of the passport page seems okay for me. At least it's similar to how we do it in Singapore as well.

Just singed up for the e-channel and received the bar code sticker on the top left of the back of my US passport (closed to the seam).

I tried to use it at 2 ferry terminals and could never get the machine to read the document. Any tips on how to insert the passport into the machine to get it to read?

Scan the info page instead in those places. I'm surprised none of the officials offered you this basic piece of information.

Had to get a new Canadian passport to replace my filled up one that still had a year before expiring. That one has a bar code sticker for the E-Channel but was not biometric. My new one is. I will be transiting HKG later this month and want to have the E-Channel registered on my new passport.

Question: If the immigration lines are too long, should I use my old passport with the sticker to go through the E-Channel? Would this be considered an illegal entry? Otherwise, if lines are short, I'd just use a regular lane with my new passport, then go to the office to get it registered.