On 18 March 2024, the Immigration Department (ImmD) announced the introduction of the 1868 WeChat assistance hotline and the 1868 Chatbot for Hong Kong residents in distress or in need of assistance outside Hong Kong to contact the Assistance to Hong Kong Residents Unit (AHU) of the ImmD to seek assistance via the above additional communication channels.

To step up its services and support for Hong Kong residents in distress outside Hong Kong, the ImmD, following the introduction of the 1868 WhatsApp assistance hotline in April 2023, is now introducing advanced functions to the 1868 System, including the 1868 WeChat assistance hotline in the ImmD's WeChat official account and the 1868 Chatbot in the Immigration Department Mobile Application (ImmD Mobile App), in order to further enhance the convenience for Hong Kong residents in distress or in need of assistance outside Hong Kong to contact the AHU. Please refer to the Annex for steps to access the services.

The newly added 1868 WeChat assistance hotline and 1868 Chatbot aim at providing assistance to Hong Kong residents requiring assistance outside Hong Kong and are not applicable for general enquiries. For other immigration enquiries, please call the general enquiry hotline at 2824 6111 or email to [email protected].

Hong Kong residents may use any one of the following means to contact the AHU if they need assistance while in distress outside Hong Kong:

• Call (852) 1868;
• Call the 1868 hotline using network data via the ImmD Mobile App;
• Use the 1868 Chatbot via the ImmD Mobile App (since 18 March 2024);
• Submit the Online Assistance Request Form;
• Send a message to the 1868 WhatsApp assistance hotline;
• or Send a message to the 1868 WeChat assistance hotline (since 18 March 2024).

For details, please refer to the ImmD's website: https://www.immd.gov.hk/eng/index.html.