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Layover guideHong Kong · HKG

Staying connected in Hong Kong

A local SIM must be registered to your passport before it will activate.

Tony Webster / Wikimedia Commons · CC BY 2.0
All of Hong Kong

Prepaid SIM cards and SIM service plans issued in Hong Kong must complete real-name registration before activation. The Telecommunications (Registration of SIM Cards) Regulation came into operation on 1 September 2021, with registration required from 1 March 2022, and the programme is now fully implemented.

A user without a Hong Kong identity card registers with another valid identification document, which the regulator gives as a valid travel document or passport.

An individual user may register up to ten prepaid cards with each service provider, and a corporate user up to twenty-five. A SIM service plan that took effect before 1 March 2022 does not need re-registration unless the user changes to another service provider or subscribes to a new SIM card.

Do not buy a pre-registered card from an informal seller. The regulator tells users not to buy prepaid cards from unknown sources that are claimed to have completed real-name registration, and warns that providing false information in registration can amount to a criminal offence carrying up to fourteen years.

  1. Office of the Communications Authority: Real-name registration programme for SIM cards · checked 2026-09-03
  2. Office of the Communications Authority: SIM registration FAQs · checked 2026-09-03

The rest of Hong Kong

The whole guide
Getting out of the airportAirport Express reaches Hong Kong Station in as little as 24 minutes, and the same-day return is free.Ride-hailingRide-hailing is only now being licensed; until licensed platforms start, the door-to-door option is the metered taxi.Local laws that catch crew outCBD is a dangerous drug here, vapes are contraband, and you must be able to produce your passport on demand.WeatherTwo separate warning systems, one for wind and one for rain, and the No. 8 signal is the one that ends your day out.Eating near the crew hotelsA 10 per cent service charge is normal and should be displayed; the disputes are over what else gets added.What to buyA free port that charges no tariff either way, but a tight allowance on what you carry in.TippingMost restaurants add a 10% service charge, some bill for tea or snacks you did not order, and no official tipping norm is published.