Hong Kong–United Kingdom relations a deeply important role in the formation of the modern Hong Kong. Sovereignty of Hong Kong was ceded to the UK "in perpetuity" on 29 August 1842 through the Treaty of Nanking. The UK further expanded the territory of Hong Kong in 1860 by another cessation, plus a 99-year lease of the New Territories in 1898. The stability, security, and predictability of British law and government enabled Hong Kong to flourish as a centre for international trade. Localisation of teritary institutions, the Hong Kong government and the independent Judiciary in the run-up to the 1997 Handover of sovereignty, caused a
British Consulate-General, Hong Kong It also received registrations of marriages from British nationals in Taiwan, although there was no legal requirement for British nationals to do so. When Hong Kong was under British rule, the Governor represented the British government, as well as the British monarch as head of state. Matters relating to British nationality were handled by the Hong Kong Immigration Department. During the negotiations between Britain and China on the future of Hong Kong, the British proposed the establishment of a "British Commissioner" following transfer of sovereignty to China. Some of the diplomatic representatives of Commonwealth countries in Hong Kong were already