Since the establishment of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) on July 1, 1997, according to paragraph 7 of Schedule 1 to the Immigration Ordinance, an HKSAR permanent resident (HKPR) who is not of Chinese nationality will lose his/her HKPR status if he/she has been absent from Hong Kong for a continuous period of not less than 36 months since he/she ceased to have ordinarily resided in Hong Kong.