Hong Kong should seek to expand its multiple-entry visa scheme for Shenzhen residents to cover Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou to attract more overnight visitors, a lawmaker has said, as a tourism industry leader revealed the number of inbound travellers over the Lunar New Year period had fallen from 2024.

The existing policy allows Shenzhen residents to apply for multiple-entry endorsements that enable holders to freely enter Hong Kong within a one-year validity period.

But legislator Perry Yiu Pak-leung, who represents the tourism sector, said on Saturday that Hong Kong tour operators were struggling to pitch packages to visitors from the neighbouring city.

He noted that many travellers from Shenzhen were already very familiar with Hong Kong and were unlikely to stay overnight.

“I think it is worth requesting that the central government include Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou in the multiple-entry visa scheme,” he told a radio programme.

“There are already good transport arrangements and these three cities have strong business ties with Hong Kong, so we want to attract more business and leisure travellers who will stay overnight.”