Colonial Hong Kong (pre-1997) Source:
Registrar-General (1844–1913) The bureau has its origins in the office of Registrar-General in 1844, who led the Census and Registration Office (
總登記官署) and was responsible for overseeing and regulating the Chinese community of the British colony.
Secretariat for Chinese Affairs (1913–1969) In 1913, the Registrar-General became the Secretary for Chinese Affairs, overseeing the Secretariat for Chinese Affairs (SCA), comprising the Interpretation and Emigration sub-departments. The SCA's functions included the protection of women and girls, permits, registration of books and marriages, emigration, plague hospitals, temples, cemeteries and Chinese clubs and societies. Responsibility for the supervision of student interpreters was passed to the
Education Department in June 1913. On 1 January 1922 the SCA acquired the functions of protector of child labour and inspector of factories, and an Industrial sub-department was established to administer these. The SCA became responsible for the protection of '
mui tsai' or female domestic servants in 1923 under Ordinance No 1 of 1923. Marriage registration was transferred to the
Land Office in 1926. After the Second World War, the SCA was re-established on the
resumption of civil administration in 1946 and continued its pre-war role, including liaison between the Chinese population and the Government and advising on
Chinese law, customs and opinion. A Social Welfare Office was created within the SCA in September 1947. This was separated to form the
Social Welfare Department on 1 January 1958. A Public Enquiry Service Division was formed in November 1960. Following the
1966-67 riots, the City District Office scheme was introduced on 24 January 1968.
Secretariat for Home Affairs (1969–1973) The Secretariat for Chinese Affairs was retitled Secretariat for Home Affairs (SHA) on 28 February 1969. The name change was prompted by the introduction of the City District Office scheme in 1968. The SHA was organised into four Divisions (General and Traditional; Lands; Narcotics; Public Relations), two Sections (Trust Funds; Liquor Licensing), Tenancy Inquiries Bureaux and the City District Commissioners and District Offices for Hong Kong and Kowloon. In March 1972 a Chinese Language Branch was established to administer the official languages policy and provide translation services. The same year, a Television and Films Division was created from the Television Authority Secretariat and Film Censorship Unit, both transferred from the Information Services Department. In 1973 the SHA's liquor licensing functions were moved to the
Urban Services Department, while the Narcotics Division was transferred to the
Security Branch of the
Colonial Secretariat.
Home Affairs Department (1973–1981) Following a reorganisation of the Colonial Secretariat as proposed by the McKinsey Report, the Secretariat for Home Affairs was retitled as the Home Affairs Department (HAD) in September 1973. The department's primary role was maintaining communication between the Chinese population and the Government. It was organised into four Divisions (General and Traditional, Lands, Information, Television and Film), a Trust Funds Section, Chinese Language Branch, Public Relations Unit, Tenancy Enquiry Bureaux, and Offices of the City District Commissioners and District Offices for Hong Kong and Kowloon. In 1974, the Television and Film Division was separated to form an independent Television and Film Authority; the Tenancy Enquiry Bureaux were transferred to the
Rating and Valuation Department; and the HAD was reorganised into a Community Services Branch and a Language and Tradition Branch and the City District Offices. In 1975 its functions included city district administration, public enquiry service, lands and housing matters, Chinese language authority, Chinese customs and liaison with local organisations.
City and New Territories Administration (1981–1994) On 1 December 1981 the New Territories Administration merged with the Home Affairs Department to form the City and New Territories Administration (CNTA). The new department took over the functions of its antecedent agencies, except for disposal and survey of land in the New Territories which was transferred to the Lands Department, and acquired new responsibilities for the District Management Committees and
District Boards. The structure of the CNTA comprised a Headquarters, four Divisions (District Administration, Departmental Administration and Finance, Information and Public Relations, and Public Enquiry Service), a Works Section and the Hong Kong and Kowloon Regions and their District Offices. Certain traditional and community related matters including temples, Chinese customs and marriages, cemeteries and opinion surveys, were transferred to the CNTA on 1 April 1985 from the Home Affairs Branch, Government Secretariat. Responsibility for community centres was also acquired from the Social Welfare Department in 1985. By 1988, CNTA had added a Special Duties Division. This was followed by a Youth Division in 1992.
Home Affairs Branch, Government Secretariat and Home Affairs Department (1994–1997) On 1 December 1994 the CNTA was reorganised into a Home Affairs Branch in Government Secretariat and a Home Affairs Department.
After the Handover (post-1997) Home Affairs Bureau (1997–2022) Following the
transfer of sovereignty on 1 July 1997, the organisation was renamed as the Home Affairs Bureau, headed by the Secretary for Home Affairs. The bureau gained responsibility for the culture and leisure portfolios of the Broadcasting, Culture and Sport Bureau following the latter's abolition on 9 April 1998, and following the abolition of the
Urban Council,
Regional Council,
Urban Services Department and
Regional Services Department on 31 December 1999, the bureau took over the new
Leisure and Cultural Services Department, gaining even greater responsibility over leisure and cultural policy. On 1 April 2000, the Health, Welfare and Food Bureau's responsibility over sports for disabled people was transferred to the Home Affairs Bureau. On 1 July 2007, following
Donald Tsang's re-election as Chief Executive, the Home Affairs Bureau's human rights portfolio was transferred to the renamed
Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Bureau, and the development-related matters of the Home Affairs Bureau's responsibility over heritage conservation were transferred to the new
Development Bureau. The Home Affairs Bureau gained responsibility over the promotion of
social enterprises, as well as the
Legal Aid Department, which was transferred from the Chief Secretary for Administration's Office. The Legal Aid Department returned to Chief Secretary's Office on 1 July 2018.
Home Affairs and Youth Bureau (2022–present) In her 2021
policy address,
Chief Executive Carrie Lam proposed reorganizing the Home Affairs Bureau into the Home Affairs and Youth Bureau, stating that it would better address local needs and formulating policies aimed at young people. The proposal was implemented after the Lee government took office on 1 July 2022, with some of the old bureau's functions transferred to the new Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau. == Officials ==