HONG KONG -- John Lee, chief executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR), said on Wednesday that starting immediately, the HKSAR government will relax the criteria for nationals of Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar applying for multiple-entry visas for travel and business.

The validity period of multiple-entry visas for the above-mentioned countries will be extended from two years to three years. The arrangement has also applied to Vietnamese nationals, who have benefited from the relaxation of the visa policy since last year, Lee said while delivering his third policy address to the HKSAR Legislative Council.

Lee said that the new moves were to foster closer people-to-people ties with ASEAN countries. Under a fast-track arrangement, the HKSAR government will expedite the processing of visa applications from group visitors of ASEAN countries submitted via local travel agents.

"In addition, we will provide self-service immigration clearance for invited persons participating in business, development and related activities from the 10 ASEAN countries, and provide one-stop handling of their applications for self-service immigration clearance and visa through a dedicated desk," Lee said, adding that effective immediately, the requirement for visitors to furnish an arrival or departure card is canceled, facilitating a faster and more convenient immigration clearance.

Lee said that to develop visitor sources from the Middle East and ASEAN, the HKSAR government will actively encourage various sectors of the community to enhance tourism-support measures for creating a friendly environment for visitors. They include providing information at the airport in Arabic and compiling a list of restaurants offering halal food.

ASEAN (the Association of Southeast Asian Nations) groups Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.