Hong Kong plans to launch a facial recognition e-channel test by June to reduce immigration clearance to five seconds. Immigration handled a record 335 million entries and exits last year, up 12% from 2024. Director of Immigration Benson Kwok Joon-fung said the city expects future challenges with such high traffic. The new contactless e-channel, tested at the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge, removes the need to stop for scanning. It uses facial recognition to verify identities as passengers walk through a 4.9-meter corridor with five cameras. Currently, clearance times range from seven to eight seconds; the new system aims for five. Only registered residents can use this fast lane. Also, from the end of this month, regular visitors can qualify for e-channel use if they have visited Hong Kong at least three times in 24 months, relaxing the earlier 12-month rule. The airport will add 26 new e-channels soon, boosting capacity. On another front, the Immigration Department increased crackdowns on illegal workers last year, conducting nearly 20,000 operations and arresting 3,708 illegal workers and 569 employers. Arrests of workers dropped slightly, but employer arrests rose by 10%. Harsh penalties for illegal employment include fines up to HK$500,000 (US$64,100) and 10 years in jail. Authorities also targeted illegal self-employed workers like photographers and guides through sting operations. The department approved over 190,000 visa and talent scheme applications, an 11% rise from 2024. After a mid-2024 rule requiring verified academic documents, cases of forged certificates dropped. The department also stopped about 32,000 visitors from entering last year, with 85% suspected of illegal intentions like overstaying or illegal work, according to Kwok.