Secretary for Justice Paul Lam said on Friday that an initiative to allow young Hong Kong lawyers to practise in the Greater Bay Area would allow them to take advantage of opportunities on the mainland and utilise Hong Kong's strengths to meet the country's needs.

A pilot scheme was introduced in 2020 to allow Hong Kong and Macau lawyers with at least five years' experience to qualify to practise in the Greater Bay Area by passing an examination. The State Council has extended the scheme until 2026 and lowered the experience required to pass the exam to three years.

Lam said the Department of Justice will continue to work with its mainland counterparts to encourage Hong Kong lawyers to take the exam.

"I am very grateful to the central government for attaching importance to the aspirations of the legal profession in Hong Kong by amending the pilot measures to provide the profession with more room for development in the Greater Bay Area, so as to enable the profession to seize the unlimited opportunities brought about by the development of our country and to serve the needs of our country with the strengths of Hong Kong," he said.

President of the Hong Kong Law Society, CM Chan, also welcomed the initiative.

"Recently, there are on average over 600 newly-qualified lawyers each year in Hong Kong, many of whom are young lawyers. The relaxation of the admission criteria will benefit more young lawyers," he said.

"The updated pilot measures will further promote Hong Kong legal profession’s integration into the national overall development, enhancing Hong Kong’s position as an international legal and dispute resolution centre in the Asia-Pacific region under the 14th Five-Year Plan."

A total of 357 Hong Kong and Macau lawyers have qualified to practise in the Greater Bay Area since the scheme was launched three years ago.