Evangeline Banao Vallejos, a Filipino maid who has worked and lived in Hong Kong since 1986, launched the case last year after her attempts for permanent residency were denied by the city’s immigration authorities.
Under Hong Kong’s Basic Law, a mini constitution, non-citizens are entitled to permanent residency—which allows them to vote and better access to public services—if they have “ordinarily resided” in the city for a continuous seven years.
The immigration laws however specifically exclude the 292,000 foreign domestic helpers.