Hong Kong was returned to China on July 1, 1997.

Key context:

• The transfer followed the Sino-British Joint Declaration signed in 1984, in which Britain agreed to restore Hong Kong to the People’s Republic of China with effect from July 1, 1997.

• The handover marked the end of British rule that began in 1842 (with later expansions), and it established the framework of “one country, two systems” for Hong Kong’s governance under the PRC. The formal sovereignty transfer occurred at midnight local time on July 1, 1997.