The Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Hong Kong, initially known as Chung Hwa Travel Service, was first established in Hong Kong in 1966 during British rule. This operated under quasi-diplomatic arrangements unilaterally extended by the British authorities. Previously, while the National Government of the Republic of China in Nanjing had negotiated with the British regarding the appointment of a Consul-General in 1945, it decided against such an appointment, with its representative in the colony, T W Kwok instead being styled Special Commissioner for Hong Kong. This was in addition to his role as Special Commissioner for Guangdong and Guangxi. Disagreements also arose with the British authorities, with the Governor, Alexander Grantham, opposing an office building for the "Commissioner for Foreign Affairs of the Provinces of Kwantung and Kuangsi" being erected on the site of the Walled City in Kowloon. In 1950, following British recognition of the People's Republic of China, the office of the Special Commissioner was closed and Kwok withdrawn. Following the transfer of sovereignty to the People's Republic of China in 1997, the Service continued to operate, despite not having been officially registered with the Hong Kong SAR Government. However, in 2000, Beijing set out the conditions under which the Chung Hwa Travel Service could operate in Hong Kong, although the Mainland Affairs Council refused to detail them. In 2004, the newly-appointed managing director of the Service faced a five-month delay before received approval to enter Hong Kong and assume his post. Similarly, other Taiwan government officials faced difficulties in obtaining visas to visit Hong Kong. In 2009, the Service opened a visa office at Hong Kong International Airport, thereby allowing mainland visitors to Taiwan to collect their visas at the airport instead of having to travel to the office in Admiralty. On 20 July 2011, in a ceremony presided over by Mainland Affairs Council Chairwoman Lai Shin-yuan, it was renamed the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office. This brought it into line with most other representative officesaround the world, which already had "Taipei" in their titles. The renaming was considered a milestone in the improved cross-strait relations between Taipei and Beijing.
