| Commissioner of Police 警務處處長 | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Security Bureau | |
| Style | The Honourable |
| Appointer | Central People's Government (via nomination by theChief Executive) |
| Inaugural holder | Eddie Hui |
| Formation | 1 July 1997 |
| Website | Hong Kong Police Force |
| Commissioner of Police | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Traditional Chinese | 警務處處長 | ||||||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 警务处处长 | ||||||||||||
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TheCommissioner of Police (Chinese:警務處處長) heads theHong Kong Police Force and, in accordance with Section 4 of the Police Force Ordinance, reports to thechief executive of Hong Kong and theSecurity Bureau. The current commissioner isJoe Chow Yat Ming, appointed by theState Council of China on 2 April 2025.[1]
Commissioners of Police currently are mandated to retire before they reach the age of 58, but may be extended upon exceptional circumstances.[2]
Early heads were often military officers or had previous policing experience in the United Kingdom or other British colonies.[citation needed] Many joined the Force in senior command postings before their promotions. Li is the only Commissioner to rise from lower ranks (as Probationary Sub-Inspector) and Hui joined as a probationaryInspector.[citation needed]
| Portrait | Name | Took office | Left office | Length of Tenure | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Under British rule | |||||
| Chief Magistrates and Chief of Police | |||||
 | William Caine | 30 April 1841 | 1844 | Captain | |
| George Thomas Haly | Feb 1844 | Captain; Acting Superintendent of Police and officer with the 41st Madras Native Infantry | |||
| John Bruce | Mar 1844 | Acting Superintendent of Police and officer with the 18th Royal Irish | |||
| Captain Superintendent of Police | |||||
| Charles May | 1844/45? | 1860/62? | Superintendent of A Division of the Metropolitan Police | ||
 | Edmund Haythorne | 1860 | 1862 | British Army officer | |
| William Quinn | 1862 | 1866/67? | Member ofBombay Police and first police officer to head Hong Kong Police[3] | ||
 | Walter Meredith Deane | 1866/67? | 1892 | Cadet Officer from Britain sent to head force[4] | |
| Alexander H. Adam Gordon | 1892 | 1893 | Major-General; Superintendent of Victoria Gaol | ||
| Francis Henry May | 1893 | 1901/02? | Cadet Officer and the Assistant Colonial Secretary | ||
| Joseph Francis Badeley | 1901/02? | 1913 | Cadet Officer and Colonial civil servant[5] | ||
 | Charles Messer | 1913 | 1918 | Cadet Officer and Colonial civil servant[6] | |
 | Edward Dudley Corscaden Wolfe | 1918 | 1930 | Cadet Officer and Colonial civil servant[7] | |
| Inspector General of Police | |||||
| Edward Dudley Corscaden Wolfe | 1930 | 1934 | ||
| Thomas Henry King | 1934 | 1935/38? | Cadet Officer and Colonial civil servant[8] | ||
| Commissioner of Police | |||||
| Thomas Henry King | 1935/38? | 1940/41? | |||
| John Pennefather-Evans | April 1940/1941? | 25 December 1941 | served in the police force of the Federated Malay States | ||
| Under Japanese Rule | |||||
| Captain of the Hong Kong Kempeitai | |||||
 | Kennosuke Noma | 25 December 1941 | 18 January 1945 | Executed as a war criminal in 1947 | |
| Under British rule | |||||
| Commissioner of Police | |||||
| Charles Henry Sansom | 1945 | 1946 | Colonel; British Military Administration | ||
| Duncan William McIntosh | 1946 | 1954 | former Deputy Commissioner of Police of Singapore | ||
| Arthur Crawford Maxwell | 1954 | 1959 | police officer in Malaya and Commissioner of Police of Sarawak in 1947-1949; Deputy Commissioner with Hong Kong Force in 1949[9] | ||
| Henry Wylde Edwards Heath C.M.G. | 1 April 1959 | 18 December 1966 | Member of Hong Kong Force[10] | ||
| Edward Tyrer | 19 December 1966 | 21 July 1967 | Member of Hong Kong Force[11] | ||
| Edward C. Eates | 22 July 1967 | 1969 | joined force in 1963 as Assistant Commissioner following police service in Pakistan, Sierra Leone and Gambia[12] | ||
| Charles Payne Sutcliffe | 1969 | 13 January 1974 | previous served in Metropolitan Police, Tanganyika; joined Hong Kong Police as Assistant Commissioner in 1960 | ||
| Brian Slevin | 14 January 1974 | 25 March 1979 | formerly Deputy Commissioner[13] | ||
| Roy Henry | 25 March 1979 | 15 April 1985 | joined force in 1973; previous colonial police officer in Malaysia and Commissioner of Police in Fiji | ||
| Raymon Anning | 15 April 1985 | 1 December 1989 | served with Metropolitan Police and other British forces; joined Hong Kong Police in 1983 | ||
| Li Kwan-ha | 2 December 1989 | 2 July 1994 | joined force as Probationary Sub-Inspector in 1957 | ||
| Eddie Hui | 3 July 1994 | 30 June 1997 | joined force as Probationary Inspector | ||
| Under Chinese rule | |||||
| Commissioner of Police | |||||
| Eddie Hui | 1 July 1997 | 1 January 2001 | 3 years and 185 days | ||
| Tsang Yam-pui | 2 January 2001 | 9 December 2003 | 2 years and 342 days | ||
 | Lee Ming-kwai | 10 December 2003 | 15 January 2007 | 3 years and 37 days | |
 | Tang King-shing | 16 January 2007 | 10 January 2011 | 3 years and 360 days | |
.png) | Andy Tsang | 11 January 2011 | 4 May 2015 | 4 years and 114 days | |
 | Stephen Lo | 5 May 2015 | 18 November 2019 | 4 years and 198 days | |
 | Chris Tang | 19 November 2019 | 25 June 2021 | 1 year and 219 days | |
 | Raymond Siu | 25 June 2021 | 2 April 2025 | 3 years and 282 days | |
| Joe Chow | 2 April 2025 | Incumbent | 241 days | ||
| Secretaries of Departments | |
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| Deputy Secretaries of Departments | |
| Directors of Bureaux |
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| Others | |
