-2Assistance (CSSA) to have been a Hong Kong resident for at least seven years, is not constitutional. Mr Justice Ribeiro PJ: 2. In this appeal, it falls to the Court to consider the scope and effect of the right to social welfare conferred upon Hong Kong residents by Article 36 of the Basic Law. It arises in the context of the applicant’s claim for benefits under the Comprehensive Social Security Assistance (“CSSA”) Scheme. A. 3. The appellant’s circumstances The appellant (“Madam Kong”) is a native of Guangdong. She had previously been married but divorced her first husband in 1983. There were two sons of that marriage and they reside on the Mainland. In 2001, she met Mr Chan Wing, a Hong Kong permanent resident, and married him in October 2003, having visited him in Hong Kong on a two-way permit on several occasions. Mr Chan was not a man of means. His health was not good and he had been a recipient of social welfare since 1985. 4. Madam Kong worked on the Mainland as a home helper for the elderly until 2005. She was unable thereafter to find work and, when granted a one-way permit (“OWP”) by the Chinese authorities on 30 November 2005, she decided to come to settle in Hong Kong with her husband. She arrived here on 21 December 2005, then aged 56, and was granted permission to remain for seven years. She thereupon became a non-permanent resident of Hong Kong within the meaning of Article 24 of the Basic Law.1 5. Sadly, her husband (who was aged 76) died on 22 December 2005, the day after she arrived in Hong Kong. In consequence, she found herself 1 She was duly issued with a Hong Kong Identity Card on 28 December 2005.