 After the transfer of sovereignty to China in 1997, they were renamed consulates-general, with the last commissioner becoming consul-general.However, the Australian commission had been renamed the consulate-general in 1986.Owing to Hong Kong's status as a special administrative region of China, some countries' consulates-general in Hong Kong report directly to their respective foreign ministries, rather than to their embassies in Beijing, such as those of Canada, the United Kingdom and United States.