New caring scheme announced

March 23, 2018

Financial Secretary Paul Chan:
I announced the 2018-19 Budget (at the end of) February and proposed an array of measures to share the fruits of our economic success with the community. Thereafter there are views in the community that such measures could be enhanced to benefit more people. Their views are echoed by many LegCo members of different political parties. After careful consideration, I have decided to introduce a new caring and sharing scheme. An eligible person who does not pay salaries tax will receive $4,000 and one who receives tax concession will get the difference between $4,000 and the amount of the tax concession received. Persons benefitting from the new scheme will include anyone who (a) is a Hong Kong Identity Card holder ordinarily (residing) in Hong Kong and attains the age of 18 on or before December 31, 2018; (b) does not own any property in Hong Kong; (c) does not receive Comprehensive Social Security Assistance payments, Old Age Allowance, Old Age Living Allowance or Disability Allowance; and (d) either one declares that he or she does not pay tax for the 2017-18 year in Hong Kong or to present a tax payment slip which shows that the tax concession received for 2017-18 falls below $4,000. Our initial assessment is that around 2.8 million people may be eligible under the scheme and the amount of payout is in the order of $11 billion. We appreciate that there could be a small number of people who pay no tax and live in self-owned properties, domestic properties that benefit less than $4,000 in rates concession. Some of them may pay tax but benefit less than $4,000 through tax and rates concession in aggregate. Under the new scheme, they can also apply for the balance. The Working Family Allowance Office has been commissioned to implement the scheme. Eligible persons may submit application(s) to the office. Details will be announced by the office as soon as possible. Meanwhile, the Budget has proposed to provide extra allowance which is equivalent to two months of such allowance to social security recipients. Recipients of such allowance such as Old Age Allowance and Disability Allowance will receive the difference between $4,000 and the extra payments received. I believe with this scheme many more people will benefit directly from the Budget. The scheme also reflects our objective of building a caring and sharing community and sharing the fruits of economic success with the community. The Government will move committee stage amendments to the Appropriation Bill 2018 to seek funding to implement the above arrangements.

The Government today introduced a new caring and sharing scheme in which $4,000 will be given to each eligible citizen.

Financial Secretary Paul Chan announced the new arrangements today after he proposed an array of measures in his 2018-19 Budget to share the fruits of economic success with the community.

He said: “There are views in the community that such measures could be enhanced to benefit more people. Their views are echoed by many Legislative Council members of different political parties.

“After careful consideration, I have decided to introduce a new caring and sharing scheme.”

Under the new scheme, those who did not pay salaries tax for the 2017-18 year will receive $4,000 and those who receive tax concessions will get the difference between $4,000 and the amount of concession received.

Around 2.8 million people are expected to benefit from the initiative and the estimated payout amounts to $11 billion.

Eligible people include those who hold a Hong Kong Identity Card, ordinarily reside in Hong Kong and have reached the age of 18 on or before December 31 this year.

They must not own any property in Hong Kong nor receive Comprehensive Social Security Assistance payments, Old Age Allowance, Old Age Living Allowance or Disability Allowance.

Mr Chan said another group, tax payers and those not paying taxes living in their own property and getting less than $4,000 in concessions, can also apply for the new scheme.

Social security recipients who are set to receive extra allowance under the 2018-19 Budget can also receive the difference between $4,000 and the extra payments received.

Mr Chan said: “I believe with this scheme many more people will benefit directly from the Budget. The scheme also reflects our objective of building a caring and sharing community and sharing the fruits of economic success with the community."

He said the Government will move committee stage amendments to the Appropriation Bill 2018 to seek funding for the new arrangements.

Secretary for Labour & Welfare Dr Law Chi-kwong said time is needed to hire more staff and set up a computer system to handle the applications. He hopes the payments can be made before next year’s Budget.

The Working Family Allowance Office has been commissioned to implement the scheme.