The Government today announced that recipients of social security payments and the Individual-based Work Incentive Transport Subsidy (I-WITS) will receive a one-off extra allowance starting from June 12.

This is part of the relief measures announced in the 2020-21 Budget.

The social security payments include Comprehensive Social Security Assistance (CSSA), the Old Age Allowance (OAA), the Old Age Living Allowance (OALA) and the Disability Allowance (DA) under the Social Security Allowance Scheme.

Recipients who were eligible for these social security payments on May 14 will be eligible for the extra allowance.

The Social Welfare Department has been allocated $4.209 billion to implement the arrangements and will credit the payment to the designated bank accounts of recipients without the need to make an application.

The payment will benefit 1.39 million people, including 320,000 CSSA recipients, 600,000 OALA recipients, 270,000 OAA recipients, 28,000 Guangdong Scheme recipients, 9,000 Fujian Scheme recipients and 150,000 DA recipients.

As for the I-WITS Scheme, the extra allowance applies to those whose applications were made between November 1, 2019, to May 14 this year. The allowance is equal to the average monthly amount of approved months payable to the applicants in their I-WITS applications which were most recently submitted in the above period.

The recipients are not required to make separate applications.

The Working Family Allowance Office of the Working Family & Student Financial Assistance Agency has been allocated $16 million for the one-off extra allowance to I-WITS recipients.

Click here for details.