Apply for Hong Kong’s cash voucher scheme starting in July
- Sign-ups open on July 4 and close on August 14, and if you apply earlier, you’ll get your HK$5,000 earlier too
- Depending on when you apply and what e-wallet you choose, you could start receiving parts of the payment from August 1
Hong Kong Financial Secretary, Paul Chan (midde), and other government officials held a press conference Friday to announce details of the city’s cash voucher scheme. (Photo: SCMP / Felix Wong)Hongkongers will get the first part of their HK$5,000 handout in cash vouchers from August 1, provided smooth testing of the scheme’s operating systems. More details will be announced at the end of this month.
Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po said they will have five to seven months to spend it on travelling, shopping and eating in the city.
You’ll be able to use AlipayHK, Tap & Go, WeChat Pay HK, or Octopus cards to receive your digital vouchers. (Photo: SCMP / Felix Wong)Permanent residents and new arrivals aged 18 or above will be able to get the money if they sign up.
This includes overseas students, Hongkongers taking part in the Labour Department’s working holidays schemes, and older Hongkongers who live in Guangdong and Fujian on the mainland and are taking part in welfare schemes. But foreign domestic workers and expatriates with working visas are excluded.
People who want the handout can apply online from July 14 to August 14. They must use their Hong Kong identity cards or the government’s iAM Smart app to apply for it. Applicants can also sign up for the scheme at post offices or at certain government buildings.
Talking Points: Should HK people receive cash handouts instead of electronic vouchers?
Residents who want to use e-wallets like AlipayHK, Tap & Go or WeChat Pay HK can collect the digital vouchers in two instalments.
If they sign up for the handout scheme in the first two weeks, HK$2,000 will be available on August 1 and HK$3,000 will arrive on October 1. The vouchers will expire on December 31.
Those signing up between July 18 and August 14 will get the two payments on September 1 and then on November 1. The expiration date will be pushed back to January 31.
Anyone who want the cash on Octopus cards will be paid in three parts: August 1, October 1, and the final payment once the first two vouchers are used.