Hongkongers To Receive 1st Consumption Voucher Payment (HK$3,000 Or HK$1,500) This Sunday

Eligible Hong Kong residents and non-permanent residents will get their first instalments of the 2023 consumption vouchers on April 16, of HK$3,000 and HK$1,500 respectively. The amount will be paid into recipients’ e-wallets or Octopus cards.

By Anjali Muthanna2023-04-112 Mins Read

As part of the 2023-2024 budget, Finance Secretary Paul Chan announced that eligible Hong Kong residents over the age of 18 will get consumption vouchers amounting to HK$5,000 to spend at retail and F&B outlets in the SAR. Non-residents who are in the city under specific admission schemes or as students will receive HK$2,500 worth of digital vouchers.

Eligible recipients will get their payments in two instalments: the first on April 16 (HK$3,000 for residents, HK$1,500 for non-residents), and the second on July 16 (HK$2,000 for residents, HK1,000 for non-residents). Foreign domestic helpers and Hongkongers who have emigrated are not included in the scheme.

The first payment will be made directly into one of the five e-wallets that recipients opted for during Phase 2 of the 2022 round of the consumption voucher scheme: AlipayHK, BoC Pay, PayMe from HSBC, Tap & Go, or WeChat Pay HK. Those who chose to get their vouchers via Octopus can tap their cards at designated collection points, supermarkets or convenience stores until September 30, 2023, to receive the first payment.

The vouchers paid into e-wallets on April 16 will be valid until October 31, 2023, while there is no expiry date for the first instalments made to Octopus cards.

The second round of consumption vouchers for this year will begin on July 16. E-wallet recipients will get the entire HK2,000 or HK$1000, depending on their resident status, and must use it by January 31, 2024.

Octopus recipients can get their second payments on July 16, but only if they finish spending their first instalments by June 30. They will get the remaining amount on the 16th of every month by tapping their cards, the last date being November 16, 2023.