Financial Secretary Paul Chan announced on Monday that eligible Hongkongers will receive the second instalment of their digital consumption vouchers, amounting to $5,000, on August 7 as part of this year’s Consumption Voucher Scheme (CVS). Chan also stated that non-permanent Hong Kong residents will be included in this stage of the 2022 CVS and will also receive $5,000.
The first phase of the 2022 scheme rolled out in April, when eligible Hongkongers – which included only permanent residents and new arrivals to the city over the age of 18 – received $5,000.
Who is now eligible to receive the vouchers?
Besides permanent residents and new arrivals, eligible recipients now include:
- Non-permanent residents who are eligible for permanent resident status, such as working professionals and entrepreneurs
- Dependents of non-permanent residents who can acquire permanent resident status
- Foreign students
Recipients must also be 18 or older as of June 13, 2022 to qualify for the vouchers. The CVS does not apply to foreign domestic workers, contract workers employed from outside Hong Kong, or residents emigrating out of Hong Kong. However, the government will make exceptions for certain Hongkongers who have been continuously absent from the SAR from June 18, 2019 to June 12, 2022.
“Those who have gone to a foreign country for furthering their studies or have been sent to work in an office outside Hong Kong will be considered eligible. We will consider whether the person has submitted a claim request to withdraw any Mandatory Provident Fund (MPF) or benefits before the age of 65 on the grounds of permanent departure from Hong Kong. And we will consider whether the person is holding a locally issued HK permanent identity card,” said Chan.
How will people receive their vouchers?
Those who have received the first instalment of $5,000 from April onwards do not need to sign up for the second instalment if they wish to use the same electronic wallets or Octopus cards. They will get their vouchers directly through their stored value facility (SVF) accounts starting August 7.
Those who did not register for the first stage of the 2022 CVS or those who are newly eligible must register on the website between June 23 and July 23. New registrants of the 2022 CVS will get the full $10,000.
Recipients can receive their digital vouchers in the following ways:
E-wallets: Those who chose to receive their vouchers on AliPay, Tap&Go, and WeChat Pay will get their vouchers in two instalments in their SVF accounts. Two new e-wallets have been added for the second phase in 2022: BoC Pay and PayMe. The vouchers will be disbursed in the following ways:
- Existing and newly eligible registrants: The first voucher of $2,000 will be disbursed on August 7 and the second voucher amounting to $3,000 on October 1. The vouchers will be valid until February 28, 2023.
- New registrants: Those who only register during the second phase will get the full $10,000 in three instalments: the first $3,000 on August 7, the second $3,000 on October 1, and the final $4,000 on December 1. The money will be valid till April 30, 2023.
Octopus cards: Those who get their vouchers on their Octopus cards will receive them in three instalments because of the system’s storage limit based on the following schedule:
- Existing and newly eligible registrants: Recipients can get their first instalment of $2,000 by tapping their CVS-registered Octopus cards at designated places on August 7, and the second amount of $2,000 on October 1. Once the card user’s cumulative total eligible spending has reached $4,000, they can tap their cards to receive the remaining $1,000, starting from November 30. They will then get their voucher on the 16th of the following month. The earliest Octopus users can get this money is December 16 of this year, and the latest is April 16, 2023.
- New registrants: These recipients can collect their first three instalments of $3,000 each by tapping their cards at designated places on August 7, October 1 and December 1. When the user’s cumulative total eligible spending has reached $9,000, they can tap their cards to receive the remaining $1,000, starting January 31, 2023. They will receive their voucher on the 16th of the following month. The earliest they can get this money is February 16 of next year, and the latest is June 16, 2023.
Those who have already registered for the CVS but who wish to change their SVF operator must amend their registration records online from June 23 or visit a temporary service centre.
Header image credits: Leung Cho Pan via Canva
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