Draft: Yang Liang
The Hong Kong government announced yesterday (13 June) that the second tranche of e-consumption coupons will be distributed in stages of the remaining 5,000 yuan (HK$, the same below) on August 7.
Members of the public who wish to switch to stored value payment instruments or newly eligible members of the public can register online from 23 June to 23 July; Members of the public who do not have a plan to transfer are not required to re-register.
It is worth noting that the eligible persons of this consumption coupon have expanded the scope of benefits, and those who are not permanent residents but are eligible to become Hong Kong permanent residents, including professionals, professionals, entrepreneurs, international students, etc., who come to Hong Kong, can get half of the consumption coupons, that is, 5,000 yuan.
At the same time, persons who leave Hong Kong permanently or intend to leave Hong Kong permanently will not be eligible for voucher collection.
Details of The Second Stage e-Coupon
Eligibility
●Hong Kong permanent residents and new arrivals who are 18 years of age or older on or before 13 June 2022
●Hong Kong residents who "have the condition to become permanent residents" can receive half of the quota
●Those who leave Hong Kong permanently or intend to leave Hong Kong permanently are not eligible to receive the consumption coupon
◆ Identification documents are not issued by Hong Kong
◆It has been absent from Hong Kong from 18 June 2019 to 12 June 2022 and is not temporary (e.g. further education, overseas work, etc.)
◆ Applied for early withdrawal of MPF on the grounds of "permanent departure"
◆ There is any evidence or information that makes the HKSAR Government believe that the person has no intention of returning to Hong Kong in the future
Stored value payment instrument
●Alipay HK
●Tap &Go "Shoot and Stay"
●WeChat Pay HK
● Octopus
PayMe from HSBC (new)
●BoC Pay (new)
Distribution arrangements
●The 5,000 yuan electronic consumption coupon will be issued in stages in August, and eligible citizens can collect it as soon as August 7.
●Members of the public who wish to switch to stored value payment instruments or new eligible citizens can register online from June 23 to July 23; Members of the public who do not have a plan to transfer are not required to re-register. The Government has set up 8 temporary centres where members of the public who are not familiar with online services can be present in person and have someone to assist in registering for the new electronic payment platform, and members of the public can call 185,000 to make an appointment.
● If you collect it with octopus, it is divided into 3 installments, that is, 2,000 yuan is charged on August 7 and October 1, and if the above 4,000 yuan is used up at the end of November, the balance of 1,000 yuan will be collected in the next month; Citizens will spend 4,000 yuan at the end of March next year at the latest, and finally receive the balance of consumption coupons on April 16. As for the remaining five payment instruments, they will be distributed in two installments on August 7 (2,000 yuan) and October 1 (3,000 yuan).
"Conditional permanent residents" can receive half the quota
Hong Kong Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po said at a press conference yesterday that the second phase of the consumption coupons has added PayMe and BoC Pay stored value payment instruments, together with the original 4, namely Alipay Hong Kong, Octopus, Tap & Go "Live Rewards" and WeChat Pay HK, a total of 6 stored value payment instrument operators.
He pointed out that it is expected that the public can convert businesses to enable consumers to enjoy the most consumption preferences through the market power of "transferable", so that consumption coupons can exert greater leverage effect, and the development of electronic payment can be broader, broader and deeper.
He said that if they wish to switch to stored value payment instruments or new eligible members of the public, they can register online from 23 June to 23 July, enter their identity card number online and answer 3 security questions, and the authorities will also set up temporary service centres to assist the public in registration; Members of the public who do not intend to switch to payment instruments are not required to register.
Chen Maobo pointed out that the eligible persons of this consumption voucher have expanded the scope of beneficiaries. Hong Kong residents who are not new to Hong Kong but are eligible to become permanent residents, including professionals, entrepreneurs and persons who come to Hong Kong through different schemes for further study, will be granted a 50% consumption coupon. As for persons who have left Hong Kong permanently or intend to leave Hong Kong permanently, if they have been absent from Hong Kong for a long time without special reasons between 18 June 2019 and 12 June 2022, such as two years after studying abroad, on business, etc.; Have withdrawn MPF early for permanent departure reasons; If there is any other evidence and information showing that there is no intention to return to Hong Kong in the future, no consumption coupon can be obtained.
The first coupon will be charged on 7 August
In terms of details of the issuance, Mr Wong Kaew Ling, Director of the Budget and Tax Policy Unit of the Office of the Financial Secretary, said that there are two main aspects, including the collection of the first tranche of consumption vouchers by all eligible members of the public, regardless of new and old registrations.
Among them, the citizens who receive the second phase of 5,000 yuan, if they receive it with octopus, will be divided into 3 installments, that is, 2,000 yuan will be charged on August 7 and October 1, starting at the end of November, if the 4,000 yuan is used up at the end of the month, the balance of 1,000 yuan will be collected in the next month; Citizens will spend 4,000 yuan at the end of March next year at the latest, and finally receive the balance of consumption coupons on April 16. As for the remaining five payment instruments, they were distributed in two installments of 2,000 yuan and 3,000 yuan on August 7 and October 1, respectively.
As for the first time registered citizens who can receive 10,000 yuan, if they collect it with Octopus, they will collect 3,000 yuan in four installments, that is, each period on August 7, October 1 and December 1, and refer to the above practice of receiving 5,000 yuan, when they accumulate 9,000 yuan, they can receive the remaining 1,000 yuan in 6 to 10 months. The remaining five payment instruments will receive RMB3,000, RMB3,000 and RMB4,000 in three installments on August 7, October 1 and December 1 respectively.
The Government reminds citizens who use Octopus to collect consumption vouchers at public transport subsidy collection machines, convenience stores, supermarkets, Octopus service stations, or through Octopus mobile apps. Regardless of whether they are newly registered citizens, they cannot change the platform after successful registration.
Defined as "ineligible" is subject to review
A new condition has been added for eligible recipients this time: they have not left Hong Kong permanently, or have the intention to leave Hong Kong permanently.
In this regard, the Financial Secretary, Paul Chan, said that there are opinions in the community that citizens who have already immigrated should not be issued consumption vouchers, and he believes that the relevant opinions are reasonable and the Government will examine whether citizens have been absent from Hong Kong between 18 June 2019 and 12 June 2022, as long as they have stayed in Hong Kong for one day during this period, they will be regarded as eligible.
Regarding the definition of immigration, Wang Xueling said that whether it is "immigrant" is difficult to define, and citizens who are not in Hong Kong during the relevant period and are defined as unqualified can apply for review, for example, even if a person who receives MPF early, if there is strong evidence that he has not immigrated, he can provide proof to the authorities, and the authorities will review each case.
For those who are eligible to become permanent residents, including professionals, professionals, entrepreneurs and those who have come to Hong Kong through different schemes to study, they will receive a 50% consumption voucher. Chen Maobo said that the initial estimate is that more than 300,000 people meet this qualification, involving more than 1 billion yuan.
Which of the 6 operators offers the best deal?
The details of the 5,000 yuan distribution of the second phase of consumption coupons were determined yesterday and will be issued in phases from August, when the number of electronic payment tool operators will increase to 6, including the original AlipayHK, Octopus, Tap &Go, WeChat Pay HK, and the new BoC Pay and PayMe, which allow citizens to freely "transfer" when registering.
Obviously, the number of discounts is an important consideration in choosing the coupon collection tool. At present, a number of electronic payment tool providers have launched consumer discounts.
Alipay HK out to grab customers, send up to 235 yuan "transfer reward"; And launched the use of mobile phones to scan the brand channel of the cooperative merchants to promote the QR code can receive 10 yuan discount, as well as 2 yuan discount after the ride, in addition to individual merchant discounts, including Dale, Yoshinoya, Maxim's and other chain restaurants, all have full reduction activities.
WeChat Pay HK said it was "ready" to fully support and cooperate with the Government in distributing e-coupons and will launch a series of "Enhanced" Coupon Bonus Schemes, including multi-spending reward redemption for rich gifts.
Octopus said that there are more than 150,000 Octopus payment points in Hong Kong, which can fully meet the needs of customers. Octopus has launched a reward of nearly one million yuan, and members can redeem 30 yuan S cash coupon after spending 300 yuan, the consumption coupon Octopus is applicable to public transportation, and the transportation subsidy can also calculate the relevant usage fee.
Tap&Go is the only payment instrument that can connect two cards, including Mastercard and UnionPay prepaid cards, and can pay as long as the merchant has any contactless card readers that accept the two institutions. Tap&Go"Snap Awards, which was also selected for the Second Stage Consumption Coupon, said that it would provide merchants with fee reductions and launch a number of preferential offers to the public.
The newly added payment tool BoC Pay announced that all users who receive boC Pay coupons can receive a "transfer cash reward" of 100 yuan. From now until 30 June, new customers can download BoC Pay and bind their account or BOCI UnionPay credit card to receive an additional $68 Welcome Bonus. In addition, for every successful referral of a person to register and bind BoC Pay, a reward of 20 yuan will be awarded, and the more referrals, the more rewards. Registered voucher holders can enjoy merchant discounts with a total value of over $15,000.
HSBC's PayMe said it will launch a total of 40 million yuan worth of rewards to coupon users, including merchant discount coupons and sweepstakes, such as luxury electric vehicles or the latest electronic products.
Major shopping malls push preferential offers to attract consumption
Starting this month, Chinachem Group will bring triple consumption benefits to all customers! June 17-19, The × Katch Anniversary Festival will be held in Ruxin Square; Father's Day is approaching, and L'Oisin Plaza and Chinachem Group's shopping malls are sincerely launching consumer rewards; A green parent-child workshop will also be held in Ruxin Plaza, hoping to raise public awareness of environmental protection and contribute to the earth.
Sino Group's shopping malls Tuen Mun City Plaza, Olympian City, Tsuen Shin Tiandi, China Hong Kong City, Gold Coast Mall, Tsim Sha Tsui Centre, Empire Centre and Blue Bay Plaza will launch a series of promotional activities and will cooperate with different stored value payment instruments such as Octopus, AlipayHK and WeChat Pay HK to attract public consumption with preferential rewards, drive merchant business and accelerate The economic recovery of Hong Kong. Tsai Bilin, Director of Asset Management of the Group, said that in order to absorb a new round of consumption power, the Group's shopping malls have specially cooperated with Octopus, AlipayHK and WeChat Pay HK to launch reward activities in stages to reach a wider range of customers through cooperation and attract more people to spend.
Reporters: He Jiaqi, Chen Wei, Yao Yihe
Photo: China News Service, China News Agency
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