Latest batch of consumption vouchers distributed

Around 6.3 million people will find themselves a little richer on Thursday, with the government dishing out a new batch of spending vouchers.

People using registered e-wallets – including AlipayHK, Tap & Go, and WeChat Pay – will automatically get the full HK$5,000.

Those who have chosen to receive the money via their Octopus cards can get HK$4,000 by tapping their cards, and collect the remaining thousand as soon as June 16, provided they have spent the first instalment.

Jessie Wong, the head of Budget and Tax Policy Unit at the Financial Secretary’s Office, said there was no rush for people to spend the money immediately, noting that the vouchers would only expire in around seven months.

“The period is so long that we think that it can provide sufficient flexibility for the user. There’s no need to rush out for spending, because fighting the epidemic, I think, is the most important mission, or task in Hong Kong,” she said.

Simon Wong, the President of the Hong Kong Federation of Restaurants and Related Trades had said on Wednesday he was concerned the sector would not benefit from the latest round of vouchers, as Covid restrictions on eateries were still in place.

But the finance official dismissed such concerns, saying restaurants and other currently closed businesses could still benefit from the scheme when the second batch of spending vouchers is distributed later this year.

“At that time, hopefully the epidemic is under control. All the operators and the merchants can do promotional programmes to boost local consumption sentiment, so different types of merchants can benefit from the consumption voucher scheme in the second phase,” Wong said.

She also said the government had estimated that the whole consumption voucher scheme, with a price tag of HK$66 billion, could boost Hong Kong’s GDP by 1.2 percent.