New Consumption Vouchers Set to Release on April 7

The first phase of this year’s electronic consumption vouchers will begin distribution on April 7 to more than 6 million Hong Kongers, the government’s Financial Secretary Paul Chaun announced yesterday (Sunday).

The vouchers, worth HK$5,000 in total, will be distributed in three phases and will be valid for seven months until Oct. 31.

People using AlipayHK, Tap & Go, or WeChat Pay HK will be disbursed with a HK$5,000 voucher with an expiry date of Oct. 31 to spend all remaining funds.

Vouchers collected via Octopus will be disbursed by two instalments, with people able to collect the first HK$4,000 voucher at electronic collection point kiosks in MTR stations, designated convenience stores, or via the Octopus mobile app.

Due to the current stored value limit of the Octopus card of HK$3,000, Chan advised people to tap their cards for the first time and wait till the remaining value is lowered for “a second tap” to collect the remaining HK$1,000.

If the Octopus users’ cumulative total “eligible spending” has reached HK$4,000 between the beginning of May and the end of October, the remaining HK$1,000 voucher will be disbursed on Nov. 16.