Budget 2023 tax, livelihood relief measures summary: ad valorem stamp duty to remain unchanged?

Budget 2023 tax, livelihood relief measures summary: ad valorem stamp duty to remain unchanged?

Budget 2023 tax, livelihood relief measures summary: ad valorem stamp duty to remain unchanged?

The Budget 2023 has been released, what are the relief measures for people’s livelihood and taxation? Below is a summary of the key points.

Budget 2023 Livelihood Relief Measures.
According to the 2023-24 Budget, the Financial Secretary proposes the following measures.

Distribute HK$5,000 consumption vouchers to the public.
-reducing property rates for the first two quarters of 2023/24, estimated to involve over 3 million residential properties, subject to a ceiling of $1,000 per household per quarter
-granting an amount equivalent to half a month of the CSSA standard rate, OAA, OALA or DA to eligible recipients of social security payments; a similar arrangement will be made for the Working Families Allowance
-an electricity charge subsidy of $1,000 for each eligible electricity account, estimated to involve about $2.9 billion; the existing monthly electricity charge relief scheme of $50 for these accounts will be extended until the end of 2025
-extending the “Public Transport Fare Subsidy Scheme” initiative for six months until October this year, whereby members of the public can still receive a subsidy of up to one-third of their monthly public transport expenditure exceeding $200, subject to a ceiling of $500 per month.
-Payment of examination fees for school candidates sitting for the Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education Examination in 2024.

Budget 2023 Tax Measures.
Under the 2023-24 Budget, the Financial Secretary has proposed the following measures.

-Adopting a one-off tax concession of 100% for profits tax, salaries tax and tax under personal assessment for the year of assessment 2022/23, subject to a ceiling of $6,000 per case.
-increasing the child allowance from $120,000 to $130,000 with effect from the year of assessment 2023/24, giving a total allowance of $260,000 per child in the year of birth and $130,000 in subsequent years.
-granting a tax deduction to telecommunications network operators for spectrum utilisation fees payable in respect of radio spectrum acquired in future bids
-increasing the tax deduction for voluntary MPF contributions made by employers for their employees aged 65 or above from the existing 100% to 200%.
adjusting the tax bands for ad valorem stamp duty (standard rate 2).
-Levy an “additional football betting duty” of $2.4 billion on the Hong Kong Jockey Club under the Betting Duty Ordinance (Cap. 108) for a period of five years from 2023-24, with no change to the original betting duty rate.
-No change to ad valorem stamp duty (Standard Rate 2) bands, no change to hot strokes
-Mr Chan said the decision to adjust the ad valorem stamp duty bands was made to ease the burden on first-time home buyers, especially small and medium-sized flats, given that the bands had not been adjusted since 2010.

He pointed out that the adjustment would take effect from today’s gazettal of the Public Revenue Protection Order, which is expected to benefit 37,000 buyers and cost the Government about $1.9 billion a year. In addition, more than 90% of residential property purchases last year were made by first-time buyers, and the Government’s demand-side management measures for residential properties (known as “hot measures”) remain unchanged.

The above information is for reference only. If you have any questions or enquiries about tax returns (personal tax returns, corporate tax returns, accountant tax returns), you are welcome to contact our professional advisors and we will provide you with a free quotation and consultation service in due course.

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