Children play balls in Victoria Park in Causeway Bay, Hong Kong on Dec 29, 2022. (EDMOND TANG / CHINA DAILY)

Parents-to-be in the city are to get a one-off cash handout of HK$20,000 ($2,557) , priority in buying subsidized housing or renting public housing, as well as increased subsidy for raising children and childcare places to cater for the needs of working parents.

It was also announced in the policy address that the government will gradually increase the quota for receiving assisted reproductive services and provide tax deductions to boost the city’s low-flying birth rate.  

A government source indicated that under these policies for supporting families with newborns, the city could see a 20 percent annual increase in newborns within three years.

Beginning Wednesday, families with at least one parent who is a Hong Kong permanent resident will be entitled to the cash handout for each new baby. The three-year pilot scheme will benefit 40,000 people annually

Beginning Wednesday, families with at least one parent who is a Hong Kong permanent resident will be entitled to the cash handout for each new baby. The bonus will be handed out two to three weeks after successfully submitting the application.

The three-year pilot scheme will benefit 40,000 people annually, incurring an annual expenditure of HK$800 million. The city recorded 33,000 newborns in 2022.

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It is hoped that this allowance can serve as an inducement, another government source said, stressing that the government hadn’t set any target for the program in terms of boosting childbearing since having a child is a significant decision for a family.

In the meantime, families with newborns will also be given priority for subsidized flats.

The Home Ownership Scheme will allocate 10 percent of the subsidized flats, and parents of newborns will be able to draw lots and pick the flats until their children are three years old. 

Waiting time for public rental flats will be cut by one year for parents of newborns, compared to an average of 5.3 years for the general public.

As for assisting working families in childbearing, the government will launch a new pilot plan offering after-school care service.

Around 50 schools will provide 3,000 care services and the government will work with suitable NGOs. This program is estimated to cost HK$99 million. This service will be free of charge for families which are receiving Comprehensive Social Security Assistance or which have a low income.

The government will also extend the after-school care program for pre-primary children over the next three years starting from 2024; the number of participating centers will be increased to 28, and the number of service places will be increased from 672 to 1176.

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Additionally, to encourage more people to participate in the Neighbourhood Support Child Care Project, the incentive payment at the standard rate of HK$25 per hour will be increased to HK$40 for carers of children aged three to nine, and HK$60 for carers of children aged under three or with special learning needs.

From the fourth quarter of next year, the number of service places under the project will be doubled to about 2,000.