Govt greenlights tax relief bill

The bill will cut taxes on profit, salaries, and personal assessment.

The government passed the Inland Revenue (Amendment) (Tax Concessions and Two-tiered Standard Rates) Bill 2024.

Under the amendment, taxes for profit, salaries, and personal assessment for FY23-24 will be reduced by 100%, capped at $3,000 per case.

The tax cut will benefit 2.06 million taxpayers and 160,000 tax-paying businesses. 

The tax cut will follow standard rates: the first $5m of net income will be taxed at 15%, while any amount beyond $5m will be taxed at 16%.

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The tax cut will generate an additional $905m in annual revenue for the government.

From FY24-25, the government will post an additional deduction ceiling of $20,000 for home loan interest or domestic rent on top of the $100,000 basic deduction ceiling if the taxpayer meets specified conditions.

Such conditions include residency with a newborn in Hong Kong for at least six months or a shorter period deemed reasonable by the Commissioner of Inland Revenue. 

Taxpayers are also allowed an additional deduction ceiling amount for a maximum of 19 years of assessment.