Adjustment of income and asset limits of Working Family Allowance Scheme and arrangements for disbursement of one-off extra allowance announced
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The Government announced today (April 1) the adjustment of income and asset limits of the Working Family Allowance (WFA) Scheme for 2025-26.
The WFA Scheme supports low-income working households not receiving Comprehensive Social Security Assistance (CSSA), promoting full-time employment and self-reliance, as well as rewarding hard work. It also provides a child allowance for households with eligible children. The allowance under the WFA Scheme is assessed on a monthly basis with reference to the household income and working hours. Under the WFA Scheme, the claim period covers the six calendar months preceding the submission of an application, and eligible households must make applications for each claim period.
Under the established adjustment mechanism, the Government adjusts the income limits of the WFA Scheme in April each year. These limits are set with reference to the median monthly domestic household income of economically active households of the previous calendar year. According to this mechanism, and based on the 2024 figures, the income limits for households with six or more persons would have been tightened, while the income limits for five-person households would have been lower than those for four-person households. However, considering the ongoing economic challenges in Hong Kong which may affect the income levels of lower-income households, and the need to minimise the adverse impact on WFA households, the Government will:
(a) maintain the income limits for households with six persons or more at the 2024-25 level;
(b) adjust the income limit for five-person households to align with those for four-person households; and
(c) increase the income limits for other household sizes according to the mechanism.
These arrangements will apply for one year starting from the claim month of April 2025.
The asset limits of the WFA Scheme are set with reference to the asset limits for public rental housing. The Government will increase the asset limits for all household sizes according to the mechanism. The adjusted income and asset limits of the WFA Scheme are provided in the Annex.
In addition, if the Appropriation Bill 2025 is passed by the Legislative Council (LegCo), the Government will, as proposed in the 2025-26 Budget, disburse a one-off extra allowance to WFA households. The allowance is expected to be disbursed one month after the passage of the Bill at the earliest.
Households which made WFA applications during the applicable period that were eventually approved are eligible for the extra allowance. The applicable period spans from the first day of the month in which the Bill is passed by the LegCo to the date of its passage, and the six calendar months before that month. For applications submitted by post, the date of the post-stamp will be adopted as the application date.
In order to be eligible for the extra allowance, new applicants or previous WFA recipients who have yet to submit applications during the applicable period should submit their applications before the applicable period expires (i.e. on or before the date of passage of the Bill by the LegCo). The extra allowance is equal to one half of the average monthly allowance in approved months in a recipient’s most recently submitted WFA application, which was submitted within the applicable period and eventually approved. The amount varies from case to case.
If a WFA household is receiving CSSA on the day the LegCo passes the Bill, the household is eligible for only one single extra allowance under either the WFA Scheme or the CSSA Scheme, whichever is higher.
For enquiries, applicants may visit the website of the Working Family and Student Financial Assistance Agency (wfsfaa.gov.hk) or call the 24-hour hotline of the Working Family Allowance Office at 2558 3000.