PRESS RELEASE

(Source : Information Services Department)

Government welcomes passage of Inland Revenue (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill 2016

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The Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury, Professor K C Chan, welcomed the passage of the Inland Revenue (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill 2016 by the Legislative Council today (May 19).

The new Ordinance gives effect to two major concessionary revenue measures proposed in the 2016-17 Budget. These include one-off measures to reduce salaries tax, tax under personal assessment and profits tax for the year of assessment 2015-16 by 75 per cent, subject to a ceiling of $20,000 per case. The other measure involves adjustments to two categories of allowances under salaries tax and tax under personal assessment, as set out below:

Allowance/
ceiling after
enhancement

($)

First category

Basic allowance

132,000

Married person's allowance

264,000

Single parent allowance

132,000

Second category

Allowance for maintaining

46,000*

a dependent parent or

grandparent aged 60 or above

Allowance for maintaining a

23,000*

dependent parent or grandparent

aged between 55 and 59

Deduction ceiling for elderly

92,000

residential care expenses

* Same amount after adjustment for the additional allowance for taxpayers residing with these parents or grandparents continuously throughout the year.

Professor Chan said, "We are pleased to see the passage of the Bill by the Legislative Council today, so that the Inland Revenue Department (IRD) can give effect to the one-off tax reduction in this year's tax bills."

The one-off tax reduction will be reflected in taxpayers' final tax payable for the year of assessment 2015-16. Application is not required for the one-off tax reduction. Moreover, the IRD will apply the enhanced allowances and deduction ceiling, if applicable, when calculating the provisional tax for the year of assessment 2016-17.

Ends/Thursday, May 19, 2016
Issued at HKT 19:14

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