Press Releases

ExCo approved seven-year residence requirements for CSSA and SSA

The Executive Council today (June 3) approved the proposal to require applicants to be Hong Kong residents for at least seven years before they are eligible to apply for financial assistance under the Comprehensive Social Security Assistance (CSSA) and Social Security Allowance (SSA) Schemes.

Applicants for CSSA and SSA (comprising the Old Age Allowance (OAA) and Disability Allowance (DA)) are also required to have resided in Hong Kong continuously for at least one year immediately before the date of applying for assistance (absence from Hong Kong up to a maximum of 56 days prior to the date of application is treated as residence in Hong Kong).

Subject to the approval of the Finance Committee (FC) of the Legislative Council, the new seven-year residency rule will come into effect on January 1, 2004.

A spokesman for the Health, Welfare and Food Bureau said: "Social security benefits have always been subject to a residence requirement, apart from a need requirement. The proposal is to bring the residence requirements in line with 'the principle of seven-year residence requirement' for receiving social benefits heavily subsidised by public funds as recommended by the Task Force on Population Policy."

"It is also to ensure a rational basis on which our public resources are allocated and to address the current discrepancies in the rules governing eligibility for these social security benefits."

Children under the age of 18 would be exempted from any prior residence requirement for CSSA and DA, the spokesman added.

"According more favourable treatment to minors is also in keeping with the spirit of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child to provide children with special care and protection," he said.

For current Hong Kong residents, the spokesman explained that the new seven-year residence rule would not be applicable to them and they only need to satisfy the requirement of one year's continuous residence in Hong Kong immediately before the date of application.

"In other words, the new seven-year residence rule will only apply to those who have yet to take up residence in Hong Kong," he said.

Justifying the changes to the residence requirement for social security benefits, the spokesman said eligibility based on a seven-year residence requirement reflected the contribution a resident had made towards the society.

"Most developed countries require a prior period of residence as a condition for receiving non-contributory welfare benefits.

"A seven-year residence is also normally required for the grant of permanent resident status in Hong Kong, for which additional rights such as the right to vote and stand for election are conferred," he added.

The spokesman also pointed out that while the Government would continue to facilitate the reunion of Hong Kong residents with their Mainland spouses and children through the One Way Permit (OWP) Scheme, the new residence requirement would send a clear message to potential migrants that they should plan carefully and ensure they had sufficient means to support themselves when they come to Hong Kong. A stricter residence requirement for CSSA would encourage new arrivals who can work to try their best to stand on their own feet before turning to welfare assistance.

However, the spokesman stressed that other forms of assistance and support (provided by the Social Welfare Department/Non Governmental Organisations through family services centres/integrated family service centres, child care centres, family support and resource centres, family support networking teams, post-migration centres, etc.) would still be available to the new arrivals.

"In cases of genuine hardship, the Director of Social Welfare will continue to exercise her discretionary power as she does now to waive the residence requirement for CSSA, which is our main scheme for income support.

"The Government remains committed to providing an effective and sustainable safety net for those in genuine need to meet their basic needs," the spokesman added.

Between March 1999 and December 2002, the number of CSSA cases involving residents with less than seven years' residence increased significantly by 48 per cent, while the CSSA caseload grew by 14 per cent over the same period.

The estimated CSSA expenditure on residents with less than seven years' residence increased from $1,467 million (or 10.8 per cent of total CSSA expenditure) in 1999-2000 to $1,728 million (or 12 per cent of total CSSA expenditure) in 2001-02.

As at the end of December 2002, of those CSSA recipients with less than seven years' residence in Hong Kong, about 36,000 or 52 per cent were under 18 year of age. For the same period, only 0.1 per cent of total OAA recipients and 1.5 per cent of total DA recipients were residents with less than seven years' residence.

A summary of existing and proposed residence requirements under the CSSA and SSA schemes is attached at Annex.

The Government will seek FC's approval of the proposal at its meeting on June 27.

End/Tuesday, June 3, 2003
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