Over 12 000 low-income working families received timely allowance of more than $150 million in total so far

20 August 2016

The Low-income Working Family Allowance (LIFA) Scheme is an important Government poverty alleviation measure. It aims at encouraging self-reliance, rewarding those who work more and easing inter-generational poverty.

We started receiving applications for LIFA from May 3 this year. Over 30 000 applications were received up till July 31. As at August 19, the Working Family Allowance Office (WFAO) has approved 12 406 applications, involving a total payment close to $150 million, benefitting 49 285 people. The payment should be timely particularly for those families having to cope with the additional expenses arising at the beginning of the school year.

Of the 12 406 successful applications, one family has received a lump-sum allowance for six months amounting to a high of $34,800. This is a family of eight including six children, with the father – the sole breadwinner – working as a bus driver, who supports the family with six children aged between one and 10. The mother is a full-time housewife. The father, as the applicant, works more than 192 hours per month and is qualified for the Higher Allowance under the LIFA Scheme. The six children in the family are also eligible for the Child Allowance under the Scheme. This family is thus qualified for an allowance of $5,800 per month (made up of $1,000 Higher Allowance for the working father + Child Allowance of $800 for every child x 6 = $5,800). This amount of allowance (which amounts to almost one third of the existing Monthly Family Income Upper Limit of $20,200 for Full-rate Allowance for families with six or more members) would certainly be of considerable assistance to the family.

Of the 12 406 successful applications,9 692 are families with four or more members, 2 546 are families of three members and 168 are families of two. Among the 49 285 people benefitting from the Scheme, 22 908 are children.

Among those successful applications, 10 163 were granted Full-rate Allowance and 2 243 applications granted Half-rate Allowance. Over 90 per cent of the applications (11 306applications) were granted Higher Allowance as the applicants’ monthly working hours reached 192 hours or more.

On a district basis, there were more applicants from Kwun Tong, Yuen Long, Kwai Tsing, Sham Shui Po and Tuen Mun.

During the said period, only 473 applications were rejected. The reasons for rejection vary, including family income and/or asset exceeding the limits, applicants not meeting the monthly working hours requirement, applicants not being able to provide sufficient information, family members being away from Hong Kong for more than the number of days allowed under the Scheme, family with less than two members and family receiving the Comprehensive Social Security Assistance at the time, etc.

While it is hard to have a scheme designed to suit the needs of all as each family may have its own unique circumstance, the Government has undertaken to conduct an overall policy review one year after the Scheme’s implementation (i.e. the middle of 2017).

From August onwards, the claim period of all applications for the LIFA Scheme will be standardised at six months. The WFAO will continue to widely publicise the Scheme and provide assistance to the interested applicants so that more eligible families will come forward and apply for the allowance.

Ends