Get the latest news and updates from Dawn
HONG KONG has given out a total of $180 million) in baby bonuses since 2023 to help raise the city’s birthrate, Secretary for Labour and Welfare Chris Sun Yuk-han said.
Answering a query at the Legislative Council, Sun said that the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government gave the one-off HK$20,000 bonus to 71,866 parents of newborns as of May 31, 2026.
The SAR government started giving out the Newborn Baby Bonus to eligible parents in October 2023 as part of measures announced by Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu to encourage couples to have more children and boost the city’s low fertility rate — which stood at 0.841 in 2024.
The programme is set to expire in October this year. Sun said the SAR government is still conducting a detailed review.
