Special Scheme to Import Care Workers for Residential Care Homes (“Special Scheme”)
Background and Objectives
To address the shortage of and increasing demand for care workers, and to assist the residential care homes (RCHs) sector in enhancing service quality, the Government, on the premise of safeguarding the employment priority for local workers, launch the Special Scheme on 19 June 2023 to allow RCHs for the elderly (RCHEs), RCHs for persons with disabilities (RCHDs) and nursing homes (NHs) to import care workers on an appropriate scale, relax the ratio of imported care workers to local staff, and streamline the vetting procedures for applications.
Eligibility for Application
RCHEs issued with licences under the Residential Care Homes (Elderly Persons) Ordinance (Cap. 459), RCHDs issued with licences under the Residential Care Homes (Persons with Disabilities) Ordinance (Cap. 613), and NHs issued with letters of exemption under the Private Healthcare Facilities Ordinance (Cap. 633).
Application & Enquiries
- The Special Scheme accepts RCHEs, RCHDs and NHs to submit applications for quotas within a specified application period of about two weeks. The actual dates of accepting application will be announced at appropriate time in the "What's New" of SWD website.
- The fourth round application of the Special Scheme will be launched from 9:00 a.m. on 18 June 2024 (Tuesday) till 5:00 p.m. on 2 July 2024 (Tuesday). The application can be submitted by hand, by post or through e-Form. The fourth round application will only accept quota applications submitted by RCHEs, RCHDs and NHs for employment contract renewal with the existing imported care workers. RCH operators may submit applications online (please click [here]) , or download the application form on this page and submit the completed application form together with the required documents in person or by post, to Contract Management Section (Oi Kwan Road Office) of SWD. The processing time is around 2 months. Please refer to the “Booklet on Special Scheme to Import Care Workers for Residential Care Homes” and “Points to Note” in the Application Form for details of the application procedures before making application. The latest median monthly wage of care workers in Hong Kong has been updated and please refer to “Other Information” on this page for details. For enquiries, please contact our office at:
| Address | Contract Management Section (Oi Kwan Road Office) Room 306, 3/F, Lady Trench Training Centre, 44 Oi Kwan Road, Wan Chai, Hong Kong (Monday to Friday, 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. and 2:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m., except public holidays) |
|---|---|
| Telephone | 3468 3923 (Monday to Friday, 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. and 2:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m., except public holidays) |
| Fax | 3468 2002 |
| cmenq2@swd.gov.hk |
Forms and Documents of Special Scheme
| Item / Name | Download File |
|---|---|
| Booklet on Special Scheme to Import Care Workers for Residential Care Homes (4/2024) | PDF (Text-only version) |
| Application Form (with "Points to Note" and "Requirements on the Recruitment Advertisement of Local Care Worker(s)") (9/2023) | PDF Online Form |
| Confirmation Form on Local Recruitment (Annex 1 to Application Form) (8/2023) | |
| Information Form of Full-time Local Employees of Residential Care Home (Annex 2 to Application Form) (8/2023) | |
| List of In-employ Imported Care Worker (Annex 3 to Application Form) (9/2023) | |
| List of imported care workers (including replacement of imported care workers) not yet arrived in Hong Kong (Annex 4 to Application Form) (8/2023) | |
| Declaration and Authorisation Form (for Imported Care Workers' completion only) (4/2024) | |
| Joint Declaration Form on Importing Workers from the Mainland to Hong Kong | PDF (Chinese only) |
| Declaration of Accommodation Particulars of Imported Care Workers (4/2024) | |
| Application Form for Appeal on Application Result | PDF(Chinese only) |
| Acknowledgment Record of Employment Contract | PDF(Chinese only) |
| Notice of Termination of Employment Contract | PDF(Chinese only) |
| Application for replacement of Imported Care Workers | PDF(Chinese only) |
| Notice of change of residence | PDF(Chinese only) |
Other Information
- According to the statistics of the Census and Statistics Department, the updated median monthly wage for care worker is HKD$14,820 (9 hours of normal working hours per day excluding meal break).
- Two online briefing sessions were held by Social Welfare Department for the residential care home sector on 18 and 19 May 2023 to explain the application procedures and the implementation of the Special Scheme. The Powerpoint slides of these briefing sessions can be downloaded here(Chinese only).
- An online briefing session was held by SWD for the residential care home sector on 5 September 2023 to share the common mistakes identified in the first round application and to highlight the key points for applicants to pay special attention to. The Powerpoint slides of this briefing session can be downloaded here(Chinese only).
- Another online briefing session was held by SWD for the residential care home sector on 19 December 2023 to share the common mistakes identified in the second round application and to highlight the key points for applicants to pay special attention to. The Powerpoint slides of this briefing session can be downloaded here (Chinese only).
- Frequently asked questions and answers on the Special Scheme (updated in December 2023), please click here (Chinese only).
- The illustration to complete the e-Form, please click here.