Scheme on Living Allowance for Low-income Carers of Persons with Disabilities
Description
The Social Welfare Department has launched the “Scheme on Living Allowance for Low-income Carers of Persons with Disabilities” (the Allowance Scheme) in October 2023 with the aim of providing carers of persons with disabilities from low-income families with a living allowance to help supplement their living expenses so that persons with disabilities in need of long-term care may, with the help of their carers, receive proper care and remain living in the community.
Eligibility Criteria
An applicant, being the carer providing care for the person(s) with disabilities (the carer), must meet ALL of the following criteria:
- The person(s) with disabilities being taken care of must be a Hong Kong resident living in Hong Kong, and on the waiting lists for any specified rehabilitation services (Note 1) subsidised by the SWD, for special school with boarding placement under the Education Bureau (EDB), or for infirmary service under the Hospital Authority (HA) upon submission of the application (the postmark date will be regarded as the submission date for postal applications);
- The person(s) with disabilities being taken care of must be living in the community without using any residential care service (RCS)/boarding service of special school/infirmary service (Note 2) during the application period and the receipt of the allowance;
- The carer must be capable of taking up the caregiving role (Note 3) and provide at least 80 hours of care per month to the person with disabilities being taken care of (Note 4), or a combined total of no less than 120 hours of care per month if caring for more than one person with disabilities who meets the above-mentioned criteria;
- The carer must be a Hong Kong resident living in Hong Kong and not engaged in any form of employment relationship with the person(s) with disabilities being taken care of;
- The carer must not be a recipient of the Comprehensive Social Security Assistance (CSSA), the Old Age Living Allowance (OALA), the Disability Allowance (DA), or the living allowance under the “Scheme on Living Allowance for Carers of Elderly Persons from Low-income Families” of the SWD for taking care of the same person with disabilities; and
- The carer must be from a low-income family, with the monthly household income, excluding assets, of the carer and the household member(s) residing with them (Note 5) not exceeding the specified income limit for the corresponding household size. (Please refer to Brief for details).
Application Procedures
- The person(s) with disabilities being taken care of must currently remain on the waiting lists for specified subsidised RCS/day rehabilitation training services managed by the Central Referral System for Rehabilitation Services (CRSRehab) of the SWD, or on the waiting lists for special school with boarding placement under the EDB or for infirmary service under the HA. Their carers can submit an application to the Carer Allowances and Subsidies Team (CAST) of the SWD.
- For each person with disabilities being taken care of who meets the eligibility criteria, only one carer can apply for and receive the allowance. If a person with disabilities being taken care of has more than one carer, the carers must coordinate among themselves to decide which one will apply for and receive the allowance.
- The applicant must submit the completed application form together with all necessary documents listed below to the CAST of the SWD by post or by hand:
- Copies of identification documents of the carer and the household member(s) residing with him/her in Hong Kong;
- A copy/copies of identification document(s) of the person(s) with disabilities being taken care of;
- The original copy of the “Authority for Payment to a Bank” form (GF 179A) completed by the carer; and
- A copy of the first page of the carer’s bank book or bank statement.
- Applicant can also choose to make an application by online form.
| Note 1: | Specified rehabilitation services refer to subsidised RCS and day rehabilitation training services with waiting lists managed by the CRSRehab of the SWD, including hostels for severely physically handicapped persons, hostels for severely mentally handicapped persons, hostels for moderately mentally handicapped persons, care-and-attention (C&A) homes for severely disabled persons, C&A homes for the aged blind, long-stay care homes, day activity centres, sheltered workshops, special child care centres and residential special child care centres. |
| Note 2: | Persons with disabilities being taken care of who are receiving day rehabilitation training service while on the waiting list for specified subsidised RCS are also eligible for the Allowance Scheme |
| Note 3: | Any person who is under the age of 15, or has been assessed as suitable for CCS and/or RCS under the Standardised Care Need Assessment Mechanism for Elderly Services of the SWD, or is on the Central Waiting List for subsidised long-term care services, or is on the waiting list for any specified rehabilitation services subsidised by the SWD, special schools with boarding placement under EDB, or infirmary services under HA, or is a recipient of DA, will not be deemed to be a fit and capable carer and therefore will not be considered as eligible for the allowance under the Allowance Scheme. |
| Note 4: | The care provided by the carer to the person(s) with disabilities being taken care of refers to independent activities of daily living, such as meal preparation, homemaking, medication management, purchasing daily necessities, escort services, etc., and/or personal care and assistance needed in activities of daily living, such as helping the person with disabilities move around, dress, use the toilet, and maintain personal hygiene, etc. For some person(s) with disabilities being taken care of with behavioural or emotional problems, their carer may need to manage their behaviour or calm them down before providing the aforementioned daily care. The time involved in managing their behaviour or calming their emotions can be counted as caregiving hours. In addition, the time that the carer spends on attending training can also be counted as caregiving hours. |
| Note 5: | Household members generally refer to the persons who reside with the applicant in Hong Kong and have close economic ties with him/her (but excluding economic ties arising from employment relationship). This includes family members and those who share or are obliged to share the provisions for a living. Such member(s) and/or person(s) must be Hong Kong resident(s). The monthly household income refers to the average monthly income for the three months prior to the month of application submission. Any income received out of those three months will be excluded. Income not paid on a monthly basis (e.g. double pay, bonuses, contract gratuity, dividends, etc.) should be apportioned over the period concerned when calculating the average. Income includes the following items: 1. Employment earnings: salary, double pay, leave pay, work allowance, bonuses, prize, commission, tips, contract gratuity, income from rendering services, business profits, etc.; 2. Other income: contributions from children, financial assistance from relatives/friends, alimony, monthly pension, widow’s and orphans’ payment or pensions, investment profits (including income/payout from trust fund, bonds and annuity scheme(s) etc.), interest income from fixed deposits, dividends, rental income, etc.; but excludes monthly payments received under the Reverse Mortgage Programme (RMP) (only applicable to the RMP where the property used as collateral is owner-occupied) and the Policy Reverse Mortgage Programme, employee’s mandatory contribution to the Mandatory Provident Fund (MPF) scheme (i.e. the 5% mandatory contribution made by an employee to an MPF scheme), financial assistance provided by the Government, charitable donations, subsidies from assistance programmes under the Community Care Fund, etc. |
Enquiries
Carer Allowances and Subsidies Team, SWD
Address: Room 404, 4/F, Lady Trench Training Centre, 44 Oi Kwan Road, Wan Chai, Hong Kong
Telephone: 3468 5636
Fax: 3468 5648
Email: castenq@swd.gov.hk
Time: Monday to Friday from 9:30 am to 1:00 pm and from 2:30 pm to 5:00 pm, excluding Public Holidays
Download
| Item / Name | Download File |
|---|---|
| Brief on "Scheme on Living Allowance for Low-income Carers of Persons with Disabilities" | |
| Application Form for “Scheme on Living Allowance for Low-income Carers of Persons with Disabilities” | |
| “Authority for Payment to a Bank” (GF179A) (Revised in 10/2023) | |
| Sample of “Authority for Payment to a Bank” (GF179A) | |
| Online Application for “Scheme on Living Allowance for Low-income Carers of Persons with Disabilities” | Online Form |