Latest News of Jan 2026

The Social Welfare Department (SWD) announced today (January 27) that starting from February 1, 2 additional residential care homes for the elderly (RCHEs) located in Dongguan and Guangzhou will become Recognised Service Providers under the Residential Care Services Scheme in Guangdong (the Scheme) to provide subsidised residential care places for participating elderly persons.

The information of the additional RCHEs is as follows:

Together with the existing 24 RCHEs, the total number of RCHEs participating in the Scheme will increase to 26, with full coverage of the 9 Mainland cities in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA), offering more choices to Hong Kong elderly people who wish to retire in the GBA.  

Elderly persons who are waitlisted for subsidised residential care services on the Central Waiting List and would like to join the Scheme may contact their responsible workers to file an application.  Applicants may also approach elderly centres, Integrated Family Service Centres or Medical Social Services Units to make an application.  After their care needs have been ascertained in the Standardised Care Need Assessment, they may apply for residential care services under the Scheme.

For details of the Scheme, you may click here.

In accordance with the established mechanism, based on the annual movement of the Social Security Assistance Index of Prices, the Government has submitted a paper to the Panel on Welfare Services of the Legislative Council to propose an increase of 2.2 per cent to the standard payment rates under the CSSA Scheme and the rates of allowances under the SSA Scheme (namely Old Age Allowance, Old Age Living Allowance and Disability Allowance). The Government will consult the Finance Committee (FC) of the Legislative Council on the proposed adjustment as early as possible. If approved by the FC, the adjusted rates will take retrospective effect from February 1, 2026.  

In addition, the Government has planned to adjust the maximum rent allowance under the CSSA Scheme in accordance with the relevant mechanism, with the adjustment retrospectively effective from February 1, 2026.
 

To alleviate the shortage of nurses in the welfare sector and enhance the quality of care services, the Social Welfare Department (SWD) has commissioned the Hong Kong Metropolitan University (HKMU), the Saint Francis University (SFU) and the Tung Wah College (TWC), to provide the two-year full-time Enrolled Nurse (General) Training Programme for the Welfare Sector for five consecutive years starting from the 2023-24 academic year.

The Enrolled Nurse (General) Training Programme for the Welfare Sector 2026-27 provides 427 places in total. Invitation of applications of the three training institutes starts at 9am on 12 January 2026 (Monday) and ends at 5pm on 2 March 2026 (Monday).  Information seminars on the training programme will be held by the HKMU, the SFU and the TWC, starting from January 2026. Information about the seminar, the training programme and application is available on the webpage of respective training institutes as shown below:

For enquiries, please call the enquiry numbers of the training institutes.

The Social Welfare Department (SWD) has earlier invited eligible non-governmental organisations to submit proposals to operate a new District Support Centres for Persons with Disabilities in Sai Sha, Tai Po.  A Vetting Committee (VC) was set up to conduct assessment of all the proposals received.  Upon the recommendations of the VC, SWD has selected SAHK to operate the Service.

Public Subscription Permit (Solicitation of Signed Authorisation Forms) for the Latter Half of 2026 is open for application from 1 January 2026.  The deadline for application is 6:00pm on 31 January 2026.

Enquiries can be made by telephone to 3748 9788; by fax to 2838 0441; or by email to hyley_hy_chiu@swd.gov.hk.

The Social Welfare Department has commissioned China Taiping Life Insurance (Hong Kong) Company Limited to implement the “Residential Care Services Scheme in Guangdong - Pilot Medical Subsidy Arrangement” for two years starting from 22 December 2025.  

Since the commencement date of the pilot arrangement, elderly participants of the Residential Care Services Scheme in Guangdong can apply for the subsidy concerning their self-paid medical expenses incurred at any designated medical institutions (including clinics, hospitals, and pharmacy stores) within the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area under the coverage of the National Basic Medical Insurance Policy.  The annual ceiling is RMB 10,000 per person for outpatient expenses and RMB 30,000 per person for inpatient expenses.

For details, please click here.

For details, please refer to the following links:

Partnership Fund for the Disadvantaged – Regular Portion

Partnership Fund for the Disadvantaged – Dedicated Portion

The list of the first batch of approved applications for the Eleventh Tranche of the Innovation and Technology Fund for Application in Elderly and Rehabilitation Care has been released.  For details, please click here.

The revised “Application Procedures and Assessment Criteria of Joining Fee-waiving Subsidy Scheme for New After School Care Programme Centres” and related documents have been uploaded to website.  Please click here to obtain the related documents.

The Social Welfare Department is now inviting Non-governmental organisations and the bona-fide non-profit making charitable organisations granted tax-exemption status under section 88 of the Inland Revenue Ordinance, Chapter 112, to submit proposals for operating three new Neighbourhood Elderly Centres (NEC) at (i) Podium Level 2, Yip Tak House, Yip Wong Estate, No. 21 Tin Hau Road, Tuen Mun, New Territories; (ii) Portion of G/F, Chiu Ming Court, 11 Chiu Shun Road, Tseung Kwan O, New Territories; and (iii) G/F, On Ying Shopping Centre, 15 On Hei Street, Sai Kung, New Territories.

Please click here for further details.

The proposals shall be submitted by hand on or before 5:00 p.m. on 30 January 2026 (Friday).

A briefing session on this Invitation for Proposals was held on 18.12.2025. The PowerPoint slides and summary of "Questions and Answers" of the briefing session can be downloaded here:

PowerPoint Slides (English version only)
Questions and Answers (English version only)

The Social Welfare Department (SWD) has earlier invited eligible non-government organisations to submit proposals for operating a new rehabilitation service project at Siu Sai Wan Health Integrated Building, Siu Sai Wan, Hong Kong.  A Vetting Committee (VC) was set up to conduct assessment of the proposals.  Upon recommendation of the respective VC, SWD has selected Fu Hong Society to operate the project.

The Hong Kong Paralympians Fund (2026-27) will accept applications starting from 1 November 2025. The application deadline for all categories of grants is 2 January 2026 (Friday), 5:30pm.

For details of the Fund application, please click here to visit webpage.

For enquiries, please contact The Secretariat, Hong Kong Paralympians Fund at 3791 2470.

The Government has injected an additional $1 billion into the Innovation and Technology Fund for Application in Elderly and Rehabilitation Care (I&T Fund) in 2024-25. This enhancement aims to increase subsidies for eligible elderly and rehabilitation service units to procure, rent, or trial technological products and expanding the scope of the I&T Fund to include technology products suitable for household use.  All subvented elderly or rehabilitation service units providing non-residential care services are eligible to submit applications for procuring appropriate technology products to lend to elderly persons, persons with disabilities, or their carers for use at home so as to improve the quality of life for service users and alleviate the pressure of the carers.  Subject to the availability of funding, the maximum grant amount per application is $200,000 while the application amount will not be counted towards the maximum grants allocated to the respective service units. Joint applications by different Non-governmental Organisations or service units within the same service category will be considered.  Applications are now open and will be accepted year-round.  For details, please click here.

The Government launched the “School-based After School Care Service Scheme” (the Scheme) in the 2023/24 school year to provide focused support for families in need (particularly single-parent families).  With funding from the Community Care Fund (CCF), non-governmental organisations (NGOs) are responsible for operating school-based after school care service at venues provided by schools, with a view to allowing primary students in need to stay after school to receive care and learning support, while enabling parents, who used to be tied up with caring responsibilities for their children during after-school hours, to choose to work and improve their livelihood.  The Scheme has received positive feedback since its launch.  In order to collect more comprehensive data and views from stakeholders for future review of the Scheme on the way forward, the Government extended the pilot period of the Scheme for one year in  the 2024/25 school year, covering all 18 districts in Hong Kong.  As of today, there are 126 primary schools joining the Scheme, offering about 5 900 service places.  As promulgated in 2024 Policy Address, it is planned to encourage more schools to participate in the Scheme, without capping the number of places, in the 2025/26 school year.

The Social Welfare Department (SWD) is now inviting eligible NGOs (Paragraph 4 of the Service Specifications) to apply for joining the Scheme for the 2025/26 school year as Approved Service Providers (ASPs).  NGOs interested may liaise with the participating schools in accordance with the location of their service units for discussing the implementation details in accordance with the content, procedures and guidelines set out in the Service Specifications and submit the application form (Annex 1 of the Service Specifications) on or before 5 July 2025 to CCF Team of SWD (Paragraph 41 of the Service Specifications). The list of participating schools will be uploaded to SWD’s website after the briefing. 

The Education Bureau and Labour and Welfare Bureau/SWD will form an interdepartmental working group to vet and approve the application.  CCF Team of SWD will notify the participating schools and partner NGOs (ASPs) of the result on or before 6 August 2025 so as to implement the after school care service in this September. 

To allow interested NGOs and schools having better understanding on the Scheme and the above-mentioned arrangement, the SWD is going to organise an online briefing session with details as follows:

Eligible and interested NGOs may download and return the completed reply slip to the Youth Section of the SWD on or before 9 June 2025 (Monday) by email (email address: youthenq@swd.gov.hk). 

For enquiries, please contact the following responsible officers of the Youth Section:

Online Briefing Reply Slip (in Chinese)
Service Specifications (in Chinese)
Annex 1 - ASP Application Form for 2025/26 School Year (in Chinese)

Following the online briefing on the implementation of 2025/26 School Year School-based After School Care Service Scheme held by the Social Welfare Department (SWD) on 13 June 2025, documents below are provided.
PowerPoint Slides (in Chinese)
List of Service Units Willing to Participate in the 25-26 School-based After School Care Service Scheme (in Chinese)
List of Participating Schools (in Chinese)
Frequently Asked Questions (in Chinese)

• Starting from 28 July 2023, the Social Welfare Department (SWD) expands the Residential Care Services Scheme in Guangdong. The expansion measures include to invite applications from operators of residential care homes for the elderly (RCHEs) with experience and satisfactory track records in providing subsidised elderly residential care services in Hong Kong and are operating RCHE(s) in Mainland cities of the Greater Bay Area (GBA) to register their RCHE(s) in GBA cities as the Recognised Service Provider (RSP) under the GDRCS Scheme.
• The SWD is receiving a new round of applications for RCHEs to join the Scheme.  Eligible Hong Kong operators planning to apply within 2026 for including their RCHEs located in the GBA, operated either on their own or under partnership with Mainland elderly service operators, in the Scheme shall submit their applications on or before April 30 this year.  Results are expected to be announced by year end.
• For the details of the Residential Care Services Scheme in Guangdong, you may click here. 
• Joining the Residential Care Services Scheme in Guangdong as Recognised Service Providers, please click here to download the Invitation for Proposal and annexes. (Chinese version only)
• For enquiries, you may contact the Residential Care Services Section of Elderly Branch.

• Starting from 28 July 2023, the Social Welfare Department (SWD) expands the Residential Care Services Scheme in Guangdong. The expansion measures include to cover elderly persons waitlisting under the Central Waiting List for subsidised nursing home places.
• Currently, nursing home places are provided at The Hong Kong Jockey Club Shenzhen Society for Rehabilitation Yee Hong Heights and The Hong Kong Jockey Club Helping Hand Zhaoqing Home for the Elderly only.

Eligibility Criteria
The elderly persons who have been assessed and matched for residential care services under the Standardised Care Need Assessment Mechanism for Elderly Services and are waitlisted for subsidised care and attention places or nursing home places on the Central Waiting List (CWL) for Subsidised Long Term Care (LTC) Services.

How to Apply

1. Elderly persons who are waitlisted for subsidised residential care services in the CWL and would like to apply for the Residential Care Services Scheme in Guangdong may contact their responsible workers to file an application for GDRCS Scheme.
2. New applicants of LTC services may approach Medical Social Services Units, Integrated Family Service Centres or elderly centres to make an application and request for referral for subsidised LTC services.  Through initial screening and assessment as appropriate, they may apply for LTC service, including GDRCS Scheme, in accordance with their assessment results after their care needs have been ascertained in the Standardised Care Needs Assessment.

• For the details of the Residential Care Services Scheme in Guangdong, you may click here.
• For enquiries, you may contact the Residential Care Services Section of Elderly Branch at 2961 7234.

The Residential Care Service Voucher Scheme for the Elderly (the Scheme) temporarily suspend accepting applications for joining the Scheme as a Recognised Service Provider since 1 September 2025 (Monday). The arrangement of receiving applications would be updated. The related details will be announced at appropriate time in the “What’s New” of SWD website.

For enquiries, please contact the following responsible officers of Residential Care Service Voucher Office:

For details of the SPED and application eligibility, please click here.