The Club-house Subsidy Scheme and the Mahjong/Tin Kau Licence Holder Subsidy Scheme under the Anti-epidemic Fund opened for application today (April 26).

     Under the directions issued by the Secretary for Food and Health pursuant to the Prevention and Control of Disease (Requirements and Directions)(Business and Premises) Regulation (Cap. 599F), certain premises have been ordered to close or put in place tightened specified pre-cautionary measures since November 26, 2020, due to changes in the epidemic situation, including the closure of all nightclubs and bars/pubs since that date; while karaoke establishments and mahjong/tin kau premises have also been ordered to close since December 2, 2020. The businesses of club-houses and mahjong/tin kau premises have thus been affected for a long period of time and the disbursement of a further subsidy is exceptionally arranged.

     The Club-house Subsidy Scheme provides a subsidy of $100,000 to eligible holders of a valid Certificate of Compliance (CoC) issued under the Clubs (Safety of Premises) Ordinance (Cap. 376), and an additional subsidy of $50,000 for CoC holders who also operate karaoke establishments, nightclubs or bars/pubs in their clubhouse premises.

     The Mahjong/Tin Kau Licence Holder Subsidy Scheme provides a one-off subsidy of $100,000 to each eligible holder of an mahjong/tin kau licence issued under the Gambling Ordinance (Cap. 148).

     The application forms and guides to apply for the two subsidy schemes can be downloaded from the website of the Office of the Licensing Authority (OLA) under the Home Affairs Department (www.hadla.gov.hk). The OLA will also send letters to CoC holders and mahjong/tin kau licence holders to advise them about the subsidy schemes. The application deadline is May 26, 2021. Upon receipt of completed application forms and the required supporting documents, the disbursement of subsidies could generally be made in around two weeks.

Ends/Monday, April 26, 2021
Issued at HKT 18:00

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