MPF news

The Public holidays of May (Day following of Labour Day and Buddha’s birthday) are coming soon. Employers are reminded to submit remittance statement and make contribution payment earlier to avoid missing the contribution deadline. For employers who submit remittance statements and/or cheques by mail, please ensure there is sufficient time for ensure the remittance statements and/or cheques will reach HSBC MPF on or before the contribution deadline.

The Public holidays of May (Day following of Labour Day and Buddha’s birthday) are coming soon. Employers are reminded to submit remittance statement and make contribution payment earlier to avoid missing the contribution deadline. For employers who submit remittance statements and/or cheques by mail, please ensure there is sufficient time for ensure the remittance statements and/or cheques will reach HSBC MPF on or before the contribution deadline.

The 2021-22 Good MPF Employer Award (the Award), organized by the Mandatory Provident Fund Schemes Authority (MPFA), is now open for applications and nominations. 

The Award aims to promote and foster employer compliance with MPF legislation; encourage employers to provide better retirement benefits for their employees; and recognise employers who are exemplary in enhancing the retirement benefits of their employees. Nearly 2,500 companies and organizations have been honoured as “Good MPF Employers” since its debut in 2015. 

Eligible employers should act now and apply for the Award. Employees are also welcome to nominate their employers for the Award. For more details, please visit the Good MPF Employer Award website. The deadline is 30 June 2022. 

The above information is provided by the Mandatory Provident Fund Schemes Authority.

Operation hours: Sat: 3-8pm & Sun: 10-8pm

We will provide MPF services including services related to MPF Tax Deductible Voluntary Contribution (TVC), Account consolidation, Fund performance update and MPF retirement planning etc. during the special operation hours indicated above at these designated branches.

Find out more about MPF, and understand what are the considerations when choosing an MPF scheme. Please contact our MPF Specialist by approaching the above designated branches on specific day or making an appointment to meet them with selected timeslot.

With the above changes, the SuperTrust Plus will consist of a more comprehensive offering of Constituent Funds, with a suite of low-fee funds that are index-tracking or passively managed. We believe this can facilitate you to better differentiate the restructured funds from other active funds on our MPF platform, allowing you to make investment choices meeting your own investment styles, risk tolerance levels and personal circumstances. This, together with the de-layering change, can simplify the investment structure of the funds and enhance investment, administrative and operational efficiency. 

On the other hand, during a recent review of the management fee breakdown among key operators, we decided to adjust the fee breakdown with effect from 1 July 2021. While the fee components among different stakeholders were re-jiggled, the total management fee level payable by members remains unchanged. 

In addition, the statutory Annual Registration Fee has been effected from 1 October 2020 and we are liable for the payment of the fee starting from 1 July 2021. Please rest assured that the fee will be borne and shared among the key operators with no impact on you.

For further details of the above, please refer to the Notice to Scheme Participants, First Supplement to the MPF Scheme Brochure and frequently asked questions.

The Guaranteed Interest Rate for the Guaranteed Fund available under HSBC Mandatory Provident Fund - SuperTrust Plus is 0.15% per annum in the financial year from 1 July 2021 to 30 June 2022. The guarantee in the Guaranteed Fund only applies under certain conditions. Please refer to subsection 3.4.3(f) ‘Guarantee features’ of the MPF Scheme Brochure for details of the guarantee features (including in the context of payment of accrued benefits in instalments) and the ‘Guarantee Conditions’.

The latest edition of "HSBC Retirement Monitor* (June 2021) " is now available on HSBC MPF website. You can click here to understand the estimated expenditure for living in Hong Kong after retirement.

*The "HSBC Retirement Monitor" was commissioned by HSBC MPF with The Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia conducting the research and analysis.

With effect from 21 June 2021, there will be an additional option available for scheme participants to withdraw their MPF Benefits, AVC Benefits and TVC Benefits on their 65th birthday or on early retirement on or after reaching age 60, so that, they can create a long-term and steady monthly income for better retirement planning.

At eligible scheme participants’ decision, they can apply the monthly regular withdrawal by submitting a valid INPR ‘Claim Form for Payment of MPF Accrued Benefits (Benefits) on Grounds of Attaining the Retirement Age of 65 or Early Retirement [FORM MPF(S) – W(R)]’ together with the appropriate supporting documents to the Administrator of the Scheme one time to receive the monthly regular withdrawal amount from the selected MPF account(s) under the Scheme as specified on the INPR until the selected MPF account(s) is terminated or such regular withdrawal instruction is amended or cancelled. Scheme participants can opt-in the method of payment by deposit directly or cheque. The regular withdrawal instruction(s) can be amended or cancelled at any time at scheme participants’ decision by submitting a valid INRW ‘Change of Regular Withdrawal Instruction Form’.

The above mentioned forms will be available at HSBC MPF website at www.hsbc.com.hk/mpf or designated branches or scheme participants may request copies of them by contacting the HSBC MPF Member Hotline +852 3128 0128.

To learn more about this new feature, please refer to the Frequently Asked Questions.

The Hong Kong economy has been hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic in the past year. Despite the uncertain outlook, many employers are still providing extra retirement protection for their employees. The Good MPF Employer Award, organised by the Mandatory Provident Fund Schemes Authority (MPFA), now in its seventh year, recognises employers that are committed to enhancing the retirement benefits of their employees. Since the inception of the Award, over 2,200 companies and organisations have been commended. A record 1,671 employers were recognised last year despite the pandemic, showing that many employers in Hong Kong are willing to go the extra mile to support the retirement benefits of their employees.

The 2020-21 Good MPF Employer Award is open for applications and nominations from 1 April to 30 June. Two special awards have been introduced to commend and encourage companies / organisations that have made continuous efforts to enhance the retirement protection of their employees. Employers who fulfil the relevant criteria will be presented with one or both of the following special awards:

• Good MPF Employer 5+ Years
  Companies / organisations that received the Good MPF Employer Award for five consecutive years or more.
• Best All-round MPF Employer
  Companies / organisations that meet all of the following criteria:
      (1) Received the Good MPF Employer Award for seven consecutive years;
      (2) Offered more than one MPF scheme;
      (3) Offered MPF voluntary contributions for some or all of their employees;
      (4) Received the e-Contribution Award; and
      (5) Received the MPF Support Award. 

To apply for this year’s Award which covers the period from 1 April 2020 to 31 March 2021, companies / organisations can fill in and submit an application online on the Good MPF Employer Award website, or submit their application by email, fax or post. Employees are also welcome to nominate their employers for the Award by submitting a nomination form to the MPFA.

The results of 2020-21 Good MPF Employer Award will be announced in October 2021. The MPFA will present award certificates to the awardees, and the list of awardees will be uploaded to the MPFA website. In addition to being invited to attend activities organised by the MPFA and receiving the latest information from the MPFA, the awardees will be entitled to display the award logo on their websites, and in their promotional materials, advertisements and activities until 30 September 2022. They also have the opportunity to share their experience with the public through various channels.

Act now, Good MPF Employers!

The above information is provided by the Mandatory Provident Fund Schemes Authority.

Easter long holiday is coming soon. Employers are reminded to submit remittance statement and make contribution payment earlier to avoid missing the contribution deadline (12 April 2021). For employers who submit remittance statement and/or cheque by mail, please ensure you allow sufficient time for ensure the remittance statement and/or cheque to reach HSBC MPF on or before the contribution deadline.

The latest edition of "HSBC Retirement Monitor* (March 2021) " is now available on HSBC MPF website. You can click here to understand the estimated expenditure for living in Hong Kong after retirement.

*The "HSBC Retirement Monitor" was commissioned by HSBC MPF with The Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia conducting the research and analysis.

Chinese New Year long holiday is coming soon. Employers are reminded to submit remittance statement and make contribution payment earlier to avoid missing the contribution deadline. For employers who submit remittance statements and/or cheques by mail, please ensure you allow sufficient time for ensure the remittance statements and/or cheques to reach HSBC MPF on or before the contribution deadline.

The latest edition of "HSBC Retirement Monitor* (December 2020) " is now available on HSBC MPF website. You can click here to understand the estimated expenditure for living in Hong Kong after retirement.

*The "HSBC Retirement Monitor" was commissioned by HSBC MPF with The Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia conducting the research and analysis.

The latest edition of "HSBC Retirement Monitor* (September 2020) " is now available on HSBC MPF website. You can click here to understand the estimated expenditure for living in Hong Kong after retirement. 

*The "HSBC Retirement Monitor" was commissioned by HSBC MPF with The Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia conducting the research and analysis.

The second tranche of the Employment Support Scheme (“ESS”) is open for application during 31 August – 13 September 2020. In order to enable employers to obtain the relevant information conveniently, we have prepared frequently asked questions and points-to-note about the second tranche of ESS for your reference.

For more details related to ESS, such as the eligibility and application process, you can contact the ESS hotline on 1836-122 or through email at enquiry@employmentsupport.hk. 

As informed by Hang Seng Investment Management Limited, Hang Seng Indexes Company Limited (‘HSIL’) will implement the following index changes (collectively, the ‘Index Changes’) to be effective from 7 September 2020 (the ‘Effective Date’) on the Hang Seng Index (the ‘HSI’) and/or the Hang Seng China Enterprises Index (the ‘HSCEI’):

• adding weighted voting right companies (‘WVRs’) and secondary-listed companies into the respective universe of the HSI and the HSCEI;
• updating the index methodology in respective of constituent weighting and freefloat shares;
• removing special requirement for H-shares companies inclusion to the HSI universe; and
• removing the additional eligibility criteria on Red-chips and P-chips for joining the HSCEI
  

For further information including the announcement and the offering documents of the underlying Hang Seng Index ETF and Hang Seng China Enterprises ETF (for which the Hang Seng Index Tracking Fund and Hang Seng China Enterprises Index Tracking Fund are directly investing into respectively), you may visit the Investment Manager’s website www.hangsenginvestment.com. Please be reminded that such revised offering documents will be available on or after the Effective Date.

In addition, HSIL announced the quarterly review results of HSI and HSCEI recently. For the details including the constituent movement and changes in sector allocation that will take effect from the Effective Date, you may visit HSIL’s website www.hsi.com.hk.

The outbreak of Covid-19 pandemic has a significant impact on the global economy.  While the US Federal Reserve’s actions to keep interest rates near zero in June, Hong Kong dollar (HKD) money market rates have also been impacted by a number of factors affecting liquidity.

Overall, liquidity yields may remain low compared to last year given the economic impact of the Covid-19 pandemic and easing policies by global central banks.

The MPF Conservative Fund, and ORSO Money Market Funds generally aim to provide liquidity together with a rate of return higher than the bank savings rate. However, we would like to remind investors that investment in money market funds is different from depositing funds in a savings account at a bank or deposit taking company. These funds are not capital protected, and there is no guarantee that a stable net asset value will be maintained. Investors may not get back the amount originally invested.

The Guaranteed Interest Rate for the Guaranteed Fund available under HSBC Mandatory Provident Fund - SuperTrust Plus is 0.15% per annum in the financial year from 1 July 2020 to 30 June 2021. The guarantee in the Guaranteed Fund only applies under certain conditions. Please refer to subsection 3.4.3(f) ‘Guarantee features’ of the MPF Scheme Brochure for details of the guarantee features (including in the context of payment of accrued benefits in instalments) and the ‘Guarantee Conditions’.

The latest edition of "HSBC Retirement Monitor* (June 2020) " is now available on HSBC MPF website. You can click here to understand the estimated expenditure for living in Hong Kong after retirement.

*The "HSBC Retirement Monitor" was commissioned by HSBC MPF with The Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia conducting the research and analysis.

*Key dates of 2nd tranche will be announced by the PICO.

Claw back and penalty

• For the purpose of headcount checking, March 2020 is used as a “reference month”
• For an employer who has received the first tranche of payment, if he/she fails to use all the wage subsidies received for a particular month during the three-month subsidy period (i.e. June to August 2020) to pay the wages of his/her employees in the same month, the Government will claw back the unspent balance of the subsidy. 
• If the number of employees on the payroll in any one month of the subsidy period (i.e. June to August 2020) is less than the number of paid or unpaid staff in March 2020, the employer will have to pay a penalty to the Government.

Enquiry

If you have any questions, you can read the FAQ, ESS website or make enquiries through the following channels set up by the Government:

ESS enquiry Email: enquiry@employmentsupport.hk; or

ESS Telephone hotline: 1836-122

The service hours of the ESS hotline are:

Monday to Friday - 9am to 6pm

During the application period (from 25 May 2020 to 14 June 2020): Monday to Sunday - 9am to 6pm.

If you have further enquiries, starting from 25 May 2020, you may call the ESS hotline to make an appointment to visit any of the ESS Help Desks as follows

• Rm 1701, A T Tower, 180 Electric Road, North Point, Hong Kong Island
• Room 2507, Prosperity Center, 25 Chong Yip Street, Kwun Tong
• Room 1206, Chinachem Tsuen Wan Plaza, 455 Castle Peak Road, Tsuen Wan

Service Hours of ESS Help Desks:

• During application period (25 May to 14 June 2020):
  Monday to Sunday: 9 am – 6 pm
• After the application period:
  Monday to Friday: 9 am - 6 pm

ESS – ORSO

The Government of HKSAR launches an Employment Support Scheme (ESS) to provide time-limited financial support to employers to retain their employees who will otherwise be made redundant.  The ESS should be used for paying wages to maintain employment for their staff currently in the job.

Employer Obligations:

1. not to implement redundancy during the subsidy period and,
2. to spend all the ESS subsidy on paying wages to their eligible employees and,
3. to make a self-declaration to confirm that all information provided in the application is true, complete and accurate, including that the application covers only eligible employees 

Eligibility

• Employers who have set up MPF-exempted ORSO schemes, including (i) ORSO registered schemes; or (ii) ORSO exempted schemes, (“ORSO schemes”) for their employees who have been members of the ORSO schemes on or before 31 March 2020 will be eligible to apply
• Eligible ORSO employers may apply for ESS in respect of their employees who are members of ORSO schemes with HKID, except for fully subvented staff in government funded organisations, dedicated (full-time) staff employed by outsourced service contractors/consultants of the Government or of statutory bodies mainly staffed by government employees to work for these contracts, and dedicated (full-time) staff engaged by organisations to provide services under various government funding schemes

Application

• Application for the 1st tranche will start from 25 May 2020 to 14 June 2020, subsidizing wages for June to August 2020.  Application for the 2^nd tranche will be announced by the Policy Innovation and Coordination Office (“PICO”)
• The ORSO employer shall submit to the processing agent the ESS application form, which should include the following information
  ○   Company name and address
  ○   business registration number or registration number under the Societies Ordinance or any other identifier where appropriate and a copy
  ○   ORSO registration/ exemption number(s)
  ○   MPF exemption number(s)
  ○   Name of ORSO scheme(s)
  ○   copy of the MPF exemption certificate(s)
  ○   name and contact information of the ORSO administrator(s)
  ○   actual remuneration of each ORSO employee in the “specified month”, and the headcount as at end March 2020 in an Excel template in the prescribed format that can be downloaded from the ESS application portal
  ○   bank account name and number of the employer, together with a copy of the bank statement showing the exact same details
  ○   details and contact information of the authorised signer
  ○   an undertaking and a self-declaration on the Employer obligations
• The processing agent may schedule an appointment with the ORSO employer to conduct on-site checking to verify that the information reported in the templates are supported by appropriate documents.  The ORSO employers must therefore keep all relevant documents (such as bank auto-pay payroll, pay list, or ORSO scheme contribution statement) which can provide solid evidence to the information reported in the application. 
• To facilitate post-application auditing, the ORSO employers shall, for a period of two years commencing from the date of application for the ESS, keep true copies of the supporting documents submitted in making the application, as well as the latest annual return/actuarial certificate for ORSO registered scheme or the latest annual membership statement/documentary evidence for ORSO exempted scheme, and make them available for inspection by the Government or its agent within 14 days upon the latter’s request.

How to calculate the subsidy and when payment is made

• The ORSO employers can choose any one month from December 2019 to March 2020 as the “Specified month” for calculation of the subsidy amount.
• 50% of the actual remuneration paid to its ORSO employees in a “specified month”, with a cap at $18,000 per month. 
• The maximum subsidy per employee per month is $9,000 if he earns $18,000 or more.
• Payment will be made in 2 tranches.  

*Key dates of 2nd tranche will be announced by the PICO.

Claw back and penalty

• For the purpose of headcount checking, March 2020 is used as a “reference month”
• For an employer who has received the first tranche of payment, if he/she fails to use all the wage subsidies received for a particular month during the three-month subsidy period (i.e. June to August 2020) to pay the wages of his/her employees in the same month, the Government will claw back the unspent balance of the subsidy.
• If the number of employees on the payroll in any one month of the subsidy period (i.e. June to August 2020) is less than the number of paid or unpaid staff in March 2020, the employer will have to pay a penalty to the Government.

Enquiry

If you have any questions, you can read the FAQ, ESS website or make enquiries through the following channels set up by the Government:

ESS enquiry Email: enquiry@employmentsupport.hk; or

ESS Telephone hotline: 1836-122

The service hours of the ESS hotline are:

Monday to Friday - 9am to 6pm

During the application period (from 25 May 2020 to 14 June 2020): Monday to Sunday - 9am to 6pm.

If you have further enquiries, starting from 25 May 2020, you may call the ESS hotline to make an appointment to visit any of the ESS Help Desks as follows

• Rm 1701, A T Tower, 180 Electric Road, North Point, Hong Kong Island
• Room 2507, Prosperity Center, 25 Chong Yip Street, Kwun Tong
• Room 1206, Chinachem Tsuen Wan Plaza, 455 Castle Peak Road, Tsuen Wan

Service Hours of ESS Help Desks:

• During application period (25 May to 14 June 2020):
  Monday to Sunday: 9 am – 6 pm
• After the application period:
  Monday to Friday: 9 am - 6 pm

The Government of HKSAR launches an Employment Support Scheme (ESS) to provide time-limited financial support to employers to retain their employees who will otherwise be made redundant.  The ESS should be used for paying wages to maintain employment for their staff currently in the job. Employer Obligations: 1) not to implement redundancy during the subsidy period; 2) must spend all the ESS subsidy on paying wages to their employee.

Latest news

• Application for 1st tranche will start from 25 May 2020– application window is 3 weeks, subsidising wages for June to August 2020.
• All employers who have been making Mandatory Provident Fund (MPF) contributions for their regular employees under  MPF Ordinance definition, including the Age 65 or above employee who has MPF contribution accounts (with Employer Voluntary Contributions) are eligible to apply for ESS.
• All Self-employed person (“SEP”) with an MPF account set up on or before 31 Mar 2020 are eligible.
• Payment will be made in 2 tranches.
• MPF accounts that have already been set up on or before 31 March 2020 are eligible.
  
• It is expected that the release of subsidy for the 1st tranche will be around 3 to 4 weeks after submission of applications.  The 1st tranche of payment could be received around end of June 2020.
  
• “Specified month” for the calculation of subsidy amount includes December 2019, i.e. Employer can choose from any one month from December 2019 to March 2020 for calculation of the subsidy amount.
• Self-employed person who has an MPF account on or before 31 March 2020 will be eligible for an one-off lump-sum subsidy of HKD 7,500.
  

How to calculate the subsidy and when payment is made

Relevant Employees

• 50% of the actual wages paid in a “specified month”, with a wages cap at HKD18,000 per month
• Maximum subsidy per employee per month is HKD9,000
• Employers can choose any one month from December 2019 to March 2020 as the “specified month” for the 1st tranche
  

Employees Aged 65 or above

• 50% of the actual salary paid in a “specified month” or by multiplying the employer voluntary contribution in a “specified month” by 10 times, with a cap at
  HKD9,000 per month

Self-employed Person (“SEP”)

• a one-off lump-sum subsidy of HKD7,500.

Payment made in 2 tranches:

• 1st payment could be received around end of June 2020. Online applications via the official ESS portal will start on 25 May 2020.
  
• 2nd payment (To be announced by the Government).

*Key dates of 2nd tranche will be announced by the Government.

For details, please refer to the press release published by the Government.

The outbreak of Covid-19 pandemic has a significant impact on the global economy.  While the US Federal Reserve’s actions to keep interest rates near zero in June, Hong Kong dollar (HKD) money market rates have also been impacted by a number of factors affecting liquidity.

Overall, liquidity yields may remain low compared to last year given the economic impact of the Covid-19 pandemic and easing policies by global central banks.

The MPF Conservative Fund, and ORSO Money Market Funds generally aim to provide liquidity together with a rate of return higher than the bank savings rate. However, we would like to remind investors that investment in money market funds is different from depositing funds in a savings account at a bank or deposit taking company. These funds are not capital protected, and there is no guarantee that a stable net asset value will be maintained. Investors may not get back the amount originally invested.

• The information contained in this website is for reference only and will be updated from time to time without notice. The provisions of the Mandatory Provident Fund Schemes Ordinance, Occupational Retirement Schemes Ordinance, other applicable legislation/regulations and guidelines or announcements published by the Mandatory Provident Fund Schemes Authority and/or Securities and Futures Commission shall prevail for any information on MPF and ORSO system. If you are in doubt about the meaning or the effect of the contents of this website, you should seek independent professional advice.
• Investment involves risks. Past performance is not indicative of future performance. The value of financial instruments, in particular stocks and shares, and any income from such financial instruments, may go down as well as up. For further details including the product features and risks involved, please refer to the relevant brochure.  

The outbreak of Covid-19 pandemic has a significant impact on the global economy.  While the US Federal Reserve’s actions to keep interest rates near zero in June, Hong Kong dollar (HKD) money market rates have also been impacted by a number of factors affecting liquidity.

Overall, liquidity yields may remain low compared to last year given the economic impact of the Covid-19 pandemic and easing policies by global central banks.

The MPF Conservative Fund, and ORSO Money Market Funds generally aim to provide liquidity together with a rate of return higher than the bank savings rate. However, we would like to remind investors that investment in money market funds is different from depositing funds in a savings account at a bank or deposit taking company. These funds are not capital protected, and there is no guarantee that a stable net asset value will be maintained. Investors may not get back the amount originally invested.

The ORSO Amendment Bill was passed by the Legislative Council on 17 June 2020, and became effective on 26 June 2020. The main objective of the ORSO Amendment Bill is to set up a registration framework for the Occupational Retirement Schemes (“ORSO Schemes”) to ensure they are properly regulated.

The new ORSO Amendment Bill will require employers to submit an annual written statement (for ORSO registered and exempted schemes), an annual return (for ORSO exempted schemes only) as well as notification of reportable events (for ORSO registered schemes only) to the Mandatory Provident Fund Schemes Authority (‘MPFA’). For more information on the new requirements, please visit the MPFA website > ORSO > Circulars > Occupational Retirement Schemes (Amendment) Bill 2019.

The MPFA had also invited employers to attend their upcoming Town Hall sessions (28th, 29th, 30th of July 2020) to facilitate employers to gain a better understanding of the new requirements under the new regulatory requirement. By 6th July 2020, employers will need to register and complete the ‘Reply Slip’ contained in the abovementioned Circular.  We strongly encourage employers to register and attend the upcoming Town hall sessions.