Viewpoints

A taxpayer may claim child allowance if he maintains an unmarried child who is below 18, and if 18 to 25: a full-time student, or if over 25: disabled for work. Full allowance is granted in the year of assessment in which the child is born. Press here for the amount of allowances. No double claim of child allowance for a child. No sharing or splitting of child allowance among a couple unless the couple is living apart or divorced. If the couple has more than one eligible child, either spouse can make the claim for all the children and then the other spouse gets no child allowance at all. In general, it is advisable for the spouse with higher income to make the claim. A claim for living-apart has to be proved by production of court order or separation deed. A married person living apart from his spouse temporarily […]

Section 8(1) of the Inland Revenue Ordinance imposes the basic charge: to tax all the income from employment or pension which are arising in or derived from Hong Kong. In deciding the charge concerning employment, it is necessary to establish the place where the employment (that is the source of the income) is located. The general rule of how to determine the source is laid down in the court case CIR v. George Andrew Goefert: the chief factors to be considered are: (1) whether the employment contract was made in Hong Kong (2) whether the employer has a residence in Hong Kong, and (3) whether the employee’s remuneration was paid in Hong Kong. In addition to the basic charge, an extension of charge is imposed by Section 8(1A) of Inland Revenue Ordinance to assess all the income in respect of the services rendered in Hong Kong. This charge, frequently called […]

Salaries Tax is charged on the assessable income earned by an employee or an office holder in a year of assessment that runs from 1 April to 31 March of the following year. A final assessment will not normally be made before the end of the year of assessment (save the taxpayer is about to leave Hong Kong). Instead, a provisional assessment is made based on the last final assessment. The tax demanded by the provisional assessment is to be paid by two installments: 75% in January to March within the year of assessment and 25% in the coming April to June. In other words, tax is payable on the earned provisional income. Remark: If the actual income is 90% of the provisional income or less, the taxpayer can ask for a revised assessment of provisional income. The time limit for such application is 28 days before the pay day […]

If the income from property chargeable to Property Tax is included in the taxpayer’s assessable profits for Profits Tax purposes (e.g. the rental income is received from a trade/business), the amount of Property Tax paid may be deducted from the amount of Profits Tax assessed. Corporations carrying on a trade, profession or business in Hong Kong, on application made in writing to the Commissioner of Inland Revenue, may be exempted from paying the Property Tax which would otherwise be set off against their Profits Tax.

A checklist for reduction of property tax 1. Are you a low-income person? If yes, you should elect for personal assessment to remove or to reduce the tax. 2. Have you borrowed money to purchase the property and paid interest? If yes, you should elect for personal assessment to claim deduction of interest. 3. Do you include rent deposits in your rental income? If yes, you should exclude them from the assessable value. 4. Have you received lump-sum premium? If yes, the premium can be spread over 36 months in order to reduce tax. 5. Do you pay management fee as an agent of the tenant? If yes, such fee received from the tenant is not assessable. 6. Do you know what property income are assessable and what are non-assessable? The checklist is for general guidance only. Indeed, the above guidelines are subject to the various conditions laid down in […]

Lum-sum Premium Received  The lump-Sum premium received at the start of the lease period can be spread throughout the lease period up to a maximum of 36 months if the owner makes such an election.  Government Rent and Rates  The “rates paid by the owner” does not include government rent. In other words, the government rent levied in the rates bill is not deductible. To claim the rates deduction, it is advisable for the property owner to keep all the rates bill.  Management Fees  Where the tenant pays management fees through the landlord and such fee is not included as rent under the lease, the fee is not assessed able. Election for Personal Assessment  The landlord may reduce his tax liability by election for Personal Assessment which brings all his income including property income, salaries income and business income into a single assessment with deductions for married person allowance, child […]

1. Illustration of Computation of Property Tax Rental income for 1 July 2007 to 31 March 2008: $38,000 per month. Rates paid by owner for the 3 quarters ending on 31 March 2008: $12,000. Provisional Tax paid per last tax bill for 2007/2008: $35,000. Rent for 9 months ($38,000 x 9): $342,000 less rates paid by owner of $12,000 equal to $330,000 (assessable value). Then, less 20% allowance for repairs and outgoings of $66,000, gives $264,000 (Net assessable value). Property Tax for 2007/2008: $264,000 *16% = $42,240 Less: Provisional Tax paid for 2007/2008: $35,000 Balance payable for 2007/2008: $7,240 Add: Provisional Tax for 2008/2009: $264,000 * 12 / 9 * 16% = $56,320. Total tax payable to be shown in the tax bill: $7,240 plus $56,320 equal to $63,560. The tax $63,560 is payable in two installments: the first one in November 2008 and second in April 2009. The November […]

Under section 5(1) of the Inland Revenue Ordinance, Property Tax is charged on the owners of land and/or buildings in Hong Kong who let out their properties in return for rental income and/or other charges. This tax is payable by the owner(s) at the standard rate (16% for the year of assessment 2004/05 onwards), by the year of assessment, on the net assessable value of the relevant property. The net assessable value is the assessable value (after deduction of rates paid by the owner, if applicable), and then less an allowance of 20% of that assessable value for repairs and outgoings. The assessable value is computed by reference to the rent and other charges payable to the owner in respect of the right of use of the property. Such items include rent, payment for the right of use of premises under license (license fee), a lump sum premium, service charges […]

Property held by one owner The owner should disclose the rental income in his Individual Tax Return (BIR 60). Property held by more than one owner Every owner (whether he is a joint owner or an owner-in-common) is legally obliged to file a Property Tax Return (BIR 57) to disclose the rental income and pay Property Tax as if he were the sole owner. But in practice, the tax return will be sent to the precedent owner (the owner as first named in the title deed) — then the precedent owner will be required to file the tax return and pay the tax on behalf of the other owners. Tax penalty may be imposed on the owner if he commits the following offence: 1. failure to notify the Revenue within 4 months after the year of assessment if he has not received a tax return; 2. failure to file the […]

Section 5 of the Inland Revenue Ordinance levies property tax on the property owner in respect of the rental income of his land and building in Hong Kong. In general, the tax is equal to: Standard rate (1 6 %) * 80% * (rental income -rates paid by the owner). Put it simply, property tax is based on the actual rental profits derived from the ownership of real property in Hong Kong. “Owner” is defined in section 2(1) to include a person holding directly from the Hong Kong government, a beneficial owner, a life tenant, a mortgagor, a mortgagee in possession … and a person who holds land and buildings subject to a ground rent. If the owner is a limited company carrying on a business in Hong Kong, the company can apply for an exemption of property tax under section 5(2) on the grounds that the income will be […]