Scheme $6,000 計劃

I guess there is no one in Hong Kong who has not heard of the $6,000 Scheme?
This was announced at the last Budget speech in March 2011. Under the scheme, permanent residents aged 18 or above as of 31 March 2012 are entitled to a cash handout of $6,000. Eligible persons may start applying for the cash handout from 28th August 2011 either via banks or the Hongkong Post The timetable is as follows:

Year of birth	Registration Period
1946 or before	From 28 August 2011
1947-1956	From 11 September 2011
1957-1966	From 25 September 2011
1967-1981	From 9 October 2011
1982-1993	From 23 October 2011

Registration by batches will close on 5 November 2011. What if you miss the deadline? It’s OK you may still register after this date. In fact, here’s a twist, if you are not in a hurry, register during the period from 1 April 2012 to 31 December 2012 and you will receive $6,000 plus a bonus of $200. The government will start making payments of $6,200 to these eligible persons from early May 2012.

What if you are not eligible to claim on 28 August but will be so by 31 March 2012? You will have to wait. You may submit your application anytime until 31 December 2012. Your application will not be processed until after 31 March 2012 and the option of receiving the $200 bonus does not apply.

Have you thought of how you will make use of your $6,000? Well, that was one of the motivation behind the cash handout – to put wealth in the people’s hands so they can decide for themselves how to allocate this money.

This scheme is costing the government an expected $38,000 million which will benefit an estimated 6.1 million people. That’s a lot of money. I am not even sure how to read the amount is it $38 billion? And the estimated cost to administer this scheme? $75.8 million.