With a view to combating the COVID-19 pandemic, the Government has introduced measures to implement social distancing, including making the Prevention and Control of Disease (Prohibition on Group Gathering) Regulation, Cap. 599G of the Laws of Hong Kong (“Regulation”).  The Regulation, among other things, prohibits a group gathering of more than 4 persons in a public place from 29 March 2020 to 7 May 2020.

The Regulation has been amended by the Prevention and Control of Disease (Prohibition on Group Gathering) (Amendment) (No. 2) Regulation 2020 (“Amendment Regulation”) on 5 May 2020.

      To ease the financial burden and cash flow of businesses and individuals arising from COVID-19, the Chief Executive announced on April 8 a series of relief measures, including the automatic extension of deadlines by three months for payment of Salaries Tax, tax under Personal Assessment and Profits Tax for the year of assessment 2018/19 that will be falling due in April to June this year.  No application by taxpayers is required for the relief.

      The Inland Revenue Department announced today (April 4) that in view of the latest situation of COVID-19, deadlines for tax payments and lodgement of objections and holdover applications as well as submission of tax returns and information that fall between March 23 and May 2 are automatically extended to May 4.

      In response to media enquiries on the requirement on the nature of business stated in the business registration certificate for the purpose of the Retail Sector Subsidy Scheme (the Scheme) under the Anti-epidemic Fund, the Government today (March 31) gave the following reply:
 
      The Government launched the Scheme under the Anti-epidemic Fund to provide relief to retailers hard hit by the coronavirus epidemic. The Scheme requires that applicants should be conducting a substantial and substantive retail business and that their business should have commenced before January 1 this year. As at 6pm today, nearly 60 000 applications have been received under the Scheme.