The Consumer Council launched a new one-stop online platform that comprehensively covers information needed for purchasing first-hand and second-hand properties, as well as renting properties in the Greater Bay Area. The platform features five thematic sections detailing each city’s property purchase and rental processes and key considerations, complemented by cases to help consumers make informed choices.
The Director of the Hong Kong and Macao Work Office of the CPC Central Committee and the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council, Mr Xia Baolong, visited the Hong Kong Park of the Hetao Shenzhen-Hong Kong Science and Technology Innovation Co-operation Zone (Hetao Hong Kong Park) and the Qianhai Shenzhen-Hong Kong Modern Service Industry Co-operation Zone. Mr Xia paid an on-site visit to the Hetao Hong Kong Park for the first time, and listened to presentations by the Secretary for Development, Ms Bernadette Linn, on the overall planning and development overview of the Northern Metropolis, as well as by the Secretary for Innovation, Technology and Industry, Professor Sun Dong, on the latest development progress and the key foci of work for the Hetao Hong Kong Park. Thereafter, Mr Xia inspected the Qianhai Shenzhen-Hong Kong Modern Service Industry Co-operation Zone, and chaireda discussion session in which the Financial Secretary, Mr Paul Chan, introduced direction and work focus by the HKSAR Government in 2025 in economic development.
The Home and Youth Affairs Bureau (HYAB) launched the HYAB Scheme on Corporate Summer Internship on the Mainland and Overseas in collaboration with 28 large corporates, providing young people of Hong Kong with internship placements at the corporates’ Mainland and overseas businesses. The internship placements cover different industries, and are offered in multiple Mainland provinces and cities, including various Mainland cities in the Greater Bay Area, as well as overseas countries including Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Australia, etc.
The Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury, Mr Christopher Hui, attended the second meeting of the Shenzhen-Hong Kong Financial Co-operation Committee in Qianhai, Shenzhen. The Committee discussed the latest developments of the financial markets and financial co-operation initiatives of Shenzhen and Hong Kong, and explored suggestions on further enhancing the development of a collaborative market.
A patient was transferred from Macao to Hong Kong for treatment by a point-to-point cross-boundary ambulance for the first time. Without the handover of the patient between ambulances at boundary control points, the direct transport not only minimises the risks posed to the patient during transfer but also improves the patient’s chance of recovery.
The Pilot Scheme for Direct Cross-boundary Ambulance Transfer in the Greater Bay Area was officially launched on 30 November 2024, and the first patient was transferred from Shenzhen to Hong Kong for treatment by a point-to-point cross-boundary ambulance on 10 January 2025.
The Supreme People’s Court and the Ministry of Justice of the Mainland jointly announced a number of measures, including extending the measures of “allowing Hong Kong-invested enterprises to adopt Hong Kong law” and “allowing Hong Kong-invested enterprises to choose Hong Kong as the seat of arbitration” to various cities in the Greater Bay Area. Starting from 14 February, Hong Kong-invested enterprises registered in Shenzhen and Zhuhai may choose Hong Kong law as the applicable law in contracts (regardless of investment proportion). Additionally, Hong Kong-invested enterprises registered in the nine Mainland cities of the Greater Bay Area may, besides choosing the Mainland as the seat of arbitration, choose Hong Kong as the seat of arbitration for resolving commercial disputes.
The Labour Department held the Youth Employment Expo at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, an event jointly organised by the Greater Bay Area Youth Employment Scheme, the Youth Employment and Training Programme and the Youth Employment Start, providing abundant opportunities for young people aged 29 or below to work locally and in the Mainland cities of the Greater Bay Area, as well as introducing the diverse youth employment services of the Labour Department.
The Hong Kong International Legal Talents Training Academy and the Ministry of Justice jointly organised the two-week National Training Course for Talents Handling Foreign-related Arbitration. The course, conducted in English, provided a comprehensive introduction of the system and practice of arbitration in Hong Kong to more than 80 participants comprising Mainland in-house counsel, experienced arbitrators, lawyers and arbitration practitioners through lectures, exchanges and visits, thereby strengthening understanding and co-operation between the two places in cross-boundary dispute resolution.
For public rental housing (PRH) elderly residents joining the Portable Social Security Schemes (i.e. the Portable Comprehensive Social Security Assistance Scheme, Guangdong Scheme and Fujian Scheme), the response period for surrendering PRH flats or deleting their names from PRH tenancies has been extended from three months to six months, so as to actively support the policy of facilitating the retirement of Hong Kong elderly persons on the Mainland and help those PRH elderly residents who opt to retire there.
The HKSAR Government and the Ministry of Commerce co-organised the Forum on the Second Agreement Concerning Amendment to the Mainland and Hong Kong Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement (CEPA) Agreement on Trade in Services (Amendment Agreement II). The Forum aimed to familiarise business sectors with the liberalisation measures and implementation arrangements of the Amendment Agreement II, which has been implemented since 1 March. Over 350 people, including representatives from local and foreign chambers of commerce, consulates, major trade associations and professional sectors, participated in the Forum.
The Digital Policy Office set up a Hong Kong Cross-boundary Public Services self-service kiosk and an “iAM Smart” self-registration kiosk in Dongguan, enabling residents and enterprises in the Mainland cities of the Greater Bay Area to access public services of Hong Kong without the need to travel to Hong Kong in person. The Hong Kong Cross-boundary Public Services self-service kiosks are also available in Guangzhou, Shenzhen (Qianhai and Futian), Zhuhai, Foshan and Huizhou.
The Financial Secretary, Mr Paul Chan, announced the 2025-26 Budget, stating that Hong Kong has to leverage the advantages under “one country, two systems” to better integrate into the national development and participate in the joint development of the Greater Bay Area in a proactive manner, and that we have to reinforce our connectivity with both the Mainland and the world, while leveraging synergies with overseas markets, especially those emerging in the Global South, and it is by doing so that we fulfil our roles as “super connector” and “super value-adder”.
As mentioned in the Budget, the Government attaches great importance to the development of the Hetao Shenzhen-Hong Kong Science and Technology Innovation Co-operation Zone. The Hetao Hong Kong Park will enter into operational phase this year. The first three buildings are about to complete and the first batch of tenants from life and health technology, AI, data science and other frontier industries will begin to move in. The Government has earmarked HK$3.7 billion to expedite the provision of infrastructure and public facilities of Phase 1 development, and will invite private development proposals this year with a view to expediting the development of the Park. Upon completion of the whole Hetao Hong Kong Park, its annual contribution to Hong Kong’s economy is expected to reach $52 billion, and about 52 000 job opportunities will be created. In addition, as an international financial centre, Hong Kong will enhance the mutual market access mechanism with the Mainland, and actively explore opportunities to extend the Cross-boundary Wealth Management Connect Scheme in the Greater Bay Area, improve market liquidity, and enrich the risk management toolbox.
The Budget also dedicates a separate section to enhancing collaboration with cities in the Greater Bay Area, highlighting that Hong Kong will enhance collaboration with the Greater Bay Area cities in various aspects, including medical co-operation, data flow and exchange, financial co-operation, youth exchange, co-operation in transport and logistics, co-operation relating to construction industry, legal co-operation, and development of Qianhai. Major initiatives include:
Medical Co-operation
- Seek to establish the Real-World Study and Application Centre by the end of this year, and with the data from the “special measure of using Hong Kong registered drugs and medical devices used in Hong Kong public hospitals in the Greater Bay Area”, aim to accelerate approval for registration of new drugs in Hong Kong, the Mainland and overseas
- Invite healthcare professionals, including those from the Mainland especially the Greater Bay Area, for professional and clinical exchange with local healthcare personnel, and in the long run, establish a regional healthcare talent pool
Data Flow and Exchange
- The facilitation measure on the “Standard Contract for the Cross-boundary Flow of Personal Information Within the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (Mainland, Hong Kong)” has already been opened up for participation by all sectors
Financial Co-operation
- Progressively expand the pilot coverage of the Memorandum of Understanding on Cross-Boundary Credit Referencing Pilots to further facilitate cross-boundary financing for enterprises
Youth Exchange
- Relax the requirements of joining the Greater Bay Area Youth Employment Scheme to young people aged 29 or below with sub-degree or higher qualifications
- Increase the limit of allowance for enterprises to $12,000 per month per person for up to 18 months
Co-operation in Transport and Logistics
- 22 airlines and 125 logistics companies have participated in the sea-air intermodal cargo transhipment mode under the co-operation of Hong Kong and Dongguan
- It is expected that the first-phase construction of the permanent facility for the Phase 1 development of the logistics park in Dongguan will be completed this year and the preliminary study of the Phase 2 development will commence shortly
Co-operation Relating to Construction Industry
- Compare and complement the testing and certification requirements between standards in different regions with a view to promoting local application of high-quality and cost-effective construction materials
- Actively leverage complementary advantages of Modular Integrated Construction (MiC) methods and develop MiC as an industry in the Greater Bay Area, and dedicate efforts to research and development, quality accreditation and international marketing of MiC
- Gradually extend the “Professional Title” evaluation mechanism for the first batch of Hong Kong engineering professionals established with the Guangdong Province to other construction-related professions with the right conditions, and collaborate with Guangdong and Macao to formulate Greater Bay Area standards on the skill levels for skilled workers and technicians of the construction sector, and take forward the “One Examination, Multiple Certification” arrangement
Legal Co-operation
- Actively take forward the work in setting up a dedicated platform for Greater Bay Area lawyers to provide better support to the business development and brand building of lawyers
- Promote the establishment of a Greater Bay Area legal information platform to enhance legal information exchange
Development of Qianhai
- The turnover of Qianhai Mercantile Exchange, a subsidiary of the Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited, exceeded RMB100 billion over the year, which operates the country’s only offshore spot trading platform for soybeans.
- Extend the measures of “allowing Hong Kong-invested enterprises to adopt Hong Kong law” and “allowing Hong Kong-invested enterprises to choose Hong Kong as the arbitration place” to other pilot cities in the Greater Bay Area, providing Hong Kong investors with a more facilitative business environment
- Cyberport has been actively collaborating with the Qianhai Management Authority to facilitate the landing of start-up enterprises at respective parks. So far, some 10 Cyberport enterprises are exploring setting up their operations in Qianhai, whilst two enterprises on AI and digital entertainment from Qianhai have established businesses at Cyberport
- Continue to support Qianhai in trying out new policies on a pilot basis and pursuing more policy innovation and breakthroughs, with a view to promoting the successful policies to the rest of the Greater Bay Area and even the entire country
With the agreement of the Ministry of Education, starting from the 2025/26 academic year, the quota for Mainland, Macao and Taiwan students of full-time locally-accredited self-financing local sub-degree and undergraduate (including top-up degree) programmes of six self-financing institutions will be increased in phases to 40%, in accordance with an orderly and progressive approach having regard to the utilisation of the prevailing quota by relevant institutions. The relaxation arrangement can help harness the advantages of Hong Kong’s self-financing sector in terms of its flexibility and diversity to nurture talents for the country and Hong Kong, supporting the high-quality development of the country. The six institutions concerned are the Hong Kong Metropolitan University, Hong Kong Shue Yan University, the Hang Seng University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong Chu Hai College, Tung Wah College, and the Technological and Higher Education Institute of Hong Kong under the Vocational Training Council.
The Dongguan Municipal Development and Reform Bureau has approved the second-phase construction project of City University of Hong Kong (Dongguan). The construction site is located at Songshan Lake, Dongguan, with the gross floor area exceeding 168 000 square metres. The first-phase campus of City University of Hong Kong (Dongguan) began operation in early 2025. Four undergraduate programmes are offered in the first year, namely Computer Science, Intelligent Manufacturing Engineering, Materials Science and Engineering, and Energy Science and Engineering, with a total intake of 125 undergraduate students.
For the first time, a Hong Kong seafarer of seagoing vessels holding a Hong Kong Certificate of Competency has been issued a Certificate of Competency for Seafarers of the People’s Republic of China upon assessment by the Shenzhen Maritime Safety Administration, who is eligible to work on vessels registered in the Shenzhen port. It is learnt that the Hong Kong seafarer has been employed on a luxury cruise ship registered in “Qianhai, China”.
The Maritime Safety Administration of the Ministry of Transport and the Marine Department of Hong Kong explored a pilot mechanism in December 2023, whereby qualified Hong Kong seafarers of seagoing vessels may work on vessels registered in the Shenzhen port. This initiative aims to provide more employment opportunities for Hong Kong seafarers, while serving as a pilot scheme for vessels registered in Mainland ports to employ non-Mainland seafarers.
Four additional residential care homes for the elderly (RCHEs) located in Jiangmen, Foshan and Shenzhen have become Recognised Service Providers under the Residential Care Services Scheme in Guangdong to provide subsidised care and attention places for participating elderly persons. The total number of RCHEs registered under the Scheme has increased from 11 to 15, with an expanded coverage to six Mainland cities of the Greater Bay Area (i.e. Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Foshan, Zhaoqing, Zhongshan and Jiangmen), thus providing more choices for elderly persons who are interested in retiring in the Mainland cities of the Greater Bay Area.
The additional RCHEs are as follows:
Jiangmen: Jiangmen Xinhui Elderly Care Center
Foshan: Foshan Nanhai Taoyuan Welfare Centre Co., Ltd
Shenzhen: Shenzhen Foresea Life Insurance Warm Home, and Shenzhen Expressway Shengao Lekang Health Service (Shenzhen) Co., Ltd (Guangming Social Welfare Institute)
The Secretary for Health, Professor Lo Chung-mau, met with a delegation led by the Vice Mayor of the Guangzhou Municipal People’s Government, Mr Lai Zhihong, to discuss the deepening of medical co-operation between Hong Kong and Guangzhou. Both sides exchanged views on various cross-boundary medical collaboration measures, including the implementation progress of the Elderly Health Care Voucher Greater Bay Area Pilot Scheme, the cross-boundary use of electronic health records supported by the eHealth mobile application and strengthening the exchanges between healthcare professionals of the two places, which have laid the foundation for further collaboration in the future.
Invest Hong Kong and the Commerce and Investment Promotion Institute of the Macao Special Administrative Region cohosted the Macao Enterprises Expansion Series - Hong Kong’s New Business Opportunities Seminar (Retail, Food & Beverage and Trade) in Macao, receiving about 90 local representatives from various sectors, including manufacturing, branding, retail, food and beverage, import and export trading, as well as chambers and associations. The seminar aimed to update Macao enterprises on Hong Kong’s latest business environment and new opportunities, encouraging them to leverage Hong Kong’s unique advantages to expand overseas.
The Permanent Secretary for Innovation, Technology and Industry, Mr Eddie Mak, and the Director-General of the Department of Science and Technology of Guangdong Province, Ms Wang Yueqin, co-chaired the 20th meeting of the Guangdong/Hong Kong Expert Group on Co-operation in Technology and Innovation held in Jiangmen. The HKSAR Government will continue to work closely with the relevant Mainland authorities to expedite the development of the Hetao Co-operation Zone, and to boost both the speed and quantity in developing the Hong Kong Park by leveraging market forces.
The International Hydrogen Development Symposium 2025, organised by the Electrical and Mechanical Services Department, was held at the Hong Kong Science Park. With the participation of over 800 representatives from local, Mainland and overseas government departments, public organisations, professional institutions and academia, the Symposium provided the trade with an interactive exchange platform for sharing the latest technology showcases, engineering solutions and future trends in the hydrogen industry.
During the Symposium, the Under Secretary for Environment and Ecology, Miss Diane Wong, met with Mainland officials from the Guangdong Provincial Development and Reform Commission, the Provincial Greater Bay Area Office, the Guangzhou Municipal Development and Reform Commission, and the Foshan Municipal Development and Reform Bureau.
The Immigration Facilitation Scheme for Invited Persons has been launched, under which relevant policy bureaux or departments will actively invite ASEAN nationals who are able to make considerable contributions to Hong Kong’s economic development or who have been invited to attend important events in Hong Kong to enjoy self-service immigration clearance services at the control points of Hong Kong, thereby enhancing clearance efficiency and experience, and promoting economic and trade exchanges and cultural co-operation between Hong Kong and ASEAN.
The HKSAR Government announced the first batch of 38 low-altitude economy Regulatory Sandbox pilot projects, which covers a wide range of fields and application scenarios, including emergency and rescue, logistics and distribution, inspection and safety maintenance, surveillance and low-altitude infrastructure. The pilot projects will be rolled out progressively to accumulate data and experience to guide the work on multiple fronts including regulations, infrastructure and applications, with a view to fostering the development of low-altitude economy and innovative industries.
The Chief Executive, Mr John Lee, attended the ceremony to celebrate the topping out of two wet-laboratory enabled buildings and the completion of one talent accommodation building in the Hetao Hong Kong Park. The Hong Kong Park will officially enter into its operational phase when the first batch of tenants from life and health technology, AI, data science and other pillar industries move in starting from the second half of 2025.
The Pilot Scheme for Supporting Patients of the Hospital Authority in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area will be extended for one year till 31 March 2026, with a view to enabling eligible patients of the Hospital Authority to choose to receive subsidised consultation services at the designated collaborating healthcare institution in the Greater Bay Area. The Scheme is currently applicable to the University of Hong Kong-Shenzhen Hospital. The Government and the Hospital Authority will evaluate the effectiveness and scope of services of the Pilot Scheme each year and make necessary adjustments in a timely manner.
The Deputy Secretary for Justice, Dr Cheung Kwok-kwan, chaired the first meeting of the new term of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Task Force. The Task Force had an in-depth discussion on the latest development of the various policy measures set out in the Department of Justice’s Action Plan on the Construction of Rule of Law in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, and future key initiatives. The inclusion of lawyers from the Mainland and Macao for the first time facilitates the Department of Justice to learn about issues from the perspectives of different jurisdictions, and signifies a strong collaboration among the legal sectors of the three regions to jointly harness the unique edges of “three jurisdictions”.
The sixth meeting of the Task Force for Collaboration on the Northern Metropolis Development Strategy was held in Hong Kong. At the meeting, the HKSAR Government presented the achievements made in taking forward the development of the Northern Metropolis in 2024, including the development proposals for Ngau Tam Mei, the New Territories North New Town and Ma Tso Lung announced at the end of last year; and an earlier invitation for submissions of expressions of interest on three large-scale land disposal pilot areas. The HKSAR Government also introduced the Development Outline for the Hetao Hong Kong Park promulgated in November 2024. Further, both sides exchanged views on the planning progress for the Hong Kong-Shenzhen Western Rail Link (Hung Shui Kiu-Qianhai), the implementation of the Wutong Mountain (Shenzhen)-Robin’s Nest (Hong Kong) Ecological Corridor and the planning and development of Hong Kong-Shenzhen control points.
The Secretary for Education, Dr Choi Yuk-lin, attended the 20th anniversary celebration ceremony of Beijing Normal-Hong Kong Baptist University (BNBU) in Zhuhai. She said that the HKSAR Government will continue to actively participate in and foster higher education co-operation in the Greater Bay Area by assisting Hong Kong higher education institutions in exploring more flexible and innovative operation models, and promote closer collaboration between Hong Kong higher education institutions and their campuses in the Mainland cities of the Greater Bay Area, with a view to nurturing outstanding talents for the country’s development.
Co-founded by Beijing Normal University and Hong Kong Baptist University, BNBU is the first university jointly established by the higher education sectors of the Mainland and Hong Kong.