Background and Objectives

To address the manpower shortage of the construction sector, the Government together with the construction industry and the labour sector have been adopting a multi-pronged approach, which focuses on enhancing training and encouraging the industry to adopt innovative technologies with a view to increasing the local manpower supply.  The Government launches the Labour Importation Scheme for the Construction Sector (“Construction Sector Scheme”) is a supplementary measure.  On the premise of safeguarding the employment priority for local workers, it allows importation of labour at an appropriate scale to fill in the temporary manpower gap, so as to avoid any bottleneck caused by manpower shortage to the economic and infrastructural development of Hong Kong.

Main Features of the Scheme

The Construction Sector Scheme has the following key features –

• Local recruitment – applicant must conduct local recruitment prior to the submission of application to establish the needs for importation of labour.
• Manning ratio – All works contracts with approved quotas must comply with the minimum 1:2 manning ratio requirement, i.e. one imported labour to at least two full-time local labour.
• Collaborative training – applicant needs to provide additional training places of existing collaborative training programmes for local labour in a number no less than 10% of the approved quota for importation of labour.
• Participation of relevant stakeholders – The Task Force on Short-Term Labour Supply of the Construction Industry Council (Task Force) and the Consultative Committee for Labour Importation Scheme for the Construction Sector (Consultative Committee), which comprise employers, employees and training institutions representatives from the construction sector, provide recommendations to the Development Bureau on eligible trades/disciplines, prevailing median wages and employment terms and offer views on the overall operation of the scheme.  The Development Bureau will also report to the Labour Advisory Committee on the implementation of the Construction Industry Scheme half-yearly.

Eligibility for Application

1)Eligible Applicants

2)Labour to be imported under the Construction Sector Scheme

3)Eligible Works Contracts

Application results

Please click here for the application results of the Scheme.

The Scheme is open for application on a quarterly basis. The fourth round will be open for application from 1 April to 30 April 2024.

Application and Enquiry

1. Application Period and Notification of Results

   Save for other period(s) as announced by the DEVB separately if deemed necessary, applications will normally be accepted on a quarterly basis in the months of January, April, July and October each year.

   Application Period	Opening day of application	Closing day of application
   January	First calendar day of the month	5:00 pm on the last calendar day of the month (in case the last calendar day falls on Saturday or public holiday, the closing date and time will be extended to 5:00 pm on the next working day)
   April
   July
   October

   Upon receipt of the application documents and information submitted by the applicant, the Permanent Secretary for Development (Works) approves or refuses applications for quota after considering the advice of the Inter-departmental Committee.  The processing of applications will be completed within two-month time after the closing of the application period.  Applicants will be notified of the application results in writing.  Please refer to the “Guidance Notes for Application for Labour Importation Quota” for details of the application.

2. Application Documents and Forms

   Name of Documents/Forms	Documents/Forms Number	Downloadable File
   Guidance Notes for Application for Labour Importation Quota (October 2023)	––	PDF
   Labour Importation Scheme for the Construction Sector Application Form (October 2023)	DEVB-CSS-1_e	PDF
   Annex I – Particulars of Employer(s) of the Imported Labour (October 2023)	DEVB-CSS-1a_e	PDF
   Annex II – Manpower Plan of the Works Contract (October 2023)	DEVB-CSS-1b_e	PDF
   Annex III – Confirmation Form on Local Recruitment (January 2024)	DEVB-CSS-1c_e	PDF
   Annex IV – Imported labour to work in the construction site(s) of the “Supplementary Contract(s)” under the applicant (October 2023)	DEVB-CSS-1d_e	PDF
   Sample of Deed of Undertaking for Sub-contractor (October 2023)	DEVB-CSS-2_e	PDF
   Request Form for Adding Special Trade/Discipline to the List of Eligible Trades/Disciplines	DEVB-CSS-3_e	PDF
   Declaration and Authorisation Form	DEVB-CSS-8c-1	PDF
   Joint Declaration Form on Importing Labour from the Mainland to Hong Kong	DEVB-CSS-8c-2	(Chinese version only)
   Application for Review of Quota Application Result	DEVB-CSS-9_e	PDF
   Acknowledgment Record of Employment Contract	DEVB-CSS-17_e	PDF
   Notice of Termination of Employment of Imported Labour	DEVB-CSS-18	(Chinese version only)
   Application for Replacement of Imported Labour	DEVB-CSS-18-1	(Chinese version only)
   Application for Change of Approval Conditions/ Employment Terms	DEVB-CSS-20	(Chinese version only)
   Confirmation from Imported Labour on the Changes to Information related to the Standard Employment Contract	DEVB-CSS-21	(Chinese version only)
   List of Trades/Disciplines in the Construction Industry Eligible for Labour Importation and the Corresponding Employment Terms including the Prevailing Median Monthly Wages of Local Labour in Similar Positions	––	PDF
   Frequently Asked Questions and Answers (FAQ)	––	(Chinese version only)

   Note: The webpage will be updated regularly with more information

Reference Materials

1. A briefing session was held by the DEVB for the construction sector on 9 October 2023 to share the common findings identified in the 2023 first round application and to highlight the key points that applicants should pay special attention to. Applicant may download the Powerpoint slides of this briefing session. (Chinese only)
2. Anti-corruption Materials
   • Construction Industry Integrity Charter 2.0
   • Leaflet on anti-corruption

Points to Note

Applicants must –

1. conduct local recruitment within four months preceding the date of application for importation quota.  The local recruitment should be conducted through the channels specified in the “Guidance Notice for Application for Labour Importation Quota”, and that the salary of the post(s) under recruitment is/are no less than the prevailing median monthly wage level(s) of the relevant post(s) of local labour as promulgated by DEVB.  Details are available in the “Guidance Notice for Application for Labour Importation Quota” and other relevant documents in the table above; and
2. make prior accommodation arrangement for the imported labour, applicants are required to provide the address(es) of the accommodation arranged for the imported labour in the application form.  If applicants/employers arrange accommodation for their imported labour within Hong Kong, they can opt for the designated quarter(s) for the purpose of the Construction Sector Scheme or on-site quarter(s) provided by and at construction sites of the applicants.  Please call our enquiry hotline for more details on the arrangement for the designated quarters and on-site quarters.

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