| Tax Information :
Tax Reserve Certificates
There are two types of Tax Reserve
Certificates (TRCs): the ordinary TRCs and the TRCs for 'Conditional
Standover Order'.
Ordinary TRCs are introduced to assist taxpayers to
build up funds for tax payment. To use this service, taxpayers can
join the 'Electronic TRCs Scheme'. Civil Servants and civil service
pensioners can also opt for the 'Save-As-You-Earn'
Scheme.
Ordinary TRCs are now issued only in electronic form.
Paper TRCs was abolished with effect
from 1 September 1999.
TRCs for 'Conditional Standover
Order' are a form of security, which the taxpayer is required
to provide for the payment of the tax held over upon his objection
or appeal against an assessment. Such TRCs are issued only in paper
form.
The
Electronic Tax Reserve Certificates (TRCs) Scheme
The Electronic TRCs Scheme is a 'Save for Tax' scheme
open to all taxpayers to assist them to build up funds for tax payment.
It provides TRC users with a full range of electronic services,
including various electronic purchase methods (monthly bank autopay, telephone, internet and bank automated teller machine) and the auto tax payment service .
Opening a TRC Account
Please furnish an Application Form (I.R.1306)
in hardcopy to our TRCs Section. After processing your application,
we will notify you of your TRC Account Number (TAN). With this number,
you can purchase and redeem electronic TRCs.
Every taxpayer can open one TRC account only and joint-name
account is not allowed.
Optional "Save-As-You-Earn
Scheme" (SAYE) for Civil Servants
The optional "Save-As-You-Earn Scheme" is a 'Save
for Tax' scheme to assist serving Civil Servants and Civil Service
Pensioners to build up funds for tax payment. Direct deduction will
be made from your monthly salary / pension to purchase TRCs. The
scheme provides full range of electronic services. Apart from purchasing
by salary / pension deduction, you can also use various electronic
payments (monthly bank autopay, telephone, internet and bank automated teller machine) to purchase TRCs. When
your tax bill dues, you will enjoy the auto tax payment service.
Joining the SAYE Scheme
Simply furnish an Authorization
Form to authorize a monthly deduction (at a minimum of $300 and
in multiples of $50) from your salary or pension every month to
purchase TRCs. The TRCs will be deposited into your TRC account.
The authorization form should reach the Treasury one month before
the effective month in which the deduction is made.
Upon joining the scheme, you will be notified of your
TRC Account Number (TAN). You can purchase and redeem TRCs at any
time with your TAN.
For serving Civil Servants, the Authorization Form
(G.F. 605) or (I.R.1295)
is available at the Personnel Registry of your department. The
completed form should be returned to the Treasury via your Head
of Department.
For Civil Service Pensioners, the Authorization Form
Try 489 is available from the Pensions Division of the Treasury
and Pensioners' Welfare Unit of Civil Service Bureau.
Please note that a fresh Authorization Form Try 489
must be completed by a pensioner notwithstanding that he has formerly
participated in the Scheme as a serving Civil Servants.
Changing or terminating the monthly deduction from
salary or pension
Please inform the Director of Accounting Services
by completing a fresh Authorization Form. Notification of changes
or termination of deduction should reach the Treasury one month
before the effective month in which the change or termination is
made.
Any balance of TRCs in your account after termination
of the monthly deduction will be carried forward for your tax payment
in future.
For more information, serving Civil Servants may contact
their respective Departmental Secretary/ Personnel Registry direct
and Civil Service Pensioners may contact the Pensions Division of
Treasury at 2829 5113 or 2829 5114.
Purchasing
TRCs
With a TRC account, you may purchase
TRCs monthly through bank autopay, or at any time via a telephone, the Internet, a bank automated teller machine, by post
or in person . The TRCs so
purchased will be deposited into your TRC account.
TRCs must be issued in denominations
of $300 or above and in multiples of $50. TRCs will earn interest
only when they are redeemed to pay the holder's tax. Please note
that if they are redeemed for other purposes, no interest will be
payable.
Purchase channels:-
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1. |
Bank autopay
You may purchase TRCs monthly at a specified
sum by bank autopay. The deductions are normally made from
your bank account within the first 5 working days of each
month.
To effect bank autopay, please submit a Direct
Debit Authorization Form (I.R.1306
for those without a TRC account and I.R.1317
for those having a TRC account). It normally takes
about two months to set up an autopay arrangement with banks.
Please do not submit forms I.R.1306
and I.R.1317
in electronic form as these forms contain a 'Direct
Debit Authorization' which must be sent to banks in hard copy
for signature verification.
To change or terminate bank autopay instructions,
please notify our TRCs Section by completing
an Application Form I.R.1317
. Please note that the completed form (in hardcopy)
must reach us fifteen working days before the date of change
or termination. TRCs still remaining in your account after
termination of autopay will be carried forward for your tax
payment in future. |
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2. |
Telephone To purchase TRCs
by telephone, you must have a PPS account. You can
open a PPS account with a bank ATM card at any of the PPS
terminals installed at many outlets of those merchants who
have joined PPS.
To purchase TRCs by phone, please dial 18011 with a tone
phone for bill registration (using the TAN) and 18031 for
bill payment. The merchant code for the Inland Revenue Department
is "10". |
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4. |
Bank Automated Teller Machine (ATM)
TRCs can be purchased with your ATM card at any of those
HSBC/Hang Seng Bank ATMs with the "Bill Payment" signage or
the JETCO ATMs with the "JET PAYMENT" logo. |
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To purchase TRCs by e-payments,
please note the following:
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Enter your 13-digit TRC Account
Number (TAN) in the transaction. |
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Payments made before the daily
cut-off time of your selected payment service
provider will be taken as received on the same
day and the TRC will bear that day's prevailing
interest rate. |
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Every ATM card or bank account
has a daily transaction limit. You may consult
your bank about this limit. |
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5. |
By Post
Please send in a
completed Purchase Form (I.R.1318)
together with a crossed cheque to the Inland Revenue Department,
P.O. Box 28282, Gloucester Road Post Office, Hong Kong. The
cheque should be crossed and made payable to "The Government
of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region" or "The Government
of the HKSAR". Please write your TAN on the back of the cheque.
Cash must not be sent through the post. Post-dated cheques
will not be accepted. |
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6. |
In Person You
can purchase TRCs at Post Offices by EPS, cheque or cash by
quoting your TAN. For addresses and opening hours of post
offices, please visit the Hongkong Post web site www.hongkongpost.com
or call their enquiry hotline 2921 2222. |
The "Auto
Tax Payment Service"
Both the "Electronic Tax reserve Certificates"
Scheme and "Save-As-You-Earn" Scheme offer "Auto
Tax Payment Service" which ensures on-time tax payment.
Around 2 weeks before your tax due date, we will send
a proposal for redemption to you showing the details of certificates
intended to be redeemed and the balance of tax payable by you. On
the tax due date, certificates in your account will be redeemed
automatically on a First-In-First-Out basis to settle your tax and
a redemption statement will be issued to you. Therefore, if there
is no addition to or withdrawal from your account and the amount
of tax due remains unchanged from the date of proposal to the tax
due date, you should follow the proposal to pay the balance of tax
payable by the due date. Otherwise, you should adjust and pay such
amount not met by your certificates.
The service covers only the tax charged on the account
holder. To redeem TRCs to pay for property Tax for jointly-owned
properties, please submit a Redemption Form (I.R.1333)
one month before the tax due date.
Any balance of tax not covered by the TRCs redeemed
shall be payable on or before the tax due date. The un-used TRCs
will be carried forward in your TRC account.
Account
Statement and Account Details Enquiry
A Mid-year Statement will be issued to you in September
every year showing your account balance as at 31 August of the year.
You can also check the TRC account details by requesting for a statement
of TRCs. To obtain the statement, you can complete and return an
Application Form (I.R.1334).
Individual TRCs account holders can also check and
print the account details via their eTAX Accounts if they are registered
eTAX Account Holders.
Refund
To get a refund on the Electronic TRCs purchased,
please furnish a Redemption Form (I.R.1333)
to our TRCs Section.
As the TRCs so refunded are not redeemed for payment
of your tax, no interest will be payable.
Interest
Rate Update and Interest Calculation
The information on this
home page is for reference only. The interest payable on
tax reserve certificates are calculated based on the prescribed
rate of interest published in the Gazette.
In case of dispute the Gazette rate shall prevail.
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The interest rate on TRC is reviewed every month based
on the average of the prevailing six-month time deposit rates below
$100,000 offered by the three note issuing banks.
The interest rate on TRC is 0.4667%
per annum with effect from 7 April 2008.
This rate will apply to all certificates issued on or after the
above date until further notice. Certificates which were issued
before such date will continue to earn interest at the rates in
force at their respective dates of issue.
Please refer to the Tax
Reserve Certificates (Rate of Interest) (Consolidation) Notice Schedule
for the previous TRC interest rates.
Interest payable on an ordinary TRC is governed by
the following rules:-
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The TRC will earn interest only when used for
payment of the holder's tax. |
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Once purchased, the TRC will bear the interest
rate prevailing at the date of purchase. |
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The TRC will bear simple interest which is calculated
from the date of purchase to the date of redemption. |
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The TRC will earn interest for a maximum period
of 36 months. |
Paper
Tax Reserve Certificates (TRCs)
For ordinary TRCs, new paper certificates are not
issued since 1 September 1999. However, your paper TRCs bought before
that day can still be redeemed for paying your own tax or for a
refund at its face value.
To redeem paper TRCs for payment of tax, please complete
and sign the Redemption Instructions on the reverse side of the
certificates and send them in together with your tax demand note
6 weeks before the tax due date. If the TRCs are not enough to cover
your tax liability, a crossed cheque payable to "The Government
of the HKSAR" should also be enclosed bearing the difference between
the tax payable and the principal of the TRCs. Any interest and
surplus principal of the redeemed TRCs will be refunded to you by
post.
To redeem paper TRCs at face value, please complete
and sign the Redemption Instructions on the reverse side of the
certificate. No interest will be payable on such redemption.
All signed certificates should be forwarded to our
TRCs Section at 5/F, Revenue Tower, 5 Gloucester Road, Wanchai,
HK.
If a paper TRC is lost, the Department will consider
to redeem it if a Letter of Indemnity is furnished An application
for a duplicate paper TRC has to be made in writing with a payment
of $140.
TRCs for
'Conditional Standover Order'
When an assessment is under objection or appeal, the
Commissioner may order the tax-in-dispute be held over conditionally
upon the purchase of a TRC. The TRC can be issued in whatever amount
specified by the Commissioner and it can only be used to settle
the tax due on the assessment in dispute.
The TRC so purchased will bear simple interest but
interest is payable only on that part of the capital sum eventually
repaid to taxpayer upon final determination of the objection or
appeal. For a TRC issued on or after 1 September 1999, interest
is payable from the date of issue of the TRC to the date of final
determination of the objection or appeal at such rates in force
from time to time over the tenure of the TRC.
Forms
You can:
- download
the required forms (except G.F. 605 and Try 489) from Internet,
- get a fax copy of them (except G.F. 605, Try 489
and I.R.1334) from our Fax-A-Form Service (telephone no. 2598 6001),
or
- obtain from the Inland Revenue Department at 1/F
or 5/F, Revenue Tower, 5 Gloucester Road, Wan Chai.
Enquiries
and Submissions
For further information, please call 187 8033.
The opening hours of the TRCs Section are:-
| Monday to Friday |
8:15 a.m. to 12:30
p.m. and |
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1:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. |
Written enquiries can be sent to 5/F, Revenue Tower,
5 Gloucester Road, Wan Chai.
Enquiries and submissions can also be made through
electronic media. Please refer to the web page on Electronic Submission of Information for the
prescribed format, manner and procedures of filing electronic documents
and the e-mail address. Please do not submit forms I.R.1306
and I.R.1317
in electronic form as these forms contain a 'Direct Debit Authorization'
which must be sent to banks in hard copy for signature verification.
FAQ
Q & A
for Tax Reserve Certificates
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