Last updated: 2026-09-13

The Elderly Health Care Voucher Scheme website states that each eligible elderly person receives $2,000 of vouchers a year, with an accumulation limit of $8,000. Eligibility runs from the year in which you reach 65, and is subject to the conditions on a valid identity document and permission to remain; the account is created by an enrolled healthcare service provider the first time you use vouchers. The Pilot Reward Scheme has separately been extended to the end of 2028: accumulated voucher spending of $1,000 within a year on designated primary healthcare services earns a $500 reward. The extension of the reward and the annual voucher amount are two separate arrangements. Paragraph 248 of the 2026-27 Budget is about the extension of the reward; this article makes no prediction about any policy that has not been announced.

What is the Elderly Health Care Voucher, and how does it work?

The Elderly Health Care Voucher is an amount the Government deposits in a personal account for an eligible elderly person, to pay the fees of private primary healthcare services. It is not cash. The scheme issues and deducts the amount through the eHealth System (Subsidies).

The "Eligible Elderly Persons and Annual Voucher Amount" page of the scheme website states who may receive vouchers:

Elderly persons aged 65 or above and holding a valid Hong Kong Identity Card or Certificate of Exemption issued by the Immigration Department, except for those who obtained a Hong Kong Identity Card by virtue of a previous permission to land or remain in Hong Kong granted to him/ her and such permission has expired or ceased to be valid, are eligible to receive and use the vouchers to pay for private primary healthcare services.

How does it work administratively? The same page states:

At present, the annual voucher amount for each eligible elderly person is $2,000 while the accumulation limit of vouchers is $8,000. Elderly persons are provided with their annual amount of vouchers that will be automatically deposited in their voucher account on 1 January from the year in which they become eligible under the Elderly Health Care Voucher Scheme.

In short, eligibility is counted by the year in which you reach 65; you do not wait for the birthday itself. The conditions on a valid identity document and permission to remain still apply. Question 9 of the voucher-recipient FAQs uses the example of an elderly person turning 65 in October, and explains that vouchers are provided for use from 1 January of that same year.

Becoming eligible for the year and opening the account for the first time are two separate steps. The annual amount goes by the year of eligibility; the "Create Account and Use Vouchers" page describes the procedure on first use:

Vouchers are issued and used electronically through the eHealth System (Subsidies). They will not be issued in paper form separately. Elderly persons are not required to pre-register or collect the vouchers. Enrolled healthcare service provider will create a personal voucher account for an eligible elderly person who is using vouchers for the first time.

The "Present a Valid Hong Kong Identity Card" step on the same page states it again:

If an elderly person is using vouchers for the first time, the healthcare service provider will create a personal voucher account for the elderly person free of charge. Based on the year in which the elderly person becomes eligible to use vouchers, the relevant voucher amount will be deposited in his/her account.

You have to attend in person. The pop-up notice on the scheme website's home page states: "Health care vouchers (vouchers) can only be used by eligible elderly persons after receiving healthcare services in person provided by the healthcare service providers." The "Create Account and Use Vouchers" page also states: "Vouchers can only be used by the eligible elderly person after receiving healthcare services in person." The same page states further:

Show a valid Hong Kong Identity Card or Certificate of Exemption to the enrolled healthcare service provider and indicate the wish to use vouchers. Please note that an elderly person is not allowed to use vouchers if he/she cannot present a valid identity document as mentioned above.

An elderly person has to provide an SMS-enabled mobile phone number when using vouchers. If necessary, an elderly person can choose to provide the mobile phone number of his/her family member/carer instead. An SMS about the voucher amount used will be sent to the mobile phone number provided.

⚠️ Vouchers cannot be turned into cash. The "Restrictions in Using Health Care Vouchers" page states: "No advance of voucher amount which is yet to be issued is allowed and it cannot be redeemed for cash."

Who most needs to know this: anyone who has just turned 65 this year, or who is watching an account balance on a parent's behalf.

How is the $8,000 accumulation limit calculated?

It is not "two years and it expires". It is "the total is added up on 1 January each year, and it cannot exceed the limit". Immediately after the paragraph on the amount, the "Eligible Elderly Persons and Annual Voucher Amount" page prints this restriction:

Any unused voucher amount can be retained for use in the following years. There is no restriction on the number of years that an elderly person may carry forward the unspent voucher amount, but the cumulated amount of vouchers in the voucher account of each eligible elderly person as at 1 January every year (i.e. the sum of the voucher amount received on 1 January for the year plus the total unspent voucher amount carried forward from previous years) cannot exceed the accumulation limit of vouchers for the year.

⚠️ "No restriction on the number of years" and "the cumulated total has a ceiling" are two different things, and have to be read together. Unused vouchers do not lapse simply because a year has passed; but at the moment of 1 January, the old balance plus the new year's $2,000 together cannot be above the limit then in force.

The "Restrictions in Using Health Care Vouchers" page puts the same point in different words and prints the date on which the limit took effect:

The unspent voucher amount can be carried forward and accumulated by an eligible elderly person. There is no restriction on the number of years that an elderly person may carry forward the unspent voucher amount but it cannot exceed the accumulation limit*.
(* With effect from 26 June 2019, the accumulation limit has been increased to $8,000.)

From $250 to $2,000: how did the amount get to where it is?

The scheme began in 2009 at $250 a year, and the amount was later raised and the age eligibility relaxed. The introduction to that page states "The annual voucher amount and the accumulation limit of vouchers for each eligible elderly person are listed as follows:", and the table below reproduces it row by row:

The annual voucher amount and the accumulation limit of vouchers for each eligible elderly person. Source: Elderly Health Care Voucher Scheme, "Health Care Voucher - Eligible Elderly Persons and Annual Voucher Amount": https://www.hcv.gov.hk/en/hcvs/service_area.html (Last updated: 2026-09-08). Notes (1) to (3) are the page's own notes.
YearAnnual voucher amountAccumulation limit of vouchers
2009$250-
2010$250-
2011$250-
2012$500-
2013$1,000-
2014$2,000 Note(1)$3,000 (from 1 January to 6 June 2014) / $4,000 (starting from 7 June 2014)
2015$2,000$4,000
2016$2,000$4,000
2017$2,000 Note(2)$4,000
2018$3,000 Note(3)$4,000 (from 1 January to 7 June 2018) / $5,000 (starting from 8 June 2018)
2019$3,000 Note(3)$5,000 (from 1 January to 25 June 2019) / $8,000 (starting from 26 June 2019)
2020 and onwards$2,000$8,000

The page carries three notes, reproduced as printed:

Note:
(1) In 2014, the voucher amount of $1,000 was deposited in the voucher account of each eligible elderly person on 1 January and an additional $1,000 worth of vouchers was deposited in their account on 7 June.
(2) For elderly persons aged 65 to 69 in 2017, the voucher amount of $2,000 was deposited in their voucher accounts starting from 1 July 2017.
(3) In 2018 and 2019, the annual voucher amount of $2,000 was deposited in the voucher account of each eligible elderly person on 1 January and an additional, one-off $1,000 worth of vouchers was deposited in their account on 8 June 2018 and 26 June 2019 respectively.

The regular amount and one-off issues have to be kept apart. The table shows $3,000 for 2018 and 2019, of which $1,000 was a one-off additional amount. The regular annual amount of $2,000 has been maintained since it was raised in 2014, and the table's annual amount from 2020 onwards is also $2,000.

When was the line drawn at 65? The entry for 15 June 2017 on the scheme's "Milestone" page states:

The present eligibility age for the Scheme will be lowered from 70 to 65 with effect from 1 July 2017. Elders aged 65 to 69 in 2017 and holding a valid Hong Kong Identity Card or Certificate of Exemption issued by the Immigration Department can make use of the vouchers starting from 1 July 2017 to settle the fees of primary care services provided by participating healthcare service providers.

Who most needs to know this: anyone wondering whether the amount has ever been raised, and anyone who needs to cite this history.

What can vouchers be used for, and what not?

The "Restrictions in Using Health Care Vouchers" page prints it in two columns. The column of what they can be used for, as printed:

services provided by medical practitioners, Chinese medicine practitioners, dentists, chiropractors, registered nurses and enrolled nurses, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, radiographers, medical laboratory technologists (the use of services provided by allied health professionals and laboratory test services is subject to the current referral arrangement) and optometrists (in Part I of the register) who have registered in Hong Kong and enrolled in the scheme, as well as audiologists, dietitians, clinical psychologists and speech therapists registered with the relevant healthcare professional body accredited under the Accredited Registers Scheme for Healthcare Professions of the Government who have enrolled in the scheme;
services of District Health Centres and District Health Centre Expresses;
designated outpatient healthcare services at the University of Hong Kong - Shenzhen Hospital/designated Health Centre of the University of Hong Kong – Shenzhen Hospital ( Details );

After that entry the column names the Greater Bay Area pilot medical institutions one by one, the last line being "designated outpatient healthcare services at the departments of Peking University Shenzhen Hospital ( Details )." The column closes with "(including preventive, curative and rehabilitative healthcare services)".

The column of what they cannot be used for, reproduced in full:

employing staff or solely purchasing products such as medication, spectacles, dried seafood, personal care products, food products or medical equipment;
public healthcare services subsidised by the Government, including healthcare services which the Hospital Authority purchases from the private sector (e.g. the General Outpatient Clinic Public-Private Partnership Programme), unless otherwise specified;
inpatient services, pre-paid healthcare services and day surgery procedures, such as cataract surgery or endoscopy services; and
settling the fees of healthcare services provided by service providers who have not enrolled in the Scheme.

⚠️ "Solely buying spectacles" and "seeing an optometrist" are two different things. Spectacles themselves are listed in the column of what vouchers cannot be used for; services provided by an optometrist can be paid for with vouchers, but the voucher amount that can be spent on optometry services has a separate cap. See the next section.

The $2,000 optometry cap: how are the two years counted?

The voucher amount that can be spent on optometry services is capped at $2,000 every two years. The "Restrictions in Using Health Care Vouchers" page, as printed:

Starting from 26 June 2019, a cap of $2,000 every two years on the voucher amount that can be spent on optometry services has been introduced to encourage elderly persons to use the vouchers on different primary healthcare services. For elderly persons who were eligible to use vouchers in 2019 (i.e. those born in 1954 or before), the first cycle ran from 26 June 2019 to 31 December 2020 (i.e. the capping amount was still $2,000 despite the first cycle being less than two years), while the second cycle runs from 1 January 2021 to 31 December 2022, and so on. For elderly persons born in 1955 or after, the relevant cycle is counted from 1 January of the year in which they become eligible to use vouchers.

In other words, the "two years" are not the two years from the day you last saw an optometrist. They are fixed cycles set by year of birth: for those born in 1954 or before, the first cycle ran from 26 June 2019 to 31 December 2020 (the page states that the cap was still $2,000 despite that first cycle being less than two years), the second cycle runs from 1 January 2021 to 31 December 2022, and so on; for those born in 1955 or after, the cycle is counted from 1 January of the year in which they become eligible.

Apart from that, there is no cap on a single use, but it cannot exceed the fee itself. The same page, as printed:

Save for the above, there is no limit on the voucher amount that can be used each time of receiving healthcare service but the total voucher amount used by a voucher recipient to settle the fee for healthcare service received should not exceed the amount of fee for that service.

Who most needs to know this: elderly persons planning to get spectacles or an eye examination, and their families.

Sharing vouchers with a spouse: how does it actually work?

Two elderly persons who meet the year-and-identity eligibility above and are in a spousal relationship can, upon mutual consent, pair up their accounts, so that when one party's balance is exhausted the other's can be used. The "Shared Use of Vouchers between Spouses" page, as printed:

The Elderly Health Care Voucher Scheme (EHVS) now allows shared use of Health Care Vouchers (Vouchers) between two eligible Note 1 elderly persons in spousal relationship Note 2 upon their mutual consent and completion of procedures to pair up their eHealth (Subsidies) Accounts (Voucher accounts). Prior application is not required. Once your Voucher accounts are paired up through a one-time registration, either party can, upon exhaustion of your Voucher account balance, use the Voucher balance in your spouse's account.

Sharing a balance is not the same as sharing the optometry quota. Questions 30 and 31 of the voucher-recipient FAQs explain that the two-year optometry quota belongs to the individual and cannot be merged or shared with a spouse; even where payment is made with a spouse's voucher balance, it remains subject to the elderly person's own remaining optometry quota. Question 19 separately explains that an unused optometry quota lapses at the end of each two-year cycle and is not carried forward to the next; this differs from a general voucher balance, which can be accumulated subject to the limit.

"Spousal relationship" has a defined meaning. Note 2 on the same page, as printed:

For the purpose of EHVS, two Voucher Recipients are in a spousal relationship if they are married under monogamous marriage to one another as recognised by the laws of Hong Kong. "Monogamous marriage" means a marriage which was —
if it took place in Hong Kong —
celebrated or contracted in accordance with the provisions of the Marriage Ordinance (Chapter 181 of the laws of Hong Kong);
a modern marriage validated by section 8 of the Marriage Reform Ordinance (Chapter 178 of the laws of Hong Kong) and registered under Part IV of that Ordinance; or
if it took place outside Hong Kong, celebrated or contracted in accordance with the law in force at the time and in the place where the marriage was performed and recognised by such law as involving the voluntary union for life of one man and one woman to the exclusion of all others.

How do you pair up, and what do you bring? The same page, as printed:

You and your spouse are not required to apply for account pairing in advance. When either of you need to use Vouchers to pay healthcare service fees, you only need to attend the practice of a healthcare service provider together in person Note 5 and request for a one-time pairing of your Voucher accounts, and your accounts will be paired up immediately in the system.

Both of you are required to produce your valid HKICs or CoE(s) to the healthcare service provider when you request to pair up your accounts. You should also declare your spousal relationship and give your consent to share use of vouchers. The healthcare service provider will then pair up your Voucher accounts in the system. (Elderly couples are not required to produce documents in support of their spousal relationship at the time of account pairing. You will receive a direct request from the Government to provide supporting documents for verification when necessary.)

Once your accounts are paired up, upon exhaustion of your or your spouse's Voucher account balance, either of you can use the Voucher balance in the other's account. Whenever your spouse's Vouchers are used, you are required to produce a copy of his/her latest HKIC (or CoE, if applicable) to the healthcare service provider for verification.

What if one party cannot attend? The same page sets out a written route:

If your spouse is unable to pair up Voucher accounts at the practice of a healthcare service provider with you in person due to exceptional circumstances such as immobility or bedriddenness, etc., you and your spouse may download a " Consent of Sharing Health Care Vouchers between Voucher Recipients in Spousal Relationship " (Shared Use Consent) available at the EHVS website (www.hcv.gov.hk) and fill it in to declare your spousal relationship and give consent to share use of Vouchers. When you attend the practice of a healthcare service provider to receive healthcare services, you should bring along the Shared Use Consent duly completed and signed by both of you and a copy of the HKIC (or a CoE (if applicable)) of your spouse, who is unable to attend in person, for pairing up your Voucher accounts. Notification of successful pairing of your accounts will be sent by SMS to the mobile phone number(s) provided by both of you in the Shared Use Consent.

⚠️ After a spouse dies, the balance is not transferred. The same page, as printed: "When a spouse passes away, the voucher account balance of the deceased will not be transferred to the voucher account of the surviving spouse." The same page also states that the Department of Health has established monitoring and audit mechanisms, and states: "Any person found to have made false declaration about a spousal relationship or to have used the deceased's voucher account balance with identity document of the deceased shall be subject to serious follow-up action by the Department and referral to law enforcement agencies for investigation. Such acts may constitute criminal offences including fraud, and the individuals involved shall bear criminal liability and may face imprisonment upon conviction."

When did this arrangement start? The entry for 24 July 2023 on the scheme's "Milestone" page states that "With effect from 28 July 2023" elderly persons can share use their vouchers. The written reply of 6 May 2026 by the Secretary for Health, Professor Lo Chung-mau, to a question by the Hon Wong Kam-fai says that "the government allowed shared use of EHCVs between spouses in July 2023".

How many people use it? The same written reply of 6 May 2026 states:

As at end December 2025, over 178 000 elderly couples (representing approximately 356 000 elderly persons) have registered to pair up their EHCV accounts. During the same period, there were over 670 000 EHCV claim transactions related to shared use of vouchers, involving a total claimed amount at approximately $410 million.

The same reply also sets out the results of monitoring: as at end December 2025, the Department of Health "has identified about 383 cases involving the suspected use of deceased spouse's EHCVs that required further follow-up through the monitoring mechanism. These cases involved 524 transactions, accounting for about 0.08 per cent of the total EHCV transactions in paired EHCV accounts"; of these, 351 cases have been referred to the police, while the remaining "32 cases are still under preliminary investigation and verification by the DH". The same paragraph then states the actual outcome: "During the same period, the DH has recorded one case of successful prosecution involving a voucher recipient who was charged with fraud for using the EHCVs of the deceased spouse, resulting in a fine and a suspended prison sentence." In addition, "as at end April 2026, the DH identified 31 cases where healthcare service providers violated the terms and conditions of the EHVS agreement concerning the arrangements for shared use of EHCVs between spouses".

Who most needs to know this: households where one spouse uses a lot and the other uses little.

When does the Pilot Reward Scheme end?

The scheme page, question 39 of the voucher-recipient FAQs and paragraph 248 of the 2026-27 Budget all announce that the reward scheme is extended to the end of 2028. The scheme page states that its objective is to encourage eligible elderly persons to use specific primary healthcare services such as preventive care and chronic disease management.

Once an elderly person has accumulated Voucher spending of $1,000 or above on designated PHC services within the same year, the eHealth System (Subsidies) will automatically allot $500 reward to his/her Voucher account.

The Elderly Health Care Voucher Pilot Reward Scheme ("Pilot Reward Scheme") was launched in 2023, initially for a period of three years. In February 2026, it was announced that the Pilot Reward Scheme will be extended for two years until 31 December 2028. An elderly person can be allotted the reward once each year at most; and may therefore obtain $2,500 reward at most over the term of the Pilot Reward Scheme, i.e. from 2024 to 2028.

This site's note: the "Highlights" pages of the Greater Bay Area Pilot Scheme and of the University of Hong Kong – Shenzhen Hospital scheme still carry the original wording running to the end of 2026 with a maximum of $1,500, and do not reflect the extension described above. This article relies on the extension as explicitly announced on the scheme page, in the FAQs and in the Budget; that reading is not based on how often a particular version appears across the website, and it does not imply that every page on the website has been compared.

How is the reward counted, and by when must it be used? The "Reward allotment mechanism" table on the scheme page sets it out by year: for the 2026 reward year the accumulation period is 1 January 2026 to 31 December 2026 and the period for using the reward is 1 January 2026 to 31 December 2027; for the 2027 reward year the accumulation period is 1 January 2027 to 31 December 2027 and the period for using the reward is 1 January 2027 to 31 December 2028; for the 2028 reward year the accumulation period is 1 January 2028 to 31 December 2028 and the period for using the reward is 1 January 2028 to 31 December 2029. The notes printed below the table include, as printed:

Only the Voucher amount used within the same year will count towards the accumulated amount. Accumulated Voucher spending will be reset to zero at the start of each year (normally 1 January), and any previously accumulated amount will lapse on that day.

The reward will expire by the end of the following year. Unused reward cannot be accumulated and will lapse after the expiry date.

According to the "user accumulates" principle, if an elderly person uses his/her spouse's Vouchers to pay for designated PHC services, the amount spent will only be recorded as his/her own accumulated Voucher spending instead of his/her spouse's.

Shared use of reward between spouses is not allowed.

⚠️ The reward cannot be shared with a spouse, but money paid with a spouse's vouchers counts towards your own accumulated amount. These two sentences are two lines of notes on the same page, and have to be read together.

Who most needs to know this: elderly persons and their families who want to know whether they will get this year's $500, or who have a reward in hand that has not been used.

What did the 2026-27 Budget say about vouchers?

What paragraph 248 of the Budget announces is the extension of the reward scheme; that paragraph does not adjust the annual voucher amount or the accumulation limit. As printed:

  1. The Elderly Health Care Voucher Pilot Reward Scheme will be extended by two years until end‑2028. Elderly persons who have accumulated voucher spending of $1,000 or above within the same year on specific primary healthcare services such as examination and chronic disease management will have a $500 voucher reward. The measure will involve an additional expenditure of about $1 billion.

The Pilot Reward Scheme and the annual voucher amount are handled separately. That paragraph 248 of the Budget does not propose an adjustment to the $2,000 or the $8,000 is not a commitment about future policy; for the current amounts, see the scheme's "Eligible Elderly Persons and Annual Voucher Amount" page.

In his opening remarks at the Budget press conference, the Financial Secretary listed the extension of the reward scheme among the support measures. This passage exists only in Chinese; the Government's English-language release of the press conference carries only the English-language portion of the proceedings and notes "(Please also refer to the Chinese portion of the remarks.)" The following is this site's translation of the Chinese text, not the Government's own English:

Second: supporting members of the public and small and medium enterprises. The Hong Kong economy is making steady progress, but in the course of transformation and development there is still imbalance and inadequacy, and some members of the public and businesses still face considerable challenges. As the fiscal position has improved, while upholding the principle of prudent financial management, we are supporting the public and SMEs within our means, including one-off support measures, as well as raising the basic allowance and the allowances for maintaining parents and children, and extending the Elderly Health Care Voucher Pilot Reward Scheme. The sum involved in these support measures is close to $22 billion — this sweetener is 1.8 times more than last year's $7.8 billion.

Has anyone asked the Government to increase the amount? What did the Government say?

The minutes of the Legislative Council Finance Committee meeting of 26 February 2026 on the Budget record a Member asking for the voucher amount to be increased, and the Financial Secretary's response. The exchange below appears on printed pages 25 to 26 of those minutes.

The verbatim record of proceedings is in Appendix 2 to the minutes, and it is printed in Chinese only in both the Chinese and the English editions of the minutes; the meeting was conducted in Cantonese and the Government has published no English text of this exchange. The two passages below are therefore this site's translation, not the Legislative Council's own English.

The question by the Hon Chan Hoi-yan (page 25), in this site's translation:

On the Elderly Health Care Voucher, I would like to ask the Financial Secretary: primary healthcare services are now being rolled out by the Government in the hope of early prevention, so as to avoid serious illness later on and a heavier burden on government expenditure. But why, from 2014 to now in 2026, has the Elderly Health Care Voucher remained at $2,000? Public sector charges have more than doubled, yet for the Elderly Health Care Voucher there is only the reward scheme, extended by two years. Since vouchers can help drive the development of primary healthcare services and can address the imbalance between the public and private healthcare sectors, even if it is not increased by $1,000 it should be increased by $500; that would let elderly persons feel there is a bit more support when they see a doctor. Moreover, if you look at the "trial arrangement of medical subsidy" under the "Guangdong Residential Care Services Scheme" in paragraph 237 of the Budget, you will see the contrast: $10,000 per person a year for outpatient fees and $30,000 for inpatient fees, yet for elderly persons in Hong Kong it has stayed at $2,000 for 22 years. Could the Financial Secretary be a little more generous on this?

This site's note: the regular annual amount has been $2,000 since 2014, with a further one-off $1,000 in 2018 and in 2019. The Member's question about the regular amount is therefore not in conflict with those two one-off additional issues. However, "22 years" in the same passage does not match the timeline of a scheme that began in 2009 at $250 that year; the quotation above preserves the Member's own words.

The Financial Secretary's reply (page 26), in this site's translation:

Financial Secretary: Thank you, Chairman, and thank you, Ms Chan Hoi-yan. Ms Chan Hoi-yan, as you know, even though the Health Bureau recently made some adjustments to healthcare charges, the Government's commitment in public healthcare is still more than 90 per cent. That is the first point.

Second, on the Elderly Health Care Voucher: this year we are providing an extra month's payment for the Old Age Living Allowance and the various other allowances (including CSSA for grassroots friends). In fact, the extra month of the Old Age Living Allowance (timer sounds) goes well beyond the mere $1,000 increase in vouchers that was just mentioned. What I mean is, as I have said a number of times, our fiscal position has recently been relatively good, but the resources are only so much, and we have to respond on many different fronts — what kind of coverage would let more people benefit? In making the trade-offs, we chose to make bigger adjustments in areas such as allowances, so that more people can benefit. Providing an extra month across the various allowances may be more effective than breaking it up and increasing the amount for individual areas on their own. I would also like members of the public to note that, for elderly persons, receiving an extra month of this kind of allowance will, I hope, be of some help to them too.

⚠️ After this reply the Chairman immediately called the next Member, and there was no further reply on vouchers at that meeting. The words "Elderly Health Care Voucher" appear in that 47-page set of minutes only on printed pages 25 and 26.

This response is about the allocation of resources in that Budget. Pages 25 to 26 of the minutes contain no commitment to increase or to freeze the amount in future, and this article draws no inference about future arrangements from them.

Does a proposal to increase the amount mean it has been implemented?

A question, a proposal and an implemented policy are three different things. The Legislative Council minutes in the previous section record a Member asking for the voucher amount to be increased; the annual amount set out on the scheme's "Eligible Elderly Persons and Annual Voucher Amount" page is still $2,000, with an accumulation limit of $8,000. This article states only the rules that have been announced, and does not treat any proposal for an increase as a settled arrangement.

Can vouchers be used in the Greater Bay Area? On what conditions?

Under the Elderly Health Care Voucher Greater Bay Area Pilot Scheme, eligible elderly persons can use vouchers to pay for outpatient healthcare fees at designated departments of designated medical institutions in the Mainland cities of the Greater Bay Area. The Government press release of 18 August 2025 states:

The Government announced today (August 18) that the Elderly Health Care Voucher Greater Bay Area Pilot Scheme (Pilot Scheme) will be further extended this month to three Mainland cities of the Greater Bay Area (GBA), namely Jiangmen, Huizhou and Zhaoqing, achieving full coverage of the nine Mainland cities in the GBA. Additionally, two new service points will open in Shenzhen. Eligible Hong Kong elderly persons will be able to use Elderly Health Care Vouchers (EHCVs) to pay for outpatient healthcare services at designated departments at these five additional service points within this month.

The written reply of 25 February 2026 by the Secretary for Health, Professor Lo Chung-mau, to a question by the Hon Chan Wing-kwong states the number of service points:

Together with the two existing service points operated by the University of Hong Kong-Shenzhen Hospital (HKU-SZH), eligible elderly persons can use EHCVs at a total of 21 service points in the Mainland cities of the GBA, providing them with more healthcare options and sparing them the burden of lengthy journeys, thereby enhancing their sense of well-being.

The same reply also sets out the usage:

As at end-January 2026, over 32 200 eligible elderly persons have used EHCVs to pay for the fees of outpatient healthcare services received at medical institutions under the EHCV GBA Pilot Scheme, involving 74 956 voucher claim transactions and a total claimed amount at approximately HK$79.56 million. Since the launch of the EHCV GBA Pilot Scheme, the utilisation rate of EHCVs in the pilot medical institutions has been rising steadily. The major service types for using the EHCVs are "Follow up / Monitoring of Long Term Conditions" (53 per cent) and "Preventive" (23 per cent).

⚠️ The same reply states that the scheme is still at an early stage: "The EHCV GBA Pilot Scheme is still in its initial operation period and some of the pilot medical institutions have operated for less than half year, the Government will continue to assess and monitor the operation and usage of EHCVs in the pilot medical institutions and review the effectiveness of the EHCV GBA Pilot Scheme in due course before studying further arrangements".

Condition one: you must join eHealth first. The press release of 27 June 2024 states:

Moreover, also starting from tomorrow, Hong Kong elderly persons using EHCVs at medical institutions in the GBA have to register with eHealth. The relevant arrangements apply to the HKU-SZ Hospital, Huawei Li Zhi Yuan CHC, the FAH-SYSU, and the remaining six pilot medical institutions that will launch relevant arrangements under the Pilot Scheme in future.

The scheme's "Highlights" page also states: "They will need to provide consent to join Electronic Health System ("eHealth") (if not already) before they could use vouchers outside Hong Kong." The release of 18 August 2025 states what happens on the spot for someone who has not joined: "If elderly persons wish to use EHCVs at the GBA medical institutions but have not yet registered with eHealth, the medical institutions will instantly register them for eHealth upon their consent so that they can use EHCVs right away."

Condition two: vouchers cannot be used together with national medical insurance, and the scope of use is the same as in Hong Kong. The release of 18 August 2025 quotes a Government spokesman:

"Elderly persons cannot use EHCVs together with national medical insurance to pay for the fees of the same healthcare service encounter. The scope of using EHCVs on the Mainland is the same as that in Hong Kong, which does not include inpatient services, prepaid healthcare services and day surgery procedures. EHCVs cannot be used solely for the purchase of goods, medication, medical equipment or products, nor can they be redeemed for cash," the Government spokesman reminded.

Condition three: fees are settled in Renminbi, and Hong Kong dollars are deducted at a monthly conversion factor. The scheme's "Highlights" page, as printed:

The voucher conversion factor is updated by the HKSARG on a monthly basis and displayed at the designated Shroff Office(s) of the pilot medical institutions for elderly persons' reference.
The monthly voucher conversion factor is calculated based on the average exchange rates of RMB to HKD quoted by the Hong Kong Association of Banks of five working days counting backwards from the last 4th working date of the previous month. The average of the buying and selling exchange rates of RMB to HKD of these five days will then be rounded to three decimal places (For example, 1:1.227).

Doing the arithmetic (the example is printed by the page itself, and is reproduced here as printed):

Example 2: Assuming a voucher conversion factor of 1:1.255 on the consultation day and a service fee of RMB¥500, if an elder chooses to pay RMB¥300 of the fee by vouchers and settle the rest of the fee of RMB¥200 by cash, the voucher amount to be deducted from the elder's voucher account will be HK$377.
(i.e. RMB¥300 x 1.255 = HK$376.5, rounded to the nearest dollar is HK$377)

⚠️ eConsent does not apply in the Greater Bay Area. Note 3 on the "Shared Use of Vouchers between Spouses" page, as printed: "eConsent is not available under the Scheme at the University of Hong Kong – Shenzhen Hospital and the Elderly Health Care Voucher Greater Bay Area Pilot Scheme."

Who most needs to know this: elderly persons who live on the Mainland or travel there often, and the families who arrange their medical appointments.

Does this article cover the forthcoming Policy Address?

This article covers only the current voucher rules, and makes no prediction about policy that has not been announced. The Government's press release of 26 August 2026 announced that the 2026 Policy Address is scheduled for 16 September; that release does not say whether the voucher amount or the limit will change. This scope limit is not an inference about any policy direction.

Common questions

  • I turn 65 in 2026 — do I have to wait for my birthday to use vouchers? Question 9 of the voucher-recipient FAQs states that vouchers are provided for use from the year in which you reach 65; the conditions on a valid identity document and permission to remain still apply. On first use, an enrolled service provider creates the account.
  • How much do I get each year, and does an unused amount expire? $2,000 a year. Unused amounts can be retained for later years, but on 1 January each year the total, including the new amount issued, is subject to the limit of $8,000.
  • Was the $3,000 in 2018 and 2019 a permanent increase? No. Note (3) to the scheme's amount table states that each of those two years carried a one-off additional $1,000; the regular annual amount is $2,000.
  • Does the reward scheme end at the end of 2026 or the end of 2028? The scheme page, question 39 of the voucher-recipient FAQs and paragraph 248 of the Budget have announced the extension to the end of 2028. The 2028 reward can be used until 31 December 2029, which does not mean there is a further 2029 reward year.
  • Does sharing with a spouse include the $500 reward? No. The reward cannot be shared; where a spouse's vouchers are used to pay for designated services, the accumulated amount is recorded against the person who received the service.
  • If my spouse dies, is the balance transferred? The "Shared Use of Vouchers between Spouses" page states that the balance is not transferred, and sets out the legal risks of claiming vouchers using a deceased spouse's identity document.

Related article: 〈How do you get the $500 voucher reward?〉

What this article covers

  • This article makes no prediction about policy that has not been announced; the press release of 26 August 2026 announcing the date of the Policy Address does not say whether the voucher amount or the limit will be adjusted.
  • This article is not a complete directory of the designated Greater Bay Area institutions and departments. The 21 service points is the figure given in the Legislative Council reply of 25 February 2026, and does not mean that every service at every institution can be paid for with vouchers.
  • The four pages cited in this article — eligibility, restrictions on use, account creation and shared use between spouses — are not a price list for healthcare services; this article does not set out the actual fees for any individual service, and does not provide individual medical or legal advice.
  • This is the English edition. The Traditional Chinese edition is the authoritative version of this article. Quotations above are reproduced from the official English text published by the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, not translated by this site, except where the surrounding text says plainly that a passage is this site's translation: the Financial Secretary's opening remarks at the Budget press conference and the exchange on pages 25 to 26 of the Finance Committee minutes exist in Chinese only.

Sources