Hong Kong to expand public transport fare subsidy scheme to include AlipayHK users

Hong Kong’s 4.2 million active AlipayHK users will be eligible for the government’s transport subsidy from next year, joining Octopus card holders in the initiative.

The Transport Department announced the expansion on Thursday, almost six years after the Public Transport Fare Subsidy Scheme was launched in January 2019.

The scheme allows commuters to claim a 25 per cent refund on their public travel expenses that exceed HK$400 (US$51) every month. The subsidy is capped at HK$400 per month.

Currently, only Octopus users can be reimbursed by tapping their cards on the subsidy collection point machines installed at MTR stations.

From January 1, 2025, people using AlipayHK EasyGo or the QR code on the MTR Mobile application with AlipayHK as a payment source can collect the public transport fare subsidies as well.

AlipayHK is a payment app launched in 2017 by Ant Group. The company is an affiliate of Alibaba Group Holding, which owns the South China Morning Post.