It is necessary to apply for a Temporary Hawker Licence (Fund-raising Activity) (THL) from the Department before selling goods in public places for fund-raising purpose. However, if a charitable institution of a public character which is exempt from tax has already been issued with a Public Subscription Permit by the Social Welfare Department (SWD) to organise fund-raising activities involving on-street selling, the Department may consider exempting it from obtaining a THL. The SWD will refer relevant cases and matters pertaining to the processing of the “Waiver of THL” to the Department. The Department will not consider any applications in connection with fund-raising activities for commercial or profit-making purposes. Therefore, only applications from the following organisations will be considered:
- charitable organizations exempted from tax under section 88 of the Inland Revenue Ordinance (Cap.112);
- non-charitable organisations incorporated/registered under the laws of Hong Kong (e.g. companies incorporated under the Companies Ordinance (Cap. 622));
- societies registered under the Societies Ordinance (Cap. 151); or
- trade unions registered under the Trade Unions Ordinance (Cap. 332).
Application form can be downloaded from our webpage at http://www.fehd.gov.hk/english/forms/fehb71.html.
Information on fund-raising activities in public places issued with THLs will be uploaded to the GovHK website.
The Government has promulgated the Good Practice Guide on Charitable Fund-raising (the Good Practice Guide) for voluntary compliance by the charitable organisations and for reference by the public.
The Good Practice Guide is drawn up with an aim to enhance transparency and public accountability of charitable fund-raising activities. It covers areas on donors' rights, fund-raising practices and financial accountability. The public may make use of it to measure against the practice of a charity in fund-raising.
Members of the public may download the Good Practice Guide here.
The Government encourages charitable organisations for adopting the Good Practice Guide on a voluntary basis.