Can New Immigrants Apply for Public Housing and HOS in Hong Kong?
If you have recently moved to Hong Kong, housing is almost certainly one of your biggest questions. Rents in the private market are high, so many new arrivals wonder whether they can get help from the government through public rental housing (公屋, or PRH) or the Home Ownership Scheme (居屋, or HOS), the two main forms of subsidised housing managed by the Hong Kong Housing Authority.
The short answer is: as a main applicant, most new immigrants cannot apply until they have lived in Hong Kong for at least seven years. However, the full picture is more nuanced. You may be able to join a family application led by an eligible member, and there are steps you can take now to prepare for the day you become eligible. This guide explains the 7-year residence rule, the income and asset limits, the White Form and Green Form channels for HOS, and answers the most common questions from new arrivals.
Can New Immigrants Apply for Public Housing (公屋)?
The Housing Authority states that an applicant for public rental housing must have resided in Hong Kong for at least seven years at the time of application and must still be living in Hong Kong. This is the famous "7-year residence rule" that applies to the main applicant and the majority of family members on the application form.
A new immigrant who has not yet completed seven years of residence in Hong Kong generally cannot be the main applicant for public housing. There is one important exception in practice: if a family member — for example a spouse or a parent — has already satisfied the seven-year requirement, the new arrival can be included as a family member on that eligible person's application. The seven-year requirement applies to the household as a whole, not to every single individual in it, so family-based applications are often the most realistic route for new immigrants.
The 7-Year Residence Rule Explained
The rule is set out in the Housing Authority's application guide for public rental housing. To qualify as a main applicant, you must be aged 18 or above, have lived in Hong Kong for at least seven years, and still be living in Hong Kong at the point of application and flat allocation.
The same seven-year threshold effectively underlies the definition of Hong Kong permanent residency under the Immigration Ordinance, which is the status that new immigrants normally acquire after seven years of continuous ordinary residence. This matters because permanent residency is a hard requirement for buying subsidised flats under the Home Ownership Scheme's White Form channel, as we explain below.
It is worth noting that time spent in Hong Kong before your formal immigration status was settled generally still counts toward the residence period, provided you were lawfully present. If you are unsure whether your time abroad affects your count, the Housing Authority's application guide and the 1823 enquiry hotline can give you a definitive answer for your situation.
Public Rental Housing Eligibility Criteria
Beyond the residence rule, applicants for public rental housing must meet a set of standard criteria set by the Hong Kong Housing Authority:
- Age: the main applicant must be 18 or above.
- Residence: at least seven years of residence in Hong Kong, with the applicant still living in Hong Kong.
- Income and assets: total household income and net assets must fall below the limits published for the current review year.
- Property ownership: the applicant and most family members must not own any domestic property in Hong Kong.
- Continuous residence: the "56-day rule" restricts applicants who have spent long periods away from Hong Kong in the past year.
Applications are assessed on the entire household, so a single high earner in the family can push the whole application over the income limit even if the main applicant earns little.
Income and Asset Limits for Public Rental Housing (2025/26)
The Housing Authority reviews income and asset limits every year, usually in April. For the 2025/26 review year, the limits for a one-person household were a monthly income of about HK$13,090 and net assets of about HK$295,000. The limits rise with household size, as shown in the table below:
| Household Size | Monthly Income Limit (HK$) | Total Net Asset Limit (HK$) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 person | 13,090 | 295,000 |
| 2 persons | 19,550 | 398,000 |
| 3 persons | 24,410 | 519,000 |
| 4 persons | 30,900 | 606,000 |
These figures are approximate and are reviewed annually, so always confirm the current limits on the Housing Authority's official website before applying. If you succeed, public housing rent is set with reference to household income and is generally far below private market rents, which is why demand is so high: the average waiting time for a general applicant was about 5.1 years as of the end of 2025, according to official figures.
The 56-Day Rule: A Trap for Frequent Travellers
New immigrants often travel back and forth to their home country, but long absences can hurt a public housing application. Under the Housing Authority's rules, if the applicant or any family member who has lived in Hong Kong for seven years has been away from Hong Kong for more than 56 days in the past 12 months, the application may be rejected or the offer of a flat may be deferred.
This rule catches many people by surprise, especially those who take extended holidays or care for relatives abroad. If you plan to apply for public housing, keep a careful record of your days in Hong Kong and avoid long trips in the 12 months before submission and allocation.
Can New Immigrants Apply for HOS (居屋)?
The Home Ownership Scheme sells flats at a discount to market value through the Housing Authority. There are two application channels: Green Form and White Form. The White Form channel is the one relevant to most new immigrants, and it has a hard requirement: applicants must be Hong Kong permanent residents, which in practice means they have completed the same seven years of residence.
In other words, a new immigrant who has not yet reached seven years of residence cannot apply for HOS under the White Form. There is no partial credit: the permanent residency certificate, or the seven years of residence behind it, is a pre-condition for every applicant aged 18 or above on the form. Family members who are not yet permanent residents may be included in the application, but the main applicant must satisfy the requirement.
White Form vs Green Form: Which One Applies to You?
The distinction between the two forms is simple to state but important to understand:
- Green Form: for public housing tenants (and a few other categories such as confirmed squatters). Green Form applicants buy HOS flats at a deeper discount and are not subject to income and asset limits.
- White Form: for everyone else, including households living in private rental housing. White Form applicants must be permanent residents and must meet income and asset limits, and they must not have owned a domestic property in Hong Kong in the 24 months before application.
For a new immigrant who is not a public housing tenant, the White Form is the only route — and it requires permanent residency. Once you are allocated a public housing flat, the Green Form route opens up, which is one reason many families aim for 公屋 first and 居屋 later.
HOS 2025 Income and Asset Limits (White Form)
For the HOS 2025 sales exercise, the White Form income and asset limits were set at HK$33,000 per month and HK$950,000 in assets for a one-person household, and double those figures for households of two or more people:
| Household Size | Monthly Income Limit (HK$) | Total Asset Limit (HK$) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 person | 33,000 | 950,000 |
| 2 or more persons | 66,000 | 1,900,000 |
These limits apply to each sales exercise and can change, so check the official HOS sales website when a new exercise is announced. White Form applicants who miss out on a new flat can also apply for the White Form Secondary Market Scheme (白居二), which lets them buy second-hand HOS flats from existing owners at market prices.
What New Immigrants Can Do While Building Up 7 Years of Residence
Waiting seven years sounds long, but there are practical steps you can take from day one:
- Join an eligible family application. If your spouse or parent has already lived in Hong Kong for seven years, you can be added as a family member to their public housing application immediately.
- Track your residence carefully. Keep records of your entries and exits so you can prove continuous residence and respect the 56-day rule.
- Prepare your documents. Identity documents, proof of income, and proof of residence will all be needed the moment you qualify.
- Watch the annual limit reviews. Income and asset limits change every April; a family that is over the limit one year may qualify the next.
- Plan the HOS path. If public housing allocation comes first, the Green Form route to 居屋 becomes available — often with a bigger discount than White Form buyers get.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a new immigrant with a Hong Kong permanent resident spouse apply for 公屋?
Yes. If your spouse has lived in Hong Kong for at least seven years, they can be the main applicant and you can be included as a family member. Your own years of residence are not counted, but they do not disqualify the application either.
Does the 7-year rule apply to every family member?
No. It applies to the main applicant and the majority of family members. Children born in Hong Kong, for example, may not need to satisfy the residence requirement, but the household as a whole must meet the Housing Authority's criteria.
Can I buy 居屋 if I am not yet a permanent resident?
Not as a White Form applicant. Permanent residency is a pre-condition for the main applicant. The only practical path before reaching seven years is to be included in a family member's application or to wait until you obtain permanent residency.
How long is the waiting time for public housing in 2026?
The average waiting time for general applicants was about 5.1 years as of late 2025, and the Housing Authority continues to build new flats to shorten it. Waiting times vary by district and household composition.
Where can I verify the latest income and asset limits?
Always check the official Hong Kong Housing Authority website and the HOS sales website, or call the 1823 government hotline. Figures in this article are for reference and are reviewed annually.
How to Apply and Where to Get Official Information
Public housing applications are submitted through the Housing Authority, and HOS applications through each sales exercise's dedicated website. The authoritative sources are the Hong Kong Housing Authority's official website and the 1823 enquiry hotline, which can confirm your personal eligibility before you submit anything.
For more practical guides on settling into Hong Kong — from rental tips to everyday life — browse the GCT Guide homepage, and bookmark this page as a starting point for your subsidised housing journey.