Hong Kong insurance FAQ

The Insurance Authority (IA). It took over supervision of insurers from the former Office of the Commissioner of Insurance on 26 June 2017 and began licensing insurance intermediaries directly on 23 September 2019. Banks that sell insurance do so as licensed insurance agencies and must follow IA rules; the Hong Kong Monetary Authority supervises them as banks. Readers can check insurers and intermediaries on the IA's two public registers before buying.

Yes. Under IA Guideline GL29, life policies have a cooling-off period of 21 calendar days, starting from delivery of the policy or issue of the cooling-off notice, whichever is earlier. Cancelling in writing within that period returns the premiums and levy paid, although investment-linked policies may be subject to a market value adjustment. VHIS certified plans also carry a 21-day cooling-off period. After it ends, only the surrender value is payable.

Not by a dedicated scheme at present. The government consulted on a Policy Holders' Protection Scheme from 30 December 2022 to 31 March 2023 and published consultation conclusions on 28 December 2023, but as at October 2026 the legislative amendments are still being drafted and no timetable has been published. Current protection rests on IA capital and solvency supervision and on participating fund governance rules such as GL34.

In most cases it is a participating whole life or endowment policy: a guaranteed cash value plus non-guaranteed bonuses paid from a participating fund. It is an insurance contract, not a deposit or a fund. The IA notes that the final payout may be higher or lower than the benefit illustration, and that early surrender of whole life cover can return far less than the premiums paid.

The Voluntary Health Insurance Scheme, fully launched on 1 April 2019, sets minimum standards for individual hospital insurance. Certified plans must offer guaranteed renewal up to age 100 regardless of health changes, have no lifetime benefit limit, and cover unknown pre-existing conditions at 25% in the second policy year, 50% in the third and 100% thereafter. Premium schedules are published on the VHIS website.

A qualifying deferred annuity policy is issued by a private insurer and certified by the IA; it requires total premiums of at least HK$180,000, a premium term of at least five years, annuity payments starting at age 50 or later and lasting at least 10 years, and its premiums are tax deductible in Hong Kong. The HKMC Annuity Plan is a lifetime immediate annuity for permanent residents aged 60 or above, with payouts totalling at least 105% of the premium and no tax deduction.

No. The IA states that the entire sales process for a policy issued by a Hong Kong insurer must take place in Hong Kong and that all relevant documents must be signed in person in Hong Kong. Holders of a PRC resident identity card must also sign the Important Facts Statement for Mainland Policyholders (IFS-MP), mandatory since 1 September 2016, which reminds them of the factors and risks to consider when taking out a long term policy in Hong Kong.

According to published guidance from the State Administration of Foreign Exchange (Mainland China), individuals may not use purchased foreign exchange to buy overseas life insurance or investment-type participating insurance, which remains an unopened capital account item. The same guidance states that bonuses or interest from such policies bought overseas, including in Hong Kong, cannot be remitted into a domestic account. Media reports in February 2016 also described a US$5,000 limit on Mainland bank cards buying insurance overseas. This site does not provide guidance on moving funds.

Cash value insurance contracts and annuity contracts are reportable financial accounts under Hong Kong's Common Reporting Standard, and Mainland China has been a reportable jurisdiction since 1 July 2017, with first exchanges from 2018, according to the Inland Revenue Department. Whether a policy is reported depends on the holder's declared tax residence. Mainland tax treatment of policy bonuses and surrender gains is not specifically defined in published rules, so obtain professional tax advice.

Generally not. The VHIS deduction of up to HK$8,000 per insured person, and the combined deduction of up to HK$60,000 a year for qualifying annuity premiums and tax-deductible MPF voluntary contributions, are claimed against Hong Kong salaries tax or personal assessment. Mainland residents may still buy certified products, but whether a deduction applies depends on their Hong Kong tax position. Hong Kong offers no deduction for life insurance premiums.

It is the ratio of non-guaranteed bonuses actually declared to the amounts illustrated at the point of sale. Under the IA's GL16 interpretation notes, effective 1 January 2024, insurers publish it, policy year by policy year and updated at least annually, for product series that have issued new policies since 2010, with annual, reversionary and terminal bonuses shown separately. A ratio of 100% means the illustration was met; it is historical and not a rate of return.

No. From 1 July 2025 the IA caps the customer IRR shown in point-of-sale illustrations of participating policies at 6.0% a year for HKD policies and 6.5% for non-HKD policies, across all premium modes and scenarios. The cap governs what may be illustrated; it does not directly change the investment returns of the participating fund or the bonuses an insurer later declares.

Policies with cash value usually allow borrowing up to a percentage of net cash value, at an interest rate set and revised by the insurer. Unpaid loans and interest are deducted from surrender or claim payments. If the outstanding loan and interest exceed the borrowing limit, the policy may terminate, and the amount recovered can be far below premiums paid. Automatic premium loans after the grace period follow the same logic.

Since 1 January 2023 insurers must apply IA supervisory standards when customers borrow to pay premiums. These require an affordability assessment, checks against over-leverage, and an Important Facts Statement on premium financing signed before the policy is issued. The HKMA warns that rising interest rates may cause financial loss and that non-guaranteed benefits may be lower than illustrated. Financing does not reduce the uncertainty of non-guaranteed benefits.

Ask the insurer for written reasons and the policy terms relied on, then request a review. If you remain dissatisfied, you can complain to the Insurance Complaints Bureau within six months of the insurer's final decision. The ICB handles individual policy disputes of up to HK$1.5 million, free of charge, including complaints from non-residents where the insurer is a member; average handling time is about four to six months.

No. Estate duty was abolished for deaths on or after 11 February 2006, and no estate duty affidavits or accounts need to be filed for those cases, according to the Inland Revenue Department. Death benefits are paid to the nominated beneficiaries; where there is no valid nomination, the proceeds may need to pass through probate. Inheritance and tax rules in Mainland China or elsewhere apply separately, so take advice in the relevant jurisdiction.