A Personal Assessment (PA) is critical to saving tax for taxpayers who earn only rental income or sole proprietary business profits. By electing PA, taxpayers are entitled to claim personal allowances (self, married, child, dependents etc.) available automatically for salary earning taxpayers. To enjoy PA, you must be ordinarily residing in Hong Kong.
A holder of an HKID card is not automatically eligible to PA. IRD imposes a fact-finding principle by looking at where you ordinarily reside, and your social and economic ties with Hong Kong。
For example
- You emigrated overseas many years ago but still have rental income from a property in Hong Kong. You may come back to Hong Kong occasionally and stay here for a few days every year. You are not eligible for PA.
- You live outside of Hong Kong most of the time in a year but receive a rental income. If your spouse receives a salary living in Hong Kong throughout the year. You and your spouse are eligible to jointly elect PA. However, if your spouse does not earn any income, you are not eligible for a PA.