In response to a question in the Legislative Council, Hong Kong’s Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development confirmed that the Government will arrange continued support for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The numbers of SMEs and persons engaged in SMEs increased by 11 % and 5% respectively from June 2007 to June 2013.
The Government has been providing many types of support for SMEs. The SME Loan Guarantee Scheme (SGS) provides 50 percent loan guarantees for eligible SMEs to assist them in obtaining loans, including for the rental of office and retail shop space which is considered to be a necessary operating cost for a small business.
However, the Government considers that providing profits tax concessions to specific enterprises would deviate from the fairness principle of Hong Kong’s tax system. In any case, in the 2011-12 fiscal year, almost 90 %of registered corporations did not need not pay any tax. Only 94,900 corporations, accounting for 11 percent of registered corporations, paid profits tax.
