Hong Kong’s mid-year birth rates fall below 30,000 for the first time despite HK$20k payouts for new parents

In the first instance since records began, Hong Kong recorded fewer than 30,000 births in the six months leading up to June 2025, despite the government’s HK$20,000 bonus payments to new parents. The Census and Statistics Department reported 29,709 babies were born between July 2023 and June 2025, a marked decline from the 59,863 births ten years earlier.

The city’s birth rate has been falling even as authorities have prioritized encouraging fertility. In 2023, the government introduced a baby bonus scheme that grants a HK$20,000 allowance to families with at least one Hong Kong permanent resident parent and a newborn born between October 2023 and October 2025. While the scheme initially boosted births, the latest figures show they have once again dropped.

A survey by the Hong Kong Public Opinion Research Institute in October 2024 revealed concerns about Hong Kong’s education system, political climate, and housing availability as reasons some couples decide against having children. However, some Hongkongers argue the cash handouts are insufficient to incentivize having children. Limited childcare options and the high cost of raising a child in the city are also cited as deterrents.

Lawmaker Nixie Lam, who has lobbied for the government to promote fertility, believes cash incentives are a short-term solution. She advocates exploring the pressures faced by women aged 25 to 45 as they weigh whether to have a child. Authorities are exploring additional measures, such as expanding a tax allowance for parents and granting priority access to public housing for those with newborns.