Data on MPF offsetting
Dear Mandatory Provident Fund Schemes Authority,
In light of the recent abolition of MPF offsetting, and the government now introducing a Subsidy Scheme for Abolition of MPF Offsetting Arrangement (SSA), I assume you will have had to have used data on how many and what proportion of employers were carrying out MPF offsetting of their severance payment to be able to sufficiently support the subsidy scheme. Based on this can you share this data, i.e.:
Before the new policy came into effect what data do you have on companies that were carrying out MPF offsetting from 2024 or the most recent full year of data you have . Specifically what proportion of employers does your data show or estimate were carrying this out? And do you have a number for the total number of employers that carried out MPF offsetting that year? If you have this data are you able to break it down into proportions of small, medium and large companies?
I see "Statistics of claims for offsetting severance payment and long service payment against MPF accrued benefits" is available here, but I'd like to know the denominator:
https://www.mpfa.org.hk/en/info-centre/r...
I.e. I'd like to know how many employers are not offsetting severance payments to be able to make a comparison. Do you have these calculations, or at least do you have statistics on how many people are made redundant each year, and how many of them are eligible and are receiving severance payments?
Yours faithfully,
Scott Edmunds
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Attn: Mr Scott Edmunds
Dear Mr Edmunds,
Thank you for your email enquiry dated 8 September 2025 made under the MPFA Code on Access to Information about MPF offsetting data.
After examining your request, we anticipate that it will take some time to ascertain availability of certain data and compile the available information per requested, thus there may be difficulty in completing the process by 22 September 2025, i.e. 10 working days from receipt of your request.
We will keep you informed of the progress in due course.
Yours sincerely,
Tramy Tam
Senior Manager
Policy and Regulation Division
Mandatory Provident Fund Schemes Authority
Attn: Mr Scott Edmunds
Dear Mr Edmunds,
Further to my email dated 19 September 2025, please note that we are currently in the process of fact-checking and finalizing our reply. As such, there may be difficulty in completing the process by 10 October 2025, i.e. 21 working days from receipt of your request.
We will keep you updated on the progress in due course.
Yours sincerely,
Tramy Tam
Senior Manager
Policy and Regulation Division
Mandatory Provident Fund Schemes Authority
Attn: Mr Scott Edmunds
Dear Mr. Edmunds,
Thank you for your email enquiry dated 8 September 2025 made under the
MPFA Code on Access to Information requesting information about MPF
offsetting data.
We would like to provide the following reply in accordance with the MPFA
Code on Access to Information (a copy of the Code is available on the MPFA
website for reference [[1]link]).
The Government first devised the estimate of its total financial
commitment on the Subsidy Scheme for Abolition of MPF Offsetting
Arrangement (SSA) based on offsetting claim data in 2019 provided by the
Mandatory Provident Fund Schemes Authority. As set out in a Legislative
Council document [[2]link], the Labour Department in late 2022
commissioned an actuarial consultant to make further actuarial projections
on employers’ severance payment and long service payment (SP/LSP) expenses
and an estimation of the number of applications received and the amount of
payout involved under SSA each year.
Regarding your individual questions about MPF offsetting data:
1. Number of unique employers involved in claims for MPF accrued benefits
to offset SP/LSP during 2019 to 2024 (i.e. before the Abolition of MPF
Offsetting Arrangement came into effect on 1 May 2025) is set out
below:
Year Number of unique employers involved in
claims for offsetting SP/LSP*
2019 14 400
2020 15 200
2021 17 000
2022 13 700
2023 14 200
2024 15 900
* The number of unique employers involved in the table is the aggregated
figures across all schemes. There could be cases of claims involving the
same employer across more than one scheme in an individual year.
2. For the number of employers participating in MPF schemes, employers’
enrolment in MPF schemes as at the end of each year during 2019 to
2024 is set out below:
Year Number of employers enrolled in MPF schemes*
2019 290 000
2020 306 000
2021 323 000
2022 344 000
2023 359 000
2024 368 000
* Estimated figures. Adjustments have been made for employers who are
participating in more than one scheme.
3. For size of workforce of employers involved in cases of claims on MPF
for offsetting SP/LSP, we can offer the following data from 2024 for
your reference:
• Among the total 55 100 claims made in the year –
• More than half (51.2% or 27 900 claims) involved accounts in an MPF
scheme where the employer had no more than 50 employees enrolled in
the MPF scheme;
• Another 8.2% (4 500 claims) involved accounts in an MPF scheme where
the employer had 51-100 employees enrolled in the MPF scheme;
• 18.2% (9 900 claims) involved accounts in an MPF scheme where the
employer had more than 1 000 employees enrolled in the MPF scheme;
• It should be noted that –
• The number of employees enrolled in the MPF scheme by an employer can
only serve as a proxy of the total size of an employer’s workforce due
to factors including, for instance, (a) an employer may participate in
more than one MPF scheme; and (b) number of employees enrolled does
not include employees who are not required to join an MPF scheme, such
as those aged 65 and over etc.;
• A single employer can be involved in more than one SP/LSP offsetting
claim in an individual year; and
• A minority of claims (about 500) involved causal employees and there
was no information on their employers related to number of employees
enrolled in their MPF schemes.
• Details of the breakdown are presented in the table below for your
reference –
Number and percentage of claims by number of employees employed by the
employers involved and type of claim, 2024
Number of employees employed by the employers Type of claim Overall
involved
SP LSP
Number of % Number of % Number of %
claims claims claims
1 – 50 17 300 56.3% 10 700 44.6% 27 900 51.2%
51 – 100 2 500 8.3% 1 900 8.1% 4 500 8.2%
101 – 200 2 700 8.7% 1 700 6.9% 4 300 7.9%
201 – 500 2 700 8.8% 2 300 9.4% 5 000 9.1%
501 – 1 000 1 600 5.2% 1 400 5.7% 3 000 5.4%
> 1 000 3 900 12.6% 6 100 25.4% 9 900 18.2%
Sub-total 30 600 100.0% 23 900 100.0% 54 600 100.0%
Casual 400 NA 100 NA 500 NA
employees
Total 31 100 NA 24 000 NA 55 100 NA
Figures or percentages may not sum up to the total or 100% due to
rounding.
4. Regarding how many people are made redundant each year, MPFA does not
hold such information. When a contribution account in an MPF scheme
is terminated, it can be due to a wide array of circumstances. Apart
from dismissal by reason of redundancy, other possible circumstances
include lay off, end of fixed term contract without being renewed, or
an employee’s resignation or retirement.
Should you have further questions or require assistance with other
information, please feel free to contact us.
Yours sincerely,
Tramy Tam
Senior Manager
Policy and Regulation Division
Mandatory Provident Fund Schemes Authority
