Levy Guide No. 1 Levy Collection Procedures

Disclaimer

This publication is prepared by the Construction Industry Council (CIC) to provide guidance on the administration matters in relation to construction industry levy but is NOT intended to constitute any legal or other professional advice on the provisions of the Construction Industry Council Ordinance or the Industrial Training (Construction Industry) Ordinance. Furthermore, if there are any discrepancies between this publication and the two ordinances, the latter will prevail.

Enquiries

Enquiries on this publication may be made to and assistance may be sought from the Finance Department of CIC at –

38/F, COS Centre, 56 Tsun Yip Street, Kwun Tong, Kowloon, Hong Kong

Tel - 2100 9200

Fax - 2100 9339

E-mail - [email protected]

 

Purpose

1. These guidelines aim to help readers understand the procedures for assessment and collection of Construction Industry Levy (CIL) by the Construction Industry Council (CIC) in accordance with the provisions of the CIC Ordinance (CICO) (Cap 587).

 

Introduction

2. Before the amalgamation of CIC and the former Construction Industry Training Authority (CITA) on 1 January 2008, a levy, known as CIL, was collected by CITA under the provisions of the Industrial Training (Construction Industry) Ordinance (Cap 317) (ITCIO) on construction operations carried out in Hong Kong. Upon the amalgamation, CITA was dissolved and ITCIO was repealed. Henceforth CIL is collected by CIC in accordance with the provisions of CICO.

3. However, by virtue of section 83 of the CICO, the levy mechanism in ITCIO will still apply to the following types of construction operations with the powers conferred and the functions imposed on CITA under ITCIO being exercised and performed by CIC –
a. construction operations the tender for which had been submitted to the employer before 1 January 2008;
b. other construction operations carried out under a construction contract, if the contract had been entered into before 1 January 2008 or the construction operations had commenced before 1 January 2008; and
c. construction operations other than those referred to in (a) and (b), that had commenced before 1 January 2008.

4. The levy mechanism in CICO will apply to construction operations not covered by (a) to (c) above.

5. For the sake of simplicity, construction operations subject to the ITCIO mechanism will be referred to as "construction operations tendered before 1 January 2008" while construction operations subject to the CICO mechanism will be referred to as "construction operations tendered on or after 1 January 2008".

6. The contents of the following sections apply to the levy mechanisms in both ITCIO and CICO given the similarities in the procedures prescribed in the two ordinances.

 

Levy Regimes

7. As a result of the provisions of section 83 of CICO and the evolution of the provisions of ITCIO over the years, construction operations are subject to the following levy regimes –

 Ref.                                   Period of submission of tenders to employer                                                            Scope of works subject to levy                             Levy rate                                                    Levy threshold[1]                                                                  From {nclusive of date shown}    To {exclusive of date shown} 

A1	Before 10 Jan 2000		"Construction Works" as defined in sections 2(2), (3) and (4) of the original ITCIO enacted in 1975.	0.25%	$1,000,000
A2	10 Jan 2000	1 Jun 2004	"Construction Works" as defined in sections 2(2), (3) and (4) of the original ITCIO enacted in 1975.	0.4%	$1,000,000
B	1 Jun 2004	24 Feb 2005	"Construction Operations" as defined in Schedule 1 of ITCIO as amended by Construction Industry Levy (Miscellaneous Amendments) Ordinance	0.4%	$1,000,000
C	24 Feb 2005	1 Jan 2008	"Construction Operations" as defined in Schedule 1 of ITCIO as amended by Construction Industry Levy (Miscellaneous Amendments) Ordinance	0.4% (under ITCIO)0.03% (under CWRO[2])	$1,000,000
D	1 Jan 2008	20 Aug 2012	"Construction Operations" as defined in Schedule 1 of CICO	0.4% (under ITCIO)0.03% (under CWRO[2])	$1,000,000
E	20 Aug 2012	30 Jul 2018	"Construction Operations" as defined in Schedule 1 of CICO	0.5% (under CICO)0.03% (under CWRO[2])	$1,000,000
F	On or after 30 July 2018		"Construction Operations" as defined in Schedule 1 of CICO	0.5% (under CICO)0.03% (under CWRO[2])	$3,000,000 [3]

[1] Construction Works or Construction Operations with total value not exceeding the levy threshold will not be liable to CIL.
[2] CWRO - Construction Workers Registration Ordinance (Cap. 583).

[3] The levy thresholds under Construction Industry Council Ordinance (Cap.587) and Construction Workers Registration Ordinance (Cap.583) were raised from $1,000,000 to $3,000,000 with effect from 30 July 2018. The amendment of levy threshold will not be applied retrospectively to any construction operations which have commenced or been tendered before the effective date of the amendment.

 

OBLIGATIONS TO PAY LEVY

8. Levy is payable by contractors executing construction operation.
 
9. Briefly, “construction operations” include –building works;
    street works;
    construction, alteration, repair, maintenance, extension, demolition or dismantling of buildings or structures, power-lines, telecommunications apparatus or       pipelines;
    supply and installation of fittings or equipment in any building or structures;
    external or internal cleaning of any buildings or structures, which is carried out in the course of construction or maintenance of such buildings or structures;
    painting or decorating any external or internal surfaces or parts of any buildings or structures; and
    operations which form an integral part of, or are preparatory to any of the above operations.

 

Levy Collection Procedures

(A) Notices to be given to CIC

10. Notice of commencement - The contractor and the authorised person of a construction operation are each required to inform CIC that they are the contractor and authorised person of the operation vide a notice of commencement to be given within 14 days of the commencement of the operation.

11. Notice of payment - The contractor is also required to give notice of payment within 14 days after a payment is received in respect of any stage or part of the construction. (For a term contract, the notice is required to be given within 14 days after the last day of the month in which the payment was made.)

12. Notice of completion - The contractor and the authorised person are each required to give notice of completion within 14 days after completion of the construction operation.

(B) Assessment of levy by the Council

13. CIC will assess the amount of the levy payable upon receiving notices of payment and completion and may request the contractors, the authorised persons or the employers for further information for the purpose of conducting the assessment. Furthermore, CIC may make such assessment in relation to any construction operations even in the absence of notice of payment and completion.

14. A levy flowchart is available for the industry's reference and downloading the following file – Levy Flow Chart

(C) Notice of assessment

15. Upon the completion of assessment, CIC will issue to concerned contractors notice of assessment advising on the amount of levy payable. Unless requested otherwise by contractors, such notices will be sent by registered post to their correspondence address.

(D) Payment of levy

16. Contractors should pay the amount of levy demanded in notices of assessment within 28 days of receiving such notices.

 

Surcharge for Failure to Give Notices within a Specified Period

17. In accordance with the provisions of section 41 of CICO (and section 26(7) of ITCIO), CIC may impose surcharge on a contractor who fails to give notice of payment or completion in accordance with sections 35 and 36 of CICO (and section 25 of ITCIO) and fails to give, within a period allowed by CIC, a reasonable excuse for that failure. The current rate of surcharge is as follows –

DELAY (BETWEEN DUE DATE AND ACTUAL DATE OF SUBMISSION OF NOTICE)                                                               RATE OF SURCHARGE

Equal to or less than 14 days	Grace period with no surcharge
Exceeding 14 days but equal to or less than 28 days	10%
Exceeding 28 days but equal to or less than 8 weeks	25%
Exceeding 8 weeks but equal to or less than 13 weeks	50%
Exceeding 13 weeks but equal to or less than 39 weeks	100%
Exceeding 39 weeks	200%

 

Penalty for Late Payment of Levy and Surcharge

18. Under section 46 of CICO (and section 27 of ITCIO), if the amount of the levy or surcharge is not fully paid within 28 days after the contractor receives the notice of assessment or notice of surcharge, a penalty of 5% of the unpaid amount will be imposed.

19. If the amount of the levy or surcharge, including any penalty imposed, remains unpaid within three months after the expiry of the specified period of 28 days, a further penalty of 5% of the unpaid amount will be imposed.

 

Offences for Failure to Submit Notices

20. Under sections 34(5), 35(6) and 36(6) of CICO (and section 25(4) of ITCO), any person who without reasonable excuse fails to give the commencement, payment and completion notices in accordance with the relevant provisions in CICO (and ITCIO) commits an offence and is liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding Level 1 or Level 3 (not exceeding $2,000 under ITCIO).

 

Objections and Appeals

(A) Notices to be given to CIC

21. A contractor may object to the levy or surcharge imposed within 21 days of receiving the notice of assessment or the notice of surcharge, as the case may be. Objections should be made in writing to CIC as follows –
Objections Board
Construction Industry Council
38/F, COS Centre, 56 Tsun Yip Street, Kwun Tong
Kowloon, Hong Kong.

22. The form for Objection is available for downloading at the following address on the CIC website – Notice of objection

23. Objections will be forwarded to the Objections Board of CIC for consideration. An objector who is aggrieved by a decision of the Objections Board may appeal to the District Court against that decision. However, he has to pay the levy or surcharge, penalty or further penalty first, even though he intends to make an objection.