Hong Kong shelves cross-border levy plan, marks second policy U-turn in a day

Hong Kong’s treasury minister has said authorities will shelve a proposed levy on private cars crossing the border into mainland China, citing feedback from lawmakers and members of the public.Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury Christopher Hui Ching-yu told the Legislative Council on Friday that the government had decided not to go ahead with implementing the boundary facility fee for the time being after “careful consideration”, marking the second policy U-turn of the day.The proposed fee for private cars departing via land boundary control points was suggested in the city government’s budget for the 2025-26 financial year.If set at HK$200 (US$26) per private car, the levy could have yielded about HK$1 billion in annual revenue for the government, according to the budget blueprint. The charge would not have affected coaches or goods vehicles.The proposal was part of the government’s efforts to deal with its HK$87.2 billion budget deficit.“Since we mentioned this initiative, we heard a lot of voices from many lawmakers and society. After careful consideration, we will not proceed with the levy at this stage,” Hui said at a panel meeting.