6 May 2020
The Immigration Department (ImmD) announced today (May 6) that in light of the more stabilised epidemic situation, the operation of all nine Smart Identity Card Replacement Centres (SIDCCs) (at Annex I) under the Territory-wide Identity Card Replacement Exercise (Replacement Exercise) will be fully resumed from May 11, 2020.
To avoid the increased risk of the spread of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) due to excessive crowding, the ImmD earlier suspended the replacement of Hong Kong identity cards (HKICs) at nine SIDCCs under the Replacement Exercise. To arrange for those persons affected by the service suspension to replace their HKICs in an orderly manner, the Secretary for Security has made an Amendment Order to revise the specified periods for persons born in 1957 to 1963 and 1970 to 1976, and the arrangement for members of the sixth term of District Councils, which are as follows:
| Eligible persons | Revised application period |
|---|---|
| Holders of existing HKICs born in 1957, 1958 or 1959 | November 16, 2019 - July 27, 2020 |
| Holders of existing HKICs born in 1960 or 1961, and members of the sixth term of District Councils | February 18 - July 27, 2020 |
| Holders of existing HKICs born in 1962 or 1963 | July 28 - September 22, 2020 |
| Holders of existing HKICs born in 1970, 1971 or 1972 | September 23 - December 7, 2020 |
| Holders of existing HKICs born in 1973 or 1974 | December 8, 2020 - January 28, 2021 |
| Holders of existing HKICs born in 1975 or 1976 | January 29 - March 19, 2021 |
In consideration of the possibility that the replacement of HKICs may need to be suspended again in the near future to cope with a sudden turn of the epidemic situation, the Amendment Order also provides that if all SIDCCs are not in service for a period of 21 working days or more from May 11 to July 27, 2020, for public health reasons, the specified periods of the abovementioned persons will be further extended or amended (at Annex II). The Amendment Order will be tabled at the Legislative Council on May 13, 2020, for negative vetting.
An ImmD spokesman said, "If the call-up programme has to be further adjusted for public health reasons, the ImmD will make announcement in advance as far as possible through various channels to inform the public of the latest arrangement.
"To reduce crowd gatherings, applicants who have not made appointment bookings previously should do so via the Internet (www.gov.hk/newicbooking), the ImmD mobile application or the 24-hour telephone booking hotline 2121 1234. The ImmD also appeals to applicants to pre-fill the application form when making appointment bookings through the Internet or mobile application to save the waiting time," the ImmD spokesman said.
For details of the replacement exercise, please visit the website www.smartid.gov.hk or call the ImmD's enquiry hotline at 2824 6111.
Annex I
Smart Identity Card Replacement Centres
All replacement centres open from 8 am to 10 pm, Mondays to Saturdays (except public holidays). Their addresses are as follows:
| Replacement Centres | Addresses |
|---|---|
| Hong Kong Island Smart Identity Card Replacement Centre | Room 200, 2/F, Shui On Centre, 6–8 Harbour Road, Wan Chai |
| East Kowloon Smart Identity Card Replacement Centre | Unit 1, 2/F, Manulife Financial Centre and Unit 1B, 3/F, Manulife Financial Centre, Tower A, 223–231 Wai Yip Street, Kwun Tong |
| West Kowloon Smart Identity Card Replacement Centre | 12/F, Gala Place, 56 Dundas Street, Mong Kok |
| Tsuen Wan Smart Identity Card Replacement Centre | Shop S201, 2/F, Smartland, 50 Texaco Road, Tsuen Wan |
| Sha Tin Smart Identity Card Replacement Centre | Shop G26, G/F & Shop 123, 1/F, Kings Wing Plaza 1, 3 On Kwan Street, Sha Tin |
| Sheung Shui Smart Identity Card Replacement Centre | 7/F, Spot, 48 Lung Sum Avenue, Sheung Shui |
| Tuen Mun Smart Identity Card Replacement Centre | Shop L414B, Level 4, Leung King Plaza, Leung King Estate, 31 Tin King Road, Tuen Mun |
| Yuen Long Smart Identity Card Replacement Centre | Shop 50, G/F, Manhattan Plaza, 23 Sai Ching Street, Yuen Long |
| Tseung Kwan O Smart Identity Card Replacement Centre | Shop 20-26, G/F, Corinthia By The Sea, 23 Tong Yin Street, Tseung Kwan O, Sai Kung |
Annex II
Substituted Call-up Programme
If all Replacement Centres are not in service for a period of 21 working days or more from 11 May to 27 July 2020 for public health reasons, the ImmD will implement the substituted call-up programme as follows:
| Eligible persons | Substituted Application Period |
|---|---|
| Holders of existing HKICs born in 1957, 1958 or 1959 | November 16, 2019 - September 22, 2020 |
| Holders of existing HKICs born in 1960 or 1961, and members of the sixth term of District Councils | February 18 - September 22, 2020 |
| Holders of existing HKICs born in 1962 or 1963 | September 23 - November 21, 2020 |
| Holders of existing HKICs born in 1970, 1971 or 1972 | November 23, 2020 - February 5, 2021 |
| Holders of existing HKICs born in 1973 or 1974 | February 6 - March 30, 2021 |
| Holders of existing HKICs born in 1975 or 1976 | March 31 - May 22, 2021 |