Funding Application

Funding Agreement Signing Center

The application period of the Distance Business Programme closed at 6 pm on 31 October 2020.

Eligibility

All private enterprises (excluding publicly listed companies, statutory bodies and non-government organisations funded by the Government) with a valid Business Registration Certificate or a Social Enterprise Certificate issued by the Hong Kong Council of Social Service under the D-Biz Programme, ongoing business commenced before 1 January 2020 and substantive business operation in the industry related to the project in the application at the time of application are eligible.

Application Period

Application is open from 9 am on 18 May 2020 to 6 pm 31 October 2020. (Application closed)

Assessment Criteria

Applications will be assessed based on individual merits and considered on a case-by-case basis in accordance with the following criteria:

• Relevance of the proposed project to the applicant’s business – the project should enable enterprises to continue their business and services during the epidemic;
• Reasonableness of the budget – assessment with reference to market prices of the technologies in question as known to the Committee or the Secretariat will be made. Individual items of expenditure must also be essential and directly related to the implementation of the project;
• Reasonableness of the implementation details – consideration may include whether concrete project deliverables and outcomes have been set. The implementation details should also be realistic taking into account factors such as the complexity of the IT solution and the project duration; and
• Capability of Service Provider(s) – consideration will be made to the technical capability of the Service Provider(s). Each Service Provider will be considered on a case-by-case basis having regard to the Service Provider’s technical capabilities and experience relating to the IT solution categories as mentioned in the Guidance Notes for IT Service Providers;
• Adverse record of Service Provider(s) as known to the Committee and the Secretariat if available.

Whether or not the applicants engage Service Providers on the Reference List will not affect the application outcome.

If a project is worthy of support in principle, the level of funding may be adjusted with reference to the project cost approved by the Committee. In general, the funding amount received by an applicant enterprise is within the reasonable market price range and sufficient for implementing a more economical and convenient IT solution with the same effect.

Incomplete application will not be further processed until the applicant has rectified the errors or provided all the necessary information. Once the applicant has provided the outstanding information or documents, the application concerned will then re-join the queue at the end of the queue.

The maximum number of applications to be processed by the Secretariat involving the same system integrator is 100 applications per week. The rest of the applications will be processed in the following week.

Enhancement Measures

To further support enterprises to develop distance business during the epidemic, the following enhancement measures will be introduced for the (D-Biz) Programme:

• From 9am on 31 August, enterprises may submit a second application in which the categories of the IT solutions must be different from the approved categories in the first application. They may submit a second application after they have replied to the Secretariat on the result of the first application. The assessment criteria of the Programme remain unchanged. Each enterprise may receive an aggregate funding of up to HK$300,000;
• The funding period for subscription-based IT solutions will be extended from 6 months to 12 months. This arrangement is also applicable to applications approved earlier;
• The restriction that related entities being regarded as one single entity are not allowed to submit applications will be lifted; and
• Social enterprises with certifications issued by the Hong Kong Council of Social Service for the Distance Business Programme will also be eligible.

Guidance Notes

Frequently Asked Questions

Application Form Sample

Application Form Demo

Model Clauses in Probity and Non-Collusive Quotation/Tendering Certificate

Funding Applications - Dos and Don'ts (Presentation materials for webinar held on 17 July)(English Only)

Attention

1. Before filling out the application form, please read the "Guidance Note" carefully, and prepare the e-copies of the relevant supporting documents, to make the application process more efficient.
2. Funding applications can only be made online through the button below. The Secretariat will primarily contact the applicant via email. Please ensure the email address provided is accurate and check the mailbox (including the Junk mailbox) regularly.
3. Any request for amending the information submitted will not be entertained.
4. Please ensure your web browser is compatible with any one of the following system configurations:
   - Internet Explorer 11 or upper
   - Microsoft Edge 44.18362 or upper
   - Firefox 74 or upper
   - Chrome 81 or upper
   - Safari 13 or upper (mac OS only)

Through the system, you can:
1. Withdraw / Accept / Reject the Submitted Application(s)
2. Check the Submitted Application Status
3. Upload additional document(s) as requested by the Secretariat
4. Make an appointment for signing the funding agreement

Other related information

Introduction

IT Service Providers Reference List

Application for enroling to the IT Service Providers Reference List

Distance Business Programme Vetting Committee

Notes for Auditors

Press Releases