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The Social Welfare Department (SWD) has so far received about 89,000 application forms under Phase 2 - Postal Submission of the Old Age Living Allowance (OALA), in which more than 12,000 eligible elderly persons have already received the OALA payment. The department is processing the applications expeditiously so that the eligible elderly persons will receive the allowance at the soonest, an SWD spokesman said today (May 9).
He said that, including beneficiaries of the Phase 1 - Auto Conversion arrangement, a total of about 288,000 eligible elderly persons have already received the OALA.
After expediting the recruitment procedures, the SWD has completed the recruitment exercise for relevant grades. Some of the appointees started service in the second half of April while those remaining will report for duty this month to fill the vacancies, further accelerating the processing of applications received.
Elderly persons who have met the eligibility criteria and submitted their applications under Phase 2 - Postal Submission or Phase 3 - New Application before the end of 2013 will be entitled to the OALA. They will receive a lump sum payment in arrears (after deducting Old Age Allowance or Disability Allowance payments already made for the corresponding period) counting from the effective date (that is, December 1, 2012) or the eligibility date of the OALA, whichever is later, and the monthly payment.
For details and frequently asked questions on Phase 2 - Postal Submission and Phase 3 - New Application of the OALA, please refer to the SWD's website: www.swd.gov.hk/oala/index_e.html#s6.
Ends/Thursday, May 9, 2013
Issued at HKT 16:01
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