LCQ7: Total expenditure on pensions for civil servants and judicial officers
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Question:
According to the information provided by the Administration in its reply to a question raised by a Member of this Council on June 3 this year, the number of persons receiving pensions and total expenditure on pensions for them increased over the past five financial years, from approximately 150 000 recipients and $42.2 billion in expenditure in the 2021-2022 financial year, to over 160 000 recipients and $50 billion in expenditure in the 2025-2026 financial year, representing respective increases of 9 per cent and over 18 per cent. There are views suggesting that the expenditure on pensions for civil servants will continue to be affected by factors such as the progressive retirement of civil servants, increasing life expectancy and inflation. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the average monthly pension payment made to each retired person in the 2025-2026 financial year, together with a breakdown of the relevant information as follows: (i) newly retired persons in that year; (ii) persons already retired; and (iii) the amount of pension increase arising from inflation adjustments;
(2) of the respective numbers of retired civil servants and serving civil servants appointed on terms which attract pension benefits, and set out, by five-year age groups, the gender and age distribution of persons in each of the two groups;
(3) as the Civil Service Bureau has indicated in its reply to this Council on the Estimates of Expenditure 2026-2027 that expenditure on pension is projected to start decreasing gradually from the mid-2030s, of the authorities' projection of the number of newly retired civil servants by that time and the year in which all civil servants are expected to have retired respectively;
(4) whether it has made any estimate of the Government's total liability for expenditure on pensions for civil servants ; if so, provide a breakdown of the relevant information as follows: (i) the total amount of such expenditure, with the figures broken down into "retired civil servants" and "serving civil servants"; (ii) whether an assessment has been made of the impact on total expenditure on pensions for civil servants of the gender distribution of civil servants, the increase in life expectancy for the gender groups, and the cumulative annual rate of inflation; if no such estimate has been made, the reasons for that; and
(5) whether consideration will be given to exploring the launch of inflation-linked retail bond for approximately $650 billion to cap expenditure on pensions for civil servants and to defuse at an early stage the "snow-ball" financial liabilities that may arise from factors such as the increasing life expectancy of civil servants and inflation; if not, the reasons for that?
Reply:
President,
The response to the five parts of the question is as follows:
(1) For the 2025-26 financial year, the average monthly pension of civil servants and judicial officers who retired in that year was about $20,200 per person, while the average monthly pension of those who retired before that year was about $17,700 per person. Based on the established pension adjustment mechanism, pensions were increased by 2.1 per cent in the 2025-26 financial year, resulting in additional payment of an average monthly pension of about $370 per retired civil servant and judicial officer receiving pension.
(2) As at March 31, 2026, the number of retired civil servants and judicial officers receiving monthly pensions as well as the number of serving civil servants and judicial officers appointed on pensionable terms by age groups are provided below:
| Age of retired civil servants and judicial officers |
Number of persons |
| Below 60 | 9 456 |
| 60-64 | 36 196 |
| 65-69 | 42 514 |
| 70-74 | 33 017 |
| 75-79 | 22 944 |
| 80-84 | 9 143 |
| 85-89 | 6 610 |
| 90-94 | 3 023 |
| 95 or above | 862 |
| Age of serving civil servants and judicial officers appointed on pensionable terms | Number of persons |
| Below 50 | 5 949 |
| 50-54 | 16 243 |
| 55-59 | 11 927 |
| 60-64 | 2 036 |
| 65 or above | 79 |
The Treasury does not have readily available information on the numbers of retired and serving civil servants and judicial officers broken down by gender.
(3) The civil service pension schemes are only applicable to civil servants appointed before June 1, 2000. As serving officers under the pension schemes gradually retire, the Government's expenditure on pensions will increase in the short term, with the annual expenditure projected to start decreasing gradually from the mid-2030s. The Civil Service Bureau does not keep records of the planned retirement dates of all civil servants appointed on pensionable terms. For some of the civil servants appointed on pensionable terms, there is still some time until they reach retirement age, and the retirement plans of these officers vary. Therefore, the number of newly retired civil servants at that time, and when all such civil servants will retire, cannot be accurately projected. A rough estimate is that they will all have retired some time before or after 2040.
(4) The Government engages an independent qualified actuary to conduct annual actuarial assessments of pension obligations, during which various data and assumptions (including membership profile, salary adjustments, life expectancy and inflation) are appropriately incorporated to calculate the impact on pension obligations. As at March 31, 2025, the present value of statutory pension obligations was $924.8 billion, of which the liability attributable to serving civil servants and judicial officers accounted for about 40 per cent, and that for retired civil servants and judicial officers accounted for about 60 per cent. It is important to note that the obligations reflect the present value of projected future cumulative pension expenditures, rather than a provision that the Government needs to set aside in a lump sum at the moment. Civil service pension expenditures will be paid out gradually over a period of 40 to 50 years or even longer, and annual expenditures are expected to decrease progressively from the mid-2030s. The Government will continue to earmark funds in the annual estimates to cover annual pension payments.
(5) Pensions are retirement benefits provided by the Government, as an employer, to civil servants who were appointed before June 1, 2000. Its nature is the same as the Government's contributions under the Civil Service Provident Fund (CSPF) Scheme, only that the former is disbursed after the officer retires and the latter is paid while the officer is in service. The provision of pensions by the Government as retirement benefits for civil servants appointed before June 1, 2000, along with their calculation and payment methods and timing, are prescribed not only under the relevant legislation but also form part of the employment contract terms signed between the Government as an employer, and civil servants appointed on pensionable terms. As a good employer that honours the spirit of contract, the Government should not and cannot make changes to these terms lightly, just as it cannot alter the Government's contribution amounts, calculation and payment methods under the CSPF Scheme without careful deliberation. According to the relevant pension legislation (including the Pensions Ordinance (Cap. 89), the Pension Benefits Ordinance (Cap. 99), and the Pension Benefits (Judicial Officers) Ordinance (Cap. 401)), pensions are charged to and payable out of the general revenue of the Government. Having consulted relevant parties, the Government has no plan to make any changes to the amounts and methods of pension payments for civil servants and judicial officers.
Ends/Wednesday, October 28, 2026
Issued at HKT 12:25
Issued at HKT 12:25
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