Technology Voucher Programme
The Hong Kong government has been encouraging small to medium enterprises (SMEs) to fully utilize technology as a tool to further enhance productivity and business process. This the article focuses on the advantages of the TVP (technology voucher program) and since most of you are start-up entrepreneurs, perhaps you can learn a thing or two about how you can benefit from this program.
Basic Requirements and Incentives
Applicants must be enterprises registered in Hong Kong under the Business Registration Ordinance, companies incorporated/registered under the Companies Ordinance or statutory bodies established in Hong Kong. Moreover, applicants must not be a shell or listed company nor subsidized by the government. Most importantly, the company must have business operations in Hong Kong so offshore companies are also not applicable under this program. Under the TVP scheme, each applicant can receive funding up to HKD$600,000 for a maximum of 6 projects in total. However, applicants must contribute no less than a quarter of the total project cost if they ultimately successfully receive full funding.
Application Process
After the application is submitted, applicants will need to obtain quotations from technology service providers and suppliers. Then, applicants can register for a user account at the TVP Funding Administrative System and submit the mandatory supporting documents through the system. To submit an application, applicants are required to turn in a copy of form 1(a)/1(c) of their company’s business registration certificate or the annual return form (NAR1), sufficient evidence of business operations within 3 months prior to submission (bank statements, invoices and expense receipts) along with a copy of identity proof of the signatory on the application (HKID or passport) and a copy of quotations for all the expenditure items. What’s more is that applicants can start their project(s) as early as on the day after the application is submitted.
Vetting
In regard to the vetting process, the TVP committee will thoroughly review each application according to their very own standard of criteria for assessment. The TVP committee is comprised of non-official members of the business, technology and professional services sector as well as former official members like representatives from different government departments.
For the first stage of the vetting process, the TVP secretariat will conduct a preliminary check on the applicant to ensure one is eligible for the program. The secretariat may or may not ask for clarification or additional supplementary information to examine the legitimacy of your company. If the secretariat approves the initial screening, the application will then be sent to the TVP committee for further review. The committee will usually vet applications based on the following criteria – relevant to the business of the applicant, acumen of the proposed budget and implementation details, and any possible adverse record of the technology provider(s). If the committee approves the application, it will be submitted to the Commissioner of Innovation Technology (CIT) for final approval. Successful applicants are required to sign a funding agreement with the committee. The project must be completed within a 12-month period before submitting the final project report. Not to mention, successful applicants can receive an initial payment of up to 25% of the approved funding amount upon request after signing the funding agreement and compliance with relevant terms.
Some of the most common reasons applicants get rejected are mostly because of insufficient or inconsistent details on budgeting and project implementation, the applicant is merely displaying off the shelf/readily available items (showing minimal relevance of technology use) or the application simply involves very little or no technological components. Rejected applicants shall resubmit their applications after considering the reasons behind the initial rejection.
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