Prosecution
- The Authority can instigate direct prosecution under sections 20(7) and 20(8) and 21 and 21F against a person who is undertaking or continuing an unauthorized development.
- The Authority can instigate prosecution against the land owner, occupier, and person responsible who fail to comply with the Enforcement Notice, Stop Notice, and Reinstatement Notice under Section 23(6) and the Notice to obtain information under Section 22(8) of the Ordinance.
Penalty: Maximum Fine: $1,000,000
- Failure to comply with the enforcement notice, stop notice, and reinstatement notice is an offence under Section 23(6) of the Ordinance. The fine for a first conviction is up to $500,000 plus a daily fine of $50,000 after the expiry of the notice. In the case of a second or subsequent conviction, the fine is up to $1,000,000 plus a daily fine of $100,000.
- Any person who fails to provide the information as required under the Notice to Require Provision of Information, provides false information, or knowingly omits any particular material commits an offence under Section 22(8) of the Ordinance and is liable to a fine up to $100,000.
Prosecution Statistics under the Town Planning Ordinance
| Year | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. of Prosecution Cases * (No. of Summons) |
95 (271) |
154 (404) |
70 (168) |
52 (102) |
61 (147) |
| Total Fine # (HK$) | 13,651,000 | 13,156,000 | 7,303,000 | 4,279,000 | 5,786,000 |
Fine on a quarterly basis (HK$)
| Quarter | Q2 2023 | Q3 2023 | Q4 2023 | Q1 2024 | Q2 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total # | 1,543,000 | 1,950,000 | 1,107,000 | 1,373,000 | 1,885,000 |
| Fine per case | 22,000–508,000 | 43,000–419,000 | 38,000–242,000 | 35,000–279,000 | 8,000–662,000 |
Remarks:
| * | Included cases with a conviction record. | ||
| # | The total fine includes cases imposed with a daily fine and is rounded to the nearest thousand. Cases pending a sentence are not included. | ||
Cases recently sentenced by Court
Non-compliance with Enforcement Notice Cases (Q1 2024 and Q2 2024)
| Sentence Date | Location | Zoning* | Unauthorized Development | Fine per case# |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 17/1/2024 | A Lot in D.D. 105 | GB | Storage | 38,000 |
| 17/1/2024 | Various Lots in D.D. 46 | AGR | Storage | 279,000 |
| 24/1/2024 | Various Lots in D.D. 105, San Tin |
R(D) | Storage, Parking | 221,000 |
| 31/1/2024 | Various Lots in D.D. 257 | V | Storage | 57,000 |
| 21/2/2024 | Various Lots in D.D. 76 | AGR | Storage, Parking | 85,000 |
| 6/3/2024 | A Lot in D.D. 96, Kwu Tung North |
GB | Storage, Parking | 92,000 |
| 13/3/2024 | Various Lots in D.D. 113 | AGR, CA | Filling of Land | 78,000 |
| 27/3/2024 | Various Lots in D.D. 80, Ta Kwu Ling North |
REC | Storage | 132,000 |
| 27/3/2024 | A Lot in D.D. 80 | REC | Storage | 163,000 |
| 27/3/2024 | A Lot in D.D. 80 | REC | Storage | 139,000 |
| 10/4/2024 | Various Lots in D.D. 107 | AGR, CDA(1), V | Storage, Parking | 8,000 |
| 10/4/2024 | Various Lots in D.D. 76 | AGR | Parking | 36,000 |
| 24/4/2024 | Various Lots in D.D. 87 | AGR | Storage | 161,000 |
| 3/5/2024 | Various Lots in D.D. 86 | AGR, GB | Storage | 250,000 |
| 8/5/2024 | Various Lots in D.D. 129 | V | Storage, Parking | 52,000 |
| 8/5/2024 | A Lot in D.D. 90 | AGR | Intensification of Storage Use | 40,000 |
| 22/5/2024 | Various Lots in D.D. 375 | GB | Storage | 42,000 |
| 5/6/2024 | Various Lots in D.D.129 | GB | Storage | 105,000 |
Non-compliance with Reinstatement Notice Cases (Q1 2024 and Q2 2024)
| Sentence Date | Location | Zoning* | Unauthorized Development | Fine per case# |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 28/2/2024 | Various Lots in D.D. 209, Shap Sz Heung |
CPA | Filling of land | 53,000 |
| 27/3/2024 | A Lot in D.D. 46 | AGR, V | Parking | 36,000 |
| 3/5/2023 | Various Lots in D.D. 93, Ma Tso Lung |
CA(1), GB | Excavation of Land, Filling of Land | 545,000 |
| 8/5/2024 | Various Lots in D.D. 90, A Lot in D.D. 86 |
AGR, GB | Storage, Parking | 273,000 |
| 29/5/2024 | A Lot in D.D. 115, Nam Sang Wai |
V | Filling of Pond | 20,000 |
| 5/6/2024 | A Lot in D.D. 87, Hung Lung Hang |
AGR | Storage, Workshop | 226,000 |
| 26/6/2024 | Various Lots in D.D. 113 | AGR | Storage | 80,000 |
| * | The following are abbreviations of the respective land use zoning of the relevant outline zoning plans: | ||
| "AGR" | - | "Agriculture" | |
| “CA” | - | “Conservation Area” | |
| "CDA" | - | “Comprehensive Development Area" | |
| "CPA" | - | “Coastal Protection Area" | |
| "GB" | - | "Green Belt" | |
| "O" | - | “Open Space" | |
| "OU(CDWRA)" | - | "Other Specified Uses annotated Comprehensive Development to include Wetland Restoration Area" | |
| "REC" | - | "Recreation" | |
| "R(D)" | - | "Residential (Group D)" | |
| "V" | - | "Village Type Development" | |
# The fine is rounded to the nearest thousand.
Cases previously sentenced by Court
Past prosecution cases (Press Release)
