Hong Kong passes child abuse reporting law, with legislation targeting 25 professions

Mandatory Reporting of Child Abuse Bill requires workers in 25 professions to report suspected cases of serious harm

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Those who fail to report incidents involving physical, psychological and sexual abuse, as well as neglect, face up to a HK$50,000 fine and three months in prison. Photo: Shutterstock

Published: 4:21pm, 11 Jul 2024Updated: 11:16pm, 11 Jul 2024

Hong Kong lawmakers have passed new legislation requiring workers in a variety of sectors to report suspected child abuse in a bid to better protect youngsters from harm.

The Mandatory Reporting of Child Abuse Bill, passed by the Legislative Council after its second and third readings on Thursday, requires those in 25 professions to report to authorities suspected cases involving serious harm to children. It also defines a child as a person below the age of 18.

Professionals in social welfare, education and healthcare sectors who fail to report incidents involving physical, psychological and sexual abuse, as well as neglect, face up to a HK$50,000 (US$6,400) fine and three months in prison.

“The passage of this legislation has marked an important step for us to expand our child protection net, as we will have more than 100,000 professionals working with us to protect our children,” Secretary for Labour and Welfare Chris Sun Yuk-han said.

Sun said the bill would come into effect 18 months after the date it was published in the gazette as an ordinance.

He said the government would offer training to the professionals covered under the bill during the time frame, adding that authorities had also set up advisory groups to formulate guidelines on mandatory reporting, which were expected to be completed during the second half of next year.