Over 23,000 applied for Hong Kong Health Code

Over 23,000 people have applied for the Hong Kong Health Code on Friday - the first day the Hong Kong Health Code system opened for registration.  

The registration for the code opened at 9am today, and the latest version of the LeaveHomeSafe app was also available for download.  

Secretary for Innovation and Technology, Alfred Sit Wing-hang, said as of 10pm today, around 23,600 people have submitted their applications online.

He reminded that applicants will have to submit their address proof while those living in public housing estates are not required to do so.  

"For those not having a valid address proof, they will have to wait for a confirmation letter containing a personal identification number (PIN) for account activation. The letter is expected to be mailed out next week," said Sit.  

The government earlier said the sequence of registering for the Health Code has nothing to do with the quotas for boundary crossings, and there is no hurry to apply for it.   

Citizens can register an account on the designated website (www.healthcode.gov.hk). They must use their real name and register other personal information such as identity card number and date of issue, phone number, residential address, and address proof documents.   

Upon successful registration, users can use the newly added function of the LeaveHomeSafe (version 3.0) to upload visit records of the past 31 days to the Health Code system. Updating the mobile app will not affect previous visit records saved to the app that are stored in the users' mobile phones. These records will also be uploaded to the Health Code system.   

The Health Code will come in three colors – red, amber, and green, and the standard to determine the color of the code aligns with that of the "YueKang Code" issued by Guangdong Province.   

Confirmed cases or probable cases, close contacts, and their household contacts of recovered Covid-19 patients who were discharged from the hospital less than 14 days ago, persons who are currently under compulsory quarantine, and persons who have shown symptoms in the past 14 days will be issued the Red code.   

Persons who have visited or resided in high-risk areas in the past 21 days, or arrived in Hong Kong less than 21 days prior, including persons who have completed compulsory quarantine or persons exempted from the mandatory quarantine requirement when they enter Hong Kong, will be issued the Amber code.   

Yet those who entered Hong Kong from the Mainland or Macao under the "Return2hk" or "Come2hk" Schemes will be exempted from being given the Amber code.   

The rest will be issued the Green code. All Hong Kong Health Codes will be valid up to 11.59pm on the day of application.