Private Treaty Grant
Government land available for private residential, commercial or industrial development is usually disposed of by Government through public sale. Apart from this, land may also be granted by way of private treaty grant for specified use in justified circumstances to comply with approved Government policies and to meet Hong Kong’s economic, social and community needs. All such direct land grants have to be subject to stringent policy scrutiny and are thoroughly considered to be justified in the public interest, with specific approval granted by the Executive Council (ExCo) or by delegated authority exercised in accordance with the approved criteria set by ExCo, on a case by case basis. In general, unequivocal policy support from the relevant bureaux / departments must be secured before the application for private treaty grant may be processed.
Applicants may wish to refer to the following Lands Department Land Administration Office (LAO) Practice Note:
Minimum Flat Size
The Secretary for Development announced on 24 February 2022 that the minimum flat size requirement will be applied to all Government land sale, railway property development projects, projects of the Urban Renewal Authority as well as lease modification / land exchange applications for other private residential development projects.
Press Release issued by Development Bureau for the above announcement on 24 February 2022
The minimum flat size requirement, i.e. saleable area Note of each residential unit should not be less than 26 square metres (about 280 square feet), would apply to all new applications for the relevant private treaty grants, lease modifications or land exchanges received by the Lands Department from 25 February 2022 onwards. Applications received before the said date will not be bound. Furthermore, for development projects that have reached a more mature stage, eg planning permission has already been granted by the Town Planning Board for a development project before 25 February 2022 but the associated lease modification or land exchange application is yet to be made, the above minimum flat size requirement will not be imposed to avoid the need for re-planning of such project, impacting land and housing supply.
Note: Reference may be made to the saleable area as defined in the Residential Properties (First-hand Sales) Ordinance (Cap. 621). However, the terms and conditions of the lease governing the lot concerned shall prevail.
