Annual Licensing Fees

Q1 : How much annual licensing fees should I pay?

Annual licensing fees are charged on each of the regulated activity (RA) licensed. The amount for respective RAs and types of intermediary / licensed individual are shown in the table below:

Types of intermediary / licensed individual	Types of RA¹	Annual licensing fee²
Licensed Corporation	RAs other than RA 3	$4,740 per RA
Licensed Corporation	RA 3	$129,730
Responsible Officer	RAs other than RA 3	$4,740 per RA
Responsible Officer	RA 3	$5,370
Licensed Representative	RAs other than RA 3	$1,790 per RA
Licensed Representative	RA 3	$2,420
Registered Institution³	RAs other than RAs 3 and RA 8	$35,000 per RA

¹ The annual fee payable for RA 7 (providing automated trading services) is waived if the person’s carrying on of RA 7 is incidental to the person’s carrying on of RA 1 (dealing in securities) or RA 2 (dealing in futures contracts) for which the person is licensed or registered.
² Annual licensing fees are set out in item 18 of Schedule 3 of the Securities and Futures (Fees) Rules.
³ Section 119 of the Securities and Futures Ordinance does not require authorized financial institutions to seek registration for RA 3 (leveraged foreign exchange trading) and RA 8 (securities margin financing).

Q2 :
What is the consequence for failing to pay the annual licensing fees on or before the due date?

A: Section 138(2) of the Securities and Futures Ordinance (SFO) requires all intermediaries and licensed individuals to pay annual licensing fees within one month after each anniversary date of their licences or registrations.

Failure to make full payment of the annual licensing fees before the due date will attract a surcharge on the outstanding amount under section 138(3) of the SFO as well as possible suspension and revocation of a licence or registration under sections 195(4)(a) and 195(6) of the SFO.

Details are set out in the table below:

Overdue period	Consequence
Less than 1 month	10% surcharge
Over 1 month but less than 2 months	30% surcharge
Over 2 months but less than 3 months	50% surcharge
Over 3 months but less than 4 months	Suspension of licence / registration
Over 4 months	Revocation of licence / registration

Q3 : How can I check my anniversary date?

A: After logging into your WINGS account, you can check your anniversary date listed on your “Basic Information” under “Information Profile – Licensing”, “Anniversary Date for Submission of Annual Fee/Annual Return”.

Q4 : Will the SFC remind me about when to pay my annual licensing fees?

A: Payment notifications and reminders will be sent via WINGS Mail to your WINGS accounts on the anniversary date and seven days before the due date. You can login your WINGS account to view the details of outstanding annual licensing fees.

You are encouraged to forward your WINGS Mail messages to your office email address and/or personal email address using the auto-forward function.

Q5 : I cannot sign into my WINGS account to check my annual licensing fee status. What should I do?

A: You can reset your username and password via https://wings.sfc.hk/main/#/en/forgot-username-password or contact your case officer for assistance.

Please note that two-factor authentication (2FA) is required to log into your WINGS account. You can follow the on-screen instructions to activate your 2FA if you have not yet done so. The user guide and FAQs for 2FA are also available on the WINGS website.

Q6 : What are the payment methods?

A: You are strongly encouraged to pay the annual licensing fees through online payment facilities (WINGS.Pay, Faster Payment System (FPS), PPS and credit card).

You can refer to the Quick Guide for Annual Licensing Fee Payment for further details.

Q7 : How can I check my payment record?

A: After successful payment of the annual licensing fees, the payment receipt will be sent to your WINGS Mail. You can then view your payment via “Transaction History” under the “Fee and Payment” menu within two business days.

Q8 : I have outstanding licensing fees and have ceased to carry on regulated activities shortly after my last anniversary date. Do I need to pay the outstanding annual licensing fees?

A: Yes, annual licensing fees are payable on the anniversary date of a licensed individual, provided the individual remains licensed on that day. You should pay the annual licensing fees by the due date, i.e. one month after your anniversary date. Failure to make full payment before the due date will result in a surcharge on the outstanding amount as well as possible suspension and revocation of your licence.

Q9 : If I have changed job, and my new accredited principal has a different anniversary date from my previous one. Will this affect my annual licensing fee payment?

A: If an event triggers a change in the anniversary date (e.g. transfer of accreditation), a licensing fee will be charged to align the one-year covering period with the new anniversary date. Here is an example to illustrate:

A licensed individual with an anniversary date of 1 April transfers to a new principal, which has an anniversary date of 1 July, to carry on the same RA. The application for transfer of accreditation is approved on 2 July 2025.

Based on the new anniversary date, the new covering period of annual licensing fees should span from 1 July to 30 June (New Covering Period). To align the individual’s annual licensing fee coverage with the New Covering Period, a one-off licensing fee, calculated on a pro-rata basis for the period from 1 April 2026 to 30 June 2026, will be charged on 2 July 2025.

Q10 : What can I do if I have questions on annual licensing fee payment?

A: You can refer to the Quick Guide for Annual Licensing Fee Payment on the SFC website for detailed payment procedures.

For WINGS-related technical issues, you can refer to the online demo clips and user guides on the WINGS website (https://wings.sfc.hk) for information. You may also contact 2207-9333 or TechEnquiries@wings.sfc.hk for further assistance.

You can also contact your SFC case officer whose contact information can be found in “Contact SFC” on the Information Profile of your WINGS account.

Last update: 14 Mar 2025