The Government today announced that the application deadlines of the Travel Agents Incentive Scheme and the Green Lifestyle Local Tour Incentive Scheme will be extended for one year to March 31, 2022.

The funding commitment for the Travel Agents Incentive Scheme will be increased by $50 million to about $150 million to further enhance the support for the travel industry.

The Government said with the prolonged impact of the COVID-19 epidemic for more than a year, cross-boundary and local tourism activities have nearly come to a complete halt.

The two incentive schemes were unable to fully perform their role on providing support to the trade.

Extending the two schemes' application deadlines and increasing the funding commitment for the Travel Agents Incentive Scheme will enable the trade to capitalise on the opportunities arising from the gradual resumption of tourism activities in future, providing stimulus for the revival of the travel industry, it added.

The Travel Agents Incentive Scheme provides travel agents with cash incentives of $100 or $120 for each outbound or inbound overnight traveller they serve, with the number of eligible travellers for each travel agent capped at 1,000.

The Green Lifestyle Local Tour Incentive Scheme provides travel agents with cash incentives based on the number of green lifestyle local tour participants they serve, with $200 for each participant and the number of participants that each travel agent can claim capped at 1,000.