Hong Kong Small Claims Tribunal: checking the claim limits and exclusions
If your dispute is a money claim of HK$75,000 or less, the Small Claims Tribunal is the forum the Hong Kong Judiciary describes for that kind of claim. The official material also lists four types of dispute the Tribunal does not handle: labour disputes, possession of land, alimony maintenance, and libel or defamation. Before you go further, check both the amount and the nature of your claim against these limits.
The HK$75,000 ceiling
The Judiciary states that the Tribunal deals with monetary claims not exceeding HK$75,000. The test is the amount of the monetary claim, so a claim above that figure falls outside the Tribunal’s stated scope on the face of the official description.
Check two things here:
- Whether your claim is a monetary claim at all, as opposed to a request for some other form of relief.
- Whether the amount you are claiming, as you would put it in your claim, is within HK$75,000.
The official page does not walk through how interest, costs or multiple heads of claim are counted against the figure. If your claim involves any of these, treat the calculation as something to check against the court’s own guidance rather than assume.
Claims the Tribunal does not handle
The official page lists four excluded categories:
| Excluded category | What it covers in plain terms |
|---|---|
| Labour disputes | Disputes arising from employment relationships |
| Possession of land | Claims to recover or determine possession of land |
| Alimony maintenance | Maintenance payments connected with family obligations |
| Libel or defamation | Claims about defamatory statements |
If your dispute falls into any of these categories, the Small Claims Tribunal is not the route the official material points to for it, even if the amount is below HK$75,000. The table is a plain-language summary. The wording of each category on the official page governs.
No legal representation
The official page states that no legal representation is allowed before the Tribunal. This matters for anyone planning to rely on a lawyer to appear for them at a hearing. Plan on the basis that you will present your own case, and read the official page for the detail of how that works.
Where your own assessment comes in
The official material sets out the ceiling, the exclusions and the representation rule. It does not decide whether any particular claim will be accepted, how a tribunal will treat your facts, or what your legal position is. Those questions depend on the specific circumstances of your case.
Before relying on this summary, do the following:
- Read the Judiciary page in full.
- Confirm that your claim is a monetary claim of HK$75,000 or less.
- Confirm that your claim does not fall into any of the four excluded categories.
- Get individual advice if your facts are unclear, or if the boundary between categories is in doubt.
This article does not cover fees, filing deadlines, service requirements or whether a particular claim will be heard. Those points are not set out in the material this summary relies on, so check them directly with the official source.