The Government today announced that the second tranche of the Employment Support Scheme (ESS) received an overwhelming response on the first day of the two-week application period.

As of 6pm, it received nearly 52,000 applications from employers and over 2,000 applications from self-employed people. Among the employers' applications received, 96% of the applicants had successfully applied for the first tranche of the ESS.

Eligible employers and self-employed people can submit online applications for the second tranche of wage subsidies through the ESS portal until 11.59pm on September 13.

Applications will be processed expeditiously and most employers who have provided accurate and complete information can expect to receive wage subsidies in three to four weeks.

The ESS Secretariat will inform successful applicants of the results through SMS and email. Applicants can log in to the ESS portal to check the amount of subsidy granted and the committed paid headcount for September to November.

For enquiries, email enquiry@employmentsupport.hk or call 1836 122.