Can We Please Have “Provisional Outside F&B Seating” in Hong Kong Now

Between 1989 and 2000, I developed the concept of “provisional restaurant licensing,” and by 2001, it had become a reality. In 2025, it is overdue to apply the same concept to outside seating accommodation (OSA).

I advised on a Business Services Promotion Unit report, which explored how to unstick and modernise licenses in the food sector of Hong Kong. One of the most effective moves that I was behind in suggesting was the creation of a provisional license system.

Government inspection delays were choking the F&B industry. Provisional licensing allowed food operators to open fast (with safety assured via non-government validation), reducing massive delays in the system; opening unlicensed premises was, before that, the unfortunate norm and fines were a cost of doing business.

That system has worked for two decades, a few tweaks are still needed in my view, but we can and must make our F&B landscape more competitive and world-class.

An age-old bottleneck is outdoor seating. Yet the same powers used to issue provisional restaurant licenses (and liquor licenses) generally apply to outside seating accommodation; the legislation and decision-making authority is basically the same, and the statutory functions to assess and approve applications already exist.

The barrier is not capability. It is one of will.

We have massive untapped potential in our barren, wide-open spaces (private and public) yet outdoor dining is mired in slow approvals, by quasi “stakeholders”, no clear performance pledges, and a lack of practical incentives or will to make it work.

The result : Hong Kong is needlessly barren, when it could be vibrant and alive with street-level dining culture.

We can QUICKLY permit provisional outside seating accommodation, if applicants meet the baseline requirements, just grant immediate, conditional permission(s) to operate outside, while final approvals are processed. Formal reports have detailed the delays and dysfunction of the system I’m re-stating whats already known. But no quick fix has ever been proposed!

Many months, a year or even more in delay is unaffordable, for F&B operators, every day counts. The full potential for a new business to do well needs to exist from day one, not in month 12 or 18 or never.

We simply need fast engagement between authorities and the industry to unstick this issue as I’ve suggested here.

I have heard concerns for many years, if not decades and now you all have my fix at no cost to the HKSAR government or to the F&B industry!

Will the stakeholders now go and execute on it?

I’m here to help (you all) if you need.

If you need specific input regarding a strategic Hong Kong challenge or related legal matters in the HKSAR you can always DM me and check out my profile at https://www.ajhalkes.com

hashtag#HongKongFNB hashtag#UrbanDining hashtag#RestaurantLicensing hashtag#PolicyInnovation hashtag#HKRegulation hashtag#OutdoorDiningHK hashtag#FoodAndBeverage hashtag#SmartCitySolutions hashtag#HKBusinessPolicy hashtag#FNBStrategy