Legislative amendments for a comprehensive smoking ban on all construction sites in Hong Kong came into force on Friday, aiming to reduce fire risks and safeguard the safety of workers and the public months after a devastating fire in Tai Po killed 168 people.

The Construction Sites (Safety) (Amendment) Regulation 2026, the Smoking (Public Health) Ordinance (Amendment of Schedule 2) Order 2026 and the Fixed Penalty (Smoking Offences) (Specification of Authorities and Public Officers) (Amendment) Notice 2026 impose clear legal obligations on principal contractors and subcontractors of construction sites and any persons on construction sites that smoking is prohibited on all construction sites.

“All types of construction sites, including those for building repair, maintenance or renovation, are designated as no smoking areas, except for domestic premises or private quarters that are being occupied by their residents for residential purposes,” the government said in a notification on Friday.

A day earlier, the city's nine major construction bodies issued a set of general guidelines on enforcing the total smoking ban at construction sites – a move the trade said is aimed at reducing fire hazards and safeguarding worker health.

RELATED ARTICLES

• HK construction sector issues new guidelines on total smoking ban
• Tai Po fire Independent Committee hears of ignored warnings
• Owners' Corp, contract violations among reasons for Tai Po blaze
• Winding-up petition filed against Wang Fuk Court renovation contractor
• 25 charges levied against 7 people, 2 companies in deadly Tai Po fire

The Nov 26 deadly fire tore through seven out of eight buildings of the Wang Fuk Court residential complex, which was undergoing major repairs to the exterior walls then, prompting calls for the regulators to enhance oversight to ensure compliance with safety measures.

The legislative amendments that took effect on Friday empower occupational safety officers (OSOs) of the Labour Department to carry out enforcement work related to all smoking offenses on construction sites. Without prior warning, OSOs will immediately issue a fixed penalty notice to any person who does a smoking act on a construction site. Offenders are liable to a fixed fine of HK$3,000.

“Contractors and subcontractors of construction sites shall take all reasonable steps to ensure that no person uses a naked light for lighting, smokes or carries a lighted smoking product on a construction site,” the government notification says, adding that the offense carries a maximum fine of HK$400,000 on conviction.

The Labour Department has launched a series of publicity and education initiatives over the past few months to enable the construction industry and the public to understand the requirements of the smoking ban on construction sites.

The department will soon issue revised codes of practices on scaffolding, including setting out the material requirements for scaffolding toe-boards to ensure the materials used are of sufficient strength to prevent workers and objects from falling from scaffolds, while also reducing fire risks.

The guidelines issued by the nine construction bodies on Thursday include prohibiting workers from bringing cigarettes or fire sources into designated areas, and enhancing inspections. Construction workers must deposit their cigarettes and lighters at designated areas when entering worksites, while security personnel will enforce the rule at entrance checkpoints, with violators risking immediate removal from the premises.

Clear smoke-free policy statements must be displayed across worksites, and the designated boundaries of nonsmoking zones must be thoroughly explained to all workers during pre-employment safety inductions, the guidelines say.