How to apply for a niche?

Number of niches released each month

The Food and Environmental Hygiene Department (FEHD) releases about 1,700 new niches at Tsang Tsui Columbarium every month:

• Standard niches for non-incense burning: 850
• Standard niches for non-banned incense: 850
• Large urn niches without incense: 20

The number of niches released may be adjusted according to the application situation. Please contact us for the latest number and location of new niches available for allocation.Click here.

Eligibility

Applicants may apply to deposit the ashes of the following persons in niches managed by the FEHD:

• The deceased was a Hong Kong resident at the time of his/her death and his/her remains were cremated at a crematorium of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department within three months of his/her death; or
• The deceased was a Hong Kong resident for at least 10 of the 20 years immediately preceding his death and his remains were cremated outside Hong Kong; or
• The remains of the deceased were cremated at the crematorium of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department after obtaining approval from the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department.

How to submit your application

Application Period

• Applications accepted monthly until further notice
• From 9:00 a.m. on the first day of each month to 5:00 p.m. on the last day of the month

Submit Application Form

• Complete the online form or paper application formFEHB 294 Application for Allocation of a Niche (Tsang Tsui Columbarium), together with the required documents, during the application period by the following means:
  • Apply online
  • e-mail apply_newniche@fehd.gov.hk
  • Submit the application form in the drop-in box of the office during office hours or by post
    • Hong Kong Cemeteries and Crematoria Office (1J Wong Nai Chung Road, Happy Valley); or
    • Kowloon Cemeteries and Crematoria Office (Upper Ground Floor, 6 Cheong Hang Road, Hung Hom)
  • Fax (2333 1716).
• Applicants do not need to pay any fees when submitting their application forms. '
• Upon receipt of the application form, FEHD will send an acknowledgement slip with an application number to the applicant by post, fax or email. If the applicant has not received the confirmation receipt within ten calendar days after submitting the application, he/she may call the hotline 2841 9111 for enquiry.

Required documents for application

Please attach a copy of each document when submitting the application form. Online applications must be uploaded in PDF or JPEG format. Successful applicants must bring along original copies of all relevant documents when going through the allocation procedures.

• A copy of the applicant’s Hong Kong identity card;
• A copy of each deceased’s Hong Kong identity card or document proving that the deceased was a Hong Kong resident;
• A copy of any applicable document proving the cremation of the deceased:

Cremation location	Supporting Documents
Cremated in Hong Kong	Permit for Collection of Cremated Ashes
	Cremation Certificate
	Permit for removal or exhumation of remains
	The receipt for cremation fee is only applicable if (i) the ashes of the deceased are still stored in a government crematorium or (ii) a cremation time slot has been booked for the deceased at a crematorium of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department. Applicants should return the receipt as soon as possible after obtaining the "Permit for Collection of Cremated Ashes".
Cremation outside Hong Kong	Cremation certificate issued by a legal crematorium in the Mainland or overseas

• If you apply for a niche to hold the ashes of two or more ancestors, you must submit copies of marriage certificates, birth certificates and other supporting documents to prove that the ancestors buried together are close relatives or have a close relationship.
  • Close relatives refer to spouse, parents, grandparents, grandparents-in-law, brothers, sisters, spouse's father, spouse's mother, daughter-in-law, son-in-law, or direct descendants from the paternal or maternal line.
  • If you are unable to submit valid documents proving your close relationship, you mayCemeteries and Crematoria OfficeOr go to the Public Niche Allocation Office for the oath-taking procedure: Public Niche Allocation Office (Rooms 3501-3511 and 3520-3525, 35/F, Tower 1, Metroplaza, 223 Hing Fong Road, Kwai Fong, New Territories)
• Tsang Tsui Columbarium:Application is open every month (from the first day of each month to the end of the month), there is no need to wait in line, and both no-incense and no-incense niches are available.
• Wo Hop Shek, Cape Collinson, etc.: Applications are opened irregularly, please pay attention to the announcements of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department (for example, 18,000 new niches were opened in May 2024)

Lottery, draw and allocationNiches

• The public draw and computer random lottery will be held on the 20th of the next month after the application deadline (if that day is a Saturday or a public holiday, it will be postponed to the next working day). Videos of the public draw and lottery process will be available.Please click here
• Available niches are allocated to successful applicants through lottery and computer random drawing, rather than selection by the successful applicants. Each successful application will be assigned a priority number and a specific niche.
• Applicants can check the results themselves on the day after the draw.
  • FEHD website
  • Niche Application Progress Enquiry System (Tsang Tsui Columbarium)
  • FEHD Hong Kong Island or Kowloon Cemeteries and Crematoria Office
  • Public Niche Allocation Office
  • Call2841 9111

Add ashes to existing niches

• Eligibility: Must be the niche holder or authorized agent.
• Required Documents:
• The original and copy of the cardholder's ID card;
• Add the cremation certificate of the ancestor and the certificate of kinship;
• If the certificate holder dies, the descendants must submit the death certificate and inheritance affidavit documents.
• cost： Each additional portion of ashes costs $140 and the processing time is about 10 working days.

Successful applicants

• The FEHD will send letters to successful applicants according to the sequence of numbers, inviting them to go to the FEHD Public Niche Allocation Office (Rooms 3501-3511 and 3520-3525, 35/F, Tower 1, Metroplaza, 223 Hing Fong Road, Kwai Fong, New Territories) on the designated date and time to complete the niche allocation procedure. Successful applicants are required to produce original copies of relevant documents and pay the relevant fees immediately at the allocation counter.
• FEHD will notify successful applicants of the ballot results via WhatsApp/SMS, email or post
  • The appointment letter will be sent 10 days before the appointment date.
  • WhatsApp / mobile phone SMS and email reminder messages will also be sent 7 days before the appointment date
• The fees for the first 20 years for the extendable niches and the setting up of memorial tablets at Tsang Tsui Columbarium are:
  • Standard niche: HK$2,490
  • Large niche: HK$3,090
• Payment Methods
  • Easy to do
  • FPS
  • Crossed cheque or cashier's order payable to "The Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region"
• If the applicant decides not to accept the allocated niche, fails to go to the designated office to complete the allocation procedures as scheduled, or fails to pay the fee, the applicant will be deemed to have given up the niche and his/her application will be deemed to have been processed. The FEHD will not accept any further application from the same deceased within six months.

Latest News

The Shek Mun Columbarium in Shatin is expected to be completed in 2025 and will provide 40,000 new niches.

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For further enquiries, please contact Food and Environmental Hygiene Department, Hong Kong Island (2570 4318) or Kowloon (2365 5321) offices, or browseFood and Environmental Hygiene Department official websiteGet the latest announcements.

• The waiting time for resettlement in popular areas such as Diamond Hill and Kwai Chung is more than 10 years;
• Cape Collinson and Wo Hop Rock vary in length from several years.
• Other options:
• Private niches are more expensive but have shorter waiting times.