THE ROLE OF THE FIRE SERVICES DEPARTMENT
The Licensing Authority will not issue any licence until after the applicant has complied
with, among others, all requirements imposed by the Director of Fire Services. The proof of
compliance with fire safety requirements is a Fire Services Certificate issued by the Fire Services
Department (FSD), which is a pre-requisite for the issue of a restaurant licence. If there are
installation/alteration works on the mechanical ventilating system of the premises under
application for a restaurant licence, which fall within the Ventilation of Scheduled Premises
Regulations (Cap.132CE), a Letter of Compliance (Ventilating System) is also one of the
pre-requisites for the issue of restaurant licence. This part describes the procedures of processing
an application for a Fire Services Certificate and Letter of Compliance (Ventilating System) by the
FSD and further enquiries can be made to any of the Regional Offices and Ventilation Division of
the FSD.
How to Obtain a Fire Services Certificate
2. The applicant does not need to apply directly to the FSD for a Fire Services Certificate in
respect of premises under application for a restaurant licence. The respective Regional Office will,
upon receiving the referral of the application for a restaurant licence from the respective Licensing
Office of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department (FEHD), process it as an application for
a Fire Services Certificate. FSD will make direct contact with the applicant, with copies of all
relevant correspondences to the Licensing Office of the FEHD.
The Procedures
3. For each individual application, the FSD will consider whether the premises are suitable
for the operation of a restaurant. If the proposed layout and the premises are considered suitable
for such purpose, detailed fire safety requirements will be formulated and issued to the applicant
direct. If the premises and/or the proposed layout are/is considered unsuitable for such purpose, a
letter of objection stating the reasons for objection will be issued to the applicant. Through the
arrangement by the FEHD, the FSD will also take part in the Application Vetting Panel meeting for
any matters arising from the application.
Fire Safety Requirements
4. Fire safety requirements are measures to protect the safety of public and the premises
against fire, limit its spread and at the same time give warning to the occupants of the premises.
There are general fire safety requirements published by the FSD which are available in their
departmental homepage ([Link] for the reference of
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applicants of restaurant licences. To support compliance of requirements, applicants will be
required to obtain the following certificates, licence or letter of approval:
(a) Certificate of Fire Service Installations and Equipment (FS 251) and Certificate of
Compliance (FSI/314A or FSI/314B)
These certificates are issued by a registered fire service installations (FSI) contractor.
The purpose of a FS 251 certificate is to ensure that following the decoration of the
premises, the fire service installations provided for the building are still in efficient
working order. If there is a need to alter or add any fire service installation and
equipment in the premises, the applicant should appoint a registered FSI contractor to
carry out the work. The registered FSI contractor should submit a copy of the certificate
(FSI/314A or FSI/314B as appropriate) together with the relevant FSI plan to the
Director of Fire Services. Upon completion of the work, the registered FSI contractor
should inspect and certify the installations, and submit a copy of the Certificate of Fire
Service Installations and Equipment (FS 251) to the Director of Fire Services. A list of
registered FSI contractors is available for inspection at the Regional Offices, all fire
stations and FSD website: [Link]/home/eng/[Link].
(b) Dangerous Goods Licence/Letter of Approval
If the storage of dangerous goods exceeds the exempted quantity, or any tankage is
used to store dangerous goods in liquid form, a Dangerous Goods Licence or Letter of
Approval in respect of the storage and use of dangerous goods issued by the FSD is
required. The purpose of the licence/letter of approval is to ensure that the dangerous
goods stored or used in the premises do not pose any undue risk to the premises and
their vicinities. The type of licence/letter of approval required by FSD depends on the
fuel to be used, which in turn may restrict the location of the food premises; the
quantity of fuel that may be permitted; and the design of the kitchen.
(c) Test report/Catalogue of the Emergency Lighting Unit and FS 251
The purpose of this test report or catalogue is to enable the FSD to check whether the
self-contained battery type emergency lighting unit, if installed, meets the specified
standards. This requirement for Self-contained Luminaires Emergency Lighting Systems
PPA/104(A)(4th revision) has been taken into effect from 1 January 2007.
(d) Test report and invoice of Polyurethane (PU) foam filled furniture
The invoice from the manufacturers/suppliers indicating that the PU foam filled
furniture items meet the relevant flammability standards and a copy of the test
certificate issued by a testing laboratory accredited to conduct tests according to
specified standards. The test certificate should bear the supplier’s/manufacturer’s
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company seal for authentication purposes and PU foam filled furniture items meeting
the specified standards should bear appropriate labels.
Paragraphs 5 to 7 hereunder list the restrictions to be imposed on the use of fuel. For details on
the restrictions to be imposed on the use of electricity, town gas, liquefied petroleum gas and
natural gas as fuel, please read paragraphs 4 to 11 in Part VII of “A Guide to Application for
Restaurant Licences”.
Use of Fuel
5. Fire safety requirements for the use of various fuels in restaurant premises are available
in FSD’s homepage: [Link] Generally speaking, there
is no restriction on the use of electricity and town gas as fuel. From fire safety point of view, if
liquid fuels are to be used, only diesel and kerosene are permitted to be used in the kitchen of the
restaurant premises subject to the compliance of the Dangerous Goods Ordinance (Cap. 295) and
its subsidiary legislation and the fire safety requirements stipulated by the FSD. In general, the use
of diesel and kerosene will require the following approval or licence respectively:
(a) Diesel, which may be stored subject to approval/licensing as follows:
(i) for quantity not exceeding 2,500 litres in service tanks, the tank and its associated
pipings and equipment should be approved by the Director of Fire Services under
regulation 99A(1) of the Dangerous Goods (General) Regulation (Cap 295B); and
(ii) for quantity exceeding 2,500 litres, the storage requires a Dangerous Goods
Licence issued by the FSD under Section 6 of the Dangerous Goods Ordinance (Cap
295).
The applicant is also advised to read paragraphs 28 to 30 in Part II of “A Guide to
Application for Restaurant Licences” for the requirements of the FEHD.
(b) Kerosene, if the capacity of the storage/use of which exceeds 20 litres, a separate
licensed dangerous goods store shall be provided under Section 6 of the Dangerous
Goods Ordinance (Cap. 295); and
The applicant is required to submit separate application for approval/licence for the storage of
diesel and/or kerosene to the Dangerous Goods Division of the FSD.
6. For the use of solid fuel, fire separation between the kitchen and other parts of the
premises is required. The applicant is also advised to read paragraphs 28 to 30 in Part II of “A Guide
to Application for Restaurant Licences” for the requirements of the FEHD.
7. The applicant is advised to read paragraph 30 in Part II of “A Guide to Application for
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Restaurant Licences” for the provision of an independent chimney when using diesel oil or solid
fuel. The applicant is also advised to read paragraphs 4 to 11 in Part VII for electrical and gas
installations.
Report of Compliance
8. Applicants or their authorized representatives should, upon completion of all works
required, inform the respective Regional Office by phone, in writing or via email so that follow-up
inspection can be arranged. The addresses, telephone numbers and email addresses of these
offices are at paragraph 21 below. To ensure smooth processing of licence inspection, the applicant
should submit ALL required documentary proof of compliance with fire safety requirements to the
respective Regional Office before a compliance inspection would be arranged. Given below are
some common documentary proof of compliance with fire safety requirements:
(a) Certificates of Fire Service Installations and Equipment (FS 251); and
(b) Invoices from manufacturers/ suppliers and test certificates from testing laboratories
indicating that the polyurethane (PU) foam filled mattresses and upholstered furniture
used in the premises have complied with the specified standards. (Test certificates shall
be issued by an accredited laboratory authorized to conduct such test according to the
specified standard, and be stamped with the company’s chop of the manufacturer/
supplier for verification.)
Follow-up Inspection
9. If non-compliance with fire safety requirements is spotted during the follow-up
inspection, the subject Regional Office will advise the applicant in writing of any remedial works
required, and arrange for further follow-up inspection after the applicant has notified that all the
requirements have been met.
Issue of a Fire Services Certificate
10. If the follow-up inspection has proved that all fire safety requirements have been
complied with and the layout of the premises conforms to the approved plan, the applicant will be
notified in writing by FSD that a Fire Services Certificate is available for collection after payment of
the prescribed fee. A copy of the notification will be forwarded to the respective Licensing Office of
FEHD by the FSD.
11. The Fire Services Certificate is one of the pre-requisites for the issue of a restaurant
licence. However, the certificate remains valid only if the actual layout of the premises conforms to
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the latest plans accepted by FSD, and that all necessary fire safety requirements stipulated are fully
complied with. If there are alterations or additions to the premises that may affect fire safety, a
new Fire Services Certificate may be required.
How to Obtain a Letter of Compliance (Ventilating System)
12. The Letter of Compliance (Ventilating System) is issued by the Ventilation Division of the
FSD. The purpose of this Letter of Compliance is to certify that the mechanical ventilating system
installed in the restaurant premises has been inspected, and complies with the fire safety
provisions stipulated in the Ventilation of Scheduled Premises Regulation (Cap. 132CE) and the fire
safety requirements on mechanical ventilating system issued by the FSD.
The Procedures
13. The applicant does not need to apply directly to the FSD for a Letter of Compliance for
the mechanical ventilating system of the premises under application. If the applicant has indicated
in the application that a mechanical ventilating system will be provided at the premises, fire safety
requirements on mechanical ventilating systems will be issued to the applicant directly by the FSD.
14. Before the ventilation work is commenced on site, the applicant is required to submit
three sets of ventilation/air-conditioning layout plans directly to the Licensing Office of the FEHD.
The FEHD will refer the plans to the Ventilation Division of the FSD for processing.
Use of Electrostatic Precipitator
15. Should the applicant consider the installation of an electrostatic precipitator or air
cleaner to achieve more effective control of oily fumes or cooking odour at kitchen exhaust, test
report and certificate of such equipment have to be submitted to the FSD for approval prior to its
installation. To save your time and effort on documentary submission, certain models of
electrostatic precipitator had already been accepted for use and the list can be obtainable at FSD
website: [Link]
Report of Compliance
16. When all ventilation installation works have been completed in full compliance with the
fire safety requirements, the applicant should fill out a prescribed form (Vent/425) which should
also be certified by the contractor and return the original copy to the Ventilation Division, so that
an inspection can be arranged.
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17. To ensure smooth processing of licence inspection, applicant’s particular attention is
drawn to the following aspects:
(a) The applicant should submit the ventilation drawings in advance to the Licensing Office
of FEHD. The ventilation drawings shall clearly indicate the layout of all existing or new
installations, including air ducts, positions of fire dampers, ventilation equipment and
fire rated enclosures within the licensing area.
(b) For application on ventilating system alteration, the applicant should be ready to
produce a valid annual inspection certificate for the existing installation and the
installation under alteration shall be highlighted in the ventilation drawing.
(c) If the applicant does not wish to handle the ventilation inspection application in
person, he must appoint, in the form of authorisation letter, a representative for
document submission, attending site inspection and receiving advice. Otherwise, the
process of application may be delayed or the inspection cannot be arranged.
Initial and Follow-up Inspection
18. If the ventilating system does not comply with fire safety requirements, the inspection
officer of Ventilation Division will, during initial inspection, advise the applicant or the appointed
representative of any remedial works required. A formal list of non-compliance works will be
issued to the applicant through the respective Licensing Office of FEHD. After rectifying the defects
of the ventilation installation, the applicant is required to report compliance to the Ventilation
Division once again. The procedure is identical to that of initial inspection.
19. Failure to provide sufficient information (e.g. drawing plan) and necessary certification
document for verification may delay the inspection and the issue of the Letter of Compliance
(Ventilating System) which is one of the pre-requisites for the granting of a restaurant licence.
Issue of a Letter of Compliance (Ventilating System)
20. After confirmation from the inspection officer of Ventilation Division that all fire safety
requirements for the mechanical ventilating system have been complied with, a Letter of
Compliance (Ventilating System) will be issued directly to the applicant with a copy to the
respective Licensing Office of the FEHD. The letter will normally be mailed to premises address. If
the applicant wishes to collect the letter in person or have it mailed to another correspondence
address, a written request shall be submitted before the inspection of the ventilating system is
conducted.
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Enquiries
21. The contact particulars of the offices of the FSD are as follows.
Offices Address (Email Address) Telephone No. Fax line
Hong Kong Regional M/F, Sheung Wan Fire Station, 2549 8104 2559 3461
Office 2 Western Fire Services Street,
SheungWan, Hong Kong
(lchfpro2@[Link])
Kowloon West Sub- Room 601, 6/F, 2302 5339 2302 5314
Regional Office Tsim Sha Tsui Fire Station,
333 Canton Road, Kowloon
(lckfpro@[Link])
Kowloon East Sub- Unit 1809-1810, 18/F, 3423 9332 2722 5256
Regional Office Skyline Tower,
39 Wang Kwong Road,
Kowloon Bay, Kowloon
(lckfpro2@[Link])
New Territories Regional Unit 1809-1810, 18/F, 3423 9328 2443 1411
Office Skyline Tower,
39 Wang Kwong Road,
Kowloon Bay, Kowloon
(lcstfpro@[Link])
Ventilation Division 3/F, Fire Services Department 2718 7567 2382 2495
Kwai Chung Office Building,
No 86 Hing Shing Road,
Kwai Chung, New Territories
(fsvent@[Link])
Dangerous Goods 4/F, Fire Services Department 2417 5757 2413 0873
Division Kwai Chung Office Building, 2417 5768
No 86 Hing Shing Road,
Kwai Chung, New Territories
(fsdgd@[Link])
