At the Authority's request, the Rating and Valuation Department has undertaken to enhance its Info-Hotline Service by incorporating information on user restrictions on the Occupation Permits. The new service is in operation from November 26. Practitioners may use the Info-Hotline Service to separately search for saleable area and property age as well as permitted occupation purposes at any time.

The search for permitted occupation purposes is similar to that for area and property age. A user should first obtain the Account Enquiry Number of the relevant residential property (the 12-digit figure printed on the top left-hand corner of the Demand for Rates and/or Government Rent) and call 2805 6616 to ascertain whether the property is in the Info-Hotline System (this call is free of charge). Then the user should use a tone telephone with registered "IDD Infoline Category A Service" to call 900 6053 8888 and input the Account Enquiry Number, then select the type of search and input his fax and telephone numbers to receive the requested information through his fax machine. The charge will be based on time used and is estimated to be about $12 per search, a fraction of the $45 presently required for obtaining a copy of the Occupation Permit from the Buildings Department. The Authority will continue to supply the CD-ROM on Account Enquiry Numbers to enable estate agency companies to access the Info-Hotline Service.

The information on permitted occupation purposes available from the enhanced Info-Hotline Service originates from the Occupatioin Permits issued by the Buildings Department. For the purposes of complying with the requirements on prescribed property information under the Practice Regulation, the Info-Hotline Service will be regarded as a prescribed source for obtaining information on user restrictions in respect of residential properties.