Register information
Dear Estate Agents Authority,
I would like to make an Access to Information request for past data from the register. Please provide the information listed on the Register for the agent with license number E-255877 prior to its revocation. This includes:
the name of those to whom a licence has been granted;
the licence number;
the period(s) for which the licence was granted and/or renewed;
if the licence is suspended, the period during which it is suspended;
if the licence is revoked, the date of revocation;
the registered address; and
any other information on the register.
Further, please provide the detailed reasons for which this license was revoked and any disciplinary deliberation in connection with the revocation.
Yours faithfully,
Sebastian Lee
Dear Sir/Madam,
We acknowledge receipt of your email. If necessary, we shall, in response
to the content of your email, follow up or reply to you, as appropriate.
Estate Agents Authority
敬啟者：
閣下的電郵已收悉。如有需要，本局會因應電郵內容作出適當的跟進或回覆。
地產代理監管局
[1]EAA Logo[2]EAA Smart Logo
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * This
message contains confidential information and is intended only for the
individual named. If you are not the named addressee you should not
disseminate, distribute or copy this e-mail. Please notify the sender
immediately by e-mail if you have received this e-mail by mistake and
delete this e-mail from your system. E-mail transmission cannot be
guaranteed to be secure or error-free as information could be intercepted,
corrupted, lost, destroyed, arrive late or incomplete, or contain viruses.
The sender therefore does not accept liability for any errors or omissions
in the contents of this message, which arise as a result of e-mail
transmission. If verification is required please request a hard-copy
version. Estate Agents Authority, 7/F, E-Trade Plaza, 24 Lee Chung Street,
Chai Wan, Hong Kong, [3]www.eaa.org.hk * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
References
Visible links
1. https://www.eaa.org.hk/
2. http://outsidehk.eaa.org.hk/
3. http://www.eaa.org.hk/
Dear Estate Agents Authority,
Under the Code on Access to Information your agency is required to provide a preliminary response within ten days. My request is now overdue.
Yours faithfully,
Sebastian Lee
Dear Sir/Madam,
We acknowledge receipt of your email. If necessary, we shall, in response
to the content of your email, follow up or reply to you, as appropriate.
Estate Agents Authority
敬啟者：
閣下的電郵已收悉。如有需要，本局會因應電郵內容作出適當的跟進或回覆。
地產代理監管局
[1]EAA Logo[2]EAA Smart Logo
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * This
message contains confidential information and is intended only for the
individual named. If you are not the named addressee you should not
disseminate, distribute or copy this e-mail. Please notify the sender
immediately by e-mail if you have received this e-mail by mistake and
delete this e-mail from your system. E-mail transmission cannot be
guaranteed to be secure or error-free as information could be intercepted,
corrupted, lost, destroyed, arrive late or incomplete, or contain viruses.
The sender therefore does not accept liability for any errors or omissions
in the contents of this message, which arise as a result of e-mail
transmission. If verification is required please request a hard-copy
version. Estate Agents Authority, 7/F, E-Trade Plaza, 24 Lee Chung Street,
Chai Wan, Hong Kong, [3]www.eaa.org.hk * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
References
Visible links
1. https://www.eaa.org.hk/
2. http://outsidehk.eaa.org.hk/
3. http://www.eaa.org.hk/
Dear Sebastian Lee,
We refer to your email of 9 July 2025.
Under section 13 of the Estate Agents Ordinance (“EAO”), the EAA maintains
a register for the purposes of the EAO. The Register contains the
following:
(1) the name of those to whom a licence has been granted;
(2) the licence number;
(3) the period(s) for which the licence was granted and/or renewed;
(4) if the licence is [1]suspended, the period during which it is
suspended;
(5) if the licence is [2]revoked, the date of revocation;
(6) for current licensees, the registered address; and
(7) other information prescribed by the EAO.
The Register is available free of charge for public inspection at the EAA
office (Address: Room 2601, 26/F, Hopewell Centre, 183 Queen's Road East,
Wanchai, Hong Kong). Pursuant to section 13 of the EAO, a certified copy
of or extract from any part of the Register may be made available to the
public for a prescribed fee (at HK$150 per licence record). The link for
the relevant application form is at:
[3]www.eaa.org.hk/licensing/documents/RegisterExtract.pdf.
To facilitate members of the public to ascertain the results of the
inquiry hearings conducted by the Disciplinary Committee of the EAA
pursuant to powers under the EAO on disciplinary matters concerning
licensees or ex-licensees, and to educate both the estate agency trade and
members of the public, inquiry hearing results for cases adjudicated by
the Disciplinary Committee are provided on the EAA Website ([4]Recent
Inquiry Hearing Results) for search for three years from the relevant
adjudicated date.
Subject to the information contained in the Register and maintained by the
EAA pursuant to section 13 of the EAO, the Licence List and Recent Inquiry
Hearing Results made available on the EAA website, the EAA is not in a
position to provide further information regarding the status of a
particular licensee / ex-licensee or the reasons for decisions of the
relevant Committees of the EAA in relation to its handling of any
particular case, as the disclosure of such information involves the
privacy of an individual and internal deliberations of the EAA’s standing
committee; and such requests may be refused pursuant to paragraphs 2.8 and
2.13 of the EAA’s Code on Access to Information.
For further enquiries, please call our hotline at 2111 2777 (after
selecting language, please press 2, 2 for licensing matters) or send an
email to [5][email address].
Licensing Section
Estate Agents Authority
Dear EAA officer,
I request a review of the EAA's decision to deny my information request dated 9 July 2025. The EAA cited paragraphs 2.8 and 2.13 of its Code on Access to Information as grounds for refusal. These exemptions are improperly applied and contradict the Code's fundamental principle that information should be provided unless specific harm would result.
Misapplication of Privacy Exemption (Paragraph 2.13)
The EAA's reliance on privacy protections is legally unfounded. Paragraph 2.13 protects information "about any person" but contains three explicit exceptions that apply to my request. Under paragraph 2.13(c), disclosure is authorized by law when it serves the statutory purposes of the Estate Agents Ordinance. The EAO establishes a licensing regime specifically to protect the public, and understanding regulatory decisions serves this statutory purpose.
Furthermore, the EAA already publishes disciplinary hearing results on its website for three years. Information that is already in the public domain cannot simultaneously require privacy protection. The EAA cannot selectively invoke privacy exemptions for additional context about decisions it has already made public. This interpretation would render the statutory transparency provisions meaningless.
The Code requires the EAA to consider whether "the public interest in disclosure outweighs any harm or prejudice" under paragraph 2.2. Estate agent licensing directly affects public safety and market integrity. The public interest in understanding how regulatory decisions protect consumers clearly outweighs any speculative privacy concerns about information already partially disclosed.
Inappropriate Use of Internal Deliberations Exemption (Paragraph 2.8)
The internal deliberations exemption is misapplied to my request. Paragraph 2.8 protects information that would "inhibit the frankness and candour of discussion within the EAA Administration." This exemption covers the decision-making process, not the factual basis for completed decisions that are already public.
When the EAA publishes disciplinary hearing results, it cannot retroactively claim that the underlying rationale requires protection from disclosure. The exemption exists to preserve ongoing deliberative processes, not to shield completed regulatory actions from public understanding. My request seeks information about finalized decisions, not access to confidential deliberations about pending matters.
The Code explicitly states that exemptions apply only where disclosure would cause actual harm or create reasonable expectation of harm. The EAA has provided no evidence that explaining the basis for published decisions would inhibit future deliberations or cause any identifiable harm to its operations.
Failure to Apply Balancing Test
Paragraph 2.2 of the Code mandates that the EAA consider whether public interest in disclosure outweighs potential harm. The EAA's blanket refusal demonstrates no such balancing analysis. The decision letter simply cites exemptions without explaining how disclosure would cause specific harm or why this harm outweighs the public interest in regulatory transparency.
This approach violates the Code's fundamental principle that information should be provided unless specific justification exists for refusal. The EAA has the burden to demonstrate why exemptions apply, not simply to assert their existence.
No Consideration of Partial Disclosure
The Code requires the EAA to provide access to portions of records where only parts require protection. Paragraph 1.15 states that "where disclosure of certain information in a record is to be refused, access will normally be provided to the remaining part of the record." The EAA made no attempt to identify what information could be disclosed while protecting any legitimately sensitive material.
Even if some aspects of my request touch on protected categories, the EAA should provide all information that falls outside these exemptions. The decision to refuse the entire request without considering partial disclosure violates the Code's requirement for proportionate responses.
Statutory Framework Supports Disclosure
The Estate Agents Ordinance establishes a public register specifically to enable public access to licensing information. Section 13 demonstrates legislative intent for transparency in regulatory matters. The EAA's interpretation of its Code effectively nullifies this statutory scheme by creating an impermeable barrier around any information beyond the basic register entries.
The Code cannot be interpreted to frustrate the EAO's transparency objectives. When Parliament created public registers and authorized the EAA to maintain them, it necessarily intended that the public should be able to understand and evaluate the regulatory decisions reflected in those registers.
I request that the EAA reconsider its decision by properly applying the balancing test required under paragraph 2.2 of the Code. The EAA should identify specific information that genuinely requires protection and provide access to all other responsive information. At minimum, the EAA should explain how disclosure would cause the harm claimed and why this harm outweighs the substantial public interest in understanding regulatory decisions that affect market integrity and consumer protection.
The EAA should also clarify what information it can provide within the existing statutory framework, as the current blanket refusal provides no guidance to the public about what transparency the regulatory regime actually permits.
The EAA's decision conflicts with both the letter and spirit of its Code on Access to Information. As a statutory body responsible for protecting consumers in the property market, the EAA should embrace transparency as essential to maintaining public confidence in its regulatory function. The exemptions cited cannot be used as a general shield against accountability for regulatory decisions that are already partially public.
I look forward to the EAA's reconsideration of this matter and remain available to clarify any aspects of my original request.
Sebastian Lee
Dear Sir/Madam,
We acknowledge receipt of your email. If necessary, we shall, in response
to the content of your email, follow up or reply to you, as appropriate.
Estate Agents Authority
敬啟者：
閣下的電郵已收悉。如有需要，本局會因應電郵內容作出適當的跟進或回覆。
地產代理監管局
[1]EAA Logo[2]EAA Smart Logo
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * This
message contains confidential information and is intended only for the
individual named. If you are not the named addressee you should not
disseminate, distribute or copy this e-mail. Please notify the sender
immediately by e-mail if you have received this e-mail by mistake and
delete this e-mail from your system. E-mail transmission cannot be
guaranteed to be secure or error-free as information could be intercepted,
corrupted, lost, destroyed, arrive late or incomplete, or contain viruses.
The sender therefore does not accept liability for any errors or omissions
in the contents of this message, which arise as a result of e-mail
transmission. If verification is required please request a hard-copy
version. Estate Agents Authority, 7/F, E-Trade Plaza, 24 Lee Chung Street,
Chai Wan, Hong Kong, [3]www.eaa.org.hk * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
References
Visible links
1. https://www.eaa.org.hk/
2. http://outsidehk.eaa.org.hk/
3. http://www.eaa.org.hk/
Dear Sebastian Lee,
We refer to your email of 27 July 2025.
According to paragraph 1.16 of the Estate Agents Authority’s (“EAA”) Code
on Access to Information (“Code”), the EAA is not obliged to create a
record which does not exist and provide on request information which is
already published. As such, you may consider obtaining the following
requested information by inspecting the Register at the EAA's office,
which is free of charge:
(a) name of the person to whom the licence was granted;
(b) licence number;
(c) period(s) for which the licence was granted and/or renewed;
(d) if licence was suspended, the period during which it was
suspended; and
(e) if licence was revoked, the date of revocation.
Pursuant to section 13 of the Estate Agents Ordinance (“EAO”), a certified
copy of the requested information may be made available for a prescribed
fee (at HK$150 per licence record). For details, please refer to our email
dated 25 July 2025.
Kindly note that an ex-licensee's registered address is not a piece of
information required to be maintained in the Register and the EAA does not
have in its possession the latest registered address of an ex-licensee.
Such information also involves privacy of the ex-licensee under paragraph
2.13 of the Code and will not be provided.
Our records showed that the licence concerned was revoked by the EAA
pursuant to s. 27 instead of s. 30 of the EAO. Hence, the relevant
revocation decision did not derive from an inquiry hearing of the
Disciplinary Committee and detailed reasons as well as deliberation of the
relevant matter were not published and would not be disclosed as such
information involved internal discussion of the Licensing Committee and
privacy of the ex-licensee pursuant to paragraphs 2.8 and 2.13 of the Code
respectively.
You may wish to note that consideration of “harm” and “prejudice” does not
apply to paragraphs 2.8 and 2.13 of the Code.
As the revocation notice of the concerned licence was published in the
Gazette pursuant to section 27(5)(a)(ii) of the EAO, you may conduct a
search for the relevant notice in the Gazette, if necessary.
Licensing Section
Estate Agents Authority