Quick Guide to the Accident & Emergency Department (A&E): 6 Things to Know in Hong Kong

The emergency room provides accident and emergency medical treatments for patients with its own triage system to classify patients into 5 emergency levels in hopes of providing immediate treatment to patients with urgent needs. Read this guide for a more comprehensive understanding of the accident and emergency services in Hong Kong.

Introduction to the Accidents & Emergency department

The Accident and Emergency (A&E) services, or the emergency room in Hong Kong are provided by 18 public hospitals under the Hospital Authority (HA) and 4 private hospitals. The emergency room provides medical support to patients with critical illness and injury, as well as to victims of disasters.

In the emergency room, patients with more serious conditions will be prioritized for medical attention. HA adopts a triage system which classifies patients into 5 categories, on which based the orders to give treatments — not necessarily first-come, first-served.

Current A&E waiting time at hospitals

Public hospital waiting time

You can find the reference waiting time of all the public hospital’s emergency rooms here on the Hospital Authority website. The waiting time of different emergency rooms varies with locations and time, but usually ranges from 1–3 hours.

Note that the data is collated from other patients’ waiting time in past hours and is for reference only.

Private hospital waiting time

You may refer to the estimated waiting time provided on the websites of Gleneagles Hospital and Union Hospital. For emergency services in other private hospitals, please contact the hospital for more information. You can find out the contact information in the next section.

For non-emergency situations, if you do not wish to wait at the A&E service, you may consider turning to 24-hour outpatient services in private hospitals.

List of all Accident & Emergency departments in Hong Kong

A&E services are provided at 18 public hospitals and 4 private hospitals in Hong Kong. We have summed up the list for your reference below:

A&E services at public hospitals

Hong Kong Island

Kowloon

New Territories

A&E services at private hospitals

Triage system of emergency room in Hong Kong

The triage system in the emergency room determines the treatment priority of patients. It aims to ensure early assessment and recognition of patients' conditions and reduce any unnecessary delay of treatment. The sorting of the triage system is performed by an experienced nurse using systemic and scientific methods.

Patients are classified into 5 categories according to their conditions:

• Critical

• Emergency

• Urgent

• Semi-urgent

• Non-urgent

Patients in critical situations are allocated top priority and will receive treatments from medical staff immediately, followed by emergency, urgent, semi-urgent and non-urgent in a descending level of seriousness.

Service targets of the system

The HA has set performance pledges on the waiting time for patients whose clinical conditions are triaged as critical, emergency or urgent.

• Critical: Immediate treatment

• Emergency: 95% of patients in this category will be treated within 15 minutes

• Urgent cases: 90% of patients in this category will be treated within 30 minutes

Note that private hospitals may have their own triage system with different methods of categorization. Check their websites for the most accurate information.

Costs of A&E services in Hong Kong

Public hospitals charges

For eligible persons (HKID holders), the cost of A&E service will be HK$ 400 per attendance from January 1, 2026, while it costs HK$ 2,100 per attendance for non-eligible persons. Beware of the long waiting time at public hospitals because of the high service demand.

Private hospitals charges

The consultation fee of the emergency room in private hospitals varies from HK$ 370 – HK$ 1,500. Please be advised that the total charge is subject to the attending doctor’s discretion, procedure fees, and depends on the patient’s condition.

*All amounts are in HKD and were last updated in Jan 2026. No responsibility is accepted for any inaccuracies, errors, or omissions. It is always best to call ahead to make sure the information is still up-to-date.

Does health insurance cover A&E services?

Accident and emergency services, either provided in public or private sectors, are covered by health insurance plans. While local plans may have sub-limits, most comprehensive and international plans cover A&E care in full without any sub-limit. If you have any health insurance questions, contact an Alea advisor at hello@alea.care.