Hong Kong financial secretary, John Tsang, has announced a property tax for non-local and corporate buyers on 26 October 2012. A tax of 15% will have to be paid on purchase. Permanent residents (living in Hong Kong for 7 consecutive years) and citizens (born in Hong Kong) will not be subject to this tax. 
This measure is mainly targeting property investors. The objective of this measure, it has been contended,is to stabilise the market and to prevent a housing bubble.