The Hong Kong government has several policies for Dai Pai Dongs which centers on the tightening of licenses transfer and and the improvement of of quality of Dai Pai Dongs.
In the late 20th century, the Hong Kong government decided to restrict the operation and license of dai pai dong in order to remove them from public streets. After World War II came to an end in 1945, the colonial Hong Kong government issued ad hoc licenses to families of deceased and injured civil servants, allowing them to operate food stalls in public and thereby earn a living. This type of license was physically considerably larger than the ones normally issued, as a photograph of the licensee was required to appear on them. The licence, therefore, was jocularly called "dai pai" (big license) by the locals. From then on, the "big license stalls" began to flourish on every busy street and lane in Hong Kong. However, dai pai dong soon became the cause of traffic congestion and hygiene problems, and some licensees even began to let out their stalls on the black market. In response, the government stopped issuing new "big licenses" in 1956, and limited their transfer. The licences could no longer be inherited, and could only be passed on to spouses upon the licensee's death. If the licensee did not have a spouse, the licence would simply expire. To improve worsening public hygiene, the government began to buy back "big licenses" from the license-holders in 1983. Since most of the licensees were aged, and the licenses are only legally transferable to their spouses, many of the licensees were willing to return their licenses for compensation. 
