Most funeral halls had restricted outside food on hygiene and food-poisoning grounds. In practice, critics long argued, the rule dovetailed with on-site catering sales and narrowed bereaved families' options.

Under the change, items involving no cooking — fruit, bottled or canned alcohol, sealed drinks and packaged snacks — may be brought in. Prepared dishes remain restricted, because responsibility for hygiene management cannot be clearly assigned.

The change is expected to ease funeral costs. Catering accounts for a large share of total expenses, and because mourner numbers are hard to predict, over-ordering is common.

There is a point of contact with Chinese family funeral customs. Depending on region and lineage, practices persist governing the kinds and numbers of fruit placed on the altar; community organisations have relayed cases in which families could not bring in items they had prepared themselves because of hall rules.

Individual halls' internal rules will not change automatically, however. Checking with the specific facility before use remains the safer course.