How To Set Up A Company In Hong Kong

Since 2003, Healy Consultants Group PLC has assisted our Clients to establish their visitor in Hong Kong.

Our services include i) Hong Kong company setup services; two) corporate bank account opening services in Hong Kong and abroad; iii) assistance to open HK merchant account and secure corporate finance; four) employee recruitment and relocation strategies and five) part rental solutions in Hong Kong.

About Hong Kong company set up

01

Pop business entities in Hong Kong

Operations and logistics	Resident company	Offshore visitor	Offshore trust	PLC	Co-operative	RO
Bank signatory must travel?	Aye	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Doing business in HK permitted?	Yes	Aye	Yes	Yes	Yep	No
Immune to sign contracts with local Clients?	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yeah	Yep	No
Allowed to invoice local Clients?	Yes	Yeah	Yes	Yes	Yes	No
Can rent local role premises?	Yeah	Aye	North/A	Yes	Aye	Aye
Allowed to import raw materials?	Yep	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	No
Allowed to export goods?	Yes	Yes	No	Aye	Yeah	No
Accounting and taxation
Corporate tax on local income?	16.5%	16.v%	sixteen.5%	sixteen.5%	xvi.5%	Not immune
Corporate tax on foreign income?	0%	0%	0%	0%	0%	Non allowed
Corporate banking concern account	BOC HK	HSBC HK	DBS HK	Statrys HK	Fubon Depository financial institution	OCBC Wing Hang
Statutory inspect required	Aye	Aye	No	Yep	No	No
Annual tax return to be submitted?	Yes	Yeah	No	Aye	Yes	Yes
Access to DTAAs?	Yes	Not all	No	Yep	Yes	No
Hong Kong tax on dividends distributed to foreign shareholders?	No	No	No	No	No	No
Company constabulary
Issued share upper-case letter required?	US$1	US$ane	United states of america$one	Usa$one	None	None
Resident director required?	No	No	Resident trustee	No	No	No
HK shareholder required?	No	No	No	No	No	No
Minimum number of directors?	i	ane	1	ane	1	1
Minimum number of shareholders?	ane	1	i settlor	one	Parent company	Parent company
Individual shareholders allowed?	Yes	Yes	Yeah	Yep	No	No
Corporate manager(s) allowed	No	No	Yeah	Yes	Yes	Yes
Corporate shareholders allowed?	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Aye	Yes
Public register of shareholders and directors	Yes	Yes	No	Aye	Yes	Aye
Immigration
Tin the entity hire expatriate staff?	Yes	Yes	No	Aye	Yeah	Yeah
How long to get work permit approved	3 months	three months	N/A	3 months	three months	3 months
Fees and timelines
How long to ready the entity upwards?	1 week	ane week	4 weeks	iii weeks	2 weeks	ii weeks
How long to open corporate bank business relationship?	4 weeks	4 weeks	iv weeks	four weeks	4 weeks	4 weeks
Estimate of engagement costs	Usa$10,105	US$ten,105	United states of america$sixteen,000	US$10,105	Us$10,105	Usa$x,600
Draft invoice	View invoice PDF	View invoice PDF	View invoice PDF	View invoice PDF	View invoice PDF	View invoice PDF

Choose your Hong Kong business concern entity

02

Advantages of doing business organization in Hong Kong

1. Ease of doing business
   A Hong Kong company can be easily set up in less than a calendar week. Even though the process for corporate banking concern account opening is challenging, this can be solved by purchasing a fix-made HK shelf company that already has a depository financial institution account.
2. Taxation
   Hong Kong corporate taxation rate is 16.5%, which is one of the lowest in Asia. Offshore companies do non take to pay any taxes in Hong Kong.
3. First-class business environment
   Considered as one of the least corrupt countries, Hong Kong is a leading fiscal center whose regulation does not restrict foreign investment nor income repatriation.
4. Hong Kong is an platonic base for eastward-commerce activities. The Hong Kong economy is free, entrepreneurial and open to innovation. Furthermore, Hong Kong has a vibrant local market where get-go-ups tin can exist bought, sold, merged and raise upper-case letter.
5. A Hong Kong visitor and bank account is the perfect solution to carry global business while enjoying zero revenue enhancement on profits and dividends.
6. Hong Kong corporate bank accounts i) are bachelor in multiple currencies, each with its ain IBAN and SWIFT numbers ii) can straight receive payments from Amazon, PayPal, WeChat, eBay and Shopify iii) tin can normally be opened in less than a week.
7. Hong Kong is a top global financial centre subsequently London and New York. As a result, Hong Kong's banking organization is sophisticated and supports international business concern and trade.

See more benefits

Disadvantages of doing business concern in Hong Kong

1. Strict regulations
   It is getting more complicated to register a company as a greenhorn because i) at least one individual resident director is required; 2) all shareholders and directors have to travel to Hong Kong for bank business relationship opening and iii) certain nationalities are not immune to register a visitor in Hong Kong.
2. High property price
   The cost of an office rental tin affect the company's total net profit every bit the holding price is very expensive in Hong Kong.
3. Tighter cyberbanking restrictions
   Hong Kong banks now require Hong Kong companies to accept more local substance before they will approve a multi-currency corporate bank account. Examples of local substance include i) business relationships with Hong Kong customers ii) a physical role in Hong Kong and three) employees in Hong Kong.
4. All Hong Kong banks crave the Clients to travel to their branch in Hong Kong for a one-hour KYC meeting, earlier approving the corporate bank account opening for their Hong Kong businesses. This requirement is not-negotiable, even during the current Covid-xix pandemic and related travel restrictions.
5. Starting from 2022,it is more common for profitable Hong Kong offshore companies to suffer a tax inspect from the Hong Kong IRD. Every bit always, our In-business firm Accounting and Tax Department assists our multi-national Clients' to timely and accurately complete this statutory audit; the entity remaining as legally tax exempt.

See more challenges

03

Comprise a visitor in Hong Kong in 10 steps

Hong Kong private express company can exist incorporated within 1 week with 1 director and 1 shareholder. The minimum paid-upward share majuscule required is US$one.

• Check company name availability with the Companies registry and reserve a company proper name;
• Annals the identity of all directors and shareholders;
• Submit company incorporation application to the Companies registry and Inland Revenue Department;
• Submit IRBR1 business registration form to complete taxation registration;
• Open a corporate bank account;

View all steps

Fourth dimension required to start a new company in Hong Kong is 8 weeks

Start

Engagement Planning

1 week

Visitor incorporation

1 weeks

Corporate bank account approval

4 weeks

Corporate net banking approval

i week

Engagement completion

one calendar week

8 weeks

Compare timelines with other blazon of businesses in Hong Kong

04

Open a corporate bank account in Hong Kong

Healy Consultants Grouping PLC recommends these ten banks i) HSBC; two) DBS; 3) Citibank; four) BNP Paribas; five) Deutsche Bank; vi) United Overseas Bank; seven) Bank of East asia; eight) Dah Sing Bank; ix) Hang Seng Depository financial institution; and x) OCBC Wing Hang.

Opening a corporate bank account in Hong Kong has become more complicated as banks accept tightened their regulations to filter out whatever possibility of money laundering or terrorist financing. The depository financial institution officeholder volition physically meet all bank signatories, including all the shareholders and directors of the company.

Engaging a professional service provider will increment bank account approving success rate. Our fee for this service volition be The states$four,950.

Learn more

Accounting and tax considerations

corporate tax for non-resident companies

corporate revenue enhancement for resident companies

filing deadline for corporate tax return

signed double taxation treaties

Learn more

Hong Kong visa requirements

"Entry for investment" visas

All foreign entrepreneurs, except certain nationalities, will be required to obtain this visa to be cocky-employed in Hong Kong.

"Employment every bit a professional" visas

Employers are required to use for employee visas when hiring foreign employees. There are 3 sub-categories i) "IANG" for foreigners who have graduated from recognized Hong Kong institutions; ii) "ASMTP" for employees from mainland China; iii) "GEP" for talented foreigners who take neither graduated from local institutions nor are from mainland China.

Residence visas

This visa is suitable for strange entrepreneurs who wish to relocate to Hong Kong.

Learn more than

Hong Kong renewal requirement

Since 2003, Healy Consultants Group PLC assists our multi-national Clients to timely, accurately and completely discharge their annual legal, bookkeeping and taxation obligations. This web page will aid you empathise almanac renewal process.

Learn more

05

Frequently asked questions

• How to start a company in Hong Kong as a greenhorn?

  Establishing a business in Hong Kong every bit a foreigner is a straightforward procedure that can be done inside a week.

  The chief steps to setup a business in Hong Kong equally a greenhorn are:

  • Decide a unique company name which adheres by the guidelines provided by the Companies Registry. You tin check the availability of the name online with the Companies Registry;
  • Prepare the company'due south constitution;
  • Confirm i) the corporate construction; ii) the share uppercase and the value of the shares; iii) the registered accost; and iv) the company secretary;
  • Notarize the passports of the directors and shareholder with a Hong Kong public notary and sign all incorporation documents;
  • Prepare these Hong Kong Company documents: i) incorporation class NNC1; ii) articles of association; iii) IRBR1 business registration form notice; iv) notarized re-create of passport and proof of address for all directors and shareholders; and v) almanac returns to the Commissioner of Inland Revenue;
  • Submit the complete incorporation bundle to the Companies Registry and the Inland Revenue Department (Hong Kong tax office) for revenue enhancement registration;
  • Within 1 calendar week of submitting the above documents, if no bug with the filling of the forms, the company would exist legally incorporated in Hong Kong.

• What are the types of concern entities that can be setup in Hong Kong?

  The six main types of business entities that tin can be setup in Hong Kong are:

  • Resident visitor;
  • Non-resident limited company;
  • Trust;
  • Public limited visitor;
  • Branch office;
  • Representative office.

  Each business entity is meant to have different business concern goals and they exercise have different gear up up requirements. The table below outlines the major differences:

  Operations and logistics	Resident company	Offshore visitor	Offshore trust	PLC	Branch	RO
  Bank signatory must travel?	Yeah	Aye	Yes	Aye	Yes	Yes
  Allowed to import raw materials?	Yes	Yeah	No	Yep	Aye	No
  Allowed to export goods?	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Yeah	No
  Requirement of a resident Director	No	No	Resident trustee	No	No	No
  Access to DTAAs?	Yes	No	No	Yeah	Yeah	No

• How much does it cost to incorporate an LLC in Hong Kong?

  Healy Consultants Grouping PLC's fees for company registration in Hong Kong amounts to US$ten,105 which includes the post-obit services: i) visitor incorporation; ii) corporate banking company account opening; iii) visitor secretary and legal registered part provision and iv) Authorities registration. For a more detailed breakdown, kindly refer to the fastened invoice.

• Is there any minimum paid up capital required to incorporate a company in Hong Kong?

  No, there is no minimum paid upwards capital required for business registration in Hong Kong.

• How to open a non-resident depository financial institution business relationship in Hong Kong?

  Hong Kong has a massive banking sector catering to the needs of both residents and not-residents of the jurisdiction. It is a pretty uncomplicated process to open up a not-resident bank business relationship in Hong Kong, that may take up to a maximum of ane month.

  The master steps to open up a non-resident business banking company business relationship are:

  • Make a listing of all banks that your company is interested to lath with. Research their bank account opening requirements and effort to become an date with their front desk-bound;
  • Travel to Hong Kong. It is mandatory for all the members of the corporate structure, the directors and shareholders, to be physically present in Hong Kong for the interview to open up the bank account;
  • During the meeting, the company must provide the banks with these documents: i) Original proof of residence forth with a certified copy in English of the aforementioned (should be less than 2 months one-time); ii) original notarised copy of Certificate of Incorporation; iii) original notarised copy of Business Registration Certificate; iv) original notarised copy of Commodity of Association; five) duly filled NNC1 course; vi) proof of the business if it is operational at present and vii) a detailed business program that confirms the need for a Hong Kong bank account while the company is registered in some other country;
  • The above documents should be submitted to the banking concern forth with an initial payment of the minimum deposit for bank business relationship opening;
  • Once the interview is completed, the Compliance Section will carry their KYC checks. If the due diligence process is successful, then the bank account would exist opened inside the month.

• Is it possible to alter company proper noun after incorporation?

  Aye, it is possible to change the company name afterwards incorporation.

  The steps to be taken for irresolute an existing company name are:

  • Laissez passer a Special Resolution by the visitor to alter its name afterward incorporation;
  • Deliver a "Discover of Alter of Company Name" by filling out Grade NNC2 within 15 days later passing the Special Resolution either i) online on the e-Registry portal or ii) in hard-copy form at the Queensway Authorities Offices;

  The name change volition be effective from the date of receipt of the issued Certificate of Change of Name.

• What are the restrictions when choosing a company name in Hong Kong?

  The restrictions imposed whilst choosing a company name in Hong Kong are as follows:

  • The company name needs to be unique and it cannot be the aforementioned as a name already existing in the Index of Company Names maintained by the Registrar of Companies;
  • The company proper name cannot be identical to the body corporate incorporated or recognized nether an Ordinance;
  • The company name cannot be offensive, inappropriate or conflicting with the interest of the community;
  • Just traditional Chinese characters can exist used, and no combination of English letters/words and Chinese characters is possible.

• What is a limited visitor limited past guarantee?

  A Company that is Limited by Guarantee (CLG) is based on the principle that the members undertake to contribute to the assets of the company in the event of the business existence shut down. Therefore, when a "Company Limited by Guarantee" liquidates, a member'due south maximum obligation to the creditors of the CLG would be the sum which he/she had approved to pledge. This pledged corporeality is normally nominal.

• What is an unlimited company in Hong Kong?

  In an unlimited company, the legal liability on the owner of the company is non express since all risks related to the operation of business equally well equally the liabilities are borne by the proprietor or partners, just as in a sole proprietorship. In the consequence of an unlimited company in Hong Kong turning bankrupt, the creditors have the authority to merits against the private avails of the proprietor or partners.

  The table below briefly outlines the primary differences betwixt a limited company and an unlimited company in Hong Kong:

  Factors	Unlimited Company	Limited Visitor
  Legal Liability of owner	Unlimited	Limited to the avails in the company
  Personal avails of the owner	Not protected from concern liabilities	Protected from business liabilities
  Legal & maintenance work	Straightforward	Complex

• Is an office required to register business in Hong Kong?

  Yes, a registered address is required to comprise a company in Hong Kong. There is no requirement for a physical office infinite.

• What licenses are required to start doing business organization in Hong Kong?

  The Business Registration Ordinance in Hong Kong states that every person conducting concern in Hong Kong must go their concern registered within one calendar month from the date of commencement of their business. Further, there might be other licensing and/or permits required to comport out their business in Hong Kong depending on the type of business concern.

  To know the specific license required for your business in Hong Kong, yous can visit this website.

• How long does information technology take to incorporate in Hong Kong?

  Business incorporation in Hong Kong is a straightforward process which can exist achieved within 1 week, if in that location is proper planning and documentation in place.

• Can a foreign investor open a trust visitor in Hong Kong?

  Yes. Healy Consultants Group PLC tin can help foreigners open a trust in Hong Kong.

• If I course a trust in Hong Kong, will it be considered a legal entity?

  No, a trust company is not considered as a separate legal entity in Hong Kong.

• Why should I set up a trust in Hong Kong?

  Setting up a trust company in Hong Kong volition aid our Clients by i) protecting their assets and ii) interim as an investment vehicle where a trustee conducts the trust's business organisation on behalf of the beneficiaries.To find out about the procedures to prepare a company in Hong Kong, please refer to our incorporation page.

Healy Consultants Group PLC has the solution to help y'all grow.

Source: https://www.healyconsultants.com/hong-kong-company-registration/

Share this post