Hong Kong

General Information

In 1842, Hong Kong was ceded to Great Britain but formally it was leased for 99 years, and for this period it was the British colony. Upon termination of the lease agreement in 1997, sovereignty over the territory was transferred to the People’s Republic of China. According to the Sino-British Joint Declaration and the Basic Law of Hong Kong, the territory was given broad powers of autonomy up to 2047, i.e., for 50 years after the transfer of sovereignty.

Official language – Chinese, English

Official  currency –Hong Kong dollar (HKD)

Key Aspects

A special permission is required to perform banking and insurance activity. Treaties for the avoidance of double taxation were signed with Belgium, China and Thailand.

Company Type

The most popular type of a Hong Kong company is a Private Company Limited by Shares.

Corporate Legislation

Hong Kong Companies Ordinance Cap 32

Main Requirements for Company Directors and Shareholders

There should be at least one director. Directors may be residents of any country. Director may only be natural persons.

There should be at least one shareholder. Shareholders may be residents of any country.

Shareholders may be both natural persons and legal entities.

Nominee shareholders and directors are allowed to be used.

Authorised Capital

There are no requirements as to the mandatory payment of the company capital. The authorised capital of a company is specified according to a resolution. There is no minimum or maximum authorised capital stipulation. The standard joint-stock capital is HDK 10,000 divided into 10,000 shares with par value of HDK 1.00 each. Registered par value shares are allowed to be issued.

Accounting

Annual accounts are submitted every 12 months from the day of company’s incorporation date (whether dormant or active).

Questions that need to be answered to prepare incorporation documents

∙ Passport details of the beneficiaries

∙ Passport details of the agents

∙ Photocopy of the ID pages of the beneficiaries’ and agent’s passports

∙ Utility Bill of the beneficiary and agent

∙ Several proposed firm names (or a name may be chosen from the list of ready-made companies)