General Introduction

Hong Kong, officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region is one special administrative regions of China. Hong Kong is one of the most important key locations for trading, finance and regional headquarters in Asia. The economy is built on free enterprises, free trade and a free market which is open to all. Trading, quotas and foreign exchange are not limited in Hong Kong. Furthermore, Hong Kong has a low tax environment, which is secure and politically stable, as well as a free flow of information and communications.

Key Features

Name of Company

Free to choose company names: Hong Kong government allows the names contain words as international、group、holding、industry、investment and religion name, for example Asia, America, Britain, Japan, China or Shanghai, can also be added to the name depending on your willingness. Company name can use both Chinese and English or single one. However, English name must be ended with “LIMITED” while Chinese name must be ended with”有限公司”.

Registered Capital

There’s no minimum registered capital and no capital verification requirement in Hong Kong, you can increase registration capital according to your practical situation. The standard capital for a limited company is 10,000 HKD, and registered capital will not display on the Business Registration Certificate or Certificate of registration. Moreover, Registered Capital of Stamp Duty is one in a thousand of registered capital.

Business Scope

There are not many limitations to business scope in Hong Kong, besides for some specific industries (e.g. insurance, bank). For these companies, government approvals are required.. However, for industries such as medicine, shipping agent, import & export trading, realestate, information network, tourism, publishing house, academy, association, research institute and other high-tech industries, companies can be registered without additional approvals.

Secretary and Registered Address

Appointing a company secretary and registered address are mandatory.  The secretary, if an individual must ordinarily reside in Hong Kong or if a body corporate, must have its registered office or a place of business in Hong Kong. It has to be noted that in case of a sole director/shareholder, the same person cannot act as the company secretary. The company secretary is responsible for maintaining the statutory books and records of the company and must also ensure the company's compliance with all statutory requirements. A nominee secretary can be appointed only when the above conditions are satisfied. The registered address must be a physical address and cannot be a PO Box.  To reduce your cost of founding a company, we can provide Registered Address and Secretary for free.

Tax Rate and Report

There are only a few tax categories with very low tax rate in Hong Kong. One is disposable stamp tax(receive according to real registered capital). The other one is profit tax, the tax rate is 16.5%(calculated by practical profit). Tax will not be charged if there is no profit. There is no import & Export taxes in Hong Kong except for cigarettes and wine.  Hong Kong companies do not need to report tax monthly. The provision requires tax companies to report annually. New companies can submit their first year tax reporting on the 18th month after foundation.  If there were no business of company this year, the company can give zero reporting.The tax report for 0 when the company is not active for one whole year. Otherwise, accounts of businesses occurred must be processed and then audited by the accounting firms listed in Hong Kong

Company Bank Account Opening

Company bank account can be opened worldwide. The location of company account is not restricted in Hong Kong.

Basic Requirements and Facts of Setting up Hong Kong Companies

Company name Company Secretary Registered Address Registered capital ID card or passport copy of the Directors

(A minimum of one director or unlimited maximum number of directors are allowed. No restriction on residence and nationality can be individuals or corporations. Directors must be at least 18 years of age and must not be bankrupt or convicted for any malpractices. There is no requirement for the directors to also be shareholders. Nominee directors can also be appointed. Directors Board meetings can be held anywhere in the world.)

ID card or passport copy of the Shareholders

(A Hong Kong private limited company can have a minimum of 1 and maximum of 50 shareholders. There is no residency requirement for shareholders can be individuals or corporations. A director and a shareholder are not necessarily to be two different people. The shareholder must be at least 18 years of age and can be of any nationality. - To file Profits Tax and Employer's Returns annually  - To present audited accounts to the shareholders for adoption annually - To hold a General Meeting of the Shareholders every year - To file an annual return giving particulars of the Directors, Shareholders and Secretary, together with the Company's capital structure. )

General Registration/De-registration Process & Time Line & Set up Costs

New Set Up

- Time Line: about 10 working days.  - General Registration Process Choose a proposed company name, and check the company name Prepare Application forms by Reindeer Station and signed by applicant. Submit application Collect certificate of incorporation and all other licenses from Reindeer Station.   - Certificate of incorporation - Business registration certificate  - Original formation documents and minutes  - Minute booklet  - Share certificate booklet  - Two chops and a seal  - One certified copy of formation documents issued by our CPA firm  - A green box, but excluding delivery charges  - Registered Address (Providing registered office and business address for a year) - Corporate Secretary (Appointment of corporate secretary and local agency for a year) - Set Up Costs(Valid until the end of March 2017)  Service Content Price Appointed secretary in HK and service fee for 1st year. 1800 Certificate of incorporation (government fee) 1730 Business registration fee (government fee) 250 Registered Address (only collecting government/bank documents) 1220 Miscellaneous fee:Stamping, signature atomic seal Small round chapter. etc. 1800 Total amount 6800

Annual Cost of Maintaining a Hong Kong Company

- Annual Renewa Every company is required to file statutory returns with the Registrar of Companies within the time periods prescribed in the Companies Ordinance and pay Business Registration fee and levy under the Business Registration Ordinance. These are the responsibilities of the company, company directors and officers to ensure compliance with the statutory obligations.  - The annual retainer fee is RMB 3,400.   - This fee includes: provision of statutory required HK company secretary and registered office address business registration fee preparing and filing of annual return preparing of annual general meeting maintenance of proper books and record Other corporate services such as change of directors and transfer of shares, etc., will be charged on top of the annual retainer fee and quotation would be provided separately. - Annual Audit a Hong Kong company: Company is required to present audited accounts to the members at the Annual General Meeting Company will receive the 1st Profits Tax Return from the Inland Revenue Department after 18 months from the date of incorporation Company has to file the Return supported by audited accounts to the Inland Revenue Department. Since the audit has to be done annually by a Certified Public Accountancy firm, the audit fees should also be considered as part of the total annual cost to maintain a Hong Kong company. The audit fees will depend on the complexity of work and volume of transactions carried in the company per year. Reindeer Station has an associated local CPA firm that can undertake the aforesaid audit for you.  Please keep all the bank statements, deposit receipts, invoices, contracts etc., as these must be provided to the accountant and auditor to carry out their work.

- Business Notarization

To use your Hong Kong company to open a Chinese company   (WFOE) or Representative office, some of registration papers have to be notarized and stamped by an official PRC certified lawyer.  Price: Please inquiry from our service consultant for your special case.