As Hong Kong's status as an international financial center continues to solidify, the number of enterprises registering Hong Kong companies has increased. However, successfully opening a bank account is crucial for fund operation. Due to the tightening of global anti-money laundering (AML) and counter-terrorist financing (CTF) policies, banks have strengthened customer due diligence (KYC), especially for start-ups without business records, which are subject to stricter review and need to provide information for business and risk assessment when opening an account. This article provides solutions by combining policies from four aspects: bank selection, document preparation, account opening procedures, and subsequent maintenance.

随着香港国际金融中心地位的巩固，注册香港公司的企业增多，但成功开设银行账户是资金运作关键。因全球反洗钱和反恐融资政策收紧，银行加强客户尽职审查(KYC)，尤其对无商业记录的初创企业审核更严，需其开户时提供资料以评估业务及风险。本文从银行选择、资料准备、开户流程及后续维护四方面，结合政策提供解决方案。

1

Bank Selection

银行选择

Select a suitable bank based on the enterprise's own stage, background, business model, and business category.

可根据企业自身阶段、背景、业务模式、业务类别匹配合适的银行。

Mainstream Bank Types

主流银行类型

• International Banks (HSBC, Standard Chartered): Suitable for cross-border trade and investment, with comprehensive services but high thresholds.
• 国际银行（汇丰、渣打）：适合跨国贸易、跨境投资，服务全面但门槛高；

• Local Banks (Hang Seng, Dah Sing): Preferred for start-ups, with low account opening thresholds (some have no minimum deposit requirement) and affordable management fees.
• 本地银行（恒生、大新）：初创企业优选，开户门槛低（部分无最低存款要求），管理费亲民；

• Chinese-funded Banks (Bank of China (HK)): Strong policy adaptability, suitable for enterprises with mainland backgrounds.
• 中资银行（中银香港）：政策适配性强，适合内地背景企业。

Note: High-risk industries such as jewelry and finance need to confirm the bank's qualification requirements in advance.

注意事项：珠宝、金融等高风险行业需提前确认银行资质要求。

2

Core Document List (Simplified Version)

核心资料清单（精简版）

• Company Documents: Certificate of Incorporation (CI), Business Registration Certificate (BR), Memorandum and Articles of Association (M&A).

• 公司文件：注册证书（CI）、商业登记证（BR）、章程（M&A）

• Director/Shareholder Documents: ID card/passport, proof of address within the past 3 months (utility bills/bank statements).

• 董事股东文件：身份证/护照、近3个月住址证明（水电单/银行对账单）

• Business Proof: Business plan (including business model and financial planning), upstream and downstream transaction contracts.

• 业务证明：业务计划书（含商业模式、财务规划）、上下游交易合同

• Others: Annual return (required if established for more than 1 year), seal specimen.

• 其他：周年申报表（成立超1年需提供）、印章样本

3

Three-step Account Opening Process

开户流程三步法

01

Appointment 预约

Make an appointment via the bank's official website/telephone, stating the company's business and account purpose.

通过银行官网/电话预约，说明公司业务及账户用途；

02

In-person Signing 面签

• Signing in Hong Kong: Bring original documents to the site.

• 赴港面签：携带原件到场；

• Mainland Witnessing: Some banks (such as Dah Sing and Chuangxing) support video witnessing at mainland branches.
• 内地见证：部分银行（如大新、创兴）支持内地分行视频见证；

03

Review and Activation 审核激活

• Review Period: 2-6 weeks, with possible requests for supplementary information.

• 审核周期：2-6周，可能要求补充资料；

• Activation Conditions: Deposit a specified amount (e.g., HK$100,000 for HSBC), and receive an encoder and password letter.

• 激活条件：存入指定金额（如汇丰10万港币），收取编码器及密码信。

In addition, the differences between NNR (Non-Resident Account) and ordinary accounts are specially mentioned:

另外，特别提到一下开NNR 账户（Non-Resident Account）与普通账户的区别：

• Account Attributes: NNR accounts are specially opened for non-Hong Kong residents or overseas companies, with fewer restrictions on fund inflows and outflows, suitable for cross-border settlement; ordinary accounts (Resident Accounts) need to follow Hong Kong's local fund management rules.

• 账户属性：NNR 账户专为非香港居民或境外公司开设，资金进出受外汇管制限制较少，适合跨境结算；普通账户（Resident Account）需遵循香港本地资金管理规则。

• Application Scenarios: If an enterprise has no physical operation in Hong Kong and only uses it for international business receipts, an NNR account is more flexible; if it involves local transactions (such as payments to Hong Kong suppliers), an ordinary account is more suitable.
• 适用场景：若企业无香港实体运营，仅用于国际业务收款，NNR 账户更灵活；若涉及本地交易（如香港供应商付款），普通账户更适配。

4

Key Points for Account Maintenance

账户维护关键要点

Ensure the account can continue to exist normally and healthily.

确保账户能够持续正常、健康地存续。

• Activity: Regularly transfer/deposit funds to avoid no transactions for more than 6 months.

• 活跃度：定期转账/存款，避免6个月以上无交易；

• Compliance: Reject transactions with high-risk regions (such as Iran and North Korea), and avoid abnormal operations such as fast fund inflows and outflows, and lump-sum deposits and withdrawals.
• 合规性：拒绝高风险地区交易（如伊朗、朝鲜），避免资金快进快出、整存整取等异常操作；

• Information Update: Shareholders/address changes need to be notified to the bank within 7 working days.
• 资料更新：股东/地址变更需7个工作日内通知银行。

5

Quick Solutions to Common Problems

常见问题速解

Account Opening Rejection: May be due to incomplete information or industry risks. It is recommended to change the bank or optimize materials through an agency.

开户被拒：可能因资料不全或行业风险，建议更换银行或通过代理机构优化材料；

Assistance in Account Opening by Associating with Mainland Chinese Companies: If a newly registered Hong Kong company is rejected for opening an account due to no business records, the following solutions can be optimized:

关联中国大陆公司助力开户：若新注册香港公司因无业务记录导致开户被拒，可通过以下方案优化：

1.If the bank account of the associated Mainland Chinese company (with the same actual controller) has good commercial transaction records and business contracts for 3-6 months, submit the transaction records, financial statements, and equity structure certificate of the Mainland Chinese company to the bank.

1.若关联的中国大陆公司银行账户（需为同一实际控制人）具备3-6 个月良好商业流水及业务合同，可向银行提交中国大陆公司的交易记录、财务报表及股权架构证明；

2.The bank will assess the business authenticity of the Hong Kong company through the compliance of the associated enterprise. Those who meet the conditions can be approved for an NNR account within 3-6 months, which can be upgraded to an ordinary account later.

2.银行会通过关联企业的合规性评估香港公司业务真实性，符合条件者可在 3-6 个月内获批 NNR 账户，后续可升级为普通账户。

• Financial Management Requirements: Some banks (such as HSBC) require the purchase of financial management products, which can be negotiated or choose banks without mandatory requirements.

• 理财要求：部分银行（如汇丰）需购买理财，可协商或选择无强制要求的银行；

• Excessively Long Cycle: Give priority to Chinese-funded banks (such as China Construction Bank Hong Kong, which can open an account in 2-3 weeks).

• 周期过长：优先选择中资银行（如建行香港，2-3周开户）。

In short, the core of account opening lies in "complete information + compliance planning". It is recommended to select a bank according to the enterprise's scale, sort out business proof documents in advance, and seek assistance from professional institutions to improve efficiency.

总之，开户核心在于“资料完整+合规规划”，建议根据企业规模选择银行，提前整理业务证明文件，并通过专业机构协助以提升效率。

Author 作者 | Ryan