Starting a Business - Hong Kong

Under the Companies Ordinance there is no restriction on foreign ownership of a private limited company; a foreign individual or corporation may hold all the shares, and no local partner or government approval is required. Directors may be of any nationality, and a non-Hong Kong resident can be appointed as a director.

Hong Kong imposes no minimum share-capital requirement for a private company limited by shares; a company can be incorporated with nominal capital and shares need not be fully paid up at incorporation.

A private limited company needs at least one director (who must be a natural person, but may be non-resident), at least one shareholder, and one company secretary; the sole director cannot also be the company secretary.

The only statutory local-presence obligations are a registered office situated in Hong Kong and a company secretary who, if a natural person, ordinarily resides in Hong Kong, or, if a body corporate, has its registered office or place of business in Hong Kong.

Choose company type and an approved name; prepare the incorporation form (NNC1) and articles of association; submit with fees electronically via the e-Services Portal (or in hard copy); the Companies Registry and Inland Revenue Department then jointly issue the Certificate of Incorporation and the Business Registration Certificate in one go.

For straightforward online (e-filing) applications, the electronic Certificate of Incorporation and Business Registration Certificate are normally issued within about one hour of submission; hard-copy applications typically take around four working days.