Open a Company in Hong Kong – For International Founders

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Open a Hong Kong company in 5 business days – built for the real activity from day one.

For founders from complex regions – MENA, Central Asia, CIS, Latin America, Africa – we set up the company in a way that opens an account and works in real life. We map your ownership structure and banking path, and flag what to set up correctly and what to avoid. If Hong Kong isn’t the right answer for your case, we tell you upfront. For difficult passports and complex banking, we work the route most providers can’t open.

Why Hong Kong

Three reasons HK still wins for the right business

Hong Kong is not the only place a founder from a high-barrier country can register a company. It wins on three specific things. When two of these matter to your business, the choice is clear. When none of them do, we say so on the call.

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A clean entity for trading with China

Chinese suppliers, freight forwarders, banks, and counterparties read Hong Kong companies as the standard interface to the mainland. CNY rails open through the non-resident banking path. Invoices in any currency settle without friction. The company doesn’t need substance inside China to trade easily with Chinese counterparties.

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Territorial tax, kept honestly

Hong Kong taxes profits sourced inside Hong Kong. When your business operates outside HK, an offshore-profits claim may apply. The qualifying conditions are real and the IRD decides each case. We file the claim with the backup plan prepared, and are straight with you about what’s realistic for your case.

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Wider banking access than the obvious alternatives

For founders holding passports the financial system reads as elevated risk, Hong Kong corporate law opens more account options than the comparable jurisdictions. We flag which of those options are realistic on the call before we register anything.

What’s included

The legal minimum – plus what makes it run

A Hong Kong limited company is the corporate entity plus a small set of statutory roles that have to be filled from day one. The package covers all of them for the first year.

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Registration filings

Everything the Companies Registry and Inland Revenue need to bring the company into legal existence.

  • Incorporation Application filed with the Companies Registry
  • Business Registration application filed with the Inland Revenue Department
  • Government filing fees to the Companies Registry and the Inland Revenue – included
  • Articles of Association registered with the Companies Registry
  • Business scope wording reviewed for banking compliance before filing
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Certificates and corporate seal kit

The physical and digital instruments the company needs to operate and to satisfy bank KYC.

  • Certificate of Incorporation
  • Business Registration Certificate (valid one year)
  • Corporate seal kit – common seal, company chop, signature stamp
  • Digital copies for bank applications, physical originals couriered to your address
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Year-1 company secretary

A statutory role every Hong Kong limited company must fill. We act as your company secretary for the first year.

  • Annual Return (NAR1) filed on time
  • Statutory register maintenance – directors, members, charges
  • Filing reminders for the Business Registration Certificate renewal
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Year-1 registered office

A statutory Hong Kong address for government correspondence and for the company’s public record.

  • Registered office address on file with the Companies Registry
  • Reception of statutory notices, IRD correspondence, court filings if any
  • Address swap to your own premises later if you take a Hong Kong lease
Roman walks through how to register a Hong Kong company, step by step
Watch · Hong Kong series, Part 2

How to register a Hong Kong company, step by step

The decisions that get made before any paperwork – scope, ownership, directors, structure – and how each one ripples into banking and tax later. Roman walks through what the package above does.

Watch on YouTube →

The banking question

Registration is fast.
Banking is where the real timeline lives.

The Companies Registry processes a filing in 3–5 business days. After that, your company exists – it just doesn’t have a bank account yet.

A Hong Kong corporate bank account is its own engagement. For a Tier-1 or Tier-2 passport doing business with China, traditional banks open in several weeks with a proper introduction and an in-person visit. For more complicated situations, traditional banks will have extra requirements or might not open at all, and the fintech options are limited as well. This is why a Hong Kong company registered without a banking plan is a company that frequently can’t trade.

See Hong Kong banking

How we work

From the first call to the corporate seal kit on your desk

Four steps. The first one is the one most providers skip and most founders later wish they hadn’t.

1
Day 0

We map your banking and your jurisdiction fit

A 30-minute strategy call with Roman and the USG team. We walk through your business model, risk profile, suppliers, customers, and where your money has to move.

2
Days 1–2

We prepare your documents

You answer the questions and complete the forms the Registry needs. We draft the structure and the business scope wording in the form a registrar will accept.

3
Days 3–5

We file and the Registry processes it

We file with the Companies Registry and the Inland Revenue. Most applications process inside 1–4 business days. Any question that comes back goes to us, not to your inbox.

4
Days 5–10

Company is open

You receive a set of incorporation documents: Certificate of Incorporation, Business Registration, NNC1, seal kit. Year-1 company secretary and registered office go live the same day. The banking team takes the handoff and starts on the account.

Common questions

What founders ask before they sign

If your question isn’t here, book a call – we’ll discuss your case in detail.

Do I need to fly to Hong Kong to register the company?

No. The entire incorporation is remote. You sign scanned originals and certified copies; we file with the Companies Registry and the Inland Revenue Department on your behalf. The Certificate of Incorporation, Business Registration Certificate, and corporate seal kit are couriered to the address of your choice.

The bank account is the part where in-person presence is sometimes required – that’s negotiated case by case on the call.

Can I be the sole director if I’m not a Hong Kong resident?

Yes. Hong Kong law has no residency or nationality requirement for directors or shareholders of a Private Limited Company. The company needs at least one natural person as a director – that can be you, regardless of which passport you hold. The same applies to shareholders.

What share capital do I need to put up?

None. The default figure for a Hong Kong limited company is HKD 10,000 of issued share capital, but it is not mandatory. There is no paid-up capital requirement and no government-set minimum.

What documents do you need from me to start?

We send a single onboarding email with the templates and an upload link. The starting set is:

  • Passport scan or clear photo of every director and beneficial owner – colour, ID page, all four corners visible
  • A selfie holding the same passport
  • Proof of residential address – utility bill, bank statement, or government letter, dated within the last three months
  • A few proposed company names – English, Chinese, or both
  • A short description of what the business will do
  • Signed KYC forms – templates from us
  • A proposed share capital figure

See the full FAQ →

Talk to us

Book a free call

You explain your business model and your passport situation. We tell you whether Hong Kong is the right call, and what the banking path to get there looks like.

Book a free 30-minute call