From the official pages
Hong Kong company guides
Short reads on the rules that come up when you set up and keep a Hong Kong company. The figures and deadlines are taken from government pages, not from sales copy. Nothing here is legal or tax advice.
27 guides
Setting up
How to incorporate a Hong Kong company: NNC1, fees, timing
File Form NNC1, the articles and IRBR1 with the Companies Registry. Online, the certificates normally arrive within an hour, and 2026–27 government fees start at HK$3,895.
Setting up
Hong Kong company name rules: endings, bans and search
English, Chinese or both; “Limited” or 有限公司 at the end; no mixed names. Search free before you file, because the Companies Registry does not reserve names.
Setting up
Sole proprietorship or limited company in Hong Kong
Liability, registration, 2026–27 government fees, profits tax rates, yearly filings and closing down, side by side from IRD and Companies Registry sources.
Setting up
Sole proprietorship in Hong Kong
Register with the IRD on Form 1(a) within one month of starting. A one-year certificate in 2026–27 is HK$2,350. This is not a Companies Registry filing.
Setting up
Sole proprietorship business name rules in Hong Kong
The IRD registers a Chinese name, an English name, or both. It refuses names that suggest limited liability or a Government link that does not exist, so no “Limited” for a sole proprietor.
Setting up
Sole proprietorship for Hong Kong residents
If you live here and trade in your own name, business registration at the IRD may be enough — no company secretary, no registered office, no annual return at the Companies Registry.
Setting up
Sole proprietorship tax and records
Profits go on Part 5 of your BIR60, not a separate company return — 7.5% / 15% two-tier rates for unincorporated businesses, and you must tell the IRD when particulars change.
People on the record
Hong Kong company secretary: role, rules and filings
Every private company needs one. An individual secretary should ordinarily reside in Hong Kong, the sole director cannot do it, and firms that sell it need a TCSP licence.
People on the record
Hong Kong company director requirements and filings
At least one director must be an individual aged 18 or over. Most private companies may also have a corporate director, and board changes are filed within 15 days.
People on the record
TCSP licence search: how to check a Hong Kong firm
Search the Companies Registry’s TCSP register by name or licence number before you pay a firm for formation, company secretary or registered-address work.
Keeping the company
Registered office versus a virtual office
The registered office is the address on the Companies Registry record. A virtual office is a mail service. They are the same address only if you file it.
Keeping the company
Registered address service in Hong Kong: what to check
A provider’s Hong Kong address used as your registered office. The address must meet Companies Registry rules, and the provider generally needs a TCSP licence.
Keeping the company
Hong Kong annual return (NAR1): deadline and fee
A private company delivers Form NAR1 within 42 days after each incorporation anniversary. On time it costs HK$105; late fees run from HK$870 to HK$3,480 and cannot be waived.
Keeping the company
NAR1 late fee and annual return penalty in Hong Kong
On time, NAR1 costs a private company HK$105. Late, the fee is HK$870, HK$1,740, HK$2,610 or HK$3,480, the Registrar cannot waive it, and the company can also be prosecuted.
Keeping the company
Significant Controllers Register (SCR) in Hong Kong
Local companies, except listed ones, must record who owns or controls more than 25% or otherwise has significant control, name a designated representative and show the register to law enforcement on demand.
Keeping the company
Payroll in Hong Kong
Once you hire, you are on the hook for MPF and employer tax filings. Here is the official baseline.
Keeping the company
Hong Kong profits tax, audited accounts and records
Who pays profits tax, the two-tier rates, what goes with a company’s BIR51 return, when the first return arrives, and the seven-year record-keeping rule, from the IRD.
Keeping the company
How to deregister a Hong Kong company (Form NDR1)
Get the IRD’s Notice of No Objection, file Form NDR1 within 3 months with HK$420, and the company is dissolved after a 3-month Gazette period, if it meets every condition.
Keeping the company
Business registration in Hong Kong: who, fees, renewal
Sole proprietors and partnerships apply to the IRD within one month of starting; companies get the certificate with incorporation. 2026–27 fees, branches, the small-business exemption and penalties.
Keeping the company
NAR1 annual return vs business registration renewal
NAR1 goes to the Companies Registry within 42 days after each incorporation anniversary. Business registration is renewed with the IRD on its own demand note. Paying one does not pay the other.
Keeping the company
Dormant company in Hong Kong: section 5 and NAR1
A private company becomes dormant by delivering a special resolution to the Registrar. It then skips annual returns, but must still report changes to its office and officers.
Keeping the company
MPF for Hong Kong employers: enrolment and contributions
Enrol staff aged 18 to 64 within 60 days, then pay 5% plus 5% of relevant income each month through eMPF, on a HK$7,100 floor and a HK$30,000 cap.
Setting up
Change company name in Hong Kong: Form NNC2 and fee
Pass a special resolution, file Form NNC2 within 15 days with HK$295, and the new name takes effect on the Certificate of Change of Name. The IRD then posts an amended BR certificate.
Keeping the company
Change registered office in Hong Kong: Form NR1
File Form NR1 within 15 days of the move, with the full new Hong Kong address and the effective date. The business address on the BR certificate is a separate IRD record.
Setting up
Companies Registry Hong Kong address and opening hours
The Registry’s public office is on the 14th floor, High Block, Queensway Government Offices, 66 Queensway. It opens on weekdays only, and it is not your company’s registered office.
Keeping the company
Employer’s return in Hong Kong
BIR56A is due within a month even if you have no staff. IR56B, IR56E, IR56F and IR56G are the forms that sit under it.
Keeping the company
Two-tier profits tax in Hong Kong
Corporations pay 8.25% then 16.5%. Unincorporated businesses pay 7.5% then 15%. Only one nominated connected entity uses the lower tier.
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