Change registered office in Hong Kong: Form NR1

When a Hong Kong company moves its registered office, it delivers Form NR1, Notice of Change of Address of Registered Office, to the Companies Registry within 15 days after the change. The new address must be in Hong Kong; the Registry does not accept non-Hong Kong addresses, “care of” addresses or post office box numbers. Once NR1 is registered, the Registry passes the new registered office to the Inland Revenue Department’s Business Registration Office. The business address on your Business Registration Certificate is a separate record, and if that changes too, you either tell the IRD within one month or use the optional one-stop service with the electronic NR1.

What the registered office is

Every Hong Kong company must have a registered office, and the Registry’sincorporation FAQsays it must be situated in Hong Kong. It is the company’s official address on the public register. It does not have to be where the company trades, and some companies use an office provider’s address. The difference between the two is covered inregistered office versus virtual office.

Step by step

1. Confirm the new address is a full Hong Kong address you are entitled to use, and not a post office box or a “care of” address.
2. Decide the effective date of the move.
3. Complete Form NR1 with the complete new address and the effective date. The form is on the Registry’sspecified forms page.
4. Deliver it within 15 days after the change, electronically through thee-Services Portalor in hard copy.
5. If the business address is also changing, either choose the optional one-stop notification when you file the e-Form NR1, or notify the Business Registration Office separately within one month (see below).
6. Update the address on letterheads, invoices, bank records and the company website.

Two details that get forms sent back

The Registry’sfiling tips on registered office documentsname the common fault: the new address is reported but the effective date is not, or the effective date is given but the new address is left out. Both must be on the form. The second is the address itself. A non-Hong Kong address, a “care of” address or a post office box number is not acceptable for a registered office.

Registered office and business address

The Companies Registry holds the registered office. The Business Registration Office holds the business address printed on the Business Registration Certificate. They can be the same address or different ones. The Registry’sone-stop notification FAQand the IRD’schange of business registration particulars pageset out what to file in each case:

A written notice to the Business Registration Office should state the business registration number, the business name, the old and new business addresses and the date of the change.

Mistakes to avoid

• Leaving the effective date, or the new address, off NR1.
• Filing more than 15 days after the move.
• Assuming NR1 changes the business address on the Business Registration Certificate.
• Giving up an address before the new one is registered, so official post has nowhere to go.
• Forgetting the annual return. Once the address has changed, the nextNAR1should show the new registered office.

Moving to an address provider

If the new registered office is a provider’s address, readcompany registered address servicefirst. Providing a registered office address as a business is a trust or company service, so the firm generally needs a TCSP licence;checking a TCSP licenceshows how to look it up. Our directory listsregistered office firmsto compare. The Companies Registry and the IRD apply these rules, and this page is not legal advice.