HONG KONG · 21:15 HKT
Hong Kong company registration for non-residents — from $2 100
A non-resident can be the sole shareholder and the only director of a Hong Kong company — we incorporate it from $2 100, provide the local licensed secretary and registered address the company must have, and arrange the audit every Hong Kong company files each year. Profits tax is 8.25% on the first HKD 2,000,000 of assessable profit and 16.5% above; there is no VAT and no tax on dividends. Registration is the smaller half of the work — the filings and the audit come back every year, and that is the part we stay for.
Hong Kong taxes profit by where it arises, not by who owns the company
The rules below are quoted from the Inland Revenue Department, with the date we last checked them. Where a figure has to be proven rather than quoted — the offshore claim — we say so instead of rounding it down to zero.
Profits tax is 8.25% on the first HKD 2,000,000 and 16.5% above
The Inland Revenue Department publishes the two-tiered rates for corporations as "8.25% on assessable profits up to $2,000,000; and 16.5% on any part of assessable profits over $2,000,000" — those are Hong Kong dollars (ird.gov.hk, checked 16 July 2026). The scale has applied since the year of assessment 2018/19. Inside a group of connected entities the lower band belongs to one company per year — that rule is covered in the 0% section below.
Only profit arising in or derived from Hong Kong is chargeable
The same IRD page defines the charge as profits "arising in or derived from Hong Kong" and adds: "A resident may therefore derive profits from abroad without suffering tax" (ird.gov.hk, checked 16 July 2026). Note the word therefore. The exemption follows from where the profit actually arose, and that is a question of proof — claimed and examined, not ticked on a form.
There is no VAT, no GST and no tax on dividends
Nothing to register for on the indirect-tax side. Dividends are excluded from assessable profits when received "from a corporation which is subject to Hong Kong Profits Tax", and the charge excludes "profits arising from the sale of capital assets" — both quoted from ird.gov.hk, checked 16 July 2026.
The business registration fee is payable every year, and we quote it only with the official table
It is due whether the company traded or not. We do not print the amount here: the government's own fee tables are the only source we would cite, and until we verify the figure against them it stays off the page. You get the number in writing, with a link to the source.
The "Hong Kong at 0%" pitch fails two checks most sellers skip
A zero rate in Hong Kong is not the default. Hong Kong taxes profit arising in Hong Kong; exempting profit sourced elsewhere is a claim you make and prove through the operations test. Separately, only one company in a group of connected entities may elect the lower 8.25% band for a year of assessment — the rest pay 16.5% on all assessable profit. Source — ird.gov.hk, checked 16 July 2026.
Only one company in a connected group takes the 8.25% band each year
The IRD's FAQ on the two-tiered rates answers question 10 with a flat No: "An entity's election is effective only if no other connected entity has made an election for the same year of assessment" (ird.gov.hk/eng/faq/2tr.htm, checked 16 July 2026). Where no effective election exists, "the whole of the taxpaying entity's assessable profits will be chargeable" — at 16.5%. Connection is a control test: "more than 50% in aggregate of the voting rights", capital or profits, whether one entity controls the other or both sit under the same parent.
In practice: if you already run a Hong Kong company, the second one will not sit at 8.25%. We check the group before the contract, not after the first return.
Offshore profit is exempted after proof, not by default
Profit earned outside Hong Kong does not fall out of the charge on its own. The exemption is claimed and argued: where the operations that produced the profit took place (the operations test), where the contracts were effected (the contract effected test). For contract processing with mainland China the IRD apportions profits 50:50.
Until that review happens, 0% is a plan, not a rate. An adviser who promises "Hong Kong at 0%" on day one is selling the result of a test nobody has run. If mainland China is part of your supply chain, read our WFOE registration in China page as well.
Hong Kong asks little of the founder — and nothing that blocks a non-resident
Ownership is the easy part: the shareholder can be an individual or a company from any country, and the board needs at least one individual director — again, any country of residence, and the same person may hold both roles. The short list of what the company cannot skip is below.
| Requirement | What is accepted |
|---|---|
| Director | at least one individual, resident of any country; further directors may be corporate; the director may also be the shareholder |
| Shareholder | an individual or a legal entity, resident of any country |
| Company secretary | mandatory — local and licensed, a Hong Kong company or individual |
| Company name | unique, checked against the register, must include "Limited" |
| Share capital | from 1 Hong Kong dollar |
| Registered address | a real office is not required; an address for correspondence is enough |
| Business licence | only for licensable activities: banking, insurance, investment funds, construction and similar |
The secretary and the registered address are the two items a non-resident cannot supply alone — both are included in every package below.
Four packages: what is included and what year two costs
Setup is paid once. The annual figure is what the company costs to keep from the second year — the recurring company secretary, registered office and compliance support. The audit is arranged separately, and its fee is quoted from your books.
Package · setup · from year two
Setup from
from$2 100
What the tiers add. Basic ($2 100) covers incorporation, the registered address for the first year, the local licensed secretary and the company seal. Standard adds apostilled corporate documents. Premium adds a nominee director and a nominee shareholder for a year, with an apostilled power of attorney. Lux adds an account with a payment system.
Two things these packages do not include — read this before comparing quotes
- The auditIt is mandatory every year, and we do not fix its price in advance: the fee follows transaction volume, so we quote it for your case and arrange the work with a registered auditor.
- A bank accountThe Lux line is an account with a payment system. A payment institution and a Hong Kong bank are different things, and we call them by different names.
Prices from our list, not a public offer. The Hong Kong figures are quoted in US dollars.
Ask which package fitsThe audit is mandatory every year — the fact that surprises buyers shopping for an offshore
Every Hong Kong company files audited financial statements each year — whether it traded or not, whatever the turnover. Not "recommended", not "above a threshold": a company with zero transactions passes the same audit as a trading one, and the auditor must be a member of the Hong Kong Institute of Certified Public Accountants — you cannot appoint your own bookkeeper to sign it off. We arrange the audit with a registered auditor; the fee is quoted from your transaction volume, not fixed in advance.
- Financial statements are prepared for the accounting period
- A registered auditor examines them and signs the auditor's report
- The report is filed with the profits tax return at the Inland Revenue Department (IRD)
The first return arrives around month 18, and you get three months to answer
The first profits tax return reaches the company about 18 months after incorporation and must be filed within 3 months of its issue date. Set the first accounting period between 12 and 18 months; after that the cycle runs every 12 months.
What the auditor will ask for: bank statements, signed contracts with customers and suppliers, invoices, shipping documents. Start that folder on day one — a company that keeps everything "in the chat history" passes its first audit slowly and expensively.
This yearly cycle is also why our packages are priced the way they are. The setup fee is earned once; the accounts, the return and the audit come back every year. We stay for that part — it is the point of working with us rather than with a registration mill.
The register is public; a nominee changes the listing, not the KYC answer
Companies Registry records are open to anyone
Hong Kong keeps a public register: directors and shareholders are visible in searches. If the public listing is the concern, a nominee changes who appears there — and only that.
A nominee closes the public register, not the bank's questions
The bank and the payment system will still ask who the beneficial owner is at KYC, and the right answer there is the truth. Anyone promising anonymity from the bank is describing a service that does not exist.
Hong Kong or the UAE: compare the conditions, not the headline rates
| Hong Kong | UAE | |
|---|---|---|
| Tax on profit | 8.25% on the first HKD 2,000,000, 16.5% above (IRD) | 0% up to AED 375 000, 9% above (Federal Decree-Law 47/2022) |
| Who gets the reduced rate | one company per group of connected entities per year of assessment (IRD) | 0% only for a Qualifying Free Zone Person, and only on qualifying income (Ministerial Decision 229/2025) |
| Entry | from $2 100 | from $2 700 |
| From the second year | service from $2 500, plus the mandatory audit | licence renewal, bookkeeping from $680/month, audit from $950 |
| Audit | mandatory always, even with no activity | mandatory for every QFZP regardless of revenue (Ministerial Decision 84/2025) |
Comparing 8.25% with 9% head-on tells you nothing: both rates come with conditions, and the conditions matter more than the percentages. In Hong Kong you prove where the profit arose and share the lower band with your group. In the UAE you meet the Qualifying Free Zone Person tests, and sales to individuals do not go at 0% (Ministerial Decision 229/2025, Article 2(2)(a)).
We run both against your model — column by column, with everything that starts after registration. Sometimes the answer is that you need neither. We say that too.
The UAE figures are checked against the primary sources, mof.gov.ae and tax.gov.ae. Business setup in Dubai runs on the same desk: see company formation in the UAE and what the accounting year looks like there.
What we do not promise
In this niche an honest list of what will not happen is worth more than one more promise.
- "0% turnkey"no. Offshore exemption is proven through the operations test, and the 8.25% band belongs to one company per connected group per year of assessment (IRD).
- Bank decisionnot ours to give. Compliance decides, and nobody can promise it for the bank. What Lux includes is an account with a payment system — a different thing, named with a different word.
- Audit releasedoes not exist, even at zero transactions.
- Anonymitya nominee closes the public register, not KYC.
- Reviewsnone on this page. We do not publish clients without written consent, and we will not invent any: a tax page with an invented testimonial lies about everything else too.
- A timelinethere is no day count anywhere on this page, on purpose. We publish dates when we can show the source, and here we cannot yet.
Check us instead of trusting us
- The licenceOrion Consulting and Bookkeeping LLC, Shams Free Zone (Sharjah Media City), Formation No. 2327240, issued 14 December 2023. The number is public — verify it.
- What it says"Accounting, bookkeeping and auditing activities; tax consultancy" — bookkeeping and audit are written into our own licensed activities, not handed to "a partner".
- SourcesHong Kong rates: ird.gov.hk/eng/tax/bus_pft.htm. The connected-entities rule: ird.gov.hk/eng/faq/2tr.htm. UAE figures: mof.gov.ae, tax.gov.ae.
- Open prices$2 100 / $2 550 / $3 800 / $4 600, service from $2 500 a year — not "on request".
- Honest gapsHong Kong's official fees are absent from this page until we verify them against the government's own table. It costs us some leads; it is also why you can trust the rest of the figures here.
Questions people ask before a contract
Can a non-resident register a Hong Kong company?
Yes. The shareholder can be an individual or a company resident anywhere, and the board needs at least one individual director — also from any country; the same person may hold both roles. What the company cannot skip: a local licensed company secretary, a Hong Kong registered address (an office is not required — a correspondence address is enough), a unique name ending in Limited, and share capital from one Hong Kong dollar. The secretary and the address are included in every package of ours from $2 100.
How is a Hong Kong company taxed?
Hong Kong taxes profits on a territorial basis — only profit arising in or derived from Hong Kong is taxable. The Inland Revenue Department publishes the two-tiered rates for corporations as "8.25% on assessable profits up to $2,000,000; and 16.5% on any part of assessable profits over $2,000,000" — those are Hong Kong dollars (ird.gov.hk, checked 16 July 2026). One condition the market rarely mentions: inside a group of connected entities only one company may elect the lower rate in a year of assessment. IRD, FAQ on two-tiered rates, Q10: "An entity's election is effective only if no other connected entity has made an election for the same year of assessment." Where no effective election exists, "the whole of the taxpaying entity's assessable profits will be chargeable" at 16.5%.
Is there VAT in Hong Kong?
No. Hong Kong has no VAT and no GST. There is also no sales tax and no withholding tax on dividends — the IRD excludes from assessable profits "dividends received from a corporation which is subject to Hong Kong Profits Tax" (ird.gov.hk, checked 16 July 2026). That is part of why the jurisdiction works for holding and trading structures.
Is an audit mandatory even if the company has no activity?
Yes — every Hong Kong company files audited financial statements each year, regardless of size or turnover, together with its profits tax return. A company with zero transactions goes through the same audit as a trading one, and the auditor must be a member of the Hong Kong Institute of Certified Public Accountants: you cannot appoint your own bookkeeper to sign it off. The timing surprises people: the first profits tax return arrives about 18 months after incorporation and must be filed within 3 months of its issue date, so the first accounting period is best set between 12 and 18 months; after that it runs every 12 months. We arrange the audit with a registered auditor; the fee depends on transaction volume and is quoted for your case, not fixed in advance.
Is Hong Kong a 0% offshore?
Not by default. Hong Kong taxes profit arising in or derived from Hong Kong; profit sourced elsewhere is exempted only after the claim is examined — where the profit-making operations happened (the operations test) and where the contracts were effected (the contract effected test); for contract processing with mainland China the IRD apportions profits 50:50. On top of that, only one company in a group of connected entities may elect the lower 8.25% band per year of assessment. Anyone selling "Hong Kong at 0%" on day one is selling the result of a review that has not happened.
How quickly can the bank account be opened?
We do not publish a timeline, and you should be careful with anyone who does: the account is opened by the bank, not by us, and the compliance decision is theirs. What we control is the file — we prepare the documents, the business description and the source-of-funds story before the application goes in. We name a realistic window for your profile in writing once we see the activity and the shareholders.
Which package should I choose?
Packages run from $2 100 at setup. Basic covers incorporation, a year of registered address, the local licensed secretary and the company seal; Standard adds apostilled corporate documents; Premium adds a nominee director and shareholder with an apostilled power of attorney; Lux adds an account with a payment system — which is not a bank account, and we keep the two terms apart. From the second year the service runs from $2 500 a year. Tell us what the company will do and we will name the fit.
Hong Kong or the UAE — which fits my case?
They answer different questions. Hong Kong suits foreign-sourced trading income: territorial tax, no VAT, but a mandatory audit every year. The UAE gives 0% only to a Qualifying Free Zone Person on qualifying income — sales to individuals are excluded (Ministerial Decision 229/2025) — and it solves residence visas, which our Hong Kong packages do not cover. Entry on our list: Hong Kong from $2 100, the UAE from $2 700. We put both against your model before you commit.
Tell us what the company will do
Trading, holding, e-commerce, services? Describe the plan and who your customers are. We reply with the package, the tax picture and the audit position — and what year two will cost, not just year one.
In Russian: Регистрация компании в Гонконге — эта страница по-русски
Orion Consulting and Bookkeeping LLC, Downtown Dubai, available 24/7. We register companies in the UAE, Hong Kong and China and run the accounting, filings and audit arrangements that follow — in year one and every year after.