OpenAccountants/Hong Kong/Hong Kong Company Formation & Entity Choice

Hong Kong Company Formation & Entity Choice

Name: OpenAccountants MCP Server
Author: OpenAccountants

Source-cited draft: company formation & entity choice for Hong Kong (tax year 2025) — rates, thresholds and rules with primary-source citations. Unverified; pending local-accountant review.

Applicable period 2025Source-cited draft· Last updated Jun 25, 2026

Source-cited draft.Written from sources but not reviewed by a licensed practitioner, so it may be incomplete or wrong. General reference only; don't file or take a position on it without professional review.

Use Hong Kong Company Formation & Entity Choice in your AI agent

Add OpenAccountants so your AI can retrieve this Guide during a conversation. Any output remains a draft unless a qualified professional separately reviews your specific facts.

View source on GitHub Add to your AI

Use this with your AI

Use OpenAccountants for Company Formation & Entity Choice in Hong Kong.

Paste it into ChatGPT, Claude, or any AI that has OpenAccountants added. Add it to your AI first if you haven't.

Key figures — Hong Kong, 2025

Every figure is drawn from this Tax Guide and cited to its source.

Common entity type

Private company limited by shares (most common); also public limited company, company limited by guarantee, sole proprietorship, partnership, and branch/representative office of a foreign companyCompanies Ordinance (Cap. 622)View source ↗

Minimum share capital

No minimum — commonly incorporated with HKD 1 / 1 share (no par value regime)Companies Ordinance (Cap. 622)View source ↗

Minimum directors

At least 1 director; a private company must have at least one director who is a natural personCompanies Ordinance (Cap. 622)View source ↗

Minimum shareholders

At least 1 shareholder (private company limited by shares may be wholly foreign-owned)Companies Ordinance (Cap. 622)

Company secretary

Mandatory — must be a Hong Kong resident individual or a Hong Kong body corporate (cannot be the sole director)Companies Ordinance (Cap. 622)View source ↗

Registered office

A Hong Kong registered office address is requiredCompanies Ordinance (Cap. 622)

Business Registration Certificate

Required from the IRD within 1 month of commencing business; obtained simultaneously with incorporation via one-stop registrationBusiness Registration Ordinance (Cap. 310)View source ↗

Incorporation timeline

Electronic incorporation is typically processed within ~1 business day; paper filings around 4 working days ((approx — confirm))Companies Ordinance (Cap. 622)View source ↗

Incorporation fee (Companies Registry)

Company incorporation fee approx HKD 1,720 (electronic); plus Business Registration levy/fee (varies, ~HKD 2,200 for a 1-year certificate) HKD ((approx — confirm))Companies (Fees) Regulation (Cap. 622K)View source ↗

Annual Return (NAR1)

Private company must file an Annual Return (Form NAR1) with the Companies Registry within 42 days of the anniversary of incorporationCompanies Ordinance (Cap. 622), section 662View source ↗

Business Registration renewal

Business Registration Certificate must be renewed annually (or every 3 years if a 3-year certificate is held)Business Registration Ordinance (Cap. 310)View source ↗

Annual audit

Every Hong Kong company (with very limited dormant exceptions) must prepare audited financial statements by a HK CPA (practising) for the directors and for the profits tax returnCompanies Ordinance (Cap. 622), Part 9View source ↗

Significant Controllers Register (SCR)

Companies must keep a Significant Controllers Register at their registered office / a HK location and make it available to law enforcementCompanies Ordinance (Cap. 622), Part 12 Division 2AView source ↗

Rendered from the canonical facts model. General reference only — confirm with a qualified professional before acting.

The full Guide

Company formation and annual compliance

The most common vehicle is a private company limited by shares incorporated under the Companies Ordinance (Cap. 622) and administered by the Companies Registry, with a separate Business Registration Certificate required from the IRD. Incorporation is fast and there is no minimum capital requirement.

Common entity type — Private company limited by shares (most common); also public limited company, company limited by guarantee, sole proprietorship, partnership, and branch/representative office of a foreign company (Companies Ordinance (Cap. 622))
Minimum share capital — No minimum — commonly incorporated with HKD 1 / 1 share (no par value regime) (Companies Ordinance (Cap. 622))
Minimum directors — At least 1 director; a private company must have at least one director who is a natural person (Companies Ordinance (Cap. 622))
Minimum shareholders — At least 1 shareholder (private company limited by shares may be wholly foreign-owned) (Companies Ordinance (Cap. 622))
Company secretary — Mandatory — must be a Hong Kong resident individual or a Hong Kong body corporate (cannot be the sole director) (Companies Ordinance (Cap. 622))
Registered office — A Hong Kong registered office address is required (Companies Ordinance (Cap. 622))
Business Registration Certificate — Required from the IRD within 1 month of commencing business; obtained simultaneously with incorporation via one-stop registration (Business Registration Ordinance (Cap. 310))
Incorporation timeline — Electronic incorporation is typically processed within ~1 business day; paper filings around 4 working days ((approx — confirm)) (Companies Ordinance (Cap. 622))
Incorporation fee (Companies Registry) — Company incorporation fee approx HKD 1,720 (electronic); plus Business Registration levy/fee (varies, ~HKD 2,200 for a 1-year certificate) HKD ((approx — confirm)) (Companies (Fees) Regulation (Cap. 622K))
Annual Return (NAR1) — Private company must file an Annual Return (Form NAR1) with the Companies Registry within 42 days of the anniversary of incorporation (Companies Ordinance (Cap. 622), section 662)
Business Registration renewal — Business Registration Certificate must be renewed annually (or every 3 years if a 3-year certificate is held) (Business Registration Ordinance (Cap. 310))
Annual audit — Every Hong Kong company (with very limited dormant exceptions) must prepare audited financial statements by a HK CPA (practising) for the directors and for the profits tax return (Companies Ordinance (Cap. 622), Part 9)
Significant Controllers Register (SCR) — Companies must keep a Significant Controllers Register at their registered office / a HK location and make it available to law enforcement (Companies Ordinance (Cap. 622), Part 12 Division 2A)

Pasting this into your AI section by section is slow and easy to get wrong. Add to your AI and it loads the whole Guide automatically — with dependency resolution and conservative defaults, every figure cited to its source.

All Hong Kong Guides

More Hong Kong Tax Guides

Other Hong Kong computations in the OpenAccountants Tax Library.

Hong Kong Tax Overview Hong Kong VAT / GST hk-mpf Hong Kong Corporate Income Tax hk-salaries-tax hong-kong-tax

See all Hong Kong Guides →

Company formation and annual compliance

Common entity type — Private company limited by shares (most common); also public limited company, company limited by guarantee, sole proprietorship, partnership, and branch/representative office of a foreign company (Companies Ordinance (Cap. 622))

Minimum share capital — No minimum — commonly incorporated with HKD 1 / 1 share (no par value regime) (Companies Ordinance (Cap. 622))

Minimum directors — At least 1 director; a private company must have at least one director who is a natural person (Companies Ordinance (Cap. 622))

Minimum shareholders — At least 1 shareholder (private company limited by shares may be wholly foreign-owned) (Companies Ordinance (Cap. 622))

Company secretary — Mandatory — must be a Hong Kong resident individual or a Hong Kong body corporate (cannot be the sole director) (Companies Ordinance (Cap. 622))

Registered office — A Hong Kong registered office address is required (Companies Ordinance (Cap. 622))

Business Registration Certificate — Required from the IRD within 1 month of commencing business; obtained simultaneously with incorporation via one-stop registration (Business Registration Ordinance (Cap. 310))

Incorporation timeline — Electronic incorporation is typically processed within ~1 business day; paper filings around 4 working days ((approx — confirm)) (Companies Ordinance (Cap. 622))

Incorporation fee (Companies Registry) — Company incorporation fee approx HKD 1,720 (electronic); plus Business Registration levy/fee (varies, ~HKD 2,200 for a 1-year certificate) HKD ((approx — confirm)) (Companies (Fees) Regulation (Cap. 622K))

Annual Return (NAR1) — Private company must file an Annual Return (Form NAR1) with the Companies Registry within 42 days of the anniversary of incorporation (Companies Ordinance (Cap. 622), section 662)

Business Registration renewal — Business Registration Certificate must be renewed annually (or every 3 years if a 3-year certificate is held) (Business Registration Ordinance (Cap. 310))

Annual audit — Every Hong Kong company (with very limited dormant exceptions) must prepare audited financial statements by a HK CPA (practising) for the directors and for the profits tax return (Companies Ordinance (Cap. 622), Part 9)

Significant Controllers Register (SCR) — Companies must keep a Significant Controllers Register at their registered office / a HK location and make it available to law enforcement (Companies Ordinance (Cap. 622), Part 12 Division 2A)