Hong Kong Company Setup

In this guide, we explain how to prepare to register a Hong Kong private company limited by shares. We cover the documents, fees, application steps and work to plan after the company is formed. You can apply even if you do not live in Hong Kong.

We start by learning what the company will do, who will own it and who will act as directors. We then explain which documents and services you need.

If you are still deciding between a company in mainland China and one in Hong Kong, we suggest starting with our Structure decision guide.

Plan the business

If you run a trade business, we suggest thinking through these four steps:

1. Which company will buy the goods from the supplier?
2. Which company will sign the sales contract with the customer?
3. Which company will issue the invoice?
4. Which company will receive the payment?

Already have a company in mainland China or elsewhere? Tell us which of these steps it handles today. This helps us work out what the new Hong Kong company needs to do and how the companies will work together.

If the business has not started yet, we can discuss your plans. We separate what you already do, what you have signed and what you only plan to do. This helps us understand the company and helps you explain the business when you later apply for a bank account.

Directors and secretary

A Hong Kong private company needs at least one individual director, a company secretary and a registered address in Hong Kong. An individual director is a person, not a company. If there is only one director, that person cannot also be the secretary. See the Registry's director and secretary guidance.

When you use EZIPD, we arrange the secretary. You do not need to find or choose one yourself. These are the service standards we use:

• Individual secretary: we use a Hong Kong permanent resident who ordinarily lives in Hong Kong.
• Corporate secretary: we use a Hong Kong secretarial firm with a valid Trust or Company Service Provider (TCSP) licence.

You can use a Hong Kong office address as the company's registered address, or use one provided by the secretarial firm.

Documents we need

We explain which documents you need based on whether a person or a company will own the shares. If original application documents are needed, we agree what you need to provide before submission. This helps avoid repeat submissions and wasted time.

Personal shareholders

If a person will own the shares, we ask for their identity and home address details. We also ask about their shares and whether they will be a director.

Corporate shareholders

If a company will own the shares, we ask for:

• Its registration documents and company rules, such as its articles of association.
• Details of who owns it, through each layer of ownership to the people who ultimately own or control it.
• Proof that the person signing for it has the right to do so.

Name and business

We ask about the planned company name, business, directors and shares. If you are unsure how to describe the business nature, we suggest using the Registry's list. It gives business categories, codes and descriptions in Chinese and English. We also help you choose a category based on what the business will do.

Get the List of Code and Description of Business Nature (PDF)

Enter your name and email to download this public Companies Registry document. It is the December 2024 edition, with five pages in Chinese and English. This request does not sign you up for a newsletter.

We use the shareholder records to check identity and ownership. We also prepare the incorporation application (Form NNC1), the company rules (articles of association) and the business registration notice (IRBR1). See the Registry's filing requirements.

We remind you that the registration file is not the full bank application file. A bank may ask for more records when you apply for an account.

Government fees

We set out the government fees for each filing route so you can compare them.

Choose online or paper filing, then add the business registration charge. Do not add all three fees together.

For a local private company with share capital and a one-year business registration certificate:

Two alternatives with one-year business registration included

Each total already includes one-year business registration. Do not add that charge again. These totals do not include EZIPD's service fees. See the Registry fee schedule.

The HK$2,350 business registration charge consists of a HK$2,200 fee and a HK$150 levy. This rate applies from 1 April 2026 to 31 March 2027. For a new local company's first certificate, the date the incorporation application is submitted determines the charge. A three-year certificate has a different charge. Check the IRD fee table again before applying.

Fees checked on 1 November 2026.

Our service quote

We state in our service quote:

• What is covered in preparing and submitting the company application.
• How long the secretary and address services last, and their renewal fees.
• Who receives and passes on official mail.
• Which work costs extra and how you approve that cost.

Courier delivery and further ownership checks may cost extra, depending on your case. Accounting, audit and bank account opening are included only if the service agreement says so.

Steps and what you receive

When you appoint EZIPD, we handle the application in three steps:

1. We learn about the business and collect the documents. You tell us the name, business, shareholders, directors and share plan, and provide the required records. Let us know if you need an account or will use company documents outside Hong Kong.
2. We prepare, submit and follow up on the application. We prepare and submit it within the agreed scope and follow its progress. If more documents are needed, we contact the person you have named.
3. We hand over the file after the company is formed. We gather and give you the agreed company documents and explain what still needs follow-up.

Within the agreed scope, we give you the following documents and explain the related arrangements:

• Company certificates. The Certificate of Incorporation and Business Registration Certificate issued by government.
• Formation and company records. The articles of association, the form that was filed and any filing acknowledgements received. We also explain how the required company registers and resolutions are kept.
• Originals and contacts. We explain who holds the originals, who receives official mail and who to contact when you need to retrieve a document.
• First-year tasks and dates. We discuss certificate expiry, the company's incorporation anniversary, plans for its financial year-end and service renewal dates. We also explain the follow-up arrangements.

Government does not issue all of these records. As well as handing over the formation file, we explain which records need ongoing upkeep and who will handle them. The work follows the agreed service scope.

Banking and first year

If you plan to open an account, we suggest explaining your customers, suppliers, markets and currencies, and where the first funds will come from. We also remind you that forming the company does not mean a bank has approved an account. Our bank account preparation guide explains the next steps.

We suggest keeping contracts, invoices, receipts and bank records from the first transaction. Hong Kong businesses must generally keep sufficient business records for at least seven years. See the IRD recordkeeping guidance.

For a local private company that must file an annual return, the deadline is generally 42 days after its incorporation anniversary. No annual return is required for the year it is formed. Formal dormant status has separate conditions; do not assume that having no sales makes the company dormant.

Business registration renewal and tax notices have their own dates. We explain the timing with reference to the Registry annual return guidance and our Hong Kong annual compliance checklist. We help arrange follow-up within the scope you appoint us to handle.

How EZIPD helps

We start by asking what you want the company to do. Who will own it? Who will it buy from and sell to? Will another company handle part of the business? Will you need a bank account?

We use those answers to explain your choices and the work each choice involves. We then help you prepare the documents, check the company details and follow the application through to the handover, within the agreed service scope.

We also help you plan who will handle company records, the secretary, the registered office and official mail. Where needed, we coordinate with accounting or audit providers. If you need an account, we discuss the planned use and the bank's document needs. The bank makes its own decision on whether to open the account.

Our decision engine brings what we have learned from real projects into these choices. We explain your options, what each one solves and what work follows. You can make a better-informed decision before you pay or apply.

That is what Design First, Action Follow means here: first work out a plan that fits the business, then help you put it into practice.

Discuss your plansDiscuss your plans

Tell us what you plan to buy or sell, who will own the company and whether you need a bank account. Let us know if another company is already involved or if you will use the documents outside Hong Kong.

We can then discuss the documents, service scope and first-year work that fit your plans.

Request a confidential strategic review

Government information and fees checked on 1 November 2026. Confirm the current rules and charges when you apply.