Read the critical milestones, start the Hong Kong setup, and take root in Hong Kong.
Official guides from government departments, read through and distilled into key points
Registering a private limited company in Hong Kong by electronic filing can issue the certificate within an hour, with paper filings around four working days. Check the company name first (Chinese names must use traditional characters), file the incorporation form and articles, then receive the certificate of incorporation and business registration. If the application is unsuccessful, most of the fee can be refunded on application (HK$1,280 of the HK$1,545 electronic filing fee); the balance is not.
Hong Kong taxes only profits arising in Hong Kong. The test is where the profit-earning activities take place: trading follows where contracts are effected, manufacturing where goods are produced, services where the activities are performed. Contract processing generally splits profits 50:50; import processing is fully chargeable. When uncertain, the IRD offers a paid advance ruling service.
Conducting regulated activities in Hong Kong such as securities dealing, futures, and asset management requires an SFC licence. A corporation needs at least two responsible officers (one an executive director) plus minimum paid-up and liquid capital (five million and three million HKD for common types). New corporation licence applications generally take around fifteen weeks, filed via the SFC WINGS platform.
International trade, cross-border e-commerce and logistics each use Hong Kong as a node. The compliance and tax load differs by scenario; this page lays out what to watch.
Setting up in Hong Kong usually touches four things: incorporating a company, opening a bank account, arranging an address and office, and (if you trade) an entrepot structure. Each has compliance points worth watching; they are laid out here by task.
Cross-border advisory is delivered directly by the LaunchOn.ai team for projects between mainland China and the rest of the world. For the professional services you need to land in Hong Kong, we screen providers on scope and licensing, you contract with the provider directly; we only compare and match providers, and flag the key dates as they come up. The catalog below is grouped into establish and operate, finance and family, and industry and partnerships.
The following are provided by licensed service providers. We only compare and match providers and do not practise these services ourselves.
Pick the service categories in the request wizard and describe your situation and objectives.
We screen providers on service scope and licensing, then propose candidates with reasons.
You contract with the provider directly; we never handle funds.
We flag progress at the key points, and map out the paperwork when something is missing.
Hong Kong connects mainland China with the world, with courts, markets and a professional-services ecosystem already widely used by institutions from around the world.
Read the full argument →Hong Kong is a separate customs territory under common law, with free movement of capital, a relatively simple tax system, and the mainland behind it.
A familiar legal framework for international contracts, dispute resolution and regulatory clarity, at the meeting point of two regions.
Deep capital markets, free movement of funds and a competitive tax system make it a practical hub for cross-border structures.
Multilingual professionals, direct flights to major Gulf and mainland cities, and time-zone overlap that keeps deals moving.
HKCAS was registered in Hong Kong as a non-profit in 2019. Its controlling member is China Zhongzi Chanrong (Beijing) Technology Co., Ltd., a subsidiary of the central state-owned enterprise China International Engineering Consulting Corporation. See www.hkcas.org
LaunchOn.ai and HKCAS teams work closely together, providing industry advisory and matching investment for foreign enterprises entering the Chinese market.
A Hong Kong-registered advisory firm
Two-way advisory between China and the world for family offices, corporates and sovereign-linked institutions.
Tell us your direction and needs, and we will come back with candidate providers and a matching proposal.