How To Start A Offshore Online Business in Hong Kong
There are many reasons why Hong Kong has become one of the most popular places in the world to set up a offshore business, especially if you are a location independent digital nomad or running any sort of online business: Financial incentives (low taxes and no profit tax if your revenues are derived from outside of Hong Kong), stable financial markets and the ease of running the business if you use an agency.
The typical setup cost for a Hong Kong company is about 15,000 HKD. If you are interested in using Bridges (http://www.bridges.hk/) like me, then I can introduce you to them. For this recommendation you will save 500 HKD and I will receive 500 HKD as a commission. Sound like a win-win situation?
Simply mention my name or this video when contacting them and they’ll apply the discount on the quotation:
Stefan Neumair
Of course you can also contact me and I’ll introduce you to them.
1:38 The first thing you will have to decide is your company name. Bridges will check on its availability and after confirming it, you will need to fill out the incorporation forms and send them a copy of your passport as well as an address proof (phone or utility bill will do).
3:17 The incorporation process takes about 8-10 days and once its finished you will receive an email from your agency where they let you know that your company kit is ready for pick up and they will also arrange a meeting with the banker to open your business bank account.
3:34 This is the only reason you really need to travel to Hong Kong at least once: To collect your company kit and to present your business plan at the bank, hand in all necessary documents, make copies of your passport and sign several forms and pages. Then you’ll need to wait 1-2 weeks until the bank sends you an email, hopefully confirming that the application has been approved.
6:02 If you opened the account at HSBC, they will directly send you the ATM Card and Credit Card via post mail (if you have applied for one, for the credit card you need to make a minimum deposit of 50,000 HKD). Other banks, such as OCBC, don’t give out credit cards to customers who don’t have any credit record in Hong Kong. In other words, you would need to wait until you have finished your first annual audit and tax return. Also OCBC doesn’t send the ATM Card via post mail, you would have to go to Hong Kong again to collect it.
Most agencies including Bridges will arrange at least 2 appointments with 2 different banks (in my case HSBC and OCBC Wing Hang) because recently more and more applications at HSBC are getting denied.
You want to be well prepared for the bank meeting and you can find detailed information and tips on what to bring as well as what to include in the business plan in my extensive guide on the blog:
https://hongkongbusinesssetup.blogspot.com/2019/11/complete-guide-start-run-your-online.html
In this guide I’ll explain even more topics including the maintenance of your Hong Kong Business (including renewal of business license & office address, accounting, auditing and tax return), detailed information on the tax situation (including the so called Offshore Exemption Claim) as well as a guideline on how to close your Hong Kong Limited once you don’t need it anymore.
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