Hong Kong offshore company formation

Yes. “Ltd” is considered the same as “Limited”. However, the word “Limited” must be stated in all documents submitted to / issued by the Government, not “Ltd”. The “Ltd” can only be used for business activities.

One IBC^® Group will help you renew your company business registration (BR) within a working day and will then return the new BR to you via email.

Read more:

• Hong Kong company renewal fee

In determining whether a company name is the same as another, certain words and their abbreviations will be disregarded: "company" - "and company" - "company limited" - "and company limited" - "limited" - "unlimited" - "public limited company". The type or cases of letters, spaces between letters, accent marks, and punctuation marks, also will be disregarded.

The following expressions "and" - "&", "Hongkong" - "Hong Kong" - "HK", "Far East" - "FE" are respectively to be taken as the same.

We are able support you to check the availability of your proposal Hong Kong company name at a glance. 

Read more:

• Open bank account in HK
• Hong Kong company formation

Anybody can be setting up a private limited company in Hong Kong. Basic Hong Kong company formation requirements that includes the following:

• One director (individual)
• One shareholder (individual or corporate)
• One secretary company (Read more: Corporate secretarial services in Hong Kong)
• A registered office address in Hong Kong (PO box is not allowed).

Standing as your secretary company, One IBC^® Group will provide a registered office address and secretarial services. We can also provide a nominee director and a nominee shareholder if needed to protect your privacy.

There is no prescribed minimum share capital. For practical purposes, this is not usually less than HK$10,000 or the equivalent in a foreign currency. There is a capital duty of 0.1% payable on the authorised share capital (subject to a cap of HK$ 30,000).

The minimum requirements for setting up a private limited company in Hong Kong is to have at least one shareholder and one director, who can be the same person.

In general, a company limited by guarantee is set up for the purpose of advancement of education, religion, relief of poverty, trust and foundation, etc. Most institutions formed by this structure are not for profit-making, but they cannot be charitable. If an institution would like to be a charity, it must be established for purposes which are exclusively charitable according to law.

If an institution is fit for any of the following purposes, we can help them to apply to be an approved charitable institute (ACI).

• Relief of poverty
• Advancement of education
• Advancement of religion
• Other purpose of a charitable nature beneficial to the community and not falling under any of the previous headings

Read more: Hong Kong business license

The advantages of being an ACI

• Exempted from tax
• Exempted from tax on profits if:
  • the profits are applied solely for charitable purposes; and
  • the profits are not expended substantially outside Hong Kong; and either:
• the trade or business is exercised in the course of the actual carrying out of the expressed objects of the institution or trust (for example, a religious body might sell religious tracts); or
• the work in connection with the trade or business is mainly carried on by persons for whose benefit such institution or trust is established (for example, a society for the protection of the blind might arrange for the sale of handicraft work made by the blind).
• Exempted from the obligation of business registration unless a trade or business is carried on

Upon your request, we will provide you with an application form to fill in with the details of your institution, including the objectives of the institute, number of members, membership fee, membership classification, directors, company secretary etc.

Registering a “company limited by guarantee” follows the usual steps of registering a “company limited by shares” (the most common type of business entity for business in Hong Kong).

Here are the characteristics of “Company limited by guarantee”:

Read more: 

• Register company in Hong Kong
• Open bank account in Hong Kong

Exempted from tax:

Exempted from tax on profits if the profits are applied solely for charitable purposes; and

the profits are not expended substantially outside Hong Kong; and either:

the trade or business is exercised in the course of the actual carrying out of the expressed objects of the institution or trust (for example, a religious body might sell religious tracts); or

the work in connection with the trade or business is mainly carried on by persons for whose benefit such institution or trust is established (for example, a society for the protection of the blind might arrange for the sale of handicraft work made by the blind).

Exempted from the obligation of business registration unless a trade or business is carried on

Upon your request, we will provide you with an application form to fill in with the details of your institution, including the objectives of the institute, number of members, membership fee, membership classification, directors, company secretary etc.

Registering a “company limited by guarantee” follows the usual steps of registering a “company limited by shares” (the most common type of business entity for business in Hong Kong).

Read more:

• Auditing service Hong Kong
• Open company in Hong Kong

Generally speaking, the name of offshore company should include wordings such as "Limited", "Corporation", or simplified "Ltd.", "Corp." or "Inc.".

If the proposed offshore  company name is the same as any registered company name, it cannot be registered.

Moreover, the company name generally cannot contain "Bank", "Insurance" or other words with similar meaning.

Read more:

• Guide to starting a business in Hong Kong
• Change of business address in Hong Kong