If you're one of the entrepreneurs who are looking forward to starting up their businesses or using Hong Kong as a stepping stone to unlocking the opportunities in Asia, it's best to find a trustworthy consultant who provides appropriate advice, and takes care of the whole application process with great attention like BRIDGES. Read on to see how your start-up venture can be aided by experienced and skillful business consultants in this article.

FASTER >> to Form All-New Limited Company

Whether you would like to set up an all-new company, or purchase a ready-made one as your HK business vehicle, the incorporation process can be as fast as 2 working days. Before it used to take almost 10 days to finish setting up an all-new company but now with our 2 DAYS EXPRESS services, your company can be up and running in a much shorter time.

Since most HK banks require clients to make the account opening bookings around 1 month in advance, our consultants will help you make the bank appointments straightway once your company is being set up (in 2 days as mentioned above) to speed up the whole process and let you operate with a corporate bank account as soon as possible. 

Not in HK or can't travel? Not a problem! Due to COVID-19, our team sees some clients aren't able to travel because of lockdown, we, therefore, can help incorporate a business remotely. We also have partnered up with several renowned online finance platforms which allow clients to open a corporate bank account within 48 hours even they can't be in HK.

EASIER >> to Set up Your Business with Only 1 Person

When considering gaining a foothold in Asia, it's always a struggle between HK and Singapore. Yet, the flexibility of the former city is probably one of the biggest advantages for foreigners to take and start their business here as the first stop in Asia. As forming a Singapore company requires foreign entrepreneurs to partner up with a local Singapore citizen, there is no limit on the nationality of the Director(s) and Shareholder(s) in setting up a HK company. It means regardless of your nationality, you are free to form your own company in HK without including a HK citizen as your company’s stakeholder, giving you higher flexibility in the company structure.

Not to mention it takes only one person to form the HK company (meaning the Director and Shareholder can even be the same person), and the mandatory Company Secretary can be provided by us which is already included in our all-in-one HK Company Formation Package.

MORE CONVENIENT >> to Open HK Bank Account

One final step before actually running your venture - opening a corporate bank account. However, this is the most crucial yet painful process that can be an obstacle since many applicants aren't familiar with what and how to catch up with ever-changing bank compliance. The assessment criteria of opening a bank account are also getting more rigorous to prevent illegal operations. Hence, our experienced consultant can uplift the account opening success rate for clients with the intensive know-how and extensive banking network. For more details, please refer to ‘How Your Bank Acc. Opening Success Rate Is Raised by a Skillful Consultant’.

The high global ranking on banking and financial infrastructure. the secured monetary system, well-established legal regime and free currency exchange circulation of HK (especially when compared with mainland cities) are the powerful basis for every business, and that’s why many savvy entrepreneurs have picked HK as their base in Asia.

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Get the support of BRIDGES' on-site advisory team who will save your various hassles so your venture in HK will guarantee to be a successful one.

Shoot us an email at info@bridges.hk or call +852 2159 9666 to get our practical advice and kickstart your HK business journey as soon as possible!

Many people have heard of ‘Limited by Shares’, which is a Private Limited Company, for which there would be director and shareholder in the structure. But here you may ask: “What is a ‘Limited by Guarantee’?” Actually, you might be more familiar with Non-Profit Organisation (NPO), which is the more common name of ‘Limited by Guarantee’, having no shareholder in the structure - only director and member instead. Get a better understanding with a clear comparison chart below :
 

“Contribution Type”

For Limited by Guarantee: Every guarantor has to contribute the same and fixed amount of guarantee if the company is going to be dissolved. Just like when you are joining some sort of clubs and you have to hand in certain amount of membership fees.

For Limited by Shares: Every shareholder has to invest a certain amount of share capital. The capital amount depends on how much he/she is willing to invest or how much the number of shares the board allows him/her to buy. The share capital has to be invested during the initial formation and it can be increased in time if the board decides to do so.

Popular FAQs of the TWO Entities

>> Can We Transform from Limited by Shares to Limited by Guarantee?

No, you CANNOT switch from one entity to another since they serve completely different purposes. In that case, you will need to set up a new Limited by Guarantee entity.

>> What Should I Do If I Want to Set up a Charity?

You will need to set up a Limited by Guarantee (NPO) first. While setting up the Limited by Guarantee, you will have to provide a proposal on the objective and a 1 year upcoming plan of this Charity, and submit to us for further review. After the Limited by Guarantee has been formed, you can file your tax exemption application, for which we will assist in applying for such tax exemption under Section 88 of the Inland Revenue Ordinance via the IRD. After the Charity status is approved, you may or may not wish to remove your company suffix ‘Limited’ - if you prefer to do so, our experienced team can handle such application to the IRD for you by taking care of all paperwork.

>> Do I Have to Prepare Any Annual Filing for Limited by Guarantee?

Yes, you must submit Annual Return to update the Government if there are any changes on director and member information, just like any other Limited by Shares. Profit Tax Return would also be needed to file along with the audited financial statement.

>> Please Give Me Some Examples of Limited by Guarantee & Limited by Shares?

• Limited by Guarantee: Sports Association, Recreational Club, Student Union, etc.
     
• Limited by Shares: Trading Company, IT Consulting Agency, Property Sales Agency, etc.

If you have any further questions on these 2 types of incorporation, please feel free to email our Start-up Advisor Team at info@bridges.hk to know more of our advice. 

More younger entrepreneurs are starting their own businesses these days. Different from the past, they do have various channels to know what steps they can take to be a smarter entrepreneur, and get things done in the most cost-effective way.

If you’d like to put more resources into developing your business too, it seems some traditional constant expenses like renting a physical office or miscellaneous fees for maintaining that office can be cut down. You may restructure those resources and put them into buying materials, sourcing a service provider sourcing or investing in product development, etc.

In this article, we’ll explore some efficient ways for a start-up to maximise its benefits under effective financial controls when running a business in HK.
 

Count the Cost

As a start-up, it is crucial to minimise business costs and maximise profits. Rental cost is arguably the highest business cost, especially HK property rent is one of the most expensive in the world. As most business activities take place in core business district (CBD), many ambitious companies including those from China favoured being stationed in this prime district. To take advantage of its significance, there is an affordable way for you to consider :

> Virtual Office: a virtual address provided by a professional business centre as your Government’s registered address (e.g. registered as your company’s business address, printed on name card, listed on website, etc.), together with mail handling, call answering and fax forwarding services. This is an excellent choice for start-ups with budget concerns, given that they can enjoy the prestigious address at a minimal cost. There is a high level of flexibility for the start-ups to work whenever and wherever effortlessly.

In fact, high expenditure of physical office is not quite necessary at the company’s initial stage (especially when the budget control is critical during the start-up period), that’s why the virtual address solution is widely applied in many industries, but of course, picking a good proper address is important, preferably in a premium location like ours to further elevate your corporate image.

Get the Most Benefits

For start-ups, there are many flexible choices with different value-added services to help grow your business in the market. How to know which service provider is suitable for you? One thing you may take into consideration is their service experience and profundity. Our proficient team provides a full blend of corporate support services along with our business address plans, including phone & mail handling, incorporation packages, company secretarial services, accounting, tax reporting, visa application (work visa / China visa), and payroll, you can get all corporate compliance functions under one umbrella. 

For entrepreneurs who are always on the go, virtual office fits perfectly because they could reserve a well-equipped meeting room for their professional meetups. 

Please feel free to shoot an email to us at info@bridges.hk for any support. Or, subscribe to our virtual office service and start growing your business now.