A lot of foreign business owners find that the business regulations in Hong Kong are relaxed and never too strict. Thus, opening a branch office in this place is rather easy and fast.
Hong Kong’s government has already in place a quick, easy, and very affordable online process that caters to Americans who want to open up a business or a branch office in its jurisdiction.
Typical Steps in Opening a Branch Office
Here are the easy steps you need to take in opening an office in Hong Kong:
- Registration
Admittedly, the Hong Kong business registration website is a bit confusing. But you can avoid getting entangled with it if you will use one of the many Hong Kong company formation service providers that offer their help in this regard.
For instance, you can let them handle all the documentary processing involved in your business registration. They will do it efficiently and quickly saving you all the troubles and worries attendant to such an activity. If you hire the services of these people, you can save at least 20 hours of processing time since they already know how the process goes and who to approach.
- Business Address
It is not necessary to have a full-blown branch office in Hong Kong if you are a foreigner. A virtual office can suffice and in fact, is the most affordable way compared to renting a physical office.
With a virtual office, you have the services of a personal staff with a phone or a fax number, and a business address. The personnel available in these parts can speak English well, as well as their native language which can be Mandarin or Cantonese.
Some foreign nationals have just spent around US$400 for one year in hiring a virtual office in Hong Kong. With that price, you are able to use a conference room, a full service and a full-size business office.
- Banking
The most popular bank in Hong Kong is HSBC. Of course there are other international banks such as Wells Fargo and Citibank. But since HSBC holds a near monopoly on business and personal banking in this country, it would be wiser for your company to use their banking services as well.
You need to be in Hong Kong to be able to open an account with HSBC. They don’t allow online banking applications for account opening.
- Visa
As in all countries, you need to have a visa before you are allowed to do business. For your purposes, it would be best if you will seek the legal advice of a Hong Kong visa consultant.