Hong Kong has a number of advantages making it an attractive destination for businesses and for work:
- Low rate of taxation for individuals and corporates.
- No capital gains tax, inheritance tax, VAT or GST, or tax on dividends or bank interest received.
- HK taxation only apples to income arising in or derived from Hong Kong (offshore income provides possible eligibility to make an “offshore claim”, as defined by the Courts – see below).
We offer services in all aspects of Hong Kong tax compliance and consulting services. We specialise in clients who have the more complex Hong Kong tax issues.
- Individual’s Tax Return
- Property Tax Return
- Profit Tax Return
- Employer’s Tax Return
- Tax Advice
- Gain Tax Efficiencies by using HK in corporate structure
- Tax Compliance Consultation
- Time Apportionment Claims
- Lodging Objections against Disputed Assessment
- Representing Client in Court, at the Board of Review or in IRD field audits
- Tax Filing Extensions
- Offshore Claims and Other Tax Exemption Claims
- Advanced Rulings
- Retirement Schemes – MPF and ORSO
Hong Kong requires tax returns to be completed annually, with the type of Return required depending on circumstances.
- For Individuals:
- Individual’s Tax Return
- Property Tax Return
- For companies and employers:
- Profits Tax Return
- Employer’s Tax Return
Deadlines for Hong Kong Tax Returns can be extended if you appoint a tax representative such as Lusk Moore Group Tax Solutions to look after your Hong Kong tax affairs.
For businesses, this depends on where the profit making activities occurred, being, what exactly was done to earn the profit by the company, and where was this done? Detailed documentary evidence is needed to support any claim for income exemption.
For employees, an offshore claim is possible where the employer is not a HK entity. In addition, the employment contract must have been negotiated, concluded and be enforceable outside of HK. In addition, payment of remuneration outside of HK adds weight to the claim. The IRD will often look at the substance of the situation, not just at the legal form.
We specialise in clients who have more complex Hong Kong tax issues, such as the following appeals and disputes:
- Offshore claims for companies whose source of profit is wholly or partly offshore
- Time apportionment claims for individuals with an expatriate employment contract
- Number of days in HK for an employee is 60 days or less in the tax year
- Paying tax in another country on the same income
- Other exemption claims, such as for exempt portions of deferred share swards, bonuses paid, or severance awards
- Lodging objections against disputed assessments and holdover claims of provisional tax
- Representing client in Court, at the Board of Review or in IRD field audits
The following are typical questions asked by business managers seeking to gain tax efficiencies by using Hong Kong in their corporate structure:
- What are the merits to basing our Asia Pacific headquarters in Hong Kong?
- How should we develop our transfer pricing policies to satisfy not just Hong Kong requirements, but also those where other group companies are based?
- How can I or my company satisfy the requirements to be Hong Kong tax resident?
- Is there a sufficient case to argue that part of my business is offshore, and so we can make an offshore claim to reduce taxable profits in Hong Kong?
- How can our employees’ salary be structured so as to mitigate tax for our employees not just in Hong Kong but elsewhere where their work takes them?
- For our ex-pat staff, how can they validly exclude part of their remuneration from Hong Kong taxation?
