An Introduction to Doing Business in Hong Kong 2024
Published: May 2024Hong Kong is the premier hub and gateway for businesses to trade with, invest in, and access the wider China and Asia regions. Compiled by the professionals at Dezan Shira & Associates, the Doing Business in Hong Kong 2024 guide introduces the fundamentals of investing in this special administrative region, along with the latest relevant changes this year. This comprehensive guide is ideal for investors entering the Hong Kong market and for existing businesses to stay informed.
The People’s Republic of China regained sovereignty over Hong Kong from Britain in 1997, from which point it has been a Special Administrative Region (SAR) of the country. However, the way in which the city is governed is still fundamentally different from the Chinese mainland – a fact that is reflected in its slogan of “One Country, Two Systems”. Hong Kong is largely autonomous from China, and foreign companies will quickly discover that the rules of doing business in the mainland simply do not apply in Hong Kong, and vice versa.
For this reason, Hong Kong has long served as a dominant “gateway” to the Chinese mainland. Its geographical proximity to the Chinese mainland, low taxes, business-friendly environment, free flow of capital, rule of law, independent judiciary, and robust intellectual property protection have made it an ideal place for foreign investment. Despite the hardships of the pandemic, Hong Kong remains strong as ever and will continue to function as a free global financial hub, strengthened by the development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA).
This publication, designed to introduce the fundamentals of doing business in Hong Kong, was created in April 2024 using the most up-to-date information at the time. It was compiled by Dezan Shira & Associates, a specialist foreign direct investment practice that provides corporate establishment, business advisory, tax advisory and compliance, accounting, payroll, due diligence, and financial review services to multinationals investing in emerging Asia.
An Introduction to Doing Business in Hong Kong 2024 covers the following:
- Why Hong Kong
- Establishing and Running a Business
- Tax, Audit, and Accounting
- Human Resources and Payroll
- Cybersecurity and data protection
Within these chapters, we discuss a range of different topics that affect doing business in Hong Kong, including investment models, key taxes applicable for foreign companies, employment contracts, and compliance requirements regarding cybersecurity and data protection.