Starting from 27 December 2023, other than the Unique Business Identifier (UBI) will be implement, there is also List of Code and Description of Business Nature to be updated.
What is the new compliance?
Company Registry required all Hong Kong Limited Companies to select the code and business nature that closest match with their major business via the List of Code and Description of Business Nature chart.
How to find your code and business nature that is best match?
Company Registry lists out 18 main categories of business Nature. Within each category they have specific and more detailed descriptive categories with business code to select from.
Business nature is used to identifies the company’s type and its main operation of business. It describes a company’s legal structure and industry, goods or services.
What are the 18 Main Categories to select from?
Agriculture, forestry and fishing
Mining and quarrying
Manufacturing
Electricity and gas supply
Water supply; sewerage, waste management and remediation activities
Construction
Import/export, wholesale and retail trades
Transportation, storage, postal and courier services
Hong Kong Government launched a number of talent admission schemes to enrich the talent pool. In order to enhancing Hong Kong’s international competitiveness, 4 schemes are updated.
Which schemes are adjusted?
Quality Migrant Admission Scheme (QMAS)
Technology Talent Admission Scheme (TechTAS)
Immigration Arrangements for Non-local Graduates (IANG)
Admission Scheme for the Second Generation of Chinese Hong Kong Permanent Residents (ASSG)
Pattern of limited of stay under various admission schemes
Names of Schemes
Old Pattern
New Pattern
No. of years
Quality Migrant Admission Scheme (QMAS)
General
2+3+3
3+3+2
Top-Tier
2+6
3+5
Technology Talent Admission Scheme (TechTAS)
General
2+3+3
3+3+2
Top-Tier
2+6
3+5
Immigration Arrangements for Non-local Graduates (IANG)
General
1+2+2+3
2+3+3
Top-Tier
N/a
2+6
Admission Scheme for the Second Generation of Chinese Hong Kong Permanent Residents (ASSG)
General
1+2+2+3
2+3+3
Top-Tier
N/A
2+6
Talent Schemes
How to apply for the Talent Schemes?
For the Talent Schemes, you can apply via Immigration Department website.
Hong Kong Chief Executive Mr. John LEE presented his second policy address on 25 Oct 2023. He has established a result-oriented culture. So, the 2023 policy address still stick on this approach. Centre O is going to have a highlight in the business policy address.
Reinforce Over the business policy address and build a diversified economy
Trawl for enterprises, attract and retain talents
Status of International Financial Centre
enhance stock market liquidity, expand offshore Renminbi business, deepen GBA collaboration and venture into green finance.
New Markets
Expand our global economic and trade networks and our reach to new markets; set up more consultant offices to attract businesses and investment.
Logistics Development
Publish the Action Plan on Modern Logistics Development to promote smart development, modernisation, green and sustainability, internationalisation and facilitation of logistics.
Support to SMEs
Strengthen support to SMEs by providing flexible repayment arrangements, tapping into e-commerce, expediting digital transformation, and reinforcing export credit insurance.
Growth of the Innovation and Technology (I&T) Ecosystem
Accelerate growth of I&T ecosystem
Set up the New Industrialisation Development Office to support development of strategic enterprises, facilitate upgrading and transformation of manufacturing sector and assist start-ups.
Establish the Hong Kong Microelectronics Research and Development (R&D) Institute and commission the Microelectronics Centre to facilitate R&D of microelectronics and industry development.
Expedite establishment of a supercomputing centre to foster development of artificial intelligence.
Set up a $10 billion New Industrialisation Acceleration Scheme to provide matching fund for promoting downstreamdevelopment of new industrialization.
Develop cultural and creative industries
Establish the Cultural and Creative Industries Development Agency to promote the arts, culture and creative sectors as industries.
Inject $4.3 billion to the Film Development Fund and the CreateSmart Initiative.
Launch the Signature Performing Arts Programme Scheme to fund and nurture representative and large-scale major performing arts productions to be staged as long-run performances.
Organise the Hong Kong Fashion Design Week as a flagship initiative to promote Hong Kong’s fashion and textile design brands.
Port Development Strategy
Publish the Action Plan on Maritime and Port Development Strategy to develop Hong Kong into a leading international maritime centre, promote high value-added maritime services and facilitate GBA maritime collaboration.
Northern Metropolis as the new engine for growth
Adopt an “industry-driven” approach
Integrate deeply with Shenzhen and other GBA cities
Leverage market forces to expedite the development
Tourism Industry 2.0
Formulate the Development Blueprint for Hong Kong’s Tourism Industry 2.0, develop signature tourism products, and enhance development of cruise tourism economy.
Green Transport
Promote new energy transport – develop bunkering of green maritime fuel and supply of sustainable aviation fuel, formulate strategy for hydrogen development, and promote green transformation of public land transport.
Business Policy Address on Trawl for enterprises, attract and retain talents
Develop a “Headquarters Economy” to attract enterprises from outside Hong Kongto set up headquarters and/or corporate divisions in Hong Kong; attract companies to re-domicile to Hong Kong.
Expatriates, including foreign staff of companies in Hong Kong, can travel to the Mainland on “multiple-entry visas“, with priority visa. processing; entries of Vietnamese, Laotian and Nepalese talents are relaxed.
Establish the physical office of Hong Kong Talent Engage, expand the coverage of universities under the Top Talent Pass Scheme, and implement the Capital Investment Entrant Scheme.
Establish the Hong Kong International Legal Talents Training Academy and the Hong Kong International Academy Against Corruption, developing Hong Kong into a talent nurturing base.
Company Registry announces the implementation of Phase 2 of Unique Business Identifier (UBI) on 27 December 2023. The purpose of using UBI is helping government to enhance public service delivery and regulate entities more effectively.
What is UBI?
UBI enables governments and businesses to distinctly identify legal entities in various transactions and regulatory interactions. Also, UBI reduces possible errors caused by the use of different identifiers in identifying the same entity and in turn. Furthermore, UBI helps communication and exchange of data across government departments and businesses.
What is the process?
Company Registry launches the programme in 2 Phases:
1st Phase
Effected from 1 November 2021 for Limited Partnership Fund
2nd Phase
Starting from 27December 2023 and extended to cover Limited Companies and entities as follows:
companies incorporated or registered under the Companies Ordinance (Chapter 622);
open-ended fund companies incorporated or registered under Part IVA of the Securities and Futures Ordinance (Chapter 571);
limited partnerships registered under the Limited Partnerships Ordinance (Chapter 37);
registered trustees corporations incorporated under the Registered Trustees Incorporation Ordinance (Chapter 306); and
other entities formed or registered under various Ordinances administered by the Registrar.
What are the Key Features of Phase 2 of UBI?
The first 8-digit of the business Registration Number (BRN) will be your UBI
For filing to Company Registry, you have to quote your BRN instead of the number of Company Incorporation.
BRN become a key number for searching and identifying a company or entity.
How to get your NEW UBI Certificate?
For limited companies and entities incorporated or registered before 27 December 2023, the Registry will issue a letter about the replacement of existing CR No. by BRN to each of these companies / entities at your registered address.
After 27 December 2023, a new search function “Quick Search >CR No. / BRN Mapping” in ICRIS.
An audit report is the examination of the financial report of an organisation. As presented in the annual report by an independent of the organisation. The report includes a balance sheet, an income statement, a statement of changes in equity, a cash flow statement, and notes comprising a summary of significant accounting policies and other explanatory notes.
What is the purpose of an audit report?
The purpose of an audit is as follows:
To enhance the degree of confidence of intended users towards the financial statements. However, the company is ultimately responsible for the preparation of the company’s financial statements and supporting documents.
Ensure that the information and documents ultimately submitted to the IRD are accurate, with no internal bias.
In Hong Kong, every company have the obligation to submit the audit report to fulfil requirement of the Companies Ordinance (CO) and the Inland Revenue Ordinance (IRO).
Once an auditor has completed an audit, the auditor will prepare an Audit Report. Then the report needed to be signed by company’s director and the auditor. The Report is important because they form the basis of calculating the tax liabilities of the company and will provide legitimacy towards the company’s business activities.
The IRD will refer to these documents to determine the company’s tax obligations for that financial year of assessment. It is not uncommon that the IRD will raise questions about the audited financial statements and tax computation, however, a well-completed Audit Report with an Unqualified Opinion will have fewer chances of being questioned.
During the audit, it is necessary to work with the auditor closely to provide them with the accounting records and supporting documents in order to complete the Audit Report. Finally, the IRD will only accept the original hard copy of the signed Audit Report from the company directors.
Balance Sheet is a snapshot of your business’s financial condition at a single point in time. It shows what you own (your assets) vs what you owe (your liabilities). The difference between the two is often used as a starting point for valuing a business.
Types of Assets
Current Assets
Current assets have a lifespan of one year or less, meaning they can be converted easily into cash. Such asset classes include cash and cash equivalents, accounts receivable, and inventory.
Non-Current Assets
Non-current assets are assets that are not turned into cash easily and have a lifespan of more than a year. Then, they can refer to tangible assets, such as machinery, computers, buildings, and land. Also, non-current assets can be intangible assets, such as goodwill, patents, or copyrights. While these assets are not physical in nature. However, they are often the resources that can make or break a company—the value of a brand name. For instance, should not be underestimated.
Types of Liabilities
On the other side of the balance sheet are the liabilities. These are the financial obligations a company owes to outside parties. Like assets, they can be both current and long-term.
Current Liabilities
Current liabilities are the company’s liabilities that will come due, or must be paid, within one year. This includes both shorter-term borrowings, such as accounts payables (AP), which are the bills and obligations that a company owes over the next 12 months
Non-current Liabilities
Long-term liabilities are debts and other non-debt financial obligations, which are due after a period of at least one year from the date of the balance sheet. For instance, a company may issue bonds that mature in several years’ time.
Shareholders’ Equity
Shareholders’ equity is the initial amount of money invested in a business. If at the end of the fiscal year, a company decides to reinvest its net earnings into the company (after taxes), these retained earnings will be transferred from the Profit & Loss statement onto the balance sheet and into the shareholder’s equity account.
What can you see in a Balance Sheet?
Balance sheets give an at-a-glance view of the assets and liabilities of the company and how they relate to one another. Furthermore, the balance sheet can help answer questions such as:
Is the company having a positive net worth?
whether it has enough cash and short-term assets to cover its obligations
whether the company is highly indebted relative to its peers.
In order for the balance sheet to balance, total assets on one side have to equal total liabilities plus shareholders’ equity on the other side. That is:
Total Assets = Total Liabilities + Shareholders’ Equity
Yet, a balance sheet is just a snapshot of the company’s financial position at a single point in time.
A profit and loss statement is a financial report that shows how much your business has spent and earned over a specified time. It also shows whether you’ve made a profit or a loss over that time – hence the name.
A profit and loss statement might also be called a P&L or an income statement. The statement can cover any period of time, although it’s most commonly prepared at the end of a month, a quarter, or a year.
What is including in a P&L?
A profit and loss statement summarises all the activity recorded in your income and expenses accounts over the specified time. Income typically includes sales while expenses might cover things like payroll, advertising, rent and insurance. Your P&L statement will include all sales, including credit sales that your customers might not have paid yet. It will also include bills for expenses that you have incurred but not paid.
What information you should look for?
Your total profit or loss is what you’ve earned minus what you’ve spent. If this amount is positive, it’s called a net profit. If it’s negative it’s called a net loss.
A P&L statement can also help you calculate profit margins, which show how good the business is at converting revenue into profits.
