Recently, many cross-border business owners, foreign trade entrepreneurs, and owners of red-chip companies with operations in Hong Kong have been focusing on one issue:

Can Hong Kong companies continue to file zero tax returns indefinitely?

Over the past few years, many business owners have registered companies in Hong Kong for a very simple reason:

“Hong Kong has a low corporate tax rate.”
“If you don’t have an office in Hong Kong, you don’t have to pay taxes.”
“The Hong Kong company is just for receiving payments; don’t worry too much about it.”
“As long as the account can receive payments normally, I’ll file a zero-income tax return for now.”
“Everyone used to do it this way, and nothing ever went wrong.”

But now, it's really time to change this old way of thinking.

Recently, I’ve met many business owners involved in cross-border e-commerce and foreign trade exports, and they all have a Hong Kong-based company.

Some are used to receive payments from Amazon, Mercado Libre, and independent websites;

Some are used as the contracting party for contracts with overseas clients;

Some are used to open third-party payment accounts;

Others heard from friends a few years ago that “Hong Kong companies are convenient,” so they went ahead and registered one on a whim.

But when the conversation actually turns to accounting and auditing, many business owners’ first reaction is:

“Don’t Hong Kong companies not have to pay taxes?”

“Do I still have to do my bookkeeping even though I don’t work in Hong Kong?”

“The agent used to say I could file a zero return—why can’t I do that now?”

“I’m just using it to receive payments—I don’t have a physical business—so it should be fine, right?”

If you still hold this view, you need to be especially careful.

When registering a Hong Kong company, many people have an agency “incidentally” arrange for a company secretary on their behalf; they pay the annual fee and then have no idea what that person or agency actually does.

That is not a correct understanding.

A company secretary in Hong Kong is not an optional service; it is a statutory requirement under Section 455 of the Companies Ordinance. Without a company secretary, a company cannot file its annual return, convene shareholders’ meetings, or complete any formal corporate documents.

很多人注册香港公司，是为了利用香港的低税率或离岸豁免。 但2019年起，香港引入《经济实质（行业）条例》（Ec […]

Many people think that if they keep their money in a Hong Kong bank, the mainland tax authorities won't be able to see it.

Since 2018, this view has become outdated.

香港于2017年完成CRS立法，2018年起正式开始向其他国家/地区交换账户信息。截至2026年，香港已与全球110多个国家和地区建立了金融账户信息自动交换机制——其中包括中国内地。

This means that the mainland tax authorities have the right to access your account information in Hong Kong.