self employed in HK

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  1. #1

    self employed in HK

    I am a trader who owns a Hong Kong BVI, and sources the parts I sell from Shenzhen. Will my Hong Kong BVI company qualify as my having employment in Hong Kong, in order that I can attain residency (not even sure if that is the right term)? The point is Honk Kong is Ideal for my business and my family. I can spend a few days in Shenzhen, and then be back to Home with my family. We would like to live in HK indefinitely.

    Last edited by dak712000; 07-10-2009 at 08:16 PM.

  2. #2

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    it would depend on the type of visa you have to allow you to live in hk.


  3. #3

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    I'm curious as to what a "Hong Kong BVI company" is?


  4. #4

    A Hong Kong BVI is a Hong Kong British Virgin Islands corporation.
    It allows us to operate Hold a Hong Kong Business Account.
    I have over the years and continue to trade though this account.


  5. #5

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    Quote Originally Posted by dak712000:
    I am a trader who owns a Hong Kong BVI, and sources the parts I sell from Shenzhen. Will my Hong Kong BVI company qualify as my having employment in Hong Kong, in order that I can attain residency (not even sure if that is the right term)? The point is Honk Kong is Ideal for my business and my family. I can spend a few days in Shenzhen, and then be back to Home with my family. We would like to live in HK indefinitely.
    Quite unclear about what you meant by "Hong Kong BVI". In any case, having a Hong Kong company doesn't not mean that you can live in Hong Kong "indefinitely". You still need to go through the investment visa process, which will require operating an actual office, submitting business plans etc. Same thing if you set up a branch of an overseas company (for instance BVI) in Hong Kong. Check the immigration website for more details.

  6. #6

    Well I guess that’s the question then... I don’t yet have a visa. While I have traded from my Hong Kong BVI account with HSBC for years, and have often traveled through Hong Kong to Shenzhen, I have never before needed permission to live here. I see that people who work for other companies have work visas, smart cards, residency... but as I am self employed can I get permission to live in HK?


  7. #7

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    By "account" you mean bank account? So you have an overseas (BVI) registered company that has a bank account in Hong Kong. Well whoppy do as our colonial cousins like to say!

    As pat_togo says, if you want a visa to reside in Hong Kong then you'll need to do a bit better than that. Specifically, either:

    1) Set up a HK Branch or rep office and go through the Investment Visa process (which will generally require you to show how you will add value to the HK economy by employing local permanent residents, and for renewal after 12 months to show that you have done so); or

    2) Invest HK$6.5M and go through the Capital Investment Entrant Scheme process; or

    3) If qualified, go through the Quality Migrant Admission Scheme process (which generally takes up to a year).

    Last edited by PDLM; 07-10-2009 at 08:43 PM.

  8. #8

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    Having the bank account you mention here, and living here are two different things.

    If no other visa options are suitable, then the best way would be to register a business here in the name of a company secretary (accountants here offer this service), and get them to apply for a work permit for yourself. It's not as simple as it might sound though, and will involve proving no local can to the job you are applying for a visa to do.

    Last edited by kryzlowski; 07-10-2009 at 09:00 PM.

  9. #9

    TKS! This really points me in the right direction. I am intending to open an office any way. Would you suggest legal representation in the process, if so do you know any honest layers… as one of your colonial cousins (US) I can tell you there are few of those in the US.


  10. #10

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    You might start by talking to the government's InvestHK team since helping companies to set up in HK is their raison d'etre.

    Last edited by PDLM; 07-10-2009 at 09:15 PM.

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