Frontpage
๐ Dark mode
โค๏ธ Your favorites
๐ Nomad insurance
You won't be notified by email when a reply is posted, to change your notification settings. Posts must follow the TOS: No ads, self promotion, commercial posts, surveys etc. For customer support questions, don't post here but use the feedback box in the bottom right of this page instead.
Hello guys, I was wondering if anyone had any experience in opening a business bank account in Hong Kong. Iโm getting all the paperwork ready to incorporate in Seychelles and open the bank account but the agency that is helping me says Hong Kong bankers are getting more picky. They are asking me for business โproofโ since iโve always ran my sites as an individual I wonder if just proof of payment from ad networks is enough. If you have any advice it would be much welcomed.
Itโs quite difficult for startups to open bank accounts in Hong Kong, also see this article: Hong Kong: The worst place in the world for a startup to open a bank account?. It depends on several factors whether or not your will have a hard time opening an account:
Age & size of your business. This is actually a very important factor. While many banks claim or people think that the reason itโs difficult is because of strict anti-money laundering policies this is is only part of it. Banks will be reluctant to go through their expensive due diligence process for a customer that wonโt give them a certain amount of profit. Because HK banks are old fashioned, their processes are not always very optimized and cost effective and often itโs a commercial decision not to onboard a startup rather than a risk one.
Almost any bank will require you to be present for face to face meeting. If you are not physically present it is normally going to be difficult.
It is more difficult for non-residents, especially of certain nationalities, to open corporate bank accounts in HK
If you are running a (high) tech startup or new business, the bank may not understand the nature of the business and are reluctant to research. Even if your business is completely legitimate, you may be rejected simply because of a new business model or tech that is not understood by traditional banks.
If you do have troubles opening a bank account; you can check out Neat Business, that would allow you to open a business current account online, from anywhere.
The Nomad Capitalist has a dedicated podcast to this topic - pretty informative and grounding.
Yes, it is becoming increasingly difficult to open company bank account in Hong Kong. Proof of business and experience is a must. The best and most efficient way is to engage a local service provider who has experience in dealing with banks. This way, it saves you a lot of time, effort to identify the bank that is interested in your business. Also, the chance of getting the account opening approved is much higher. Of course, the downside is you have to pay an arrangement fee to the service provider.
Set up a Hong Kong company to conduct business offer many benefits. To name a few: tax savings as maximum corporate profit tax rate is only 16.5% (in some cases can be as low as zero); better corporate image as HK is one of the major financial centres in the world; very simple, easy to understand and flexible business system.
Incorporation still incurs fees to get started and ongoing (accounting, filing returns etc). So considered those as taxes. Plus, it requires mental capacity to work through. Youโll want to someday repatriate the income into your personal pockets and this then exposes you to tax liabilities where you are. Being โoutsideโ of the system in your own state also could create future complications (social welfare, credit scoring etc). Itโs very โcoolโ to be offshore and itโs a natural entrepreneurial drive to minimise tax payments, but I think some nomads get lost in this. Make a lot of money first, then consider navigating this.
During the last couple years, opening a business bank account in HK has become increasingly difficult. Now, only certain banks will actually do this in practice.
To your question, business proof would be items like supplier and purchase contracts, business plan, etc. Anything that can substantiate your business as actively trading and โlower-riskโ in the eyes of the bankโs compliance department.
However, since you state that you have payment from ad networks - the nature of your business is likely as an online affiliate. Most Hong Kong banks would classify this as higher risk, more so with a seychelles company. Worse case scenario, you open the SY company and then cannot open the bank account in Hong Kong.
Your better bet would be to open a Hong Kong company OR to search for a bank account elsewhere. For instance I could set you up with a first tier bank in Singapore with a Seychelles company.
There is a list of different options to incorporate here: Incorporations.io that we made for this exact purpose, to help entrepreneurs decide on the best place to incorporate by comparing different options side by side.
Iโve been told that you can open a business there and pay 0% taxes as long as the activity is out of Hong Kong. I will also be interested in that 
Hi everyone,
I would love to hear what you'd like me to build next on Nomad List, or any other product/feature feedback ideas you have.
It's been 6+ years now but I'm in this for the long term and with the boost remote work got last year it's even more exciting to work on Nomad List than ever.
Current roadmap is here: twitter.com/levelsio/status/1363204985488572417?s=20 and pbs.twimg.com/media/EusS9PKXEAUR8xp?format=jpg&name=4096x4096
The next products/features I have planned:
- ๐ Rebase: visa, residency and immigration services for remote workers
- ๐Courses: learn the steps how to go remote and travel/relocate
- ๐ Gov liaison: diplomacy services to the governments to help us lobby for nomads and for them to attract remote workers
Thanks a lot!
What are the best places right now in the Caribbean/LatAM? (Also cheapest flights/accommodation?) Asking from the US.
As part of signing up for this website I was hoping I would come across a list of Visa and/or Residency requirements by country ideally in a table format to assist with decision making. Does anybody recommend any other websites that might present the information in this format (or Google Spreadsheet)?
I love living in walkable areas of town. I can always find them. But now I'm wondering where in the world are the most walkable places? I'm imagining walk streets (no cars), zoning allowing both business and residential, parks or beaches ,etc.
Hi guys,
After the Netherlands, the Bay Area, Colorado and being on the van life for 8 months, I am now in Sedona, AZ with a few other digital nomads. We are sharing a home here and are wondering if there are more like minded people in the area.
We do a bunch of hikes and campouts in the northern of Arizona. If you would like to connect with us, please do so :)
Val
Has anyone figured out a way to get setup with a virtual number and internet connection anywhere you go?
Hi everybody. I live and work in Germany and want to go to Canary Islands for 6 months to work from there. I'm going to keep my current job, just change the "home" in the home office part of things. Are there any tax issues I have to be aware of? I was reading about becoming a residence after 183 days, thus having to pay taxes there plus my employer having to register there. Does anybody know how it works exactly? Thanks a lot!
Winter is coming and Iโm feeling the ache of travelling after being stuck in the same place since the Pandemic started. Wondering if anyone is travelling right now? If so, where are you currently located and how is the situation where you are?
Hello World!
I'm an experienced Digital Nomad and after being in Lockdown in Bangkok and Germany for one year I would like to team up with someone to visit a new place. Or just doing some exchange about what destinations would be interesting currently.
I take the virus seriously and still I think we can still be able to take our life in our own hands. So I'm aiming for cities/countries which are not in full lockdown, are not too complicated about immigration (I'm looking at you Thailand, your state quarantine costs like 1k USD and is basically a prison) and is also rather safe regarding the virus. I tend to stick for rather big cities and like culture. I'm not a beach or nature person. I'm pretty flexible about the money topic.
After being told it's unworkable in Puerto Escondido, looking for alternatives :)
Hi, we are trying to find a house to rent for 2-3 persons near Las Palmas for 4-5 months at the moment and it seems to be almost impossible except through Airbnb which is super expensive. Any advises or local contacts?
What I mean is, for example, since most of the EU has banned Americans, if I live in Guatemala and will be traveling FROM Guatemala to the EU, could I get in? Or does the ban count for all Americans regardless of where they live?
I have a slightly above average US income which I can work remotely from paired with a $1000 a month income stream and more than enough to purchase a middle end Flat in Ukraine. Does anyone with knowledge of this process have any advice to acquire a reliable way to stay in the country?
My fiancรฉe and I are most likely moving to NYC (maybe DC) in August, and as a technical startup co-founder I'd love to meet new people that are also into startups. Would joining a co-working space be worth the money to do this?
I work for a big tech company that has an office in NYC, but it's mainly sales so I wouldn't be able to meet others that are related to any of my 9-5 work or likely into tech.
If co-working spaces, post covid of course, aren't a good way to meet business starting people in a new city, what is?
Does anyone ever travel to any Islands like Bermuda, Barbados, Barbuda and St. Kitts & Nevis?
Hi, my name is Eric and I am a remote worker from Norway. Me and a friend is flying into Gran Canaria on Friday and spending two weeks in San Agustin on the south side of the Island.
After that we are pondering about staying in La Gomera. Does anyone of you have an experience staying there or are there anyone of you staying there now? :)
I have two passports from different countries and am trying to understand where can I travel now. Is there a publicly available map of countries open for visitors by passport country that I can use to see what are my options? I was pretty sure such a thing should exist, but cannot easily find any.
Maybe at least there're maps for specific passports? Mine are Russian and American.
If there's no such thing, I'd be down to build one, let me know if interested to collaborate :)
Hello Everyone
I'm planning to stay in Seville for 6 weeks for mid January - end of February. Do you any recommandations for a coliving or a place to live in?
Thanks ๐
Can't login? See the FAQ
Nomads.com
By signing up, you agree to our terms of service and community guidelines.
One-time-payment: $39.98 $19.99 ๐ซ 0% off
Billed once. Then never again
Nomads.com members
work remotely at
Nomads.com
๐ Thanks for signing up! I hope you like my site. I put a lot of effort into making it for years!
๐ฌ First, please go to your email and click the confirm link first to verify your email address
โ๏ธ Check your spam folder if you can't find it, because we got reports it ends up there sometimes
๐ After you confirm your email we'll send you an email with more info
๐ฉโ๐ป You can start using Nomads.com's member-only features now!
