Home » Blog » Hong Kong playing catch up with Singapore’s standard of company incorporation in 1 day
According to a news report, the Hong Kong Companies Registry has announced plans of launching an e-system to facilitate and quicken the online incorporation of companies in Hong Kong in the next financial year. It has also proposed a) streamlining the company name registration system and b) implementing a one-stop service for company incorporation (with the Companies Registry) and business registration (with the Inland Revenue Department). The new measures will help entrepreneurs incorporate a company in Hong Kong within 1 working day, which is the current standard norm in Singapore.
The move comes as no surprise with Singapore ranked as the World’s Easiest Place to do Business for the last four years in a row. Despite being a popular offshore business jurisdiction, Hong Kong falls a step behind Singapore when it comes to interacting with various government authorities. For instance, company incorporation in Singapore including company name approval can be completed in less than 1 working day. On the other hand, it currently takes 4-7 days to incorporate a company in Hong Kong. In Singapore today, 98% of the country’s public services are available online and businesses can save on time, cost and resources while transacting with the government. The range of activities that can be performed online include company incorporation, tender submission, business license application and renewal, filing patents and trademarks, and many more.
By embarking on a technology drive and transforming business processes, Singapore has raised its competitiveness. It is ranked 4th globally in the World Economic Forum s Global IT Report 2009 and was also awarded the 7th rank in the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) e-Readiness Ranking 2009. It is also ranked as the 6th Most Technologically Ready Nation in the Global Competitiveness Report 2009.
Singapore’s e-government services have attracted the attention of several countries who wish to emulate the Singapore model and derive benefits, Hong Kong being no exception.
Interested in doing business in Singapore? Find out how to setup a Singapore company.
