Update of Hong Kong Company Particulars

There might be changes to the specifications of the company after you have incorporated it. It is your sole responsibility to sustain accurate records of your company information at all times. Also, once you know about the changes that are happening, you have to inform your Company Secretary or the Companies Registry, which is done by filling an update form. Any failure will result in penalties by the government. The government can and will review your information. If they find out you have outdated information and did not report it, they will impose a fine. All we suggest is not to surprise them by any means and let them know of any new details of the company and changes that are made within your organization.

What is an Update to the Hong Kong Company Particulars?

The Update to the Company Particulars is a report that specifies the company’s information and structure, which goes by the official name of the Company Particulars Report. The document proves individual members’ identities and how they are legally associated with the company. The document consist of the following company particulars and information:

• The basic details of the company
• Company name.
• Company’s Share Capital 
• Registered office location
• Particulars of directors. 
• Company Secretary particulars. 

The document is the one that actually addresses the most updated information about the company. The Companies Registry will issue the Particulars Report, also called a Certificate of Incumbency, upon request. A certificate of Incumbency is a document that consists of all the required information about the company—wondering how and why do you need this certificate? Continue reading the article.

Why do you need to update the Company Particulars (Certificate of Incumbency)?

As mentioned above, this document is the one that will gather all the essential information about the company. Certificate of Incumbency may even be required in order to open a corporate bank account for a company in case it is registered for more than a year. Usually, an apostilled Company Particulars Report or a Certificate of Incumbency is used by the banks to verify the accuracy of all provided documents. However, companies can also use this document to open a corporate bank account outside of Hong Kong.

Every bank has its prerequisite when handling applications for a corporate bank account. Sometimes, a Company Particulars Report or the Certificate of Incumbency may be the first required document by the bank. In case you want to use this document in other jurisdictions, please make sure that you have checked all the requirements. Most likely, this document also needs to be apostilled by the Hong Kong High Court.

The government reserves the right to check your company particulars. In case they find the information incorrect or outdated in their system, they will immediately impose a fine. Therefore, you must ensure that your company particulars are updated at all times. Make sure that you review them regularly and update the Companies Registry at once when there is a change or new details of the company. If you have a Company Secretary, let them know so they can update your particulars in all filings.

How does the Company Registry help?

The Company Registry provides a one-stop notification of change of company particulars. The “One-stop notification of change of company particulars” service allows you to change the company details and covers the following revisions of company particulars of local companies:

• The company name’s change, which falls under section 107 of the Companies Ordinance.
• The change of address of registered office, which falls under section 658 of the Companies Ordinance.

Once the related notification of change of company particulars is registered or recorded under the Companies Ordinance, the Companies Registry will send essential details to the Inland Revenue Department according to section 8(2B) of the Business Registration Ordinance.

After the related notification of change of company, particulars are registered or recorded under the Companies Ordinance; the Companies Registry will send essential details to the Inland Revenue Department according to section 8(2B) of the Business Registration Ordinance. The company is believed to have notified the commissioner of Inland Revenue of the relevant change under the Business Registration Ordinance upon the appropriate notification registration. The Business Registration Office will automatically send out the revised Business Registration Certificate and changed Branch Registration Certificate(s) by post on the next working day following the date of “Certificate of Change of Name” of the company concerned.

There are certain cases where you shall not inform the information to the Company Registry. Information relating to a company’s business address is not expected to be reported to the Companies Registry under the Companies Ordinance. However, you must notify the Business Registration Office directly about your company’s change of business address.

The ‘registered office address’ and ‘place of business’ according to the Companies Ordinance and the Business Registration Ordinance, respectively, are not defined as the same. The ‘registered office address’ of the company may not necessarily be where it carries on its business. The Business Registration Office will not update a company’s business address in the business register after receiving information of a new registered office address of the company from the Companies Registry. You should inform the Business Registration Office of the change of business address under one month from the date of change by proffering a written notification. You can also inform them through a completed Form IRC3111A, which you can find in a pdf format for the issue of an amended Business Registration Certificate showing the updated business address.

In case your company has just been incorporated, and you have obtained the certificate of incorporation and business registration certificate from the company registry, you will still need to report further information to the business registration office.

All companies incorporated and registered under the one-stop company incorporation are required to notify the Business Registration Office in writing their business particulars within one month of the date of commencement of their businesses. The company particulars concerned include business name, description, nature of the business, business address, and date of business commencement. The important notifications can be made by a letter or by completing a Form IRBR200 which you will again find in a pdf format.

How can Startupr help you?

You can hire a professional for your company in order to avoid the mistakes. Being a hub of experienced and skilled staff members, Startupr will surely help get your company incorporated in Hong Kong. We will also support you in implementing the Certificate of Incumbency or the Company Particulars Report for your company within 3-5 business days. We will immediately start working as per your company’s specifications and needs!

Our service fee to obtain a Certificate of Incumbency (Company Particulars Report) is USD 280 for existing clients. A consultation fee of $125 is charged for new clients. If you would like to have the report mailed to an address of your choice, there are additional courier fees. If there are changes to your report, you must alarm the government at once. We believe that you must gain your Certificate of Incumbency or the Company Particulars Report without any mistakes and run your business smoothly. Contact us now!