Set Up a Singapore and Hong Kong Company Without Flying In (2026)

Singapore vs Hong Kong: setting up a private company limited by shares from abroad (checked 8 October 2026; items marked * checked 9 October 2026)

Item	Singapore	Hong Kong
Registry	ACRA, through Bizfile	Companies Registry, through the e-Services Portal (business registration in the same application)
Typical timing	Most approved soon after payment; complex up to 15 working days; referral authorities 14 to 60 days	Online: normally within 1 hour; paper: 4 working days
Government fee	S$15 name + S$300 registration = S$315	HK$1,545 online + HK$2,350 business registration fee and levy (one-year)* = HK$3,895
Local officers needed	A director who meets local residency rules; a company secretary within 6 months*	A company secretary ordinarily resident in Hong Kong (or a Hong Kong body corporate); directors need not live there
Registered office	Singapore address, open to the public in business hours	Must be in Hong Kong
Filing for a founder abroad	Through a corporate service provider (CSP)*; no endorsements needed	Non-residents may incorporate*; file online

Government fees only; service provider fees are extra. Sources listed below.

Watch on YouTube: Set Up a Singapore and Hong Kong Company Without Flying In (2026). Transcript below.

Most firms compare countries. VIVOS connects them. VIVOS Group is the group of four licensed VIVOS companies in Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong and the UAE, plus teams in China and India. This is a true client story; the client stays anonymous.

Can you set up Singapore and Hong Kong company structures without flying in?

Yes. In Singapore, foreigners “must engage a Corporate Service Provider (CSP) to reserve a name and register a business structure” (ACRA, checked 9 October 2026), so the filing is done for you. In Hong Kong, “Non-Hong Kong residents may incorporate a local limited company”, and filings can be made online (Companies Registry FAQ). What you cannot skip remotely is the local team each company needs.

What did this founder need two companies for?

Sourcing from two regions. A textile trader from Europe wanted:

• Singapore company → ASEAN mills, to buy from mills across ASEAN;
• Hong Kong company → Taiwan and mainland China factories, to buy from factories there.

The plan made sense. He was about to book flights to both cities for the setup.

The story in 5 steps: how were both companies incorporated without a trip?

1. The plan: Singapore for ASEAN sourcing, Hong Kong for factories in Taiwan and mainland China.
2. Flights nearly booked: the founder was about to book flights to both.
3. One joint call: the founder with our Singapore and Hong Kong teams together.
4. One checklist, one set of documents for both companies.
5. Both incorporated, no flights: the day after we had everything, both companies were incorporated on the same day, before he booked a seat. The trip to Singapore and Hong Kong: saved.

Both companies were handled as one job. In the video Ray calls this “world-leading efficiency”; that is VIVOS’s own description of how its two offices work together, not a ranking or a statistic.

How fast do ACRA and the Hong Kong Companies Registry work?

Fast enough not to be the bottleneck. ACRA says “Most registrations are approved soon after payment”; complex applications may take up to 15 working days, and referral-authority cases 14 to 60 days (ACRA, Bizfile guide). The name costs S$15 and registration S$300 (ACRA fees).

In Hong Kong, online certificates “will normally be issued within 1 hour after delivery of the documents” for a private company limited by shares; paper takes 4 working days. The online fee is HK$1,545 (Companies Registry fees). Incorporating also applies for business registration, so the fee and levy are paid with it: HK$2,350 for a one-year certificate where the application is submitted between 1 April 2026 and 31 March 2027 (IRD fee table, checked 9 October 2026). The Certificate of Incorporation proves the company exists; the Business Registration Certificate comes from the Inland Revenue Department, in the same application.

What local team does each company need?

A local team, as Ray puts it in the video:

• Singapore: at least one director who meets local residency rules, meaning a citizen, a permanent resident, or an Employment Pass, Personalised Employment Pass or ONE Pass holder; that is the resident director. A company secretary follows within six months: a local resident, not the sole director (ACRA, checked 9 October 2026).
• Hong Kong: “If the company secretary is a natural person, he or she must ordinarily reside in Hong Kong”; a corporate secretary needs its office in Hong Kong. At least one director must be a natural person, and “There is no requirement under the Companies Ordinance that a director must be a Hong Kong resident.”

A registered office is the official address for notices and company records. Singapore’s must be a Singapore address open to the public during normal business hours; Hong Kong’s “must be situated in Hong Kong”.

Can you do this too? A checklist for both companies

1. Documents: for Singapore, a reserved name, the financial year end, officers’ and shareholders’ details and addresses, share capital, controller details and a constitution; for Hong Kong, Form NNC1, the articles of association and the IRBR1 notice to the Business Registration Office.
2. Local officers: a resident director (and, within six months, a company secretary) in Singapore; a Hong Kong-based company secretary in Hong Kong.
3. A registered office in each place.
4. A filer in each place: a CSP in Singapore, which means the other officers need not endorse; an online filing in Hong Kong.
5. Fees ready: S$315 and HK$3,895.

The Registry warns that an incomplete form means “the application for incorporation will be rejected”. A missing item, not the registry, sets the timetable.

What does incorporation not cover?

• Bank accounts: opening one for each company follows that bank’s own checks. This story covers incorporation only.
• Payments between the companies: Singapore and Hong Kong have no comprehensive tax treaty, so plan how money moves first. See Singapore and Hong Kong have no tax treaty. Does it matter?
• Moving to Singapore: ACRA notes that foreigners who move to Singapore to run their business need a work pass.

Who handled each side at VIVOS?

VIVOS’s own company in each place: VIVOS Pte. Ltd., an ACRA Registered Filing Agent (FA20240323), in Singapore, and VIVOS Corporate Services (HK) Ltd. (Business Registration No. 80545137) in Hong Kong. More detail: Hong Kong company incorporation without visiting and how to set up a Singapore company without visiting.

Part of the Two Jurisdictions, One Team series

Episode 6, the last of Series 2. Earlier: the Singapore and Hong Kong tax treaty (1), Singapore HQ, Malaysia team (2), the Singapore and Dubai company structure (3), the Hong Kong UAE tax treaty (4) and the two-country compliance calendar (5), all on the two-jurisdiction structures hub. Next: Series 3, 2027 Rule Changes, starts Wed 21 Oct 2026 with the UAE e-invoicing deadline.

Video transcript

Video transcript

Can you set up a Singapore company and a Hong Kong company without flying to either? Yes. A textile trader from Europe was about to book flights to both. Before he booked a seat, both companies were incorporated.

I’m Ray, co-founder of VIVOS. His plan made sense: Singapore to buy from mills across ASEAN, Hong Kong to buy from factories in Taiwan and mainland China.

And neither registry needed him there. ACRA approves most Singapore registrations soon after payment, and Hong Kong normally issues the certificates within an hour of an online filing.

What each company does need is a local team: in Singapore, a resident director and a local office; in Hong Kong, a company secretary based in Hong Kong and a local office.

So we held one joint call, with our Singapore and Hong Kong teams together. One checklist, one set of documents. The day after we had everything, both companies were incorporated. No flights, no two-city trip.

That’s world-leading efficiency: one team, two companies, the same day. VIVOS has its own offices in Singapore and Hong Kong. Most firms compare countries. VIVOS connects them.

Presented by an AI-generated avatar and voice of Ray Tay, co-founder of VIVOS. Written and fact-checked by VIVOS; facts checked 8 October 2026. General information, not tax advice.

Frequently asked questions

Can I set up a Singapore company without visiting Singapore?

Yes. ACRA requires foreigners to use a corporate service provider (CSP) to reserve the name and register the company, and when a CSP files, the other position holders need not endorse. Most registrations are approved soon after payment. You still need a director who meets local residency rules and a Singapore registered office (ACRA, checked 9 October 2026).

Can a foreigner incorporate a Hong Kong company online?

Yes. The Hong Kong Companies Registry says non-Hong Kong residents may incorporate a local limited company, and filings can be made through its e-Services Portal. A private company limited by shares normally receives its certificates within 1 hour of an online filing. It needs a Hong Kong-based company secretary and a Hong Kong registered office.

How long does company incorporation take in Singapore and in Hong Kong?

Singapore: ACRA approves most registrations soon after payment; complex applications take up to 15 working days, and cases needing referral authorities 14 to 60 days. Hong Kong: an online filing for a private company limited by shares normally gets its certificates within 1 hour, a paper filing within 4 working days (checked 8 October 2026).

Which local officers does each company need?

Singapore: at least one director who meets local residency rules (a citizen, permanent resident, or Employment Pass, Personalised Employment Pass or ONE Pass holder) and a company secretary within six months. Hong Kong: a company secretary who ordinarily resides in Hong Kong, or a Hong Kong body corporate; directors need not live in Hong Kong.

What are the government fees to set up a Singapore company and a Hong Kong company?

Singapore: S$15 for the name and S$300 for registration, S$315 in total. Hong Kong: HK$1,545 online (HK$1,720 on paper) plus a HK$2,350 business registration fee and levy for a one-year certificate in 2026/27, so HK$3,895 online (ACRA; Companies Registry; IRD, checked 9 October 2026). Service provider fees are extra.

Why a Singapore company for ASEAN suppliers and a Hong Kong company for China and Taiwan factories?

That was this founder’s sourcing plan: the Singapore company buys from mills across ASEAN, and the Hong Kong company from factories in Taiwan and mainland China. The right split for you depends on your own suppliers, your customers and how money will move between the two companies, so plan those flows before you incorporate.

Do a Singapore company and a Hong Kong company need a tax treaty between them?

No treaty is needed to set them up, and Singapore and Hong Kong have no comprehensive tax treaty. That matters once money moves between the two companies, so plan those payments before they start; Episode 1 of Two Jurisdictions, One Team explains what the missing treaty means. General information, not tax advice.

Sources

• ACRA, Registering a local company via Bizfile (updated 24 September 2026) and ACRA, Service and transaction fees: checked 8 and 9 October 2026.
• ACRA, Requirements and eligibility (rules for foreigners) and ACRA, Company directors and other key officers: checked 9 October 2026.
• Hong Kong Companies Registry, FAQ: Incorporation and Major fees: checked 8 and 9 October 2026.
• Hong Kong IRD, Business Registration Fee and Levy Table: checked 9 October 2026.
• Client story: VIVOS, October 2026 (anonymous client).

Related services and insights

• Company incorporation in four jurisdictions compared · Company incorporation in Hong Kong · How fast can you incorporate in Singapore?
• Videos: Episode 1 · 2 · 3 · 4 · 5 · Singapore incorporation speed

Planning companies in two places?

Tell us where your suppliers and customers are, and we will tell you what each company needs. Talk to our team or WhatsApp +65 8827 7870.