Lawyer, Family Office
Concept
Hong Kong is one of the few jurisdictions where annual audit is mandatory for all registered companies, including dormant and nil-activity entities. The audit report is filed together with the Profits Tax Return to the Inland Revenue Department, and without it a company cannot complete annual renewal at the Companies Registry.
Unlike European jurisdictions, HK audit does not require full bookkeeping throughout the year: the auditor works with bank statements, invoices and contracts in electronic form. Complexity and cost of audit are determined by only two parameters — annual turnover and number of transactions.
When audit is required
- Mandatory annually for every HK Ltd, regardless of activity.
- Filed together withProfits Tax Returnto IRD withinone month from date of issue(typically end of April).
- If the company had no movement of funds during the period —nil audit(audit nil) is prepared.
- If the company plans tax exemption (offshore profit claim) — the auditor prepares an additional opinion that profit was earned outside Hong Kong.
Documents for auditor
All documents are provided electronically — originals not required.
- Bank statements for financial year (all company accounts)
- Invoices — all issued and received
- Contracts — main trading and service agreements
- Register of directors and shareholders (if changed)
- Prior year audit report (for all audits except first)
Cost
Audit cost depends onannual company turnoverandnumber of transactions. Rates below are for standard financial year; first company audit is typically 15–20% higher.
| Category | Cost |
|---|---|
| Dormant audit (no transactions) | €1,200 |
| Turnover up to $120K, up to 100 transactions | €3,200 |
| Turnover up to $120K, 100–200 transactions | €4,200 |
| Turnover up to $500K, up to 100 transactions | €5,200 |
| Turnover up to $500K, 100–200 transactions | €6,200 |
| Turnover up to $1,500K, 100–200 transactions | €7,500 – €8,500 |
| Turnover up to $2,500K, 100–200 transactions | €8,500 – €9,500 |
| Turnover above $2,500K or above 200 transactions | on request |
Timeline
- Nil audit —5–7 business daysfrom confirmation of no operations.
- Standard audit —3–5 weeksdepending on volume and quality of documents provided.
- Rush audit (2 weeks before IRD deadline) — available with 30% premium.
Related services
- 🇭🇰 Hong Kong company— incorporation and maintenance
- 🇭🇰 Hong Kong company renewal— annual renewal at Companies Registry
- 🇨🇳 Company audit in China— if you have HK + mainland China structure
Common delays
- Missing statementsfor part of period — banks issue within 1–3 business days, but if account closed, may take up to one month.
- Mismatch between invoices and receipts— common after intragroup transfers; resolved by annotation or retrospective agreement.
- Request for additional information from IRDafter filing — typically concerns tax exemption claim; we respond within 14 days.