Director requirements in Hong Kong
What Hong Kong requires of a board and who may supply a director.
Summary
- Is the provider licensed
- yes
- Is arranging an appointment caught
- yes
- Is nominee status public
- noThe Significant Controllers Register is a private statutory register kept at the registered office. It is not filed with the Companies Registry and is open only to specified law enforcement officers and to controllers named in it. Introduced by the Companies (Amendment) Ordinance 2018, in force 1 March 2018. Bsource
- Resident director required
- noCompanies Ordinance Cap. 622 imposes no residency requirement on directors. A non-Hong Kong resident may be appointed director of a local company. Asource
Governing provision
The licensing position above is recorded in the firm's verified register under entry DL-011. The primary texts behind it are listed in the Sources section below.
No entries for this jurisdiction are pending verification.
Regulator
Registrar of Companies
Advisory perimeter
narrow — do not arrange appointments
Liability of the appointed person
Not yet confirmed against a primary source. This entry is published once the position has been verified.
Sanctions
Not yet confirmed against a primary source. This entry is published once the position has been verified.
Last reviewed: 2026-08. Source status: CONFIRMED.
Related jurisdictions
Related practices
Sources
Every statement above is tied to an entry below. Confidence A means a primary text or a regulator statement. Confidence B means a consistent professional source, or a conclusion drawn from the absence of a provision.
- B alternative route — No resident director is required in this jurisdiction, so no substitute arrangement arises. Derived from JF-007
- A natural person director required — Companies Ordinance Cap. 622 s. 457: every private company must have at least one director who is a natural person. Companies Registry FAQ
- B nominee status public — The Significant Controllers Register is a private statutory register kept at the registered office. It is not filed with the Companies Registry and is open only to specified law enforcement officers and to controllers named in it. Introduced by the Companies (Amendment) Ordinance 2018, in force 1 March 2018. Hong Kong Companies Registry SCR guidance and consistent professional sources
- A resident director required — Companies Ordinance Cap. 622 imposes no residency requirement on directors. A non-Hong Kong resident may be appointed director of a local company. Companies Registry FAQ
- A resident secretary required — A company secretary who is a natural person should ordinarily reside in Hong Kong. A corporate secretary must have its registered office or place of business in Hong Kong and hold a TCSP licence. Companies Registry FAQ