You will find professionals from all corners of the world working in Singapore. Each one brings with them a special skillset and together they form a strong work force which most other nations would not be able to match. Singapore’s own citizens are known for being well educated, hardworking and highly skilled. However, due to the tiny size of the country and its low overall population, local residents could not keep up with the demand for new jobs in the country. With an incredible fast paced economy growing at a phenomenal rate, Singapore creates more and more jobs each day. For its economy to maintain the momentum, Singapore had no choice but to open up the immigration policy and make it easy for eligible foreign professionals to work in the country.

Of course with anything that Singapore does, the immigration policy was also crafted with excellent vision for the future and with immaculate execution. Singapore ensured that the immigration policy would attract the best minds from all over the world. The country soon realized that it would be even better if they could attract foreign entrepreneurs and investors who could make a genuine impact on its economy. They opened up the country to foreign business owners, allowed 100 per cent foreign ownership in Singapore companies and also created a straightforward company registration process which took only about a day or two to complete. The result is that today Singapore has hundreds of thousands of foreign owned companies investing in the country. Every year a few thousand more foreign entrepreneurs setup a business in Singapore and apply for the entrepreneur pass to relocate to Singapore. Foreign professionals and foreign entrepreneurs have now become an integral part of Singapore’s society and have been able to make a huge impact on its economy which was the fastest growing economy in the year 2010.

Author Bio
Bryan Wong is a business analyst in the Asia-Pacific region and in his free time writes business articles. In this article, Bryan talks about Singapore company registration agency and Singapore company director.

To acquire certain licenses, you may have to complete some pre-application steps. For example, all restaurants would have to narrow down on the location of their restaurant before applying for the appropriate license. This is because the concerned authorities will have to visit and inspect your desired location before approving or denying the business license application. At the same time, businesses such as restaurants, spas etc. would need to apply for multiple licenses depending upon various factors. If restaurants are serving alcohol along with the food, they need the liquor license apart from the General Restaurant License. Also import and export firms may need multiple licenses depending upon the goods they are trading in and if they come under sensitive products list.

Acquiring a business license for a foreign company is actually quite simple. Each business license will clearly set the criteria for application. If you fulfill all the criteria, then you may apply for the license and you can obtain it within a matter of two weeks or more. Rules are extremely straightforward and there is no room for ambiguity. Authorities will follow the guidelines given to them and check for each and every eligibility criteria. Moment they are satisfied that you meet all of the requirements they will grant you the license. Since Hong Kong does not have any kind of corruption, bureaucracy or red tape in the city, acquiring a business license becomes quite simple and is not plagued by complicated issues as in many other parts of Asia.

Of course it should be noted that not all businesses would need any kind of license to go ahead with their business operations. Only certain industries such as restaurants, spas, employment agencies, travel agencies, certain types of financial services etc. need additional licenses. If you are not sure if your type of company requires a license, you can talk to a professional incorporation services firm in Hong Kong and ask them to guide you on whether a business license is required or not.

Author Bio
Bryan Wong is a business analyst in the Asia-Pacific region and in his free time writes business articles. In this article, Bryan talks about Hong Kong limited company and HK company incorporation.

For those entrepreneurs who prefer to operate their Singapore based firm from overseas, may travel to Singapore on a standard visa to conduct any business activity for their company. Entrepreneurs from certain countries such as the United States may not even require a visa for short stay of less than 30 days during which they can attend to matters related to their business and act as a leisure traveler as well.

Business owners who travel to Singapore often for business matters may also apply for multiple entry visas and be eligible for special immigration counters at the Singapore international airport. However, for those entrepreneurs who wish to relocate to Singapore or need to stay for a longer period of time to manage the activities of the business are recommended to apply for the Singapore entrepreneur pass scheme. Those foreign entrepreneurs who are eligible for the entrepreneur pass in Singapore can relocate to the country along with their spouse and unmarried children under the age of eighteen provided they apply for a dependent pass for each member of the family.

Entrepreneur passes are usually issued for a period of one or two years during which the foreign entrepreneur may travel to and fro from Singapore as many times as they wish without having to apply for additional visas. However, the entrepreneur pass must be renewed at least four weeks from its scheduled expiry date in order for the foreign entrepreneur and his or her dependents to continue living in Singapore. Renewal of the pass is based on the entrepreneur fulfilling all criteria as set by the concerned authorities or the Ministry of Manpower in Singapore.

It is possible for a foreign entrepreneur to apply for the employment pass scheme in Singapore as well. Under this scheme, if the business owner has a Singapore based company operational for more than six months then they can apply for the work visa as an employee under their own company. Once the employment pass has been obtained, the overseas entrepreneur may travel to and fro from Singapore as long as the employment pass remains valid.

Author Bio
Bryan Wong is a business analyst in the Asia-Pacific region and in his free time writes business articles. In this article, Bryan talks about Singapore entrepass filing agent and Singapore company setup services.

In Singapore, to register a new company in the country, the paid up capital requirement is only SGD $1. This is clearly the lowest in the world and is a testimony to the fact that Singapore is the friendliest destination in the world for Entrepreneurs. As a matter of fact, Singapore’s business and economic policies encourage more individuals to start their own company regardless of whether they are from Singapore itself or from another country. Singapore has open doors policy for well qualified entrepreneurs or skilled professionals.

Paid up capital in Singapore companies is also known as share capital and is only SGD $1 at the moment. This is true for even foreign owned companies who want to register a subsidiary or a private limited firm in the country. However, you need to note that just in case the foreign owner of the company being formed in Singapore wants to relocate to the country to manage the business, they would have to apply for the entrepreneur pass or the Entrepass and the minimum paid up capital in such cases would be at least SGD $50,000.

Of course a foreign entrepreneur may choose to wait for 6 months before relocating to Singapore and apply for the employment pass instead. For such entrepreneurs, the minimum paid up capital requirement of SGD $50,000 does not apply. However, the entrepreneur will have to prove to the authorities that during those six months the Singapore based company was in operation and had also able to achieve all of its goals till that point. Authorities in Singapore will grant a foreign entrepreneur an employment visa after six months of company formation on the basis of the entrepreneur’s background and the performance of his or her company in Singapore.

Paid up capital is the only form of capital requirement in Singapore based companies. There is no concept of authorized capital etc. in companies registered in the country. Also paid up capital or share capital can be increased at any point after company incorporation. If there is any increase in paid up capital post incorporation, then necessary paperwork must be completed and the authorities need to be informed in the prescribed manner. Also the paid up capital listed during company registration must be injected to a corporate bank account in Singapore immediately after incorporation and opening of the company bank account. Failure to do so might be seen as failure to meet the statutory compliance requirements and appropriate action will be taken against the company owners.

Author Bio

Bryan Wong is a business analyst in the Asia-Pacific region and in his free time writes business articles. In this article, Bryan talks about Singapore branch office formation and How to setup a Singapore company.

In Hong Kong, anyone can become a company director regardless of their nationality. Annual director meetings of foreign owned Hong Kong companies can also be held anywhere in the world. The only real eligibility criteria should be that they need to be at least eighteen years of age and they need to be of good moral character. Basically the character reference is with respect to the past record of the person wanting to be a director in a Hong Kong Company. They should not be found guilty of any kind of malpractice, fraud or scams. They should also not have been prosecuted for any kind of criminal activity in the past.

Of course managing directors in Hong Kong apart from being of good character also has a lot of responsibilities. They need to ensure that their company operates in a transparent and trustworthy manner. They need to ensure that the company maintains all rules and regulations as set by the Hong Kong Companies Act and other laws prevailing in the city. Most importantly, they are the ones who are held accountable for all ongoing compliance requirements of Hong Kong companies. If a company in the city fails to meet with its compliance obligations or it willfully withholds information with respect to its financial transactions etc., then the directors of the company can be fined by the concerned authorities. Directors could also face legal and criminal charges in Hong Kong if they do not ensure that their companies meet with all ongoing compliance requirements and pay taxes accurately.

A company based in Hong Kong can have more than one director. If the company has only one individual owner, then that person can act as the sole director as well as the sole shareholder. It is not necessary that either the director or the shareholder needs to be a local resident or live in Hong Kong. Also if a foreign company owner wants to relocate to Hong Kong to manage their business and act as the director, they will have to apply for the “Entry for Investment” visa in order to legally relocate to Hong Kong.

Author Bio
Bryan Wong is a business analyst in the Asia-Pacific region and in his free time writes business articles. In this article, Bryan talks about Hong Kong company setup services and Hong Kong company incorporation.

As per the company law in Hong Kong, a foreign owner can register either a subsidiary company or a branch office in the city. They may also opt to form a representative office if they do not wish to indulge in any profit yielding activity at the present. All companies in Hong Kong regardless of whether it is a subsidiary company or a branch office must get their proposed company name approved by the concerned authorities before moving on to the actual company registration process.

If you choose to register a subsidiary company in Hong Kong, then you must appoint at least one director and one shareholder. Both the director as well as shareholder can be a local resident or a foreigner. You must also appoint a company secretary who must be a local resident of Hong Kong. As far as branch offices are concerned, you must appoint at least one local resident as an agent or authorized representative of the company. For representative offices, the parent company must appoint one manager who must relocate to Hong Kong to manage the operations of the representative office.

Apart from appointment of company managers, for subsidiary companies, you can submit a unique Memorandum and Articles of Association which is specific to the subsidiary company. This company can choose its own business name as well as its business activities. However, for a branch office in Hong Kong, they must continue with the same name as well as business activity as that of their parent company. For a representative office, the business activity must be confined to non-profit yielding activities such as market research, preliminary contract negotiations, branding and other promotional activities amongst others.

Depending upon the type of company you choose to register in Hong Kong, the business structure and ongoing compliance requirements will differ.

Author Bio

Bryan Wong is a business analyst in the Asia-Pacific region and in his free time writes business articles. In this article, Bryan talks about Company structure in Hong Kong and Company incorporation in HK>.

Over the years, such companies have been looking for destinations that have excellent credibility in world business and at the same time provides world class infrastructure along with strong business incentives. Due to this precise situation, Singapore has emerged as a dream destination for establishing an offshore company.

The most attractive quality of Singapore has got to be its credibility and the high standards maintained in the country. It is not just a country which follows a liberal taxation regime but is an important player in the global economy. It is one of the most developed nations of the world but at the same time has one of the fastest growing economies. Singapore has a strong and vibrant economy with lots of room for growth and expansion. At the same time, Singapore’s laws are well-defined and clear of any ambiguity. The country makes it easy for foreign entrepreneurs to register a company in Singapore. 100 per cent foreign ownership is allowed in Singapore based companies and its owners need not relocate to the country to manage or operate their business. They can visit Singapore on a standard visitor’s visa to oversee any company requirements or activities. Foreign companies are also allowed to bring in staff from overseas if required via the employment pass scheme in Singapore. Business owners themselves have a choice of applying for the entrepreneur pass or employment pass depending upon their situation if they plan to relocate to Singapore in the future.

For offshore companies, Singapore is by far the most ideal destination. The country consistently ranks amongst the top destinations in the world for business and is known for its high standards in compliance requirements or accounting procedures. Companies operating from Singapore usually have a sense of trustworthiness and integrity associated with themselves because of the prevalent laws in the country.

About the Author

Bryan Wong is a business analyst in the Asia-Pacific region and in his free time writes business articles. In this article, Bryan talks about Singapore offshore company and Singapore offshore company incorporation.