Asian holding companies in 2024

Asian low tax holding companies Singapore Hong Kong Labuan New Zealand
Our ranking in order of preference 1 2 3 4
Summary at a Glance
Minimum paid up share capital? US$1 US$1 US$1 US$1
Total engagement period? 2 months 10 weeks 12 weeks 7 weeks
How long to set the company up? 1 week 1 week 2 weeks 1 week
Our Client must travel? No No No No
How long to open bank account? 6 weeks 4 weeks 4 weeks 2 weeks
Fast turnkey solution available? Yes Yes No No
Total year 1 engagement set up costs? View invoice PDF View invoice PDF View invoice PDF View invoice PDF
Total year 2 costs (incl. audit and tax)? View invoice PDF View invoice PDF View invoice PDF View invoice PDF
Incorporation requirements
Resident director required? Yes No No Yes
National shareholder required? No No No No
Minimum number of directors? 1 1 1 1
Minimum number of shareholders? 1 1 1 1
Resident company secretary required? Yes Yes Yes Yes
Individual shareholders allowed? Yes Yes Yes Yes
Corporate shareholders allowed? Yes Yes Yes Yes
Corporate director(s) allowed? No Yes Yes No
Public register of shareholders & directors? Yes Yes Only directors Yes
Tax and accounting considerations
Special tax regime for holding companies? Yes No Yes No
Controlled Foreign Corporation (CFC) rules applicable? No No No Yes
For Holding Company to enjoy exemptions, does the foreign subsidiary have to meet any substance requirements? No No No No
For Holding Company to enjoy exemptions, does the foreign subsidiary have to pay corporate tax in its own country? No No No No
Required % ownership NA NA NA NA
No. of DTAs signed 76 31 72, some not applicable for Labuan 39
Corporate tax rate payable 0% 0% 0% 28%
Withholding tax rate on dividends paid to nonresidents 0% 0% 0% 0%-30%
Withholding tax rate on dividends distributed to residents None None None None
Withholding tax rate on interests paid to nonresidents 0-15% 0% 0% 0-15%
Tax rate for gains on sale of subsidiary 0% 0% 0% 0%
Annual tax return to be submitted? Yes Yes Yes Yes
Annual financial statements required? Yes Yes Yes Yes
Statutory audit required? No Yes Yes No
Must register for GST or VAT? No No No No
Access to double tax treaties? Yes Yes Yes, but not all No
Resident company for local tax? Yes Yes Yes (3%) Yes
Can do business and hire locals? Yes, but must pay corporate tax Yes, but must pay corporate tax Yes, but must pay corporate tax Yes, but must pay corporate tax
Blacklisted “tax neutral” jurisdiction? No No In some countries No
Bank account characteristics
Healy Consultants’ preferred bank? DBS HSBC KFH ANZ
Do I travel to open the bank account? No Yes No No
Minimum deposit (USD)? US$10,000 US$1,000 US$5,000 US$1,000
Multi-currency corporate bank account? No Yes No No
Corporate credit card? Yes Yes No Yes
Corporate ATM card available? Yes Yes No Yes
Bank rating by World Economic Forum? 4 7 35 2
Ease of getting credit? (by WEF)? 4 5 2 11
Logistics considerations
Virtual office services available? Yes Yes Yes Yes
Allowed to make sales to foreign Clients? Yes Yes Yes Yes
Allowed to make sales to local Clients? Yes Yes Yes Yes
Local sales subject to tax? Yes Yes Yes Yes
Can the entity hire local staff? Yes Yes Yes Yes
Can the entity hire expatriate staff? Yes Yes Yes Yes
How long to get work permit approved? 1 month 3 months 3 months 3 months
Estimate of engagement costs US$ US$ US$ US$
Healy Consultants engagement fees 1,980 3,350 4,800 1,910
Company secretary and registered office 1,200 1,550 1,600 1,200
Government fees 0 255 650 100
Resident director fees (0 if not required) 3,900 0 4,200 8,125
Corporate bank account opening 4,950 4,950 4,950 4,950
Other 0 0 0 950
Estimate of total outgoings in Year 1 12,030 10,105 19,300 17,235
Draft sales invoice attached View invoice PDF View invoice PDF View invoice PDF View invoice PDF

Contact us

For additional information on our incorporation services, please contact our in-house country expert, Mr. Simon Guidecoq, directly:
client relationship officer - Simon