> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://developer.kyckr.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.
# Hong Kong (HK)
> Country guide for Hong Kong company data including registry information, identifiers, legal forms, bilingual name handling, and data availability.
## Overview
**ICRIS** (Integrated Companies Registry Information System) for companies + **BRO** (Business Registration Office) for sole proprietorships
Operated by the Companies Registry of Hong Kong and the Inland Revenue Department respectively
Hong Kong corporate data is sourced from ICRIS for Companies Registry entities and from the Business Registration Office for sole proprietorships. Search, Lite Profile, and Enhanced Profile are all supported across V1 and V2. Registry Documents search is supported for CR entities (94+ filing types observed in production); sole proprietorships and mutual funds are not supported on the document-search endpoint.
**Data quality improvements in progress.** HK responses are being refined for richer structured data and improved standard-value mappings; release notes will follow when updates ship.
## Company identifiers
The HK identifier is the **Company Registration Number** — typically an 8-digit zero-padded numeric string. Different prefixes indicate different entity types, and sole proprietorships use a hyphenated format.
| Identifier | Format | Example | Notes |
| ------------------- | --------------------------- | -------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Standard CR Number | 8-digit numeric (no prefix) | `03645219` | Private Ltd and Public Ltd HK-incorporated companies |
| Non-HK company | `F-` prefix | `F0008739` | Registered non-Hong Kong companies (foreign) |
| Guarantee company | `C-` prefix | `C0486085` | Companies limited by guarantee, charities, special categories |
| Mutual Fund | `MF-` prefix | `MF001910` | Investment funds |
| Sole proprietorship | `NNNNNNN-NNN` (hyphenated) | `41409990-000` | Business Registration; suffix is branch number |
In V2 the CR Number is `companyNumber` and is also the registry-encoded portion of the V2 `id`. In V1 it appears as `codeField`.
**Do not confuse with the Business Registration Number (BRN).** The BRN is a separate document issued by the Inland Revenue Department. The Company Registration Number (above) is the correct identifier for API requests.
## Entity types
Six entity types are returned for HK. The Kyckr response shape is consistent across all six (transformation reconciles registry-specific source-data differences); the matrix at the bottom of this guide details which fields are populated per entity type.
| Entity type | Coverage source |
| --------------------------------------- | ---------------------------- |
| Private company limited by shares | ICRIS |
| Public company limited by shares | ICRIS |
| Registered non-Hong Kong company | ICRIS |
| Mutual Fund | ICRIS |
| Company limited by guarantee | ICRIS |
| Sole proprietorship (`個人 / INDIVIDUAL`) | Business Registration Office |
## Company names
Hong Kong companies frequently hold both an English and a Traditional Chinese registered name. Three Kyckr fields carry HK name information:
| V2 field | V1 field | Content |
| --------------------------------------- | ------------------ | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| `companyName` | `nameField` | The **primary** registered name as held at source — for most HK-incorporated companies this is the English (Latin-script) name. For some registered non-HK companies (e.g. Bank of China subsidiaries) the source treats the **Chinese** name as primary, and `companyName` carries the Chinese name. |
| `englishName` | `englishNameField` | Populated only when `companyName` is non-Latin AND a distinct Latin-script name is available at source. This is the recovery field for the registered-non-HK-company case where the English name is not in the primary slot. |
| `aliases[]` (type: `Original Language`) | `aliasesField` | The source original-language name when distinct from `companyName` — for normal HK entities (English primary) this is where the Traditional Chinese name appears. Suppressed when `englishName` is populated, to avoid mislabelling an English string as "Original Language". |
This means:
* **Normal HK case (Latin primary):** `companyName` = English, `englishName` = `null`, `aliases[]` = Chinese (Original Language).
* **Bank of China-style case (Chinese primary):** `companyName` = Chinese, `englishName` = English, `aliases[]` = `null`.
In both cases the English name is reachable on a single field — `companyName` when present there, otherwise `englishName`.
Some Chinese names appear in parentheses at the registry (e.g. `(中銀集團人壽保險有限公司)`); these are preserved as supplied. Previous names — including bilingual previous-name pairs — are surfaced in `previousNames`.
## Legal form
HK Lite Profile populates `legalForm.normalized` only when the regulator-mandated Chinese suffix `有限公司` appears on the original-script name. This is the official suffix that signals an HK Private Limited Company; emission is rule-based, not heuristic.
| Source signal | `legalForm.normalized` | Notes |
| ------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Chinese name contains `有限公司` | `Private Limited Company` | Regulator-mandated suffix; emitted when present |
| English-only registered names (PLC, FOUNDATION, FUND, BANK …) | `null` | Source rule: emit when the source has the signal; null when it does not |
| Lite payload missing the suffix entirely | `null` | E.g. HSBC BANK PLC, BOCHK CHARITABLE FOUNDATION, HSBC ASSET MANAGEMENT INVESTMENT FUNDS |
HK Enhanced Profile surfaces an explicit entity-type signal and populates `legalForm.normalized` for all entity types (`Private Limited Company`, `Public Limited Company`, `Association`, `Collective Investment Vehicle`, `Foreign Registered Body`, `Sole Proprietor`, etc.).
## Status
`legalStatus.original` carries the registry-source string; `legalStatus.normalized` maps to one of the standard values:
| `legalStatus.original` | Meaning | `legalStatus.normalized` |
| ---------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------ |
| `Live` | Active and in good standing | `Active` |
| `Dissolved` | No longer exists (dissolution method on `legalStatus.detail`) | `Inactive` |
| `Ceased place of business` | Non-HK company ceased HK operations | `Inactive` |
| `Live, Commenced dormancy on YYYY-MM-DD` | Active but dormant (compound status with date) | `Active` |
### Dissolution methods
For dissolved companies, the dissolution method is surfaced alongside the status:
* Dissolved by Deregistration — administrative removal from register
* Dissolved by Winding Up (Others) — court-ordered or other winding up
* Dissolved by Members' Voluntary Winding Up — solvent company, members' choice
* Dissolved by Creditors' Voluntary Winding Up — insolvent company, creditors' process
* Deregistration in progress — company may still be `Live` while deregistration is processed
A separate non-dissolution marker — "Licence granted to dispense with `Limited` and/or `有限公司` in company name" — is a special licence, not a dissolution.
## Capital structure
CR entities populate the standard V2 `capital` / `totalCapital` shape. Mutual funds, sole proprietorships, and guarantee companies do not have capital data.
* Issued and paid-up capital are usually identical for HK-incorporated companies.
* Paid-up capital is null for registered non-HK companies.
* **Multi-currency entries are common** — some entities have capital entries with different currencies (e.g. GBP + USD on the same company). Do not assume one entity = one currency.
* Decimal values are returned as decimals.
### Currency distribution (observed)
| Currency | Typical entity |
| -------- | ------------------------------------------------------- |
| HKD | Most HK-incorporated companies |
| USD | Some holding companies (e.g. asset-management holdings) |
| GBP | UK-incorporated companies registered in HK |
| CHF | Swiss-incorporated companies registered in HK |
## Shareholders
HK shareholders are returned in V2 `shareholdings[].shareholders` split by entity type:
* Natural-person shareholders → `shareholdings[].shareholders.individuals[]`
* Corporate shareholders → `shareholdings[].shareholders.corporations[]`
Share types observed: `ORDINARY` (most common), with occasional source variant `ORDINARY SHARE`. Around half of HK fixtures have shareholder data; mutual funds, sole proprietorships, guarantee companies, and some registered non-HK companies have no shareholders.
## Representatives / directors
CR entities populate V2 `representatives.individuals[]` with the role `Director`. Sole proprietorships surface the sole proprietor on the same array with a null role.
### Identity documents
Identity documents are masked in HK responses (consistent with HK Identity Card / Passport privacy convention):
| Type | Format |
| ------------------ | ---------------------------------- |
| Hong Kong ID | Letter + 3 digits + `***` (masked) |
| Passport Number | Masked with `****` |
| Sole-proprietor ID | Full value (not masked) |
### Nationality
* HK residents: `"Hong Kong"`
* Non-HK nationals: bilingual format `" "` (e.g. `"英國 UNITED KINGDOM"`, `"中國 CHINA"`)
Surfaced on V2 `representatives.individuals[].nationality`. Chinese names alongside Latin names are populated for most HK-resident directors and null for most foreign nationals. Appointment / outgoing dates are populated for sole proprietorship records; an empty / sentinel date in the source means "still active" / "not departed".
## Address
HK `address` is returned with the flat `fullAddress` only on Lite Profile — no component breakdown (`city`, `region`, `streetName`, etc. are null on Lite).
* `country`: `"Hong Kong"`, `isoCode`: `"HK"`
* `fullAddress`: flat string (e.g. `"46/F, FAR EAST FINANCE CENTRE 16 HARCOURT ROAD HONG KONG"`)
* `city`, `region`, `postcode`, `streetName`, `buildingName`: null on Lite
Mutual Funds have null address; sole proprietorship addresses may be in Chinese only.
## Activity / industry codes
Hong Kong uses **HSIC** (Hong Kong Standard Industrial Classification, derived from ISIC Rev 4) at the registry, but activity codes are **not surfaced** for Companies Registry entities — the registry does not expose HSIC via the data interfaces Kyckr connects to. `activities[]` is empty for HK CR companies.
For sole proprietorships, a single activity is mapped from the Business Registration industry field with a Chinese-language description and no code.
## Enhanced Profile — async workflow
**Integration note:** Hong Kong Enhanced Profile fulfilment latency varies — some orders complete within the \~40s connection-hold window, others exceed it (and today time out). **HK is in the initial preview rollout for the async order pattern** (alongside GB, IE, LU, EE, LV, CN, JP).
Until that migration completes:
* Slow HK Enhanced Profile orders may time out today.
* Once the migration completes, slow orders will return `202` with an `orderId` (on `GET`) or `POST` will be available for fire-and-forget ordering.
Build for both `200` and `202` responses on `GET` from the start so that no integration changes are needed when HK migrates.
**On V1 once HK migrates:** handle the `200` (fast path) and the `202` (async path) on `GET /core/company/profile/HK/{companyCode}`.
**On V2 once HK migrates:** use `POST /v2/companies/{kyckrId}/enhanced` + poll `GET /v2/orders/{orderId}` for production-grade ordering. The `GET` convenience pattern (200 / 202 fallback) will also be available.
See the V1 ([GET + 202 fallback](/company-v1/developer-news/2026-06-async-order-pattern)) and V2 ([POST + poll recommended](/company-v2/developer-news/2026-06-async-order-pattern)) release notes for full integration guidance.
HK Lite Profile and Search are synchronous and return data immediately.
## Data Availability
| Data Point | Available |
| ------------------ | ------------------------------- |
| Company Name | Yes (English and Chinese) |
| Registered Address | Yes |
| Legal Form | Yes |
| Registration Date | Yes |
| Status | Yes |
| Representatives | Yes |
| Shareholders | Private and public limited only |
| Share Capital | Private and public limited only |
| Activities | Sole proprietorships only |
| Contact Details | No |
| UBOs | No |
## Registry documents
Companies Registry filings are searchable for HK CR entities (production data shows 94+ distinct filing types across \~20 UAT entities). Document categories include Company Governance & Officers (FND2A, FND2B, FD2 series), Annual Returns & Accounts (FNAR1, FAR1, FNN3), Incorporation & Constitution (FNNC1, FNC1), Registered Office (FR1, FNR1), Share Capital & Charges (FNSC1, FNDB1, FNM series), Winding Up & Dissolution (FW1–FW5, FNDR1), and Non-HK Company specific filings (FNN5–FNN13, FF1–FF5). Legacy form codes (FD2, FAR1, FN3) predate the Companies Ordinance (Cap. 622) effective 2014-03-03.
**Not supported for:** sole proprietorships (Business Registration) and mutual funds.
## Additional resources
* [Async order pattern — V2](/company-v2/developer-news/2026-06-async-order-pattern)
* [Async order pattern — V1](/company-v1/developer-news/2026-06-async-order-pattern)
* [Normalised values guide](/documentation/useful-information/normalised-values)
* [Company V2 API Reference](/company-v2/api-reference/overview)