Every Employer of Record in Hong Kong, compared
Independent rankings of the providers that can employ staff for you in Hong Kong — scored on entity ownership, MPF and IR56 handling, visa sponsorship, pricing, Hong Kong presence and support. One set of criteria, applied to every provider.
Three ways to compare
Start with the model that fits where you are: no entity yet, ready to incorporate, or already employing directly.
Best Hong Kong EOR providers
For companies with no Hong Kong entity. Ten providers that employ staff on your behalf, ranked on who owns a Hong Kong company, who sits in Hong Kong, and what they charge.
Read the ranking →Best incorporation providers
Who to use to set up a Hong Kong limited company — from corporate-services firms to online platforms — ranked on company-secretarial depth, pricing and what happens after the certificate arrives.
Read the ranking →Best payroll providers
Outsourced Hong Kong payroll for your own entity, compared on MPF, IR56 filings, software and service.
Read the ranking →If you want to hire in Hong Kong, you want a provider that is actually here
Hong Kong is one of the simplest places in Asia to employ people — provided the provider doing it knows the Employment Ordinance, the MPFA and the Inland Revenue Department first-hand. A surprising number of global platforms cover Hong Kong from somewhere else. Our rankings say who is in the room.
Hong Kong presence
A Hong Kong entity, a Hong Kong team and filings done the way the IRD and the MPFA expect. We state for every provider whether it owns a Hong Kong company and whether anyone works Hong Kong hours.
Real pricing
Published rates where they exist, quote-only where they do not. Most providers bill in US dollars; we say which.
Visa capability
Whether the provider will sponsor a General Employment Policy visa as the employer, and how long it takes. This separates the Hong Kong specialists from the global platforms faster than anything else.
Support that answers
Named account manager or ticket queue, and whether your employee can reach anyone directly.
How we rank
- Verify the providerCompany registration, Hong Kong office, years operating and team location, checked against the Companies Registry and stated plainly.
- Price the hirePublished per-employee rates, deposits, setup fees, and the MPF and insurance costs that sit on top.
- Test the capabilityMPF enrolment inside the statutory window, IR56 filings, Employment Ordinance leave rules, and whether the provider sponsors GEP visas itself.
- Weigh the evidenceIndependent reviews sized honestly, client lists, certifications and corporate backing.
Every provider on every page is scored on the same eight criteria. Where a provider is strong on one and weak on another we say both. Scores are our assessment of public information and direct experience; they are opinions, not measurements.
- Verify the providerStep 1
- Price the hireStep 2
- Test the capabilityStep 3
- Weigh the evidenceStep 4
A light-touch employer market, with sharp edges
No payroll withholding, no VAT, a flat 5% MPF contribution and a two-tier profits tax make Hong Kong one of the easiest places in Asia to employ someone. Which is exactly why the differences between providers are procedural rather than dramatic — and why they only show up when something goes wrong.
The edges are procedural. The Employment Ordinance’s continuous-contract rule decides who gets paid leave; MPF enrolment has a sixty-day window; IR56 forms have fixed deadlines; and a General Employment Policy visa needs an employer willing to sponsor it. Our rankings test each provider on exactly these.
The rankings
Three guides, ten providers each, all on the same criteria.
Guide
Best Hong Kong EOR providers
Ten providers scored on entity, MPF handling, visa capability, pricing and support.
Read the ranking →Guide
Best incorporation providers
Who to use to set up a Hong Kong company, from advisory firms to online platforms.
Read the ranking →Guide
Best payroll providers
Outsourced Hong Kong payroll compared on MPF, IR56, software and service.
Read the ranking →Get a shortlist
Tell us the role, the headcount and the timeline — resident or relocating, permanent or fixed-term. We come back within one working day with the three providers that fit, and why.
Get in touch
We reply within one working day.
Questions people ask before their first Hong Kong hire
Short answers here; longer ones in the guides.
Is Employer of Record legal in Hong Kong?
Yes. Hong Kong has no licensing regime for EOR as such; the arrangement is an ordinary employment contract between the employee and the provider’s Hong Kong company, with the employee’s services provided to you under a service agreement. What matters is that the provider actually has a Hong Kong company — our rankings state which do.
How quickly can someone start?
Three working days for a Hong Kong resident with the right to work, at the faster providers. For someone who needs a General Employment Policy visa, allow four to eight weeks for the Immigration Department — and check that the provider will sponsor it as the employer, because not all will.
Who is the employer on paper?
The provider’s Hong Kong limited company. It signs the employment contract, holds the MPF account, files the IR56 forms and carries the employees’ compensation insurance. You direct the day-to-day work under the service agreement. If a provider cannot name that company, keep looking.
What happens when I outgrow EOR?
You incorporate and the employee transfers to your new company with continuity of service preserved. Several providers in our rankings run the incorporation and the ongoing payroll as well, so one team can hold the whole thing — we note which.
What if I already have a Hong Kong entity?
Then you want a payroll provider rather than an EOR. Our payroll ranking compares ten of them on MPF, IR56 filings, software and service.