After a large number of talented and professional applicants move to Hong Kong every year, in addition to addressing the educational needs of their children, another thing to consider is housing.

about education. For non-permanent residents, in principle, as long as the child has a Hong Kong identity card or a formal residence visa, he or she can study in Hong Kong, whether it is a government-subsidized, DSS, private, or international school.

About housing. The purchasing power of New Hong Kong people is generally not bad, especially from the perspective of the transaction volume of the property market after the epidemic, the number of non-permanent residents in Hong Kong buying properties is increasing.

And recently

Hong Kong legislators propose a new policy

Not only about non-permanent residency

It is also related to buying a house that everyone cares about most.

When non-permanent residents buy a house, they can pay 30% of the tax first, but after they change to permanent residence after 7 years, the Hong Kong government will return the extra 25.75% to them according to the first home tax rate of 4.25%.

After a non-permanent resident buys a house, if he does not become a permanent resident, there is no tax rebate, which is still 30%.

A few days ago, the "Hong Kong government issued 5,000 yuan consumer coupons to non-permanent residents" was confirmed by the Financial Secretary Chen Maobo, which is also closely related to the proposal made by the Legislative Council.

#1

Buying a house in Hong Kong

What is the tax difference between the two statuses?

Regarding the difference between permanent residency and non-permanent residency, you can review the previous article "Understanding the Difference Between Permanent Residents and Non-Permanent Residents in Hong Kong".

Buying a house for non-permanent residents

Non-permanent residents generally have to pay 30% tax to buy a house in Hong Kong.

There are two taxes in total, one is called Buyer's Stamp Duty (BSD) and the other is called Ad Valorem Stamp Duty (ASD).

The buyer's stamp duty is set up due to the overheating of real estate investment. It is 15% for everyone other than permanent residents in Hong Kong (including non-permanent residents and non-Hong Kong residents).

The ad valorem stamp duty is 15% for all people (including permanent residents, non-permanent residents, and non-Hong Kong residents).

buy a house permanently

Permanent residents only need to pay 1.5%-4.25% ad valorem stamp duty to buy their first home.

The specific tax rate depends on the house price. The more expensive the house, the more expensive the tax. Please refer to the following figure:

If it is a second home purchase, the ad valorem stamp duty will be calculated at a flat rate of 15%. Also known as "Double Stamp Duty" or "Non-First Purchase Stamp Duty".

for example

The same is to buy a house for HK$10 million. The stamp duty to be paid under different circumstances is as follows:

Hong Kong non-permanent residents: total 3 million

① Buyer's stamp duty: 10 million × 15% = 1.5 million

② Ad valorem stamp duty: 10 million × 15% = 1.5 million

Hong Kong permanent residents: only pay ad valorem stamp duty

① First time purchase: 10 million × 3.75% = 375,000

② Second home purchase: 10 million × 15% = 1.5 million

#2

How can a non-permanent resident buy a house in Hong Kong?

Faced with the high tax of 30%, as a non-permanent resident, there are generally two choices:

The first is to give up and wait for 7 years to get the permanent residence status before buying, but maybe you can only see the soaring housing prices and miss a good opportunity.

Some people may be very optimistic about the Hong Kong property market, and would rather pay 30% of the tax and get on the bus earlier.

So here comes the question. Some non-permanent residents are anxious to buy a house and do not want to wait for 7 years, but also want to be exempted from the 30% spicy tax reasonably and legally. Is there any way?

There is.

Buy a company disk. When you buy equity in a company, you can indirectly own the company's properties and only need to pay 0.2% stamp duty on the share value (0.1% for each buyer and seller).

For example, Ms. R bought a luxury house in Repulse Bay for 200 million. In this way, she only needs to pay 200,000 (200 million * 0.1%) stamp duty, otherwise she would have to pay double stamp duty of 15%, which is 30 million.

Rent-to-buy plan. Some developers will provide such solutions, but each developer's rent-to-buy solution is different, and there are only a very small number of properties.

Immediate family members jointly buy a house. Siblings, couples, parents, grandparents, children. The two parties do not own any property in Hong Kong. One of them is a permanent resident and the other is of any status. The two jointly bought a house.

Whether it is issuing consumer vouchers to non-permanent residents in Hong Kong, or relaxing the tax policy for buying a house.

These measures can not only retain more talents for Hong Kong and make Xingang people feel more belonging in Hong Kong, but also further enhance the competitiveness of Hong Kong's financial center.

More and more favorable policies for non-permanent residents have been put on the agenda, and the number of applicants for talents, professionals, and study abroad programs may increase further!

Nebula International is headquartered in Hong Kong, China, with regional advantages and strong resources. Professional consultants, senior copywriters, and post-service teams will follow up the whole process, providing a full range of considerate services such as Hong Kong immigration, further education, and investment.