The problem in Hong Kong is that business setup is not equivalent to residency permission. The Companies Registry will let you fill out your lawyer's office or even your friend's uncle's plumber's address on your business registration certificate. The Immigration Department, on the other hand, will not just automatically give you a visa to come live here and run your business. They are not mysterious and arbitrary like in the U.S. --- but they are quite strict when it comes to new businesses. They want you to have a nice office, local employees, long years of work experience, brand-name degrees, and a formal business plan with revenue projections. See this link for a lot more details:
On the other hand, if you can qualify for the Quality Migrant Admission Scheme, you have a year before you need to show them any of the above. But they only let in one batch a year, I think in June.
As for the business climate: if you have a physical product, HK is still the world's greatest gateway to China. If you're developing webapps, the broadband is good here and there's enough coders floating around. Once you're profitable, the immigration department suddenly becomes much nicer to you and will let you sponsor whatever staff you need. Taxes are low and simple (BUT, if you're a US citizen, they're not, because the IRS treats any American who owns a company overseas as a tax evader and demands insane documentation. You will have to understand at minimum the IRS forms 5471 and 8832, or more likely hire a lawyer to understand it for you).
And, a final warning: if you're trying to do anything pertaining to real estate or telecoms (AirBnB, Renthop, etc.), bring a pair of brass balls and a copy of Alice Poon's "Land and the ruling class in Hong Kong", because you're up against monopolists who own the government and all the infrastructure and will use them to crush you:
If they'll let you start a business just like that, but won't let you live there, can you just run your business abroad, over the Internet then? That's what I'd like to do anyway.
http://www.emigra.com.hk/hongkong/page76.php
On the other hand, if you can qualify for the Quality Migrant Admission Scheme, you have a year before you need to show them any of the above. But they only let in one batch a year, I think in June.
http://www.immd.gov.hk/ehtml/QMAS.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quality_Migrant_Admission_Schem...
As for the business climate: if you have a physical product, HK is still the world's greatest gateway to China. If you're developing webapps, the broadband is good here and there's enough coders floating around. Once you're profitable, the immigration department suddenly becomes much nicer to you and will let you sponsor whatever staff you need. Taxes are low and simple (BUT, if you're a US citizen, they're not, because the IRS treats any American who owns a company overseas as a tax evader and demands insane documentation. You will have to understand at minimum the IRS forms 5471 and 8832, or more likely hire a lawyer to understand it for you).
And, a final warning: if you're trying to do anything pertaining to real estate or telecoms (AirBnB, Renthop, etc.), bring a pair of brass balls and a copy of Alice Poon's "Land and the ruling class in Hong Kong", because you're up against monopolists who own the government and all the infrastructure and will use them to crush you:
http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1493290