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CRS overview

Commercial Banking – Hong Kong SAR

To help protect the integrity of tax systems, governments around the world are introducing a new information-gathering and reporting requirement for financial institutions. This is known as the Common Reporting Standard (“the CRS”) and we’d like to help you understand what it means for you.

Under the CRS, we are required to determine where you are “tax resident” (this will usually be where you are liable to pay income or corporate taxes). We will base this on information we have already or we may ask you for additional details.

If you are tax resident outside the country/jurisdiction where you bank then we may be required to provide details, including information relating to your accounts, to the national tax authority in the country/jurisdiction where the account is held. They may then share that information with the tax authorities of other countries/jurisdictions where you are tax resident.

The Inland Revenue (Amendment) (No. 3) Ordinance 2016 (“the Amendment Ordinance”) came into effect on 30 June 2016 and has put in place a legislative framework for Hong Kong to implement the new international standard on Automatic Exchange of Financial Account Information (“AEOI”). The first exchange of information took place in 2018. You can find more information on the Hong Kong Inland Revenue Department website.

What do you need to do?

In order to confirm your status under the CRS, you may be asked to complete the appropriate self-certification form and return it to your branch or send it to us at this address: PO Box 74523, Kowloon Central Post Office. There are three types of self-certification form for the CRS. The forms are attached below with additional information about which form you should complete.

  • Entity Self-Certification Form (1.2MB, PDF): If you are a business HSBC customer, please use this form to confirm your business’ status under the CRS (except Sole Traders who should use the Individual Self-Certification Form).

    To illustrate examples of entity type, please refer to our table of examples of entity type (263KB, PDF). Please note that this table is for reference only and is not exhaustive.
  • Controlling Person Self-Certification Form (1.2MB, PDF): This form is used by the Controlling Persons of certain Entities (referred to under the CRS as Passive Entities) including certain trusts, foundations and managed Investment Entities located in countries/jurisdictions that do not participate in the CRS. Controlling Persons are those individuals that control the Entity, either by ownership or control by other means. A Controlling Person in certain circumstances will be referred to as the Senior Managing Official.
  • Individual Self-Certification Form (1.1MB, PDF): If you are a personal HSBC customer or a Sole Trader or Proprietor, please use this form to confirm your personal status under the CRS.

If you are unsure about any of these terms and if they apply to you, please refer to the Glossary.

Please note that you may receive more than one request for information, if you have multiple accounts with us.

Any queries?

If you have any questions regarding your tax residency, please refer to the rules governing tax residence that have been published by each local tax authority. If you need advice about your tax position, please contact a professional tax and/or legal advisor as HSBC is unable to provide tax advice. You may also find useful guidance on the Hong Kong Inland Revenue Department website and the OECD CRS portal.

Page last updated October 2023