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Every Hong Kong company files a profits tax return with audited accounts. 2025/26 due dates by year-end, the block extension and the dormant exception.
A Hong Kong company files a profits tax return each time the Inland Revenue Department (IRD) issues one, normally in early April, and attaches audited financial statements unless it is a dormant company. For 2025/26, companies with a tax representative and a year-end between 1 January and 31 March 2026 ("M" code) have until 30 November 2026 on paper or 30 December 2026 if they e-file. The IRD moved these dates on 20 October 2026 from the original 16 November and 16 December.
If you run a Hong Kong company from Dubai, Singapore or London, these dates come with conditions. Whether they apply to you depends on your year-end, whether you have a tax representative and whether you actually e-file. Get one of those wrong and your real deadline may be months earlier than you think.
What every Hong Kong company files each year
Every Hong Kong company has three recurring filings:
Profits tax return to the IRD, with audited accounts and a tax computation.
Annual return (form NAR1) to the Companies Registry, due within 42 days after the anniversary of incorporation. The fee is HK$105.
Business registration renewal.
Hong Kong's year of assessment runs from 1 April to 31 March. The IRD bulk-issues returns on 1 April, or 2 April for inactive files due for review. A new company usually receives its first return about 18 months after incorporation and has 3 months from issue to file it.
If no return arrives but the company has assessable profits, you must tell the IRD within 4 months after the end of the basis period. Silence from the IRD does not mean you owe nothing. Offshore or territorial claims are also made in the return itself and are never automatic. For more on that, see what "offshore" really means in Hong Kong and how Hong Kong taxes company profits.
Hong Kong profits tax return due dates for 2025/26, by year-end
Accounting date codes come from the IRD's Block Extension Letter. They tell you which block your financial year-end falls in.
Accounting date code | Year-end falls in | Paper return due | E-filed return due |
|---|---|---|---|
N | 1 April to 30 November 2025 | No extension: date on the return | No extension |
D | 1 to 31 December 2025 | 31 August 2026 (passed) | 2 October 2026 (passed) |
M | 1 January to 31 March 2026 | 30 November 2026 | 30 December 2026 |
M (loss cases) | 1 January to 31 March 2026 | 1 February 2027, on application | 1 February 2027, on application |
These dates apply only to taxpayers with a tax representative under the IRD's Block Extension Scheme. Without one, your deadline is the date printed on the return, normally one month after issue. The IRD does not grant block extensions to unrepresented taxpayers.
If you saw 16 November and 16 December 2026 in an earlier circular, those were the original M-code dates. On 20 October 2026 the IRD replaced them with 30 November and 30 December 2026, so treat the older dates as out of date.
The extra e-filing month is not automatic. The IRD must receive the application at least 7 working days before the return would otherwise be due, and the return must then actually be e-filed. Loss-case extension applications were due in bulk by 2 November 2026, with individual cases by 16 November 2026.
Hong Kong audit requirements, and the dormant company exception
Every Hong Kong company with gross income must submit audited financial statements with its return. There is no small-company exemption. The audit must be carried out by an independent Hong Kong practising CPA.
There is one exception. A private company can pass a special resolution declaring itself dormant under section 5 of the Companies Ordinance (Cap. 622) and deliver it to the Companies Registry. A dormant company is then exempt from the audit under section 447 and does not file an annual return. If the IRD issues a return, it accepts it without supporting documents.
Being inactive is not the same as being dormant. Without the resolution, the audit is still required, even if the bank account has not moved all year. Dormancy also ends as soon as the company enters into an accounting transaction. Paying fees required by law does not count.
Active company | Inactive, no dormant resolution | Dormant under s.5 | |
|---|---|---|---|
Audit | Required | Required | Exempt (s.447) |
Annual return | Required | Required | Not required |
Profits tax return, if issued | File with audited accounts and computation | File with audited accounts and computation | File without supporting documents |
For the wider statutory picture, see Hong Kong company requirements.
How a tax representative and the block extension change your deadline
A tax representative is a person the company authorises in writing. The authority must be signed: the IRD does not accept email authority. For an M-code company, having one is the difference between filing within about a month of April and filing in November or December.
In practice, the representative's job covers several tasks:
Block extension notifications: filed through the IRD's Tax Representative Portal. Paper notifications are no longer accepted from April 2026.
Code tracking: confirming each client's accounting date code and matching deadline.
Conditional extensions: applying for the e-filing month and for loss-case extensions on time.
Extensions beyond the block dates are granted only in exceptional cases. You must apply in writing at least 14 days before the deadline. Companies in liquidation do not get block extensions at all.
How Cosmos helps: Cosmos acts as your Hong Kong tax representative, which gives you the later block extension dates. It also keeps the Hong Kong return on the same calendar as the rest of your group's filings. Cosmos is not an audit firm: your accounts are audited by an independent Hong Kong practising CPA.
What happens if you file late or not at all
If the return is not filed by the extended date, the IRD can issue an estimated assessment. It can also take penalty action under sections 80 and 82A of the Inland Revenue Ordinance (Cap. 112). Additional tax under section 82A can reach three times the tax undercharged.
The IRD states plainly that persistent late filers should expect penalties. There is also a less obvious risk with conditional extensions. If you were granted an extension on the basis that you would e-file, or because you had a loss case, and you do not meet that condition, the further extension is treated as void from the start. The return is then judged against the earlier due date, and the IRD may take penalty action if the request was made without reasonable excuse.
The practical fix is to file now and explain. Do not wait for an estimated assessment to arrive.
A filing calendar for owners and CFOs with a Hong Kong company
For a company with a 31 March year-end:
April: the IRD issues the return (1 April, or 2 April for inactive files due for review).
Within 42 days after your incorporation anniversary: file NAR1 with the Companies Registry and pay HK$105.
June to August: audit fieldwork with your CPA.
30 November: paper deadline under the block extension.
30 December: e-filing deadline, if the e-filing month was granted.
1 February: deadline for approved loss cases.
Groups need one more step. A Hong Kong subsidiary of a UAE or Singapore group often has a different year-end from its parent, so put every entity on a single calendar. Our guide to running filings across a multi-entity group covers how to do that.
For 2025/26 there is a one-off profits tax reduction of 100%, capped at HK$3,000 per case. It is applied automatically in the final assessment, so it changes the bill but not the filing. Corporate rates are 8.25% on the first HK$2 million and 16.5% above that, with only one entity per connected group getting the lower tier.
FAQ
When is the Hong Kong profits tax return due for a 31 March year-end? With a tax representative, it is due on 30 November 2026 on paper, or 30 December 2026 if the e-filing extension was granted and you e-file. Without a representative, it is due on the date printed on the return, usually one month after issue.
Does every Hong Kong company need an audit? Every company with gross income must submit audited financial statements, and there is no small-company exemption. The only exception is a dormant company under section 5 of the Companies Ordinance.
Can a dormant Hong Kong company skip the audit? Yes, provided it has passed the special resolution and delivered it to the Companies Registry. Simply being inactive is not enough to qualify.
What is the block extension scheme? It is the IRD's system of later filing dates for taxpayers with a tax representative. The dates are grouped by accounting date code (N, D or M), depending on when your year-end falls.
Do I need a tax representative to get the later deadline? Yes. Unrepresented companies must file by the date printed on the return.
What happens if I file my profits tax return late? The IRD can issue an estimated assessment and impose penalties, including section 82A additional tax of up to three times the tax undercharged. File as soon as you can, with an explanation.
I have not received a profits tax return. Do I need to do anything? If the company has assessable profits, notify the IRD within 4 months after the end of the basis period. New companies normally receive their first return about 18 months after incorporation.
Most late filings come from unclear ownership rather than complicated tax. Usually, nobody knew the code, nobody applied for the e-filing month and nobody checked the date on the return. Settle those three points in April and November becomes routine. If you would like Cosmos to act as your Hong Kong tax representative and keep every entity on one calendar, get in touch with the team.
