Y. H. Lai & Co.
黎裕衡會計師事務所
Audit · Hong Kong companies
Statutory audits for private companies and groups under the Companies Ordinance (Cap. 622), planned around your Profits Tax filing date.
Who it is for
We audit Hong Kong companies of many sizes, from a first-year start-up to a holding company with subsidiaries in Hong Kong, Mainland China and overseas.
Preparing for a first audit and wanting the records right from the start.
Owner-managed businesses that need a reliable annual audit and Profits Tax return.
Holding companies and subsidiaries, including groups with Mainland or overseas operations.
Companies looking for closer partner involvement, clearer requests or a better timetable.
What you receive
Every engagement is agreed in an engagement letter before work starts. A standard annual audit includes:
Documents
We send one request list with dates, so you know what we need and when. It usually covers:
Process
Timing depends on your year-end, the state of your records and the size of the business. We plan backwards from your filing date.
We review your latest accounts and structure, then send a fee quotation and engagement letter.
We agree the timetable around your year-end and tax filing code, and send one request list.
Testing on site or remotely. Queries come to you in batches, not one by one.
Partner review, the signed auditor's report, the Profits Tax return and a short letter on points to fix before next year.
Fees
We quote a fixed fee before we start, based on the work your audit needs. The main factors are:
Revenue, the number of transactions and the number of bank accounts.
Whether the books are complete, reconciled and ready when fieldwork starts.
The number of companies, subsidiaries and any consolidation.
Inventory, related-party balances, loans and foreign-currency items.
Opening balances and getting to know the business for the first time.
How much time is left before your filing deadline.
For a meaningful quotation, send us your latest audited financial statements, a management trial balance and a group chart.
Questions
Under the Companies Ordinance, Hong Kong companies generally need their annual financial statements audited by a practising certified public accountant. Limited exceptions apply, for example to some dormant companies. Corporations also usually file their audited financial statements with their Profits Tax return.
Tell us about your company and timetable first. Once you decide to appoint us, we contact your current auditor for professional clearance, as professional standards require. The outgoing auditor resigns or is not reappointed, and your directors or members appoint us. We then review the prior year's audited accounts so that the opening balances are supported.
Tell us how far behind the records are. The books need to be complete before audit fieldwork, so we agree a plan to bring them up to date first, either by your own staff or through our accounting service on Xero. Outstanding audits for earlier years can then be scheduled one after another.
Keep every bank statement, invoice and contract from the date of incorporation, record share capital and directors' loans properly, and decide your financial year-end early. A company's first financial period can be longer than twelve months, which affects when the first audit and Profits Tax return are due.
It depends on the size of the business and how ready the records are. A small company with complete, reconciled records can be audited quickly; groups and companies with incomplete records take longer. We set the timetable from your Profits Tax filing date.
Most private companies report under HKFRS, HKFRS for Private Entities or, if they qualify, the SME Financial Reporting Framework. We advise which framework suits your company and its shareholders.
Experience
Your audit is planned and reviewed by our partner, RICHARD LAI, Yu Hang, a practising CPA and Fellow of the HKICPA who previously worked at the Securities and Futures Commission and KPMG. We run our audits on Caseware, so planning, evidence and review points are linked in one file.
Send us your latest audited accounts and group chart. We will reply with a fee quote and a proposed timetable.