Hong Kong has no VAT or GST and no statutory invoice format, so a valid invoice is whatever clearly records the sale, but business records must be kept for seven years. Include your business name and registration number, a sequential number, date, description, amount, currency and payment terms to speed up payment and satisfy auditors.
Because Hong Kong levies no value-added tax, an invoice carries no tax rate, no tax registration number and no statutory wording. Nobody checks the invoice for tax purposes at the border or at the till. Its role is commercial and evidentiary: it tells the customer what to pay, and it is the document the auditor and the Inland Revenue Department rely on when they test your revenue.
The Inland Revenue Ordinance and the Companies Ordinance both expect records to be kept for seven years, and the records must be good enough to explain each transaction. An invoice that says only "services, HK$20,000" invites a query. One that identifies the customer, the period or the project, the unit price and the due date answers it.
The Electronic Transactions Ordinance gives electronic records and signatures legal recognition, so an invoice sent as a PDF by e-mail is as valid as one on paper. There is no mandatory e-invoicing system in Hong Kong, and a Hong Kong invoice is not a Mainland fapiao, which is issued within the Mainland tax system; a customer there who needs a fapiao must obtain it from a Mainland entity.
Where you bill a Mainland customer in renminbi, state the currency on the invoice and the bank details for the correct currency account. Customers also often ask for an invoice in English and Chinese; keep both versions numbered identically so the archive does not hold two different documents for one sale.
Print the full registered name of the company and its business registration number, the registered address, an invoice number, the issue date and the customer's full name and address. Describe the goods or services clearly enough that someone who was not involved can understand them: product codes, quantities, hours and rates, project names, the period covered.
State the total, the currency and, if the currency is not Hong Kong dollars, the exchange rate or the agreed basis on which it will be converted. Add the payment terms such as "payable within 30 days", the bank account or FPS identifier to use, and the reference the customer should quote.
Number invoices in a single unbroken sequence. Gaps invite questions from the auditor about what became of the missing numbers. If you need separate series for different entities or branches, put a prefix in the number rather than restarting at one. Never edit and reissue an invoice under the same number; issue a credit note referencing the original and a new invoice.
A worked example: invoice number INV-2026-0147, dated 3 March 2026, to Harbour View Trading Ltd for 40 hours of consulting at HK$900 an hour, total HK$36,000, payable within 30 days to the company's FPS identifier quoting the invoice number. Every element answers a question the customer or auditor would otherwise ask. For recurring retainers, state the service period on each invoice and keep the date of invoice distinct from the period covered.
A receipt records that money has been received. Issue one when a customer pays in cash or when they ask for proof of payment, and show the invoice number, the amount, the date and the payment method. For FPS or bank transfers, the bank record is the primary evidence, but a receipt is still useful where the customer needs it for its own books.
Treat deposits and advance payments carefully. An advance invoice or proforma should say clearly that it is a request for a deposit and what it covers, and the final invoice should deduct the deposit already received. Otherwise the revenue will be recorded twice and the customer will dispute the balance.
Credit notes reduce an invoice for returns, price corrections or discounts agreed afterwards. They carry their own sequential numbers, refer to the original invoice and explain the reason. Do not delete an invoice from the archive because it was cancelled; keep both documents, since the auditor needs to see the trail.
A monthly statement of account is a useful companion for customers with several open invoices: it lists each invoice, payment and credit note and the net balance, and it gives the customer one document to settle against rather than five reminders.
Hong Kong has no general statutory regime for interest on late commercial payments of the kind found in some other jurisdictions. Whether you can claim interest depends on what the contract says, so state the credit period and any late-payment interest or collection costs in the quotation, contract or terms on the invoice, and have the customer accept them in writing.
A standard rhythm helps. Send the invoice as soon as the work is delivered, remind the customer a few days before the due date, and follow up within a week after it. For smaller disputes that remain unpaid, the Small Claims Tribunal handles money claims up to a statutory limit, currently HK$75,000, with a simpler procedure than the courts.
Overseas customers add complications: the invoice should state which entity is billed, the currency, who pays bank charges and, where goods are shipped, the commercial invoice details required by customs. Agree these at the quotation stage.
Store every invoice, credit note and receipt in one place that is searchable by number, customer and date, and make sure anyone who needs to find them, such as the finance manager and the auditor, can do so. Back it up; losing a year of invoices to a failed laptop is a seven-year problem.
4invoices issues PDF invoices and keeps them in an invoice archive. The invoice format and numbering are yours to set, and the invoice does not carry Hong Kong tax fields because none exist. It does not submit anything to the Inland Revenue Department. 4hosting offers web hosting and VPS if you want to run your own document store; backups and access control remain your responsibility.
Colleagues use different templates, numbers skip or repeat, and the auditor cannot confirm completeness.
Use one PDF invoice format with sequential numbering that you control, and keep every issued invoice in the invoice archive. Check the retention period (generally seven years) with your accountant.
Overseas customers want invoices in USD or RMB, and manual FX conversion introduces errors.
When invoicing in USD or RMB, enter the HKD equivalent yourself using the rate your accountant specifies. Exchange rates are not applied automatically.
No. Because there is no VAT or GST, Hong Kong prescribes no invoice layout or wording. Practical content matters: your registered name and business registration number, a sequential invoice number, date, customer details, a clear description, amount, currency and payment terms. Keep copies for seven years because the Inland Revenue Department and your auditor can ask to see them.
Yes. The Electronic Transactions Ordinance recognises electronic records and signatures, and there is no mandatory e-invoicing system. A PDF invoice by e-mail is accepted commercially and as evidence, provided you keep the file and the sent message. Store them in a searchable archive so you can retrieve any invoice by number or customer.
You can, but only if the contract or terms provide for it. Hong Kong has no general statutory interest regime for late commercial payments, so write the credit period and any late-payment charge into the quotation or terms and obtain the customer's acceptance. Keep the reminder trail. For small claims, the Small Claims Tribunal is an option.
Do not alter and reuse the same number. Issue a credit note that references the original invoice and gives the reason, then issue a new invoice with the next number in your sequence. Keep all three documents in the archive so the trail is clear to the auditor. Tell the customer what has changed and why.
No. A fapiao is an official tax invoice issued within the Mainland China tax system, not by a Hong Kong company. A Mainland customer who needs a fapiao must obtain it from a Mainland entity, and cross-border contracts should say who issues what. Ask your Mainland counterpart or adviser what documents they need for their own tax purposes.
Keep issued invoices together; retention rules are set by the IRD.
