Posted by
hotdog82
17 yrs ago
Hi,
My wife and I are thinking about relocating to Hong Kong just after Xmas from the UK. The company I work for have an office in HK so there would be a job offer in place for visa applications. I have read through the application notes from the HK government website, but I have just a few questions if anyone can help!
> Could my wife work on a dependants Visa (teach maybe)?
> How long are working visas generally valid for?
> I read you need a medical examination to get a China working Visa, is this the same in Hong Kong?
> Is medical/ health insurance compulsory?
> On average, how much should I budget for government property taxes, bills, mobile etc
> Would you recommend we rent a serviced apartment for the first month in Hong Kong?
I know I am asking a lot! any help would be much appreciated!
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"> Could my wife work on a dependants Visa (teach maybe)?"
Yes.
"> How long are working visas generally valid for?"
One year. But no biggie renewing.
"> On average, how much should I budget for government property taxes, bills, mobile etc"
As far as I know there are not property taxes for private persons. Bills very much depends. Impossible to tell without knowing how big your place will be. Mobile around 100-300/month.
"> Would you recommend we rent a serviced apartment for the first month in Hong Kong?"
Yes definitely.
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tpol
17 yrs ago
I suggest that you get the company to foot the bill for accomodation.
Tax is low but the cost of housing is high
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And private schooling if you have or are anticipating having kids
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Ed
17 yrs ago
I think its a very good idea to live in a serviced apartment before committing to a long term lease - we have a full directory here
http://hongkong.asiaxpat.com/property/serviced.asp
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hmm
17 yrs ago
"> Could my wife work on a dependants Visa (teach maybe)?"
Possible for wife to work, but if she is not a qualified teacher than options are limited... depends what she would like to teach... and how much she would expect to earn doing it.
I would certainly suggest you investigate housing costs as others have said. You would be very wise to agree upon a set amount with your company beforehand or factor this in to your salary.
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My wife would be looking teach younger children, hopefully where a tefl is not required.
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How about the medical exam as in china?
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There is no need for a medical exam to work in HK.
"My wife would be looking teach younger children, hopefully where a tefl is not required."
Well, the issue as I understand it (and I may be wrong) is that there is a bit of glut of wives wanting to work as teachers. If she has a degree and good experience, however, there should be no issue.
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Thanks, yes she has a strong degree and experience of working with children. Acually she is speaking to a few English schools for further advice, thanks for your help!
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Would a salary of around 55K per month offer a decent standard of living in HK (deducting 14K for rent)?
Approx what tax would be paid on 55K per month?
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If memory serves, income tax is 16% so 8800 a month for you. You get a 5% deduction for money used for rent so 700.
Back of the envelope you'll have 55000-8800-14000+700=32900 left.
"Decent" is totally subjective. Do you have kids? Schools are not cheap unless you go public, meaning Cantonese. Certainly 30k+ for two after rent and taxes is more than most people have in the territory. But as I said it's very subjective and depends on your lifestyle.
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no kids, we enjoying partying- which is obviously expensive!
We are also married so I heard there is a further tax reief on this....?
thanks for your help!
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Don't know about the married tax relief. Our taxes are too complex at the moment to be handled by anyone other than voodoo tax priests...
Just as rules of thumb:
- Housing is costly. You can live cheaply but it will be small and/or ugly and/or very far out from "downtown"-
- Local food is cheap. If, however, you want to have the "same" food as you do in Europe/US, it is expensive.
- Anything labor intensive tends to be cheap. Custom furniture, custom curtains, domestic help, mandarin tutoring, etc...
- Partying. It all depends. If you go to the expat dense bars in LKF, then it can be quite expensive. But there is everything down to cheap dives.
- Dining out. Everything from dirt cheap street-side eatery to hideously expensive world class restaurant.
- Transport, from buses to MTR to taxis, is cheap and very efficient. Add in the short distances and you'll be spending less than in most other places.
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I suggest you search this site for rental apartments.
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Ed
17 yrs ago
http://hongkong.asiaxpat.com/property/
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hmm
17 yrs ago
Actually the tax would be much lower than 16% as there is a basic allowance of about 100,000$ for a single person. If you're wife doesn't work then 200,000$ is deducted from your taxable income (55,000 x 12= $660,000 - 100,000 (or 200,000)) resulting in a taxable income of only 560,000 or 460,000. Then any dependent children have an amount to subtract, self-education amount, charitable donations, mpf (retirement fund) deduction (up to 12k for year), etc.
Then the tax goes the following way: (http://www.ird.gov.hk/eng/ese/st_comp_2009_10_budget_proposal/stcfrm.htm)
2% on first 40k,
7% on next 40k,
12% on the next 40k,
and the remainder at 17% (for 2009/2009).
This means if taxable income was 560,000 (likely to be lower as you would have some deductions even if wife did work) then it would be: 800$+$2800+$4800+ (remainder which is 440,000 at 17%) 74,800= 83,200.
$83,200 of 660,000 (your salary, presumably without a gratuity) is 12.6% but may be a % or 2 lower with government rebates/deductions.
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Thanks for the clarification hmm.
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No doubt there are people who would be unable to live on $55K, but many of us do, and don't live out on the sticks, but nor do we drink in places that charge $70 for a beer. I would be happy with that & it's way more than the average HK local salary. You definitely save on the tax side here, hmm's post is great.
Housing is costly. You can live cheaply but it will be small and/or ugly and/or very far out from "downtown"-
can't agree there, you just have to get out of the mid-levels/Discovery Bay mindset, there are plenty of place under $20K in convenient areas. I work in relocations & have seen some really nice flats in dumpy buildings & vice versa. Try Kennedy Town, South Horizons/Ap Lei Chau/Tai Koo.
And yes, a service flat is a good idea.
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"Housing is costly. You can live cheaply but it will be small and/or ugly and/or very far out from "downtown"-
can't agree there, you just have to get out of the mid-levels/Discovery Bay mindset, there are plenty of place under $20K in convenient areas. I work in relocations & have seen some really nice flats in dumpy buildings & vice versa. Try Kennedy Town, South Horizons/Ap Lei Chau/Tai Koo.
And yes, a service flat is a good idea."
You're proving my point. ;) All the places you list are in the "ugly" category as far as I am concerned.
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