Hong Kong Stamp Duty Relief for Foreign Law Mergers

Stefano Mariani, registered foreign lawyer, recently contributed an article that was published in Hong Kong Lawyer, a Thomson Reuters publication. The article focused on Hong Kong Stamp Duty Relief for Foreign Law Mergers.

Unofficially, the Stamp Office recognises that the transmission of Hong Kong shares by virtue of certain foreign law mergers of legal personality does not give rise to a charge to ad valorem stamp duty. The article summarises the technical and procedural aspects of this extra-statutory relief and identifies certain practical issues and difficulties relevant to the practitioner.