HKSTP Incubation Programme

Benefits & funding

• Maximum support of HK$1,290,000 per company across the three-year term.
• Cash grants of up to HK$840,000 in total, released in HK$140,000 instalments after each satisfactory milestone review.
• Rental subsidy of up to HK$450,000, calculated at HK$12,500 per month; unspent subsidy from years one and two carries forward to year three.
• Workspace of up to 1,600 sq ft at Science Park or another location approved by HKSTP in writing.
• Laboratory and equipment access, technical and business development support, market exposure, and matching with mentors and investors.
• Companies entering the second stage (years two and three) sign a Simple Agreement for Future Equity (SAFE) in favour of HKSTP, which gives HKSTP a future equity position.

Eligibility

• The applicant must be a technology start-up limited by shares and incorporated in Hong Kong under the Companies Ordinance (Cap. 622). Founders based anywhere in the world may apply once the company holds a Hong Kong business registration.
• The company must have been incorporated no more than five years before the application is submitted.
• The work must sit in a technology field such as electronics, information and communications technology, materials and precision engineering, or green technology.
• Founders must collectively and directly hold at least 51% of the issued shares when applying and for the whole programme period.
• The company must employ at least two full-time staff who can work in Hong Kong legally, and at least half of its full-time staff must carry out the core R&D work at the approved premises.
• The applicant and its founders must not currently be in an incubation programme run by HKSTP, Cyberport, or the Hong Kong-Shenzhen Innovation and Technology Park. A past participant of those programmes may apply one further time.
• The approved premises must be used mainly for R&D. Retail and mass production are not permitted there.
• There is no restriction on the nationality, residency, age, gender, or academic background of the founders.

Application process

1. 1
   Prepare the application form and a business plan covering the product, R&D content and schedule, sales and marketing plan, core team, and a three-year financial projection.
2. 2
   Gather the supporting documents: Hong Kong business registration certificate, certificate of incorporation, articles of association, latest annual return, incorporation form, organisation chart, staff CVs and academic certificates, MPF remittance statements or signed employment letters, and any patent filings.
3. 3
   Submit through the online application portal, which is open every day of the year.
4. 4
   Pass the eligibility check and attend a preliminary interview and due diligence meeting with HKSTP staff.
5. 5
   Present the application to the Assessment Panel and answer its questions, supplying further information if the panel asks for it.
6. 6
   On admission, sign the Licence Agreement and the Funding Agreement and move into the approved space.
7. 7
   An unsuccessful applicant may submit a new application three months after the panel result.

Program timeline

1. Year-round

   the online application portal accepts submissions at any time.

2. After submission

   eligibility check, preliminary interview, and due diligence meeting.

3. Next

   Assessment Panel presentation, followed by a final decision.

4. Month 3 of the programme

   first milestone review, then a review every six months, at least six across the term.

5. Months 10 to 12

   demo-day (D-Day) assessment; companies that pass it and sign the SAFE continue.

6. Months 13 to 36

   IncuBoost stage.

7. Month 36

   the programme ends.