Before securing a personal loan in Hong Kong, an application form will need to be filled out by you. Most banks and financial institutions list a number of requirements when they assess the eligibility of an individual applying for a personal loan. To get the best loan package, there are few must-dos before filling out a personal loan application.Step one: Compare your optionsWeigh your options by determining the loan type that best caters for your needs. There are a variety of personal loans on the credit market today, and the one that you finally settle for is dependent on your financial situation and goals. Let’s examine some of the common personal loans that may be offered to you in Hong Kong.;Secured LoansIn Hong Kong, secured loans require the presence of a guarantor or collateral. The guarantor will be responsible for paying back the loan should you default (i.e. fail to make repayments on the loan). If you present a house, car, land, a piece of machinery or any form of collateral, then the institution will take possession of the collateral until you fully service the loan deal. A commonly used term for a secured loan for a house or apartment is called a mortgage.;Unsecured LoansMost personal loans in Hong Kong are of the unsecured loans designation. For these types of personal loans, you do not need to present collateral or a guarantor. However, since these personal loans are unsecured, they often come with a set of requirements. You may be asked to present proof that you are financially stable and can repay the loan in order for your loan application to be approved. This is done to ensure that you can make timely repayments on the loan.;Unsecured Tax LoansTax loans in Hong Kong are seasonal by nature, and reflect Hong Kong’s tax seasonality. For an individual that do not wish to unwind investments or have not saved sufficient to pay taxes in a timely manner, an unsecured tax loan can be advantageous. Similar to the ‘regular’ unsecured loan you and the lender agree on a repayment period to pay back the borrowed amount, plus the accrued interest.;Personal Lines of Credit / Revolving LoanYou can also have an account through which you can borrow funds in fixed amounts without the need to repeatedly apply for personal loans. This account is referred to as a personal line of credit. It can be likened to a credit card; however, a personal line of credit allows the borrower to obtain cash instead of credit. A line of credit is beneficial when making expenses such as hiring the services of a contractor for long-term ongoing tasks like home renovations. There is no set repayment period of a personal line of credit.;Auto LoansThese are loans designed for the procurement of a vehicle. This type of car loans provides funds for individuals for the purchase of a car with an interest rate calculated and set on the funds. The interest rate could be on a floating or fixed basis. The interest rates on the floating interest rate depend on the base rate which varies across credit providers.;Step two: Access your eligibility criteriaMake sure you meet the requirements to receive a personal loan offer. This will save you a lot of time, as you otherwise might waste time considering a consumer loan that you are not eligible for. The basic eligibility criteria that need to be satisfied vary from lender to lender, and there are some common terminologies to consider when applying. These include:;Credit score: Lenders in Hong Kong rely on consumer credit report companies, such as TransUnion, gather an individual’s credit score. On top of this to this many lenders and banks apply additional credit scoring analysis. Different lenders are better at assessing credit risk in certain categories, and while some are experts analysing individuals with a low credit score, others are better at providing the best possible financing for individual with a strong credit score.In Hong Kong, credit worthiness score is generally scored from 4,000 (AA) to 1,000 (JJ). Scores below 1,000 are generally considered too low to qualify for a consumer loan.;Employment: most lenders will see employment as an important factor or requirement when considering a personal loan application. While it is not a requirement for all lenders to have a permanent employment, being able to demonstrate a repayment ability is. Some lenders may expect you to have alternative sources of income like retirement benefits or investments in addition to being employed or unemployed.;Income: to successfully apply for a personal loan, you may be required to earn a minimum amount of monthly income. It is commonplace for lenders to demand that you earn an income of at least $10,000, and to show a proof of this. However, some lenders may be fine to approve a loan without income proof.;Residency: most financial institutions grant loans to Hong Kong permanent residents, residents with valid passport.;Age: you are expected to be at least 18 years old to apply for a personal loan in Hong Kong.;Step three: Finish the application processThe application procedure for a personal loan varies across finance providers. Many banks and companies granting personal loans provide online-based applications in addition to applying at their branch office. Online personal loan applications can help you save a ton of time and hassle. For most banks and financial institutions, applying for an online personal loan is a simple process that entails uploading the required documents using your mobile phone or computer at home.Usually, you’ll be required to tender a variety of documents and personal data to the lending institution, before or during the application process. The documents typically consist of:;Government-issued identification: the applicant needs to provide a Hong Kong ID Card or Hong Kong ID Card coupled with passport if you are a non-permanent Hong Kong resident.;Proof of income: In some cases, you may be asked to tender payslips or bank account statements of one or a few months by some bank or lending institution. If you are in the self-employed category, lenders may demand tax returns from the last two year of the most recent one-year statement for both current and savings accounts.;Proof of residence: You need to prove that you are a resident of Hong Kong by providing a recent utility, bank other financial institution statement that confirms your residence. Once all your residential information has been confirmed, the application process will be a breeze. Personal loan applications that are done over the phone or at a branch may take a while longer than those that are done online.;Applying with LendelaWhen you apply for a personal loan with Lendela, your application gets sent to several banks and lenders simultaneously. They get back quickly with their best loan offer for you to pick. The online personal loan application takes only a couple of minutes to complete (to speed it up, have all your information ready) but you can also apply by calling our customer service, and one of our skilled advisors will help you through the whole process.;Step four: Wait for a message of approvalYour online personal loan application will be acknowledged electronically, and you’ll be notified if you have been pre-approved in a couple of minutes. No matter the lending style of the financial institution, the pre-approval and full approval phases are the two stages you should expect to hurdle past when applying for a loan.;Waiting for offer stageOnce you have submitted your personal details to a lender / bank or a loan broker like Lendela, these institutions will start assessing whether they can provide you with a loan. When applying via Lendela, you can expect all lenders to have come back to you with an individualised personal loan offer for your approval, within a day.In the case of Lendela, we connect with multiple banks and lenders, enabling you to review a number of personal loan offers at the same time. In other words, you can sit back and focus on other things, while Lendela is searching for personal loan offers for you. When new personal loan offers are available and when the complete search has been finalised, Lendela will get back to you.During this phase lenders are likely to submit your personal information for a credit check, to assess your credit score.;Selecting offerIn the case of a bank / lender you will need to select or refuse their offer. If applying with Lendela, you will be able to compare offers from different financial institutions on our webpage, and select the one most suitable for your needs.;Complementary information / Full underwritingOnce an offer has been selected, you are no longer eligible to select other personal loan offers on the Lendela platform. You are requested to provide some additional information to support your personal loan application ahead of the lender’s full underwriting of the loan. This could include.Proof of identityProof or residenceProof of income;Step five: Disbursement of the loan fundsLenders can fund your loan through a variety of means. For example, when you obtain a car loan, the lender may opt to pay the car dealer directly. This is usually the same case with loans taken for debt consolidation, where they send the money to your creditor directly. When you apply for an unsecured personal loan plan, the lender forwards the funds to your designated bank account. This process of disbursement usually takes a few business days.;Step six: Know all the repayment termsMost lenders fix repayment terms to be made on a monthly basis. Repayments can be made online, via direct payments from your set bank account. It can also be done via third-party money transfer providers, to the account of a designated debt collector or via check. It is important to ensure what applies if you wish to service your loan faster than the agreed terms. Sometimes the lender applies an early settlement fee for customers that choose this option.;