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Belize is a country that is located in Central America. It has a population of approximately 300,000 but the growth rate is high, approximately 3% of the entire population per annum. Due to this increase in population, Belize is a viable country for business. The first step for starting a business would be to register the company. The Belize government has set a number of requirements for any individual who plans to register a company in Belize. These requirements are mainly set to regulate the company standards and ensure that the playground is level for all the companies in Belize.

The requirements for registration required by the Belize company are listed in the company Act that regulates international business that was enacted in 1990. This act is part of the British common law that applies in many states that were colonized by the British. The act states that once the proprietors of the company meet the requirements, the incorporation should be effected immediately. However, due to the technicalities involved in the registration, it takes a day or two to complete the registration process. The most unique thing about the registration of a company in Belize is that the names of the shareholders and directors are not filed with the authorities in Belize. They are only concerned with the business meeting the requirements of the land. They do not interfere with the management of private entities.

The requirements for opening a company in Belize include, a director for the company where a single director whether privately or a corporate is enough. One or more shareholders who are the director as well could also act as a shareholder and no secretary is required. The main requirement of the company organization is the director. The director does not need to be a citizen in Belize for them to obtain a certificate of incorporation.

An advantage of registering a company in Belize is that there is no payment of tax for international businesses. This tax exemption of international businesses has made many company proprietors to register Belize company since the returns are not taxable; this is a friendly business environment. For the companies that operate in Belize only, tax is not exempted and they are required to register at the income tax offices. There is another tax for such companies, the general sales tax.

However, incorporation of a company in Belize does not require much money. With 1000 Belize dollars, you can register a company. However, there are other requirements that must be met by international companies like a minimum of $50,000 in share capital and there should be a dividend offered at $1 to at least one shareholder. The authorities in Belize might require a number of supporting documents while registering a company. These may include the articles and memorandum of association as well as the letter of appointment that was issued to the director. Other optional documents would include share certificates for shareholders, which will help the government in settling any disputes that would arise in the company.

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In Belize, like in every other country, the business documents definitely need to be certified. A Notary or a government employee like the Chief registrar of companies can certify legal documents. (A public notary is an office constituted by law to serve the public for non-contentious issues concerned with powers of attorney, deeds, estates, foreign and international business).

This particular certificate issued by the registrar of companies is only legal and binding within the country in question. There is however, a way that a legal document from this or any other country can be made internationally acceptable. This is through the Apostille legislation that was enacted at The Hague on 5 October 1961. This legislation states that the present convention shall apply to public documents that have been executed in the territory of one contracting state and which have been produced in the territory of another. These include administrative documents, notary’s acts and any documents emanating from an official connected to the courts, tribunals or the state.

This means that the signature of a different official who is independent and holds higher office certifies the signature of the official in the initial certification. A different government office, foreign office or the Supreme Court within the country where the initial certification was done usually does this. The certification stamp or sticker that is consequently issued is what is referred to as the Apostille. This document is now deemed acceptable in the member countries like Barbados, Lesotho, and Kazakhstan. This type of legislation is required in Belize for the following reasons: firstly to open an off shore bank account. This is necessary in business transactions regardless of location. To open and operate a securities account for the organization. Thirdly, this legislation is required in case the need to register a branch or joint venture that involves the company arises. Finally, it is needed to enter any transactions as far as the international Belize Company to be opened is concerned.

Certification of one full copy of the company’s corporate documents is standard practice for ease of doing business. Additional copies can be produced on demand. (A useful tip: it is advisable to Apostille-certify the original certificate of incorporation).

Once all the company requirements have been met, the company is then incorporated within 24 hours. Any additional certificates take 1 or 2 days to be sorted out on behalf of the company. The company can now go ahead and register for business tax at the income tax department. The business must register with the general services tax authorities before it can begin to conduct business. The relevant certificate of compliance has to be presented before the business is registered. This takes 10 days at a cost of 150 Belizean dollars. If the registration takes longer than this to be completed the company can go ahead and begin conducting business. Taxes for this period must still be submitted to avoid tax evasion penalties or interest charges that are usually punitive to say the least.

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Like in any other state or country, for you to begin or invest in a company, you must abide by the laws of the land. You must pay the necessary fees, find out if the company name is available for use, make sure that it is a legal business according to the laws laid-out and ensure that it will promote the community it will be based in. After all, business in any given country should be able to contribute towards building its economy.

To begin with, you must first do a search for the company name and forward it to the City Council so they make sure that it is available and legally ready for use. You must then register company statutes, memoranda, and articles of association at the Companies’ Registry. At this point, the directors or bosses of the company must make themselves known to this registry. Once you obtain the proof of registry, make sure you have your necessary identification documents, your proof of residency and take these along when going to apply for a trade license. To do that, you have to forward your application to the Council, and then the Council will schedule time to inspect your company or business. When everything is good to go, you pay for the license and then they proceed to issue your trade license. The trade license will cost you 25% of the value of the business premises.

You are required to come up with a logo or seal for your company. This is used for easy recognition. At this point, you have to register with the Tax department. You must ensure you register for business tax and General sales tax to ensure that your company pays its dues to the government. You must then register your employees with the Social Security Board. As this takes over two months to process, the law allows you to begin work or production in the meantime.

To top it all up, 100% does not have to be local, but may have about five local partners. In addition, none of the partners in the business should have legal issues pending. Start up must be in the city with the largest population. You must have capital, which is 10 times the income of each capita as of 2008, and within a month have at least 10 employees and you must have a 10 page-long deed for your business premises. After the business is successfully registered, you must now ensure you follow the procedures on construction of the business premises and registering that property, hiring the workers, paying taxes, protecting investors and on how to do cross border business deals. The key to registering a business is all about following the law to the letter. This is to cover yourself and any involved parties from the risk of breaking the law, committing fraud and conflicting with the natives of the area directly affected by the opening of your business, this will give you the necessary leeway to carry out your business.

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Belize is a company in Central America that has a business sector that is growing very fast. It has its own government that uses the British common law as a guideline. This same law determines the process followed in registering a company in Belize. The requirements for registering a company in Belize are mainly supposed to create a fair business environment for all companies.

Registering a company in Belize is a process that starts with conducting a name search at the office of the registrar of companies of the country. This is a swift process and it takes a day to complete the process. It is advisable that you get a number of names to avoid repeating the process another day if the name you had is registered by another company. You can change the name to another unregistered one. Searching for a business name is free.

The next step entails filing the articles and memorandum of association of a company. This enables the company registry to have some background information of the company before they license it to conduct business on the Belizean land. It is advisable that the company management files all relevant documents including company statutes, this helps since there could arise a problem within the management that will require the intervention of the government. These documents assist in solving such situations. The total costs of registration in Belize Dollars include $50 for the registration fee, $500 for incorporation, $10 for filling, $12 for the company statutes, and $12 for the memorandum of the company and $13 for the registration of directors. The entire process of registration usually takes two days.

After registering the company, you need an operation license from the area council. Application services are freely offered once you produce the registration documents. This trade license application will prompt an officer from the council to visit the company premises and evaluate the conditions of the company. The inspection process takes a maximum of 20 days. It is after the inspection that you pay for the license. The cost of the trade license varies with the rental value of the premises, calculated at a percentage of the rent; it is usually 25%.

Every company needs a seal for its operations. Getting a company seal in Belize will cost the company a minimum of $50 and a maximum of $200 in Belize currency. The process takes a day or two to complete. The next step in registration involves registering the company for tax returns at the income tax offices. This service is charged $150, Belize currency and it may take up to 10 days for the company to get a certificate of tax registration. The company is then required to register at the General sales tax offices so that it can be remitting tax on general sales tax. This process takes two to three weeks and it is free. The last step entails registering the workers for social security with the board that offers social security service.

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Administration

The country of Belize (located on the Eastern Coast of Central America) is considered a constitutional monarchy where the queen acts as the head of state within certain parameters of the constitution whether written or unwritten. A governor general represents the Queen within the country. It is also a member of the commonwealth (formerly the British Commonwealth; an inter-governmental organization of 54 independent member states that were part of the British Empire, all but 2) .It is not a political union but member states do share certain values like good governance, free trade, human rights, and world peace.

A prime minister who holds effective and executive powers to run the country governs the country. After the prime minister, we have the cabinet after a deputy prime minister. The cabinet which is the executive arm of government is what enables the government to run smoothly and ensure that all the necessary services reach the masses effectively and as required. There are various ministries but the ministry of public service, governance, elections, and boundaries is the one concerned with registration of companies in Belize.

Under this ministry, there is the section that deals with the registration of companies. There are several steps taken before a company can be registered. First the business name search is done. For a group or individual to register the company they must travel to Belmopan the capital of Belize. This is where the computerized name search is done for all existing Belizean companies. This takes one day and there is no charge. This request for a name search can also be done via fax or the telephone at a fee of 50 Belizean dollars. The second step is the registration of the company statutes, memorandum, and articles of association at the company’s registry. This takes only two days and a fee of five hundred Belizean dollars is charged for the certificate of incorporation. There is also a charge of 10 Belizean dollars for filling and a further 50 dollars is needed for registration of the application. 24 Belizean dollars is required for the registration of the company’s statutes and memorandum while 14 dollars are required to register the directors who are to act on behalf of the company. For such companies, law requires the two directors.

Each of the directors must hold shares within the said company. The number of minimum shares that each director should hold is one. Each share must not have a minimum value of no less than one Belizean dollar. Therefore the practical startup capital needed is two Belizean dollars. The directors must also submit several documents before all the processing can be completed. These documents are identification for all the directors (where possible), and a copy of the company’s memorandum, statutes and articles of association. The council license can then be obtained at 25% of the annual rental charges for the business premises. This is after the council has made the necessary inspections that take right about 20 days.

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Belize is located in Central America on the Caribbean Sea board. It has enjoyed a stable and democratic government since independence from its colonial masters, Britain, in 1981. It is one of the newest entries into the offshore banking sector of the Caribbean since the introduction of the International Business companies Act. This act indicates that an International business company is one that is free of most or part of trade and other restrictions such as exchange control. It pays no taxes and it is exempt from public disclosures and trade licensing requirements in the country it is operating in. The law permits tax minimization and asset protection at competitive rates. Companies on different levels can use these incentives as a tax-planning vehicle for a wide range of economic and or commercial activities. There is also the Commercial Free Zone Act of 1994. It established commercial free zones to attract foreign investment. It allows for tax holidays and free duty in areas like manufacturing and processing and so on.

It has become a popular destination for the offshore companies because of its English based system of governance and doing business. The majority takes the form of off shore business ventures and by March 2000 after the introduction of the company’s act, they numbered 14,000. The legislation is based on the format followed on the British Virgin Islands. This country (Belize) is a leader in off shore company formation and is a tax haven for international businesses and off shore trusts. There are services available for business registration and there is the subsequent provision of support for smooth transition and operation into the country. Service provision and legal maintenance of off shore companies is also available. The banking system is not only international and off shore but also high tech.

In Belize, one is assured of quality service provision in various areas pertaining to company formation. These include acquisition of a registered business address and a registered agent, and the provision of nominee directors and nominee shareholders that are available in the market. The company is also provided with a secretary and the preparation and filing of all the necessary returns is taken care of. There are several reasons why anyone should choose to invest off shore in Belize. Firstly it is a country that is known for its low taxes within its jurisdiction this is due to the introduction of the international business company legislation in  the 1990′s as well as  a range of offshore enabling laws.

Secondarily it has a good reputation as the ideal place to do offshore business globally. This is because it has specific legislation that prevents money laundering and fraud. The laws of this country protect the individual and the company. This means that any activities of the directors, shareholders or of the company itself are protected from the public eye. Any company information is only privy to share holders of the company on demand although that is soon to change as countries clamor for changes in tax haven policies.

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The Order Form

The country of Belize dates back thousands of years. The Mayan civilization, which spread into this area, dates back thousands of years. It spread into the area now known as Belize between 1500 B.C and 250 A.D. European contact began with Christopher Columbus in 1502 A.D when he sailed there but the first recorded European settlement was in 1628. Belize, formerly known as British Honduras, was a colony of Great Britain from 1840 and became a crown colony in 1862. Full internal self-government under the ministerial system was achieved in 1964. The country’s name was changed from the British Honduras to Belize in June 1973 and the country achieved full independence on September 21, 1981.

The constitution of the British Honduras was established in April 1871 and under it, the lieutenant governor and legislative council governed the British Honduras. This caused power to change from the old settler families to boardrooms and the colonial office in London.

As far as the registration of businesses in this country is concerned, its history is important for various obvious reasons. First of all, the country’s official language was changed to English. As such, any of the processes in business registration done in this country are undertaken in English which 54% of the population speaks with a further 26% having understanding of the same language.

To register a company in Belize, there are several steps followed as is with any other country in the world; the first being to place an order. This form you are to use to form your Belize international business company and it is available on different web sites including Fidelity Overseas. Once you get the order form, it takes only a few minutes to fill it in either electronically or by hand. It has the explanations of the various items that may be required for registration along the way. This form can be sent over the net by either fax or even mail. If buying a readymade company, fill in the same order and send it indicating your full and correct contact details. (This allows the company responsible for the registration to communicate with you constantly and to be able to reach you whenever necessary).

Once the order form has been duly filled, the organization can go ahead and issue information that will aid in the establishment of the company in Belize. This information includes the availability of the name the organization would like to use as its business name. This ensures that the name is indeed available. Depending on the company structure, the registrars would be able to guide the individual or group on the steps taken next. Once all the details are in and understood, the company can then issue a proforma invoice on the different individual service costs for incorporation and running of the organization within Belize for a period of one year. Changes to suit your needs can be incorporated at any point during this process to ensure you get that tailor made solution.

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Belize is a state that was recognized in 1981. It has joined states like Cyprus and the Cayman Islands in supporting and aiding of registering and establishing of International Business Companies or IBC. The main idea of offshore businesses is to pay less tax and to have less scrutiny of your business by local authorities. The local rules and laws on how to begin a business are also straightforward and are the bases used to start up an offshore or international company

To begin with, it will take a day at most to get a name recognized and registered for your new company and ensure the name is not already taken. There is no charge to handle this part of the process. It will take another 2 days to register company statutes and memorandum and articles of association at the Companies’ Registry. It is at this point that the directors or nominees of the company’s board are made known to the Registry and registered. From then on, another day is taken to apply for a trade license with the City Council and this is at no charge.

At this juncture, a city inspector is sent over the next day to inspect the business premises or property. Their local government is so efficient in that there are only four such inspectors in Belize but one has to be sent through the following day for inspection. From there on, there will be a waiting period 20 days to receive the inspector’s report. In the meantime, take one day to pay for the trade license with the Council. How much does it cost? You will have to part with 20% of the premises value for that.

From there on, a company seal has to be created and made and this takes about 2 days. Then you do have to register your business or company with the Belize Income Tax Department so you may be put down for tax collection as per the laws of the state. This will take about 10 days to complete, and at the same time you should register for the for General Sales Tax at the Tax office and this should take about 2 or 3 weeks to complete and register.

You are no longer charged for the rest of the registration process after dealing with the Income Tax Department. Moreover, after that, you now have to register your employees with the social security board at which point you will have to wait for three months, but you are now entitled to open up and do business. The main requirements are that all the employees and directors have clean legal records, that the shareholders or partners are Belize residents and that your capital has been paid in full. Also within a month, you must have 10 or more employees.

The Belize Council has been lauded for its efficiency when it comes to company registration and business processes. In addition, this is why registering for an offshore company with them is fast and efficient.

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Belize has now joined the ranks of the Virgin Islands and the Caymans as a tax haven. Since the inception of the International Business Company Act in 1990, Belize has ranked in the top 20 tax haven countries. With minimal restrictions on how a registered IBC can operate in Belize, the country does not tax any offshore company that registers there. The company setup is fast paced and once the process is done, the director of the business registered does not have to permanently reside there. Though a secretary is also not necessary, it is recommended that a business should hire one for the day-to-day operations. So, how do you enjoy the benefits of an IBC? The registration process can be done in the following steps:

1. The first step is to identify a suitable name for the company. A search is necessary to authenticate the name and ensure no other business operates under the same name. The Registry of Companies is responsible for undertaking the name search. It can be done via phone or fax. Maximum charges are BZ $50 and the process is computerized so it will take but a few minutes.

2. After the name has been settled, the Articles of Association and Memorandum of Understanding are to be presented at the Registry of Companies. The charges are BZ $ 500 for the certificate of incorporation and an additional BZ $ 10 filing fee. To register the statutes and memorandum of association is about BZ $ 100. Lastly, BZ $ 13 is needed to register the directors who will act on behalf of the company. Note that all directors will have to produce identification documentation.

3. A trade license is then obtained from the Belize City Council and there is no charge incurred. Documentation for the license includes a Certificate of Compliance issued by the Companies Registry and proof of residency. A city inspector will inspect the property. A fee of 25% of the annual rental value of the business premises will be charged.

4. After that, the company will need to be registered at the income tax department. On paying BZ $ 150, the company waits 2 weeks for the registration to be completed.

5. A company seal that costs about BZ $ 50-200 can be made at a local statements store. The procedure takes about 2 days to complete.

6. A business must register the company for general sales tax (GST), a procedure that will take a few weeks to complete. Once the company has been registered, it can begin to operate but taxes payable should be withheld to avoid penalties and interest.

7. In the case of local employees, they would need to be registered at the Social Security Board.

Renewable fees are paid every year and include those for the registered agent, the company office, and the government. The fee for the registered company office must be renewed every year. All together, the charges for registering a company come to about BZ $ 1600 or US $ 800.

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Registering a company in Belize can be considered a generally painless process. Most of the systems used in Belize are computerized which definitely increases efficiency and reduces the amount of time it would take if the system were entirely manual. There are many business opportunities in Belize, but tourism is by far one of the highest ranking. Belize is a small country in Central America bordered by Mexico and Guatemala. The country’s small size is a great advantage for tourism as one can cross from one end to another easily by road.

If there is interest in registering a tourism related business that accommodates, the following procedures have to be followed. If constructing, the procedures include getting a lot plan and requesting for a building permit from the Central Building Authority. After that have a foundation and city council inspection done and obtain an occupancy permit. Following that is an electricity inspection and connection of power and lastly connection of the telephone lines and water.

1. After construction and before the presentation of an application to the Belize Tourism Board, the procedures for company registration must be followed. After conducting a name search, the Memorandum of Association and Articles of Association is presented to Registry of Companies a trade license will be issued. Registration at the income tax department and the general sales tax department is required. Employees will need to be registered at the Social Security Board.

2. For those registering for the first time, a license application form must be completed. The fee charges is BZ $ 25 (non-refundable) and BZ $ 5 for each bedroom.

3. The Registrar then verifies the application and confirms through a report made after a site inspection with regards to adherence to the set standards as prescribed for hotel and tourist accommodation.

4. The rules and regulation of the Hotel and Tourism Accommodation Act are then highlighted to the prospective person involved in the daily running of the business. If this is not done, a hotel and tourism accommodation license will not be issued.

The following documents should be kept on hand, as they may be request to be submitted them attached to the application. They include permit to use the building as a hotel or tourism accommodation premises, the Company of Incorporations Certificates, the Articles of Association and Memorandum of Association, passports, work permits for non-residents, a valid trade license, a valid liquor license, food handling and establishment certificate and a service charge distribution scheme.

The rules above apply for any tourism accommodation and includes condominiums, guest houses, villas, apartments, camping sites, yacht and other sea vessels, lodges, religious and educational facilities, and inns. Remember property tax and land tax are charged annually depending on the rent paid for the property and the acreage of the land. The price incurred to establish a tourist facility depends greatly on the location, the size of the facility and the materials that would be used for construction of the said facilities with this being calculated as a percentage of the rental value.

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