Almost everyone knows than an offshore company can be used to protect your assets and can also be used as a vehicle to avoid or minimize tax. In many cases an offshore company (eg. A company incorporated in Cyprus but operating in another jurisdiction) is legally formed to give the owner several benefits that are unobtainable through a local company. One such benefit is the right to obtain a loan in the name of your company. Many European countries forbid LLCs and LTDs to borrow money, as it is in violation with the tax authorities. However, it is of great benefit for a start up entrepreneur if he can get the protection of a regular LTD and still be able to finance the company’s activities, including his own salary.

How is it possible to get more money out of an IBC / Offshore Company, for instance in Cyprus?

It is actually easier than you might think. Normally you need to have approximately EURO 17.000 to form a LTD in a European country. There are exceptions to this rule but 80% of the time this will be the case. Once you have establish the company with 100% of the shares equaling a value of EUR 17.000 then you are unable to draw any of the money out from the company for yourself.

A Limited Liable Company needs to have the ability to be liquid and must assure its trading partners that you have at least have the EUR 17.000 in assets or cash in the company. If the owner of that company by law were able to just take out the money exactly before the company, for any reason, declares bankruptcy then it would favor himself.

With a Cyprus Offshore Company or any other offshore company you are allowed as a resident of a European country to take out loans against the company. Let’s say your company starts to generate a profit, you can then take money out of the company in two ways. One is as regular salary, which will cost you to up to 50% of your salary, as you will be forced to pay the tax authorities. This is undesirable and presents many business owners with a problem, they need to take money out of their business but they don’t want to pay the high tax rates associated with a salary. So what can you do in this situation?

The second way to take money out is as a loan against the company. This loan can be made over a period of 10, 20, 30 or even 50 years. Once the money reaches your account you need to report it to your local tax authorities as a loan. Because it is a loan, and not a profit or income it cannot be taxed.

I hope you fond this article informative. More tips and tricks for how to make the most from your offshore company setups are coming in the near future.
For Cyprus Offshore Company formation and Cyprus offshore bank accounts please contact cclogic.com

One of the biggest questions currently being asked, with all of the offshore jurisdictions available, is “which jurisdiction should I register my offshore company in?”
Different jurisdictions offer different benefits and it is important that you choose the jurisdiction that will offer the most benefits for your company. Below we will discuss 4 of the major offshore jurisdictions and the advantages they could offer you and your company.

Before we begin outlining the jurisdictions and their advantages it is important that you understand some of the terminology we will be using:
IBC = International Business Company, a term for offshore companies in almost any offshore and even onshore jurisdiction.

Offshore jurisdiction = Tax Haven / low tax jurisdiction. Mostly offshore jurisdictions are located on islands or in countries that have no corporate tax, or provide a low taxation rate while also offering privacy and anonymity protection.

TIEA = Tax Information Exchange Agreement. Model agreement on exchange of information on tax matters, developed by the OECD Global Forum Working Group on Effective Exchange of Information

The 4 offshore jurisdictions below were chosen, as they are 4 of the most popular jurisdictions for the incorporation of offshore companies and they offer a wide range of benefits to a miriad of different companies.

Belize:
Belize is located on the border of Mexico and can be the perfect place for those registering an offshore company who desire complete anonymity. Belize has a wealth of services that makes creating and managing an offshore company easy.
However, during the last few years Belize has started signing TIEAs with several important countries around the world. These countries include, but are not limited to, Australia, Belgium and the United Kingdom. This makes Belize less attractive for companies operating in any of the countries that have a TIEA with Belize.

The British Virgin Islands:
The British Virgin Islands (BVI) has long been one of the most famous offshore jurisdictions and thousands of companies have been incorporated in BVI over the last few centuries. Unfortunately, major changes during the past 2 years have made it unattractive for companies to incorporate in BVI. This is mainly due to the TIEAs they have signed with countries such as the USA, UK, Australia, The Nordic Council (Denmark, Norway, Sweden, The Faroes, Finland, Greenland and Iceland), New Zealand, Netherlands, Aruba, China, Ireland and France. You may notice that the mentioned countries have high tax burdens and it was from these countries that most of the companies came to incorporate in BVI.

In the past BVI was the home for many Financial Companies (for the purpose of managing investments), Forex Trading, Mutual Funds etc. It was quite simple to establish these types of companies in the BVI and avoid paying any taxes. Today this has changed considerably and many companies are choosing to stay away from the BVI.

Cyprus:
For most Europeans Cyprus is the No. 1 place to incorporate as Cyprus has the lowest tax rate in Europe. It does have various TIEAs and Double Tax Agreements in place, but despite this it can offer (with the right tax planning) many small, medium and large corporations huge financial benefits.
Cyprus is so attractive to companies and individuals as it is a part of the European Union, it is possible to use Nominee Shareholders and Directors (for anonymity) and it is also possible to avoid corporate tax (0% corporate tax) if the Cyprus Company is nonresident.

The Seychelles:
The Seychelles are well known in the corporate world, but not quite as famous as the previously mentioned offshore jurisdictions. To incorporate in the Seychelles takes less than 1 hour, and they haven’t signed any TIEAs with other nations at this point in time. They will eventually be forced to sign some TIEAs but it is likely this will only be with small, non-important countries.

The Seychelles have very simple regulations in regards to the operation of Financial Investment Companies like Forex Trading, Banking Services and E-Currencies, as well as Mutual Funds, International Trusts and much more. One of the most attractive features of the Seychelles is the low incorporation fee, which is less than EUR 500 for a fully incorporated Seychelles IBC.

You do not need to visit any of the above jurisdictions to register a company within them. It is also possible to open offshore bank accounts in all of these jurisdictions without visiting the country or the bank. Everything can be handled online so that you never have to leave your country but can still achieve the great benefits of having an offshore company.

We hope that the above has given you some useful information in regards to achieving the incorporation of your Offshore Company in the near future. As every company is different and seeks different benefits we recommend you get in touch with one of our professionals who can find a personalized solution for your company and who can guide you, step by step, through the entire process.

Bahamas company formation requires that any person who is a subscriber must be ready to subscribe for a minimum of one share. If there is any nonresident subscriber, he must be able to get permission for the exchange control. Another document that must be submitted with the memorandum is a declaration that is fully signed by the attorney together with the counsel regarding the capacity of those people who want to be incorporated. Another very important document that is submitted is the clause that specifies the liability of the shareholders. There should be clear guidelines that show the liability of the shareholders and to what extent is it limited to.

When it comes to foreign companies that want to be incorporated in the Bahamas Company formation, they have to follow some laid down procedures in order for them to be fully accepted to do business. For instance, they are supposed to make a statement file that is in the form of an application approval.  The statement file should be able to give the details about the name of the company together with the area of operation it is incorporated. The statement filed must show the actual date of the company incorporation. The documents must be able to show the way in which it was incorporated and with all the relevant information on the corporate instruments. If there is any fixed period of doing business, it has to be clearly shown.

Another important requirement for the Bahamas company formation by the foreign investors is the specification that shows the extent to which the shareholders of the company are liable in case of any debts that has to be settled when winding up the company. According to the Company Act of Bahamas Company formation, there should be the undertaking of the company on how it will conduct its business. The foreign investors must also be able to show the three categories of capital and these include the authorized, subscribed and the paid up capital of the company. There should also be a clear distinction in terms of the shares that are supposed to be issued and the face value of those shares.

We provide the following company formation services, Seychelles Company Formation |Belize Company Formation| Offshore Company Formation | BVI Company Formation | Bahamas Company Formation

According to the law on Bahamas Company Formation, two or more people can be involved in the incorporation process. This is done when the persons subscribe to a memorandum. This process can only be carried out by a licensed bank of trust company. A company can only be incorporated if it is not involved in any form of criminal activity. The business operations carried out by the company should not be prohibited by the country’s laws.

If there is evidence that indicates that a business is involved in criminal activities after Bahamas Company Formation, the registrar general will remove the company from the list. Before this happens, the company is given a chance to plead its case within 7 seven days.

Bahamas Company Formation also considers personal liability when a company is in trouble. The law indicates that members, directors, agents, officers and company liquidators will not be held responsible for any company problems unless there is evidence to show that they acted in bad faith. The company memorandum will determine the liability the members will be responsible for. The amount of liability will be determined by the number of unpaid shares the members hold or the responsibility each has to contribute to the company assets when it winds up.

Bahamas Company Formation laws also allow companies to be limited by a guarantee or shares and in some cases; they can be limited by both.

The laws also give companies the power to be involved in all the activities that will assist them to achieve their objectives as long as they as they are not criminal. These activities include issuing registered shares, voting shares, non-voting shares, unnumbered shares, no par value shares, common shares, redeemable shares and preferred shares.

The memorandum required in Bahamas Company Formation has to have the company name, site of company’s location in the country, the reason why the company was incorporated, the currency the company will use to issue shares, the authorized capital if the company is limited by shares and a statement indicating the amount each member will contribute to company assets when it winds up.

During Bahamas Company Formation, the Articles of Association have to be subscribed by 2 people and a witness has to be present. The law requires this document to be filed at the registrar general’s office when you are filing the memorandum. A certificate of incorporation will only be used when these two documents are filed. If the company shares do not meet the minimum requirements, the registrar has the power to halt the registration process.

Once a certificate of incorporation is issued by the registrar, the company becomes a corporate body that is limited by the memorandum and the provisions made in the laws related to offshore companies. The certificate will indicate that the company has complied with all the requirements that have been set up by the law.

We provide the following company formation services, Seychelles Company Formation |Belize Company Formation| Offshore Company Formation | BVI Company Formation | Bahamas Company Formation

Other great incentives are contained in the Hawksbill Act which guarantees a tax free regime in development of Freeport area. The latest Bahamas Free Trade Zone Act, the Export Manufacturing Industries Encouragement Act, the spirits and Beer Manufacturing Act which has been enhanced to allow duty free importation of construction materials and raw materials.

And the list is endless. Investors intending to incorporate in the hotel industry will enjoy the valuable provisions contained in the Hotels Encouragement Act which has been amended to allow massive tax emption on large new hotels for up to 20 years with reductions for the next 10 years.

Companies incorporating in the agricultural sector will be covered under the Agricultural Manufacturers Act which allows for tax waivers on the machinery and raw materials for setting up an agricultural factory.

Provisions in the newly amended Tariffs Act are highly commendable and will allow new investors to enjoy duty exemptions in the construction of family islands.

Company formation process has been reduced into a one stop shop and investors will need to submit their applications directly to Bahamas Investment Authority which is established under the Foreign Investment Law of 1993.

The government has adopted a policy which favours formation of foreign companies in every sector of the economy. The strategy is already bearing fruit and the country has been able to register over 80,000 new companies, majority being incorporated as International Business Companies (IBCs) for either investment or trading activities conducted in other countries.

Most new companies incorporate in tourism related sector and the banking related services. The enactment of a revised foreign landholding Act in 1993 worked wonders as new companies rushed to incorporate in the area.

To incorporate as an IBC, new companies will need only one person or a judicial officer to serve in the position of a director. Unlike in other areas that may demand three people to act as directors, the Bahamas law favours only one person in the position of a director.

Further, the law allows that shares be issued either in bearer or registered form. Investors will however not be subjected to another process to register the shares nor are they required make a disclosure in the public record.

However companies incorporating as IBCs are not allowed to engage in a business enterprise in Bahamas nor can they own real estate. They are also barred from earning interests from Bahamas Bank Accounts without being subjected to taxation. The tax regime may only be relaxed for twenty years after which it is imposed

We provide the following company formation services, Seychelles Company Formation |Belize Company Formation| Offshore Company Formation | BVI Company Formation | Bahamas Company Formation

Offshore company is the most searched company type. It’s the most favourite type of company because of their flexibility on taxes management. This type of company is applied in a country, which want to maximize economic opportunity to the other countries company to invest on the country, with limited restriction or more freedom regulations or laws.

This type of company is unique because of their location, that’s out of the country’s regulation law and jurisdiction. Firstly, the regulation for establishing and operating the new company is easier and less costly than the local-regular company, that required extensive reporting and following a procedures that given by the government. It can make the infestation is running along the time, and make the conducive climate of business.

Secondly, it has a more secure regulation than local-regular Company. Many offshore company formation regulations protect the confidentiality and state disclosing information as a criminal offence, with a special punishment given to the actor.

Then, why must we register Seychelles Company? Why must it be Seychelles, not another country? Seychelles is one of the countries that have a good climate of business growing. The political climate is good enough, and the social condition is very conducive. So, with register Seychelles Company, you can take the good working condition that make you enjoy.

Also, Seychelles have their own regulation on offshore company. The Seychelles offshore company formation is a formation of international business company (IBC) in the selected part of the country’s land, which has their own jurisdiction beside of Seychelles country’s law and regulation.

The most interesting in that regulation is zero tax (or tax haven status) applied, that may conduct a company to grow its own business with no problem on tax management. No tax applied here cause the growth of business is more rapidly, that make the business climate is become more dynamic.

The impact of applying this regulation is that the wage can be higher! It’s because the component of cost is minus of tax, so the company can post the reserve money for taxes to another component, no exception for worker wage. So, register Seychelles Company is the good choose for higher wage!

After all, why must you think? You just ought to register Seychelles Company, and enjoy the different working climate here!

We provide the following company formation services, Seychelles Company Formation |Belize Company Formation| Offshore Company Formation | BVI Company Formation | Bahamas Company Formation

One common feature that has made Bahamas company formation to be very popular is the regulation that allows one director and one shareholder to be able to conduct their business. There is no requirement that you must have a certain number for you to be allowed to do business in Bahamas company formation. Another notable feature is the fact that there is no requirement that the directors and the shareholders must be residents of Bahamas. The directors or the shareholders can come from any part of the world and they need not to provide for their nationalities when doing business.

By investing in Bahamas company formation, there is no minimum capital required for the business to start trading. Any capital of doing business may be accepted and the shares that are traded should be registered and ready to be traded in any currency. In the Bahamas international business, the accounts are not kept but for those people who wish to keep the accounts there is no provision that they have to be audited.

There is a provision for the share register to be kept but the process of shareholders nominees is unclear and the company should make their own decision. When it comes to rules governing the meetings they are very flexible as the meetings can be conducted on any part of the world. Sometimes the meetings can be held by use of electronic media and telephones as physical presence is not a must. There is a provision that the memorandum of association together with the articles of association documents should be held and provided in public.

There is also a new legislation that provides for the protection of the assets from any action that originates from outside the Bahamas. There is also another provision for the small groups of shareholders who are the minority group to be protected.

The investors also do enjoy the exemption from paying taxes and stamp duties that are charged for a period of 20 years since the time of incorporating the company. Any company that is foreign but it is registered by the Bahamas company act of 1992 can be able to change its status but under some conditions. For instance, the company is not supposed to do any business with the Bahamas residents. The company should not have an interest in owning the real property. There are some types of businesses that are not allowed to be traded in the Bahamas like the insurance and banking business.

Bahamas has repealed the obsolete Companies Act of 1866 and ushered a new dawn in the business sector with the introduction of a new companies Act which became operational from August 1992. The new law is business friendly and has created more room for companies to thrive.

You can now incorporate your company with as little as two people as opposed to the previous requirements which put the number at five.

Investors have a reduced workload in terms of paper requirements and will only require the inclusion of a standard form of Articles of Association, which will be needed for mere reference.

And in an elaborate strategy to safeguard investments by ordinary people, companies including their shareholders are required to maintain a higher degree of transparency and accountability. This has resulted in higher returns and a remarkable growth in the economy.

Company’s that are struck off for one reason or another can reincorporate again without being subjected to the extraneous legal process at the Supreme Court of Bahamas.

However, investors will be required to file a Memorandum of Association with the Registrar General prior to the formation of a company. This can be filed jointly with the Articles of Association but new companies are left with the discretion to either file it immediately or within six months of incorporation. The Articles of Association must be signed and certified by another person. As a general rule, the Memorandum is also signed by two people and witnessed by a third party.

The law stipulates that individuals who append their signatures must declare ownership of the company through one share. Also, the law allows for the participation of non resident in the process as a way of ensuring that the new company has binding exchange control permission.

The number of bona fide members must be certified by counsel and attorney in the form of a signed declaration and submitted together with the Memorandum. The investors must also specify the level at which the liability of shareholders or members is limited.

In the event that the new company is a product of merger with an existing company or companies in Bahamas, incorporators will be required to submit articles of merger or consolidation to the Registrar General. However the law prohibits a company to merge with a subsidiary. Nevertheless, the affected parent company is required to submit articles of merger to the Registrar General. Also regulated under this Act are companies undergoing any form of reorganization or reconstruction which are required by the law to file articles of arrangement with eth Registrar General.

Importantly, incase you form a private company, this status will be retained in the register of Registrar General’s Office until such a time when you want to revert to public a company. Public Companies have a wider discretion in terms of ownership and its shares are open for public distribution.

CCLOGIC.COM offer services to incorporate in the Bahamas, please visit our site : Bahamas Company Formation for more information.

Some of the advantages that Bahamas offers to offshore companies are mentioned below:

There are no major problems of taxation for financial institutions and the capital requirement is also very less based on the type of financial institutions i.e. a bank, a trust and so on. The business establishments who form their company in Bahamas also receive various other benefits and some of them are listed below:

Tax exemption on the items listed below:
• Capital gains
• Dividends
• Interests
• Profits
• Gifts
• Estates
• Royalties

Some of the other major advantages of Offshore Company Formation at Bahamas are that Bahamas is economically stable and has high end communication systems. Apart from this Bahamas is located not far than fifty miles from USA.

Now you know about the various advantages of Offshore Company Formation in Bahamas, then its time to learn about the basic steps of getting a licensure for the company. The basic process to apply for a licensure starts with filing the documents stating the name and address of the trust company or bank, registered office of the bank or trust company, financial year followed by them. Some of the additional requirements will include name of the auditor, his/her address, qualification and details like name and address of the directors, partners, managers etc. You will be also required to file Certificate of Incorporation and Memorandums.

There are many offshore legal service providers in Bahamas that can guide you through each and every step of company formation.

CCLOGIC Ltd is offering Bahamas Company Formation and the opening of offshore bank accounts in Cyprus, Seychelles and Bahamas, we have several offshore jurisdictions where we are offering our service in order to help clients archieve their goals.

During offshore company formation, there are certain factors that should be considered before settling on the best place to put up the business. The most important is the taxation laws that are applicable in a country. The level of taxation will determine the amounts that will be available for reinvestment. Therefore there’s need to go for a tax system with lowest rates of corporation tax.

Corporate tax on income is the main tax on offshore companies and it currently stands at 10% of the declared profits. Other companies such as maritime management companies are taxed at 4.25% while shipping companies are subject to no taxation at all. But the scenario has not always been like this as prior to the year 2003, all offshore companies and the foreign companies with their subsidiaries in Cyprus were taxed at 4.25% of the total profits. For a foreign company or its branches to be liable for this tax, the management and control should be in Cyprus. However, offshore companies that were formed before 2002 had the option of submitting taxes subject to a 4.5% rate but this benefit was scrapped off in the year 2006. 

Dividend income received from foreign investment and royalties received from assets abroad are exempt from withholding tax. Actually no taxes are paid for any profits made from sale of securities. Cyprus has also signed many double tax treaties that ensure that no company will be taxed more than once on its income.

Other provisions in the offshore company tax laws in Cyprus are that various offshore companies can merge without any tax consequences. This is regardless of the reason for the merger whether as a take-over bid or for purposes of reorganization. This provision encourages better performance by the smaller companies that may not have been able to operate at full potential due to some constraints. Merging encourages the offshore companies to take full advantage of the economies of scale.

A unilateral tax relief is accorded to all Cypriot companies including the offshore companies due to any foreign tax suffered even if the double tax treaty is not applicable. Similarly/ when a Cyprus offshore company incurs tax losses, they will be indefinitely carried forward or be surrendered as group relief.

Currently Cyprus has over 120,000 companies of which many are offshore companies. The reason for this is not only the convenient and hassle free offshore company formation process but also the fact that Cyprus offshore tax rates are so far the lowest in the European Union. This means that the Cyprus is probably the best place to invest in when venturing into the offshore business.

Offshore Company Formation and Offshore Bank Account (C) 2009 – CCLOGIC.COM – Register your Offshore Company today.