Introduction
The British Virgin Island (BVI) is a group of islands in the Caribbean Sea located approximately 80 kilometres east of Puerto Rico. The BVI is a British Dependent Territory which became self-governing in 1967 and is a member of the British Commonwealth. Since introducing its International Business Company (IBC) legislation in 1984, the BVI offshore financial services sector has expanded rapidly. In 2004, the IBC Act was replaced by the Business Companies (BC) Act and further enhanced the jurisdiction’s popularity.
Law and Taxation
The legal system is based on the English common law supplemented by local ordinances. There are no taxes levied on BCs with the exception of the annual government licence fee which is USD 350.00 for companies with number of shares authorized to issue equal to 50,000 or less. Companies that fail to pay their licence fee by the due date are subject to penalties and will struck off for non-payment five months after the due date. There are no exchange controls or restrictions on the flow of currency in or out of the territory.
Corporate Requirements
Each BVI company must have a Registered Agent and Registered Office in the BVI, provided by a licensed service provider.
Each company must have at least one director and corporate directors are permitted. However, under the Business Companies (Amendment) Act 2005 “the New Act”, every newly incorporated company will be required to appoint first directors within 6 months of the date of incorporation and the original or copy of the Register of Directors will be required to be kept at the office of the Registered Agent. Details of the directors do not appear on any public record, although there are provisions for optional filing at the Registrar of Corporate Affairs of this information if required.
The company should have at least one shareholder and bearer shares are allowed. Under the New Act, bearer share certificates will have to be held by an approved Custodian. The Register of Shareholders or a copy thereof should be kept at the office of the Registered Agent. Details of the shareholders do not appear on any public record, although there are provisions for optional filing at the Registrar of Corporate Affairs of this information if required. Often, it is advisable to keep the original register in the BVI for stamp duty reasons.
There are no requirements for annual returns, annual meetings or audited accounts.
Local Infrastructure
The BVI has now attached a healthy number of international accounting firms and law firms. There are at present, relatively few banks or financial institutions. The Registrar of Corporate Affairs in the BVI is technically advanced and efficient, and has kept pace with continuingly increasing demand.
There are no specific statutory provisions governing secrecy in relation to companies, however, statutory filing requirements are minimal and the English law, which applies to the jurisdiction, does impose a common law duty on professionals to keep the affairs of their clients confidential.
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“KanterAsia (堅得亞洲)” offers a series of “New Company Formation (Hong Kong & Offshore) Services”, viz,
1) Hong Kong business licence application
2) New company formation in Hong Kong
3) New company formation in British Virgin Islands
4) New company formation in Cayman Islands
5) New company formation in Samoa
6) New Company formation in Mauritius
7) New company formation in Singapore
8) Nominee shareholder & nominee director services
9) Assisting offshore company to open bank accounts in Hong Kong
10) Assisting Hong Kong incorporated company to open bank accounts in Hong Kong
11) Asset Management Company Registration
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- ∮∮∮“堅得亞洲” (“KanterAsia”) ∮∮∮
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