Frequently Asked Questions

Again, not to give you a politician’s answer this depends on your residency, your business type & where it conducts its activities.

List of offshore jurisdictions

If I have missed any I apologise in advance, but here is the main one most company formation agents recommend to clients.

– Anguilla
– Bahamas
– Belize
– Brunei
– BVI
– Cayman Islands Company
– Cook Islands
– Cyprus
– Delaware Company
– Dominica
– Gibraltar NRC
– Hong Kong Company
– Malta
– Marshall Islands
– Nevis
– Panama
– Samoa
– Seychelles
– St. Lucia
– St. Vincent
– UAE (RAK centre)
– Vanuatu

Negative Press on offshore companies

Most of the modern media make offshore jurisdictions out as wild west shady like places when this is far from true. Many offshore jurisdictions are more transparent and governed more effectively than many Western states.

Let us be clear tax evasion & avoidance is illegal while tax efficiency is being smart.

There is no law against being clever and protecting yourself.

Incorporating an offshore company
Incorporating offshore companies is not complex in my opinion. This usually takes between two to five business days. You need a registered address and agent in many jurisdictions which is why you cannot really do this yourself and we recommend using an offshore formation agent.

Opening an offshore bank account
This is the hardest part of the process & I have written a separate article just on this. It is not impossible, otherwise we would not form the company, but I must be honest and manage the client’s expectations here. The quickest I have ever had a traditional offshore company bank account set-up is seven business days. In some cases, clients have opened a Fintech bank account in the interim as they needed this asap to commence business.

Many banks now require you to have substance in the jurisdiction and by that, I mean staff and an office. This is just not economically viable for many clients as the whole point of moving offshore is to minimise costs and not incur more. Do not be disheartened though we act as introducers to many banks all over the world who are keen to do business.

Taking legal & tax advice

Although we have been at this for many years and have knowledge in these areas, we are not qualified to give professional legal or tax advice. We always recommend clients to take independent advice.

Documentation we need pre- incorporation to onboard you as a client

Although I prefer email & I am happy to answer any queries a client has I recommend a free call pre-incorporation to go over your needs and aims. This allows me to answer any questions or concerns you have & explain the process in more depth. Although not set in stone we try to follow the below format.

Step 1– Free client call

Step 2– I send a post call email to you with my understanding of your needs & my recommendations.

Step 3– We send our terms and conditions along with our (KYC/CDD) know your client/ customer due diligence requirements. This is a copy of your passport & recent utility bill.

Step 4– We raise an invoice once step 3 requirements have been passed.

Step 5– Payment is received

Step 6 -Company is incorporated and all the company pack information is sent to you.

Step 7– We start the offshore banking introduction & application.

Step 8– The company and the bank account are completed & we send you the post incorporation reporting requirements depending on your company structure and jurisdiction.

There is no one size fits all solution. You can set up your company in various jurisdictions and structures to suit your needs best. Limited liability company v partnership. Trusts are also popular for asset protection. You are also not restricted to one jurisdiction; some clients mix and match the operational, holding or trust to a structure that suits them best for offshore company formation.