BELIZE
Belize is an independent country in Central America, an IBC (International Business Company) incorporated in Belize is exempt from all taxes and stamp duties. Belize also has a special tax rule for individuals who are resident but not domiciled there allowing such residents to only pay tax on income derived in Belize. A Belize IBC has been designed to keep costs minimal. There are no minimum capital requirements, no requirement for audited accounts or annual returns, no local taxes such as stamp duty, no requirments for a local director or secretary and no requirement for an annual general meeting. There is also a lot of flexibility in the Belize IBC system, just one director and one shareholder are required, these may be the same person or even a corporate body. There is no requirement for a secretary and the company may have bearer shares (no name on the share certificate) or registered shares, voting or non-voting shares and the authorized share capital may or may not have a par value. The company can conduct any lawful business in Belize as long as it is not involved in activities which require a licence such as banking, insurance, trust management and collective investments. Confidentiality is also good in Belize, laws have been passed to make certain that the freedom of the individual and the sanctity of private commercial transactions are available, only the Memorandum and Articles of Incorporation are available for public inspection. The Financial Intelligence Unit of Belize and the International Financial Services Commission of Belize are the only two organizations that are privy to client's information upon request.
Annual renewal fees are payable every year in January starting the year following the company incorporation and every January thereafter if the company was incorporated in the first half of the previous year. If incorporation was in the second half of the year, the annual renewal fee is payable on 1st July of the following year and every July thereafter. Annual renewal fees must be paid in order that the company remains in good standing.
The name of the company must contain one of the following words or abbreviations of the words: Limited, Corporation, Society Anonyme, Sociedad Anonima or Aktiengesellschaft or Ltd., Corp., Inc., S.A., A.S. or A.G.
The names cannot include Assurance, Bank, Building Society, Chamber of Commerce, Chartered, Cooperative, Imperial, Insurance, Municipal, Royal or Trust, or any word which suggests the patronage of Her Majesty or any member of the Royal family or a connection to the Government of Belize.
| GENERAL INFORMATION |
| COMPANY LAW |
The International Business Companies Act, 1990 |
| TYPE OF COMPANY |
International Business Company (IBC) |
| LANGUAGE OF LEGISLATION AND CORPORATE DOCUMENTS |
English |
| TAXATION OF FOREIGN PROFIT |
Nil |
| EXCHANGE CONTROLS |
None |
| LENGTH OF TIME TO INCORPORATE |
Few minutes |
| SHELF COMPANIES AVAILABLE |
Yes |
| CORPOPRATE NAMES |
| NAME RESTRICTIONS |
Names identical or similar, offensive words |
| ENDINGS AND ABBREVIATIONS REQUIRED |
Limited, Corporation, Incorporated, Sociedad Anonima, or its abbreviations |
| LENGTH OF TIME TO VERIFY NAME AVAILABILITY |
Few minutes |
| RESERVATION OF NAMES PERMITTED |
Yes |
| LANGUAGE OF NAME |
Any language (some may require official translation) |
| NAME OF BANKS, INSURANCE, INVESTMENT FUND, TRUST COMPANY OR THEIR
EQUIVALENTS REQUIRING CONSENT OR LICENSE |
Yes |
| CAPITAL, SHAREHOLDERS AND DIRECTORS |
| MINIMUM NUMBER OF SHAREHOLDERS |
One |
| LOCAL SHAREHOLDERS REQUIRED |
No |
| CORPORATE SHAREHOLDERS PERMITTED |
Yes |
| DISCLOSURE OF SHAREHOLDERS |
No |
| MINIMUM AUTHORISED CAPITAL REQUIRED |
No minimum |
| BEARER SHARES PERMITTED |
Yes (but with restricted mobility) |
| REGISTERED SHARES PERMITTED |
Yes |
| NO PAR VALUE SHARES PERMITTED |
Yes |
| MINIMUM NUMBER OF DIRECTORS |
One |
| QUALIFICATIONS OF DIRECTORS |
Legal Age |
| OFFICERS REQUIRED |
No |
| CORPORATE DIRECTORS/OFFICERS PERMITTED |
Yes |
| LOCAL DIRECTORS/OFFICERS PERMITTED |
No |
| MEETINGS AND LOCAL REQUIREMENTS |
| ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING OF SHAREHOLDERS REQUIRED |
No |
| ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING OF DIRECTORS REQUIRED |
No |
| LOCATION OF DIRECTORS AND SHAREHOLDERS MEETINGS |
Anywhere |
| QUALIFIED REGISTERED OFFICE/AGENT |
Yes/Yes |
| GOVERNMENT REGISTER OF SHAREHOLDERS |
Optional |
| GOVERNMENT REGISTER OF DIRECTORS/OFFICERS |
Optional |
| GOVERNMENT REGISTER OF CHARGES |
Optional |
| REGISTER OF DIRECTORS/OFFICERS TO BE KEPT AT REGISTERED OFFICE |
Yes |
| COMPANY SEAL REQUIRED |
Yes |
| COPY OF MINUTES TO BE KEPT AT REGISTERED OFFICE |
Optional |
| COPY OF SHARE REGISTER TO BE KEPT AT REGISTERED OFFICE |
Yes |
| ANNUAL REQUIREMENTS |
| MINIMUM ANNUAL LICENSE FEE OR FRANCHISE TAX |
US$100 |
| ANNUAL LICENSE FEE OR FRANCHISE TAX DUE DATE |
July 31st |
| APPLICABLE SURCHARGES |
10% and 50% |
| REQUIREMENT TO FILE ANNUAL RETURNS |
No |
| REQUIREMENT TO SUBMIT ANNUAL AUDITED ACCOUNTS |
No |
For more information please
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