Starting a company in an overseas jurisdiction is one of the best ways to minimise your taxes, reduce business overheads, protect your personal assets and access offshore banking facilities. The Bahamas is an ideal destination for entrepreneurs who are looking for overseas jurisdiction business solutions. Located in the Caribbean Sea, the territory is not only a top-rated tourist destination, but also a stable jurisdiction with incredible tax incentives that attract a lot of foreign direct investment.

Advantages of a Bahamas IBC

Tax Exemption
The main benefit of starting a Bahamas offshore company is to take advantage of the country’s low-tax environment. The country exempts all IBCs from paying the vast majority of local taxes, including corporation tax, withholding tax, sales tax, capital gains tax and dividends tax. There is also no personal income taxation in the Bahamas, even though individuals and corporations have to pay other forms of tax, such as stamp duty on purchase of local real estate.

Stable Jurisdiction
A low-tax environment and strong secrecy laws alone are not enough to make an offshore jurisdiction a prime destination for foreign direct investment. A stable economic and political environment is just as crucial. Since attaining independence from British rule in 1973, the Bahamas has never looked back. With a legal system based on English common law, the country prides itself as a stronghold of social, political and economic stability. You can do business and accumulate private property, confident that your rights will be enforced by the state.

Minimal Exchange Controls and Fixed Exchange Rate
Exchange and capital controls can have a huge impact on international trade and commerce, since they limit the amount of foreign money that can be transacted in and out of a country. Although the Bahamian government enforces some exchange and capital controls on its residents, foreigners can move foreign currency into the nation and repatriate their profits with minimal formalities.

Flexible Company Administration
Starting and operating a company in an overseas territory located thousands of miles away from your home country may appear complicated and costly, but it’s an incredibly easy and straightforward task. Many offshore territories, including the Bahamas, have created laws that simplify the process of running offshore companies. There is, for instance, no requirement for a Bahamas IBC to hire a company secretary, and if one is needed, Starting Business can provide the service at a cost-effective rate. Additionally, meetings can be held anywhere in the world, by telephone or other electronic means of communication.

Settle on a Corporate Services Provider
The first step to forming an IBC in the Bahamas is to find a company or agency that has been licensed to provide financial and corporate services. That said, LegalGenius™ is one of the best corporate service providers you can hire to help with the formation of a Bahamas IBC. With extensive experience in the business of international corporate service and consulting, you are assured prompt and professional services.

Provide the Required Documents/Information

The next step is to provide LegalGenius™ with the information and documents that are required for a Bahamas company formation. Here is a list of what you need to provide:

– A unique company name – To avoid unnecessary delays, provide at least three names, in order of preference. Starting Business will conduct a name search, and if available, reserve it for a period of up to 56 days. Name reservation is useful in cases where a client is not ready to register a company right away.
– Names of the shareholders; the minimum number of shareholders of a Bahamas IBC is 1; a shareholder can be a physical person or a corporate body.
– Capital for the issued shares – This can be any amount, since there is no specific minimum capital requirement. The standard authorized share capital is $5,000. – It’s also important to note that IBCs are not permitted to issue bearer shares – shares owned by whoever is in possession of the physical stock certificate. All shares should be registered.
– Names of at least one company director. As with shareholders, a director can be a physical or legal person of any nationality or residence.
– Notarized copies of shareholders’ and directors’ passports, or national identity cards or photographic driving license.
– Proof of residential address and bank reference for shareholders and directors.
– Registration fees.
– Information about intended activities of your prospective Bahamas IBC

How we can help you

If you are considering forming a business or you need expert help with company registration in the Bahamas, LegalGenius™ is ready to assist you with its skilled team of lawyers, consultants and tax experts. We are committed to making the process as stress-free and streamlined as possible for you, and we will take care of all your document preparation and administrative tasks regarding the registration forms, payment of government fees, local address registration, banking support, etc., whilst always keeping your exact objectives and unique vision in mind throughout the process.

Please use our Company Formation Wizard if you would like to set up your registered company in the Bahamas or if you would like to know the costs involved prior to proceeding with our exceptional services. For other queries and special requests for complex or customised company formation services, please contact us at legal@7geniusgroup.com