Nevis Offshore Exempt Company Legislation
Offshore companies in Nevis are incorporated under the Nevis Business Corporation Ordinance Act of 1984 and amendments, and privacy is protected by the Confidential Relations Act of 1985.
Time to Incorporate
Incorporation normally takes between 24 and 48 hours
Corporate Structure of a Nevis NBCO
- Only one director required – can be an individual or corporate
- Only one shareholder required – can be an individual or corporate
- A director can be a shareholder and vice versa
- No requirement for Nevis residency for shareholder(s) and director(s)
- A secretary is not required
Confidentiality and Privacy
- The Nevis incorporation documents do not carry the name or identity of the shareholder(s) or director(s). As such no names appear on the public record.
- Shareholder(s) and director(s) nominee services are allowed to ensure confidentiality of beneficiaries.
Capital Structure of a Nevis International Business Company
- Shares can be issued with or without par value
- Shares may be issued in any legal currency or in more than one legal currency
- Shares may be paid up in cash or through the transfer of other assets or for other consideration
- The standard share capital is US$ 100,000 or an equivalent in another recognizable currency
- The minimum paid in and issued capital may be one share
- Bearer shares are permitted, but they must be held by the registered agent
- A share register must be kept but can be held anywhere in the world
Taxation
Under the Nevis Business Corporation Ordinance Act of 1984, offshore companies are exempted from all taxes and stamp duties.
Financial Statements and Company Records
- There are no filings to the authorities in Nevis after the Company has been incorporated
Meetings of Nevis NBCO Shareholder(s) and Director(s)
- Meetings of shareholder(s) and/or director(s) are not required but if they are held they should be minuted.
- If a meeting is held it need not be in Nevis and participants can attend by telephone.
Doing business with a Nevis NBCO or LLC
A Nevis NBCO or LLC can carry out any legal business and/or investment activity worldwide, they may not offer bank, insurance or trust services without prior authorization from the Nevis Financial Services Commission.
Generally Nevis NBCO’s and LLC’s cannot do business with Nevis residents or corporations.
The Nevis NBCO incorporation package includes:
- First year government filing fees
- Certificate of Incorporation
- Memorandum and Articles of Association
- Letter of appointment of first director
- Nominee shareholder details (if required)
- Declaration of Trust from the nominee shareholder (if a nominee shareholder is required).
- Minutes of the first meeting of the founders
- Share Certificates
- Register of Shareholders
- Register of Directors
- Registered agent services, (first year)
- Registered office, (first year)
- International express delivery by FedEx or DHL
Names
The company may not use a name identical or similar to an existing company so as to cause confusion. The use of the following words is also prohibited: Bank, Trust, Trustees, Insurance, Assurance, Reinsurance, Building Society, Savings, Loans, Chamber of Commerce, University, Municipal or equivalents in foreign languages.
Names must end with one of the following suffixes or an abbreviation thereof:
- Limited or Ltd.
- Corporation or Corp.
- Incorporated or Inc.
- Society Anonyme or S.A.
- Sociedad Anonima or S.A.
- Besioten Vennootshcap or B.V.
- Gelleschafmit beschrankter Haftung or GmbH
- Naamloze Vennootshcap or NV
Any name implying a relationship with banking or insurance or company management industries- e.g. bank, financial, trust and insurance will need prior approval from the Registrar or application for a separate licence.