Bahamas Offshore Companies

BAHAMAS OFFSHORE COMPANIES

Bahamas Incorporation. Bahamas IBC.

KGN specializes in Bahamas Offshore Companies and opening bank accounts.

Bahamas Offshore Companies – Overview

The Bahamas is an ideal financial location for individuals and businesses seeking to obtain tax benefits with confidentiality. A Bahamas tax haven can be used for asset protection, estate planning, tax reduction and privacy. The most direct route to achieving these benefits is through the formation of an international business corporation, commonly referred to as a Bahamas IBC.

Political and economic stability

In order to appreciate and appreciate the full benefits that a Bahamas tax haven offers, it is important to start by looking at the island nation of the Bahamas itself. A former British colony until its independence in 1973, this member of the Commonwealth has a solid history of having a stable and reputable government. Its legal system is based on English common law and has English as its official language. Its infrastructure in terms of technology and communication systems is very advanced and reliable. Its financial structure is known internationally. Almost every major bank in the world has a presence in the Bahamas. Its geographic location, just fifty miles east of Florida, also makes the Bahamas convenient in terms of accessibility and time zone accommodations. Since 1990, when the Bahamas enacted the International Business Companies Act, tens of thousands of individuals and companies from around the globe have established IBCs, all benefiting from the privacy and tax reduction benefits they offer. In short, the Bahamas tax haven model is real, it’s safe, it’s legal, and it’s not difficult to set up with the help of a reputable registration agent.

Overview of the benefits of a Bahamas IBC

Confidentiality and privacy

A Bahamas tax haven provides a unique set of benefits for individuals and businesses in terms of privacy and anonymity. Such an entity has the advantage of not requiring disclosure of the names of the members’ owners or the shareholders of the entity. Directors of a Bahamas IBC share the same confidentiality. Even when the company decides to disclose the name of a director for operational reasons, director nominees can be used to maintain anonymity in this area as well.

An important feature of the IBC is that it is not a party to any double taxation treaties. Financial information must be maintained solely by the IBC, but this may be held outside the jurisdiction of the Bahamas and need only be held for five years. There are no statutes requiring revision of this material. If shareholder meetings are held, they may be held outside the jurisdiction and may be held via electronic communication, including by telephone. No annual reports are required. This further strengthens the privacy shield.

Zero tax

The Bahamas tax structure has no corporate tax or personal income tax for non-residents. This means that any income generated by the Bahamas IBC will be free of all Bahamian taxes. In addition, there is no capital gains tax, estate tax, inheritance tax, gift tax, dividend tax, wealth tax or sales tax for either the IBC or its shareholders. This makes the Bahamas tax haven ideal not only as a base for corporate headquarters, but also for estate planning, tax reduction and royalty income. In the case of estate planning, there is a provision written into the law for IBCs that exempts the estate of a deceased shareholder from any tax for a period of a full twenty years after the original registration. All transactions carried out by the Bahamas IBC, including the transfer of property, liabilities and securities to and from the IBC, are free from all taxes, including stamp duty.

Not subject to exchange controls

A Bahamas IBC can operate without the burden of any currency controls. It can conduct its transactions in any currency it chooses. The provisions of the Exchange Control Regulations do not apply to IBCs.

Who can benefit from a Bahamas tax haven?

People seeking asset protection

Asset protection is one of the most common and practical reasons for forming a Bahamas IBC. By placing title to real estate, investment holdings, art, expensive vehicles, or even air and maritime vessels in the name of the IBC, it protects these assets from any attempts to wipe them out from other jurisdictions. It’s a solid defense against creditors, frivolous lawsuits and overzealous garnishments. The Bahamas tax haven is also effective in shielding assets during contested divorce proceedings. It also protects the member-owners from having to reveal their real identity as the owners of these properties in the jurisdiction where they live. The latter provides anonymity in ownership, something that provides privacy and security on a number of different levels.

Day traders and investors

The favorable tax laws of the Bahamas apply no tax on income, capital gains or dividends. This creates an ideal situation for high-frequency traders and high-volume investors to use a Bahamas IBC as the main vehicle to establish their brokerage accounts, fund them and execute their transactions. All earnings generated by their trading activity would be tax free.

This type of benefits need not be limited to high-volume traders, it can also be enjoyed by small or individual investors with modest portfolios. It can also be used to manage pension funds outside the owner’s home jurisdiction. It is a great means of protecting any type of legal investment or trading income from the burdens of heavy taxes commonly found in other parts of the world.

Headquartered in the Bahamas

Most jurisdictions place a heavy burden on entrepreneurs when it comes to corporate income tax. In some parts of the world, this can equate to more than half of a company’s earnings being consumed by taxes. This can easily stifle growth, expansion and even the very survival of any business, large or small. Using a Bahamas IBC as the primary conduit for a company is a simple and effective method of mitigating a company’s exposure to heavy taxation. Remember that a Bahamas IBC can hold offshore bank accounts as well as commercial and financial titles in its own name.

A Bahamas IBC pays neither corporate tax nor income tax. Neither do the shareholders. This allows a company to conduct normal business transactions through the Bahamas tax haven – to reserve all profits through the Bahamas IBC and reduce their tax exposure at home. Repatriation of income generated by the Bahamas IBC may occur at the shareholders’ time and discretion. Some Bahamas IBCs choose to keep the majority, if not all, of their business-generated income within the tax-friendly jurisdiction of The Bahamas.

Protection of intellectual property

For companies that own intellectual property, a Bahamas tax haven is an excellent way to house the intellectual property while allowing its inherent value and generating revenue from it. Since earnings from royalties and licenses do not generate any tax for this type of entity in the Bahamas, the Bahamas IBC has ownership of the intellectual property while charging license fees, franchise fees and royalties for its use, to clients in any jurisdiction in the world, would result in nil tax liability on all this income. This can be very useful for technology and software companies, as well as those involved in traditional and digital publishing. The license and franchise model can also be further extrapolated and applied to many other service-related businesses.

The Bahamas IBC Registration Process

For all the benefits that can be gained from a Bahamas IBC, forming one is relatively quick and easy. The individual or corporate entity forming the Bahamas IBC does not need to be present for the formation.

directors and shareholders

A Bahamas IBC requires at least one director and one shareholder. Directors and shareholders do not need to be residents of the Bahamas. They can be of any nationality. The shareholders, as well as the directors, can be individuals or companies. The number of board members must be determined and stated in the founding agreement. There is no mandate to hold annual director meetings. Likewise, there is no requirement for a company secretary. However, if a company secretary has been appointed, it is important to note that there are also no residency or nationality restrictions on those holding this office.

The names of the shareholders are never submitted to the Registrar General. The same applies to any of the company’s directors or company managers. The name of the stockholders is kept by the registered agent only as part of their confidential records and is not part of any public record. In the event that those forming the Bahamas IBC decide that it is prudent to have the name of a director listed as part of the public register filed with the Registrar General, the services of a nominee director may be used. This essentially assigns a third party to act in the role of director, which in turn protects the names of the actual participating parties.

The only name to appear as a public record in the Registrar General is the name of the appointed registered agent. It is this person who acts as the liaison between the entity and the Bahamian government. The registered agent will be the person who receives any official notices, if any, on behalf of the Bahamas IBC.

Since there is no law requiring annual returns, nor is there any requirement to pay dividends, a Bahamas IBC can retain its earnings or issue distributions whenever it wishes.

Summary

Given the complex and burdensome tax laws found in most countries, it is logical and sensible that individuals and businesses seeking relief from such pressures pursue the tax haven of the Bahamas. Whether for tax breaks, business operations, privacy, estate planning or any combination of these, a tax haven in the Bahamas is one of the most reliable options available.

Bahamas IBC Formation Awards

The Bahamas IBC Formation Package includes:

• Check company name
• Initial business approval
• Preparation of application documents
• Company registration fee
• Certificate of Incorporation
• Registered office address for 1 year
• Registered agent service for 1 year
• State application fee
• Memorandum & articles of association
• Minutes from the first meeting with the appointment of director(s)
• Share certificate(s)
• Register of shareholders
• Register of directors

From: $2550

Why choose KGN?

We have been helping business owners since 1996

Incorporating your company is our focus

We make a complex process quick and easy

We work closely with business registries to guarantee our service

Fastest Offshore Companies and Accounts – Most Competitive Rates Worldwide

Services offered

KGN Services provides the following services in the Bahamas:

• Bahamas incorporation
• Registered office and agent services
• Company secretarial services
• Nominated shareholder / nominated director
• Full business administration
• Bahamas offshore bank accounts
• Mailing address
• Virtual office
• Trademark registration
• Yacht registration

Bahamas – General information

Location: Chain of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean, southeast of Florida, northeast of Cuba.

Area: total: 13,880 km2, land: 10,010 km2, water: 3,870 km2. …

Natural resources : Salt, aragonite, timber, arable land.

Population: 329,988.

Capital: Nassau.

Time zone: UTC−5.

Languages: English (official), Creole (among Haitian immigrants).

Type of government: Parliamentary democracy (Parliament) under a constitutional monarchy; a Commonwealth realm.

Legal system : Common law system based on the English model.

International organization participation: ACP, AOSIS, C, Caricom, CDB, CELAC, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (NGOs), ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITSO, ITU, LAES, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, Petrocaribe, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO , WTO (observer).

Economy : The Bahamas has the second highest GDP per population in the English-speaking Caribbean with an economy heavily dependent on tourism and financial services. Tourism accounts for approximately 50% of GDP and directly or indirectly employs half of the archipelago’s workforce. Financial services constitute the second most important sector of the Bahamian economy, accounting for about 15% of GDP. Manufacturing and agriculture together contribute less than 7% of GDP and show little growth despite government incentives aimed at these sectors.

Currency: Bahamian dollar (BSD).

KGN | Bahamas Corporation