Offshore business in the BVI:

The British Virgin Islands (commonly named BVI) are located in the Atlantic Ocean and are part of the Caribean archipelago. With less than 30’000 inhabitants, these islands are economically dependent on there relationship with other states which explain why queen Elizabeth II is still considered as head of state by the BVI’s government. As such, the BVI tax authorities are tax friendly with all entities willing to do business out of the archipelago and encourage you to register your corporate there by not taxing your offshore profit ie by doing business only out of the BVI territory. Also, its very business oriented legislation because based on the English model is flexible and modern which is a strong asset and motivates many foreign investors to move their business into this jurisdiction.

Having an offshore bank account or owning an offshore company in the BVI will provide you with the following benefits :

• No VAT
• No corporate tax (if you are a non-resident)
• Bank secrecy
• Non disclosure of the identity of business owners

However, due to the fact that more than 40% of international groups have either a subsidiary or a holding registered in the BVI, its reputation plays against them and tends (according to the most pessimistic experts) to make this offshore jurisdiction the next victim of a transparency agreement with the major OECD members.

At FCBA Offshore Ltd, we do not recommend our clients neither to open an offshore bank account nor to incorporate a new offshore company in the BVI with a long life term in the BVI due to the threats described above. Also, for those who would already owe an offshore bank account or an offshore company there, we do recommend them to contact us in order to advise them to where they should relocate their business.

However opening an offshore bank account or to incorporate an offshore company in the BVI is still possible for us and we could enjoy our network and partnerships with local banks to you.

Finally, be aware that the initial deposit of your offshore bank account required by local banks can be quite high and therefore you must have it at your disposal before starting any business in there.

Please if you need any additional information feel free to contact FCBA Offshore Ltd team members.