Bahamas Company Incorporation

How to incorporate company in Bahamas?

Tetra Consultants’ ultimate guide on Bahamas company incorporation is tailored to help our international clients to fully understand the whole process. Before you choose to incorporate company in Bahamas, Tetra Consultants advises you to read through the following comprehensive guide as requirements and regulations are stated clearly to help you fully understand the process of company registration.

Simply put, we can break down Bahamas company formation engagement into four different phases:

1. Planning & strategy
2. Incorporation
3. Bank account opening
4. Staying compliant

By systematically following the above four phases, you can expect to start conducting business with your Bahamas company within 5 weeks.

Step 1: Planning & strategy

• Depending on your business goals and activities, Tetra Consultants will recommend the most suitable business entity. Prior to Bahamas company incorporation, you will be advised on the optimum paid-up share capital, corporate structure, and whether there is a need to apply for any licenses.
• Once confirmed, Tetra Consultants reserves your preferred company name with the Registrar General’s Department.
• It is necessary that you have a legal office address in the Bahamas. While you are not mandated to operate at this address, this requirement will persist for your registration needs. As such, Tetra Consultants will provide you with a local address.
• Other additional requirements include appointing a registered agent. To meet this requirement, Tetra Consultants will assist you in appointing the registered agent coupled with its address so that you can meet your registration needs.
• The role of Local registered agent will act as your representative to the Ministry of Finance and submit accurate financial statements and corporate tax returns.

Step 2: Incorporation

• Tetra Consultants legal team will draft articles of incorporation, business plan, and other required legal documents for Bahamas company incorporation.
• Before submitting the documents to the government, it is required for these Bahamas company incorporation documents to be translated and notarized.
• Thereafter, Tetra Consultants will proceed to register company in Bahamas with Registrar General’s Department.
• Once the company is successfully incorporated, Tetra Consultants will courier the Certificate of Incorporation, Memorandum & Articles of Association, to your preferred addresses. On average, within 1 week you can expect to receive the documents of your new company.
• Furthermore, Tetra Consultants will initiate the requisite application with the Department of Inland Revenue to facilitate that your business operations can be operated seamlessly, as companies pursuing business in the Bahamas are required to have a license from the Ministry of Finance’s Business License Unit under the Business License Act.

Step 3: Bank account opening

• Simultaneously, Tetra Consultants will proceed to open a corporate bank account for your newly-incorporated company. You can enjoy leveraging our extensive banking network and receive your bank account numbers within four weeks.
• Tetra Consultants will contact multiple reputable international or Bahamas banks and present your business to each relationship manager and compliance team.
• If you want to open an account with an offshore bank, we can help you with that as well. We work with renowned banking institutions in Hong Kong, the United States, and New Zealand.
• In most cases, Bahamas banks will not require you to travel to the Bahamas for the bank meeting. In the event this is required, We will send a representative to the bank meeting with you. Conversely, our staff will negotiate with the banks to hold a conference call or obtain a waiver.
• On average, the corporate bank account will be opened within 4 weeks after Bahamas company incorporation. Tetra Consultants will courier the internet banking token and access codes to your preferred address.

Step 4: Staying compliant

• After incorporating the Bahamas company and opening a current account in the bank, Tetra Consultants will continue to provide you with the necessary accounting and tax services to ensure that you can continue to legally conduct business while staying compliant with regulatory obligations.
• Our team of dedicated consultants will timely prepare your firm’s financial statements, corporate tax returns and manage bookkeeping on your behalf.
• While the government of the Bahamas does not levy an income tax, corporations conducting business in the country are subject to other types of taxation. Value-added tax (VAT), stamp tax, real property tax, and import charges are some of these levies.
• It is to be noted that companies established in the Bahamas with a revenue of $850 million or more will be required to file an annual report with the Minister of Finance under the Multinational Entities Financial Reporting Act for which Tetra Consultants’ team of tax professionals & Chartered accountants will assist and solve your queries with regards to the same.
• Tetra Consultants will also register all members of your firm with the National Insurance Board (NIB), which is analogous to the social security system in other jurisdictions, after incorporation. The National Insurance Act makes this mandatory. Every month, the employer, whether a local or a foreigner, will be required to pay the Board’s national insurance contributions, which will be deducted from a percentage of the employer’s own income.

Contact us to find out more about how to incorporate a company in the Bahamas. Our team of experts will assist you through the entire process of Bahamas company registration and revert within the next 24 hours.