CORPORATE & TRUST SERVICES
Advantages
Whereas other jurisdictions may take in excess of a week for the incorporation and release of the incorporation documents, the IBC Registry routinely incorporates a Belize IBC within 24 hours of lodgment of the constitutive documents of the company together with the prescribed fee.
At US$100.00, Belize’s incorporation and annual license fee is the lowest in the world among recognized offshore jurisdictions. The corresponding fees in both the BVI and Panama are no less than US$350.00 per annum, a whopping 250% higher fee. In the BVI, these fees are expected to increase by up to US$750 in the next few years. There is no expectation of any adjustment to the fees in Belize in the near future. Further, there are no necessary audit requirements.
Filing requirements are limited primarily to memorandum and articles of association, name of registered agent and address of registered office. Bearer shares may be issued subject to registered agent/professional intermediary custody requirements.
Having been based on and not changed materially from the original BVI IBC Act, the common law-based Belize IBC is legally familiar. Bearer shares may be held with any professional intermediary in and out of Belize
With just over 65,000 IBC’s incorporate in Belize as compared to cover 7,000,000 in BVI, Belize clearly and conveniently has much greater company name options for the client.
The Belize IBC enjoys total exemption from all forms of taxation in Belize including stamp duty.
A Belize IBC may freely open and maintain any type of currency account.
A Belize IBC is capable of being incorporated for (or restricted to (as in the case of special purpose corporations)) any object not prohibited by the laws of Belize. Only one subscriber is required for incorporation. The Belize IBC may have only one director. Directors can be corporate and need not be resident in the country. Meetings of shareholders and/or directors may be held in any country at any time and may be attended by proxy. Resolutions of members and/or directors may be passed without a meeting. Shares can be issued without par value. A Belize IBC may be incorporated in any language (provided a properly translated English version is also submitted) and with an authorized share capital in a foreign currency. The Certificate of Incorporation is also granted in that foreign script. Belize IBC’s may migrate into and out of Belize. However, once re-domiciled in Belize, the former governing law ceases to be operable.