An Authorised Company is an entity where the majority of shares or voting rights or the legal or beneficial interest are held or controlled, as the case may be, by a person who is not a citizen of Mauritius. In addition, an Authorised Company should have its control and management outside of Mauritius and as well conducts business principally outside Mauritius. Last year, the Mauritius Revenue Authority (MRA); issued a Statement of Practice which describes the facts and circumstances to consider in determining if the control & management of a company is in Mauritius. A company has its control & management in Mauritius if it is the place where:
- The strategic decisions on the company’s core activities are taken in or from; and
- Either a majority of the Board of Director’s meetings are held, or where the executive management of the company is regularly exercised.
An Authorised Company is treated as a nonresident for tax purposes in Mauritius and does not have access to the Double Tax Avoidance Agreements network of Mauritius. The foreign-sourced income of an authorsided company would be outside the scope of the Mauritian tax system. Passive foreign income like dividends, interest and royalties would thus not be subject to tax in Mauritius. Since it is considered to be a foreign company, any dividend distribution made to a foreign shareholder should also be outside the scope of Mauritius.
An Authorised Company is also required to appoint a registered agent in Mauritius. We will assist you to find the right registered agent which fits your project and budget for the setting up and incorporation process. Their duties of the registered agent is mainly
- Filing of a financial summary with the FSC;
- Filing of return of income with the MRA;
- Safekeeping of records (board minutes and resolutions, transaction records and such other documents as required by the FSC);
- Filing of any document required under relevant Acts; and
- Undertaking measures to combat money laundering and terrorist financing, and any other related offences as specified by the FSC.
A Mauritius ‘authorised company’ is therefore ideal for a business that intends to carry on international trading, invoicing, marketing, ship management, consultancy services, logistics and asset holding.
