Key Corporate Features General Information Company Information Compliance Related Resources How to Proceed
REQUEST A QUOTATION
The Isle of Man, situated in the centre of the British Isles, is an internally self-governing dependent territory of the British Crown which is not and never has been part of the United Kingdom. It is however, part of the British Isles. Tynwald, the Island's 1,000 year old Parliament, makes its own laws and oversees all internal administration, fiscal and social policies. External issues, such as foreign representation and defence, are administered on the Island's behalf by the UK Government and the Island makes an annual payment for these services.
The population of the Isle of Man is approximately 85,000.
The Isle of Man is an independant country, constitutionally an internally self-governing dependant territory of the British Crown; the UK Goverment does not legislate for the Island except withthe specific consent of the Island's Goverment.
Tynwald (Parliament) legislates on all domestic matters including taxation. Tynwald consists of two branches, known as the Upper and Lower. The Legislative Council, (Upper) consists of ten Members and is elected by the lower house, Members include the President of Tynwald, the Lord Bishop of Sodor and Man, HM Attorney General and HM Queen Elizabeth II. The House of Keys, (Lower) has twenty-four Members who are elected and serve a five-year term. HM Queen Elizabeth II holds the title Lord of Man, and is ultimately responsible for the governance of the Island. All legislation passed by Tynwald has to have Royal Assent before being enacted.
The Isle of Man is not a full member of the EU Union but it falls within the EU common customs area and the EU common external tariff. The Island's relationship with the UK is governed by Protocol 3 in the UK'S Accession which means that the Island is part of the customs territory of the community and not regarded as a third party customs purposes.
More information can be found at www.gov.im.
The economy is in its 26th year of growth the key sectors being financial services and professional services, Banking generates around one quarter of the Island’s gross domestic product.
In the last few years new economic activities have been developed, such as aircraft registration and most significantly, e-gaming and other areas of e-commerce due to an infrastructure of world-class telecommunications and services which cater for the full range of modern corporate voice and data communication requirements.
The Isle of Man has been awarded Triple “A” Ratings from Standard and Poor and Moody’s.
The official and spoken language is English.
The Manx Pound, which is on par with the UK Pound and freely exchangeable.
None.
Common Law, based on English Common Law.
The Companies Acts 1931 to 2004.
The Private Limited Company must have two directors who must be natural persons but may reside anywhere in the world.
Submission of Memorandum and Articles of Association, together with "Form I " nominating the first directors and secretary, and advise of the situation of the Registered Office and the form giving name approval.
Private Limited Companies are not permitted to:
An Isle of Man company has all the powers of a natural person.
English.
Companies must maintain a registered office in the Isle of Man.
Yes.
One to five days, subject to name approval.
Full information can be found at: http://www.gov.im/lib/docs/ded/companies/companiesreg/masternameguidanceaugust2005.pdf
Names can be expressed in any language using the Latin alphabet, if the Registrar of Companies is in receipt of an English translation and the name is not considered undesirable.
The following names or their derivatives require consent or a licence: bank, building society, savings, loans, insurance, assurance, reinsurance, co-operative, council, Chamber of Commerce, trust, municipal and finance or their foreign-language equivalents.
Limited or Ltd.
The identity of the beneficial owners of the Isle of Man Company may remain confidential if corporate shareholders are engaged to act as the shareholder on behalf of the ultimate beneficial owners. This confidentiality is maintained as long as the company and its ultimate beneficial owners are not involved in any criminal activity.
Private Limited Companies have a minimum authorised share capital of £2000 or its currency equivalent, this being the maximum for the minimum capital duty payable upon incorporation.The minimum issued capital is one share of the par value.
Private limited Companies may have registered shares, preference shares, redeemable shares and shares with or without voting rights.
Private Limited Companies normally pay income tax at 0% and there is no withholding tax on payments of dividends to shareholders.
Companies that are in the business of banking, insurance or are connected with the business of Isle of Man property pay corporation tax at a rate of 10% and a withholding tax at the same rate is imposed if the dividend is paid to a non resident individual or corporate body.
All Private Limited Companies pay an annual charge of £360.
Isle of Man Companies may be registered for VAT purposes and the VAT prefix will be "GB",which is recognised in Europe. Foreign companies may be registered on the "F" register in the Isle of Man and then apply for VAT registration.
Apart from a limited treaty with the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man is not party to any double tax treaties.
Whilst there is no requirement to file audited financial statements with the authorities, it is important to note that a company is required to keep financial records, which reflects the financial position of a company. If accounting records are kept at a place outside the Isle of Man they must be sent to the company's registered office in the Isle of Man at no less than 6 months intervals.
Failure to maintain accounts or make them available for inspection at a company's registered office is an offence punishable by imprisonment or a fine.
The Assessor of Income Tax reserves the right to call in the financial records for inspection.
The minimum number of directors is two, they may be of any nationality or residence. Bodies corporate may be appointed as directors.
A company secretary is required and must be a natural person but may be of any nationality and reside anywhere in the world.
The minimum number of shareholders is one.
Other business entities used for international tax planning include:
Further information on these alternative structures are available on request.
Information Downloads & Order Forms
The office and consultants listed here has particular expertise in this area and will gladly assist you, at no obligation, with a Free Initial Consultation.