Authorised companies
An Authorised Company is a private company which conducts business principally outside Mauritius and has its central management and control outside Mauritius.
An Authorised Company (AC) is the type of vehicle typically used for entrepreneurial companies and for international trading, private asset holding and consulting activities, and it can carry out any activity except banking, financial services, investment funds and nominee services.
An AC must satisfy the following criteria:
(a) incorporated under the Mauritius Companies Act;
(b) majority of shares/voting rights/legal/beneficial interest held by a non-citizen of Mauritius;
(c) business conducted principally outside Mauritius (certain activities such as banking, financial services, nominee services are not allowed, as was the case for the Authorised Company (formerly GBC2);
(d) central management and control is outside Mauritius; and
(e) have a registered agent in Mauritius which shall be a management company.
An AC that satisfies the above mentioned criteria will be treated as non-resident and, therefore, is not liable to income tax in Mauritius, although it will have to file a return of income to the MRA within six months of its year end. An application to the Financial Services Commission (FSC) for authorisation has to be made through a management company. Information on the ownership structure together with a brief business plan must be submitted to the FSC at incorporation.
Other salient features of AC are as follows:
- Shall file once in every year a financial summary with the FSC;
- Is allowed to have Corporate Directors; and
- Is not allowed to have bearer shares.
The fees for registration and licencing of an AC are as follows: Codified List - Financial Services Commission - Mauritius (fscmauritius.org)
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