Company registration in Antigua and Barbuda

Every year, Antigua and Barbuda attracts thousands of foreign entrepreneurs. Please see below for information on how to register a company in Antigua and Barbuda remotely or open a corporate account with a bank in Antigua and Barbuda..

Being part of the identically called archipelago,.Antigua and Barbuda is an island state with a rapidly developing economy. Its key economic sectors include tourism, agriculture, IT and gambling.

The capital of the country is St. John's. The official language is English. The country has a population of more than 95 thousand people. The national currency is the East Caribbean Dollar (XCD). Antigua and Barbudaof is a member of the UN, African and Pacific Countries; Organization of American States and others.

Key Features

In 2019, Antigua and Barbuda was ranked 34th for ease of enforceability of contractual terms. The country is also famous for its visa-free regime with 149 countries, including the EU, Monaco, Liechtenstein, the UK and others.

Registration of a company in Antigua and Barbuda has a number of advantages to it, namely:

• rapidly developing economy;
• political stability;
• good environmental situation;
• developed banking sector;
• optimized taxation;
• simplified procedure for obtaining a residence permit/citizenship in Antigua and Barbuda;
• total confidentiality;
• no requirements for annual financial statements/audit.

Antigua and Barbuda is also notable for its highly developed online gaming industry. That is precisely why so many foreign entrepreneurs are looking to obtain a gambling license in Antigua and Barbuda.

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Popular legal forms of companies

Those seeking to register a company in Antigua and Barbuda can do it in one of the following business organization forms:

• LLC;
• a company focusing on import/export of goods and services;
• IBC;
• a holding company;
• a shipping company, etc.

If you want to set up a commercial firm in Antigua and Barbuda remotely, you should definitely choose LLC and IBC - the two most popular business organization forms with foreign businessmen.

Requirements for Registering a Business in Antigua and Barbuda

Registering a company in Antigua and Barbuda requires compliance with the following requirements:

• having a unique company name which includes the following types of endings and their abbreviations: Limited (Ltd.), Corporation (Corp.), Society Anonyme (S.A./Sociedad Anonima), Incorporated (Inc.). The use of words is prohibited: Manager, Capital, Currency, Deposit, Lender, Pension, Stock, Trust, etc.;
• having no fewer than 1 director/shareholder (a physical person or legal entity with any residential status);
• having a secretary;
• having a registered office;
• paying an annual state duty of 300 USD.

Taxation

The main advantages of opening a company in Antigua and Barbuda include:

• preferential treatment (i.e. a company is exempt from taxes for 50 years);
• no stamp duty, income tax, gift tax and withholding tax.

Please note that tax exemption is only applicable to companies earning profit outside Antigua and Barbuda. Those considering opening a firm in Antigua and Barbuda will be required to pay the following taxes:

• a sales tax of 15%;
• a corporate tax of 25%;
• a real estate tax of 0,1-0,5%.

How to Register a Company in Antigua and Barbuda

Remotely opening a commercial enterprise in Antigua and Barbuda takes from 2 to 3 days. For more information on company registration, please consider contacting YB Case experts. They will be happy to provide you with assistance in preparing all registration-related documents. They can also give you a hand with opening an account with a bank in Antigua and Barbuda and obtaining a gambling license in Antigua and Barbuda.