Authorised Company

Mauritius Authorised Companies are incorporated under the Companies Act 2001, as amended and licensed by the Mauritius Financial Services Commission (FSC).

Mauritius Authorised Companies are mainly set up for those companies who:

propose to conduct or conduct business principally outside of Mauritius or with such category of persons as may be specified in the FSC rules; and
have their place of effective management outside Mauritius

Mauritius Authorised Companies may commonly be used for:

Investment holding
Property holding (real estate or other property)
Wealth protection
E-commerce
International trade
Trade invoicing
Intellectual Property Ownership
Consultancy Services (non-financial)

Taxation

A Mauritius Authorised Company is treated as a non-resident scheme for tax purposes in Mauritius. However, a Mauritius Authorised Company is required to file a return of income to the MRA within 6 months of its year end.

The following transitional period is available to existing GBC2 companies:

Transitional Period for existing GBC2 companies

GBC2 Licence issue date	Grandfathering
On or before 16 October 2017	Grandfathered up to 30 June 2021
After 16 October 2017	Grandfathered up to 31 December 2018

After 31 December 2018 or 30 June 2021, as applicable, the GBC2 licences will lapse and companies will need to comply with the prescribed guidelines as laid down by the FSC.

Table of Comparison

Global Business Company	Mauritius Authorised Company

Beneficial Owners
No publicly accessible records Shares can be held by nominee arrangements	No publicly accessible records Shares can be held by nominee arrangements

Shareholders
Minimum of one shareholder Corporate shareholder permissible No local shareholder requirement Location of meeting can be anywhere No publicly accessible records No bearer shares permitted	Minimum of one shareholder Corporate shareholder permissible No local shareholder requirement Location of meeting can be anywhere No publicly accessible records No bearer shares permitted

Directors
Min of 2 local resident directors required for access to DTAs No corporate directors permissible No publicly accessible records Meeting to be chaired from Mauritius to avail from DTAs	Min of 1 directors required Corporate directors permissible No local director requirement No publicly accessible records Location of meeting can be anywhere

Company Secretary
Management company to act as company secretary	Appointment of company secretary is optional

Incentives
Introduction of an 80% exemption regime on the following income: foreign dividend, subject to amount not allowed as deduction in source country foreign source interest income profit attributable to a permanent establishment of a resident company in a foreign country foreign source income derived by a collective investment scheme (CIS), Closed End Funds, CIS Manager, CIS administrator, investment adviser or asset manager licensed or approved by the FSC income derived by companies engaged in ship and aircraft leasing	Exempt from taxation in Mauritius No capital gains, nor withholding taxes

Accounts & Return
Annual audited account to be filed No publicly accessible records No annual company return filing to be done Quarterly and annual tax filing requirement	Annual financial summary to be filed To file return of income to the MRA within 6 months of its year end

Others
No stamp duties on transfer of shares FSC Processing fees of USD 500 FSC License fee of USD 1,750 Annual registration fee of USD 300 Re-domiciliation possible Access to over 40 DTA treaties	No stamp duties on transfer of shares FSC Processing Fee of USD 150 FSC Annual licence fee of USD 350 Annual registration fee of USD 100 Re-domiciliation possible No Access to DTA treaties

Financial Services
Funds (Equity & Hedged) Investment Dealer, Investment Adviser, Fund Manager, Payment Services Provider, Insurance Broker	Not allowed

The above information is for guidance only and therefore the material contained herein should not be regarded, viewed or considered as an advice. You should contact your tax or professional adviser/s for appropriate detailed professional advice. We accept no liability for the accuracy of the information contained herein, nor any loss arising from reliance on it.