International Correspondence Lawyers & Financial Experts
ICL DIRECTORY
Company Formation & Tax Rates
St. Kitts and Nevis
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| International Business Company (IBC) | Limited Liability Company (LLC) | |
| Company law | Nevis Business Corporation Ordinance, 1984 with amendments of 2000 | Nevis Limited Liability Company Ordinance, 1995 |
| Company purpose | Free but with some restrictions (*1) | Rather wide (*5). This entity is a good choice for those offshore advisors making use of Limited Liability Companies. |
| Founders | At least 1 shareholder (*2) | At least 1 member (*6) |
| Capital requirements | There are no minimal capital requirements | - |
| Liability | Limited | Limited |
| Costs of incorporation | USD 1 299 | USD 1 190 |
| Incorporation | Registration with the Companies Registrar | Registration with the Companies Registrar |
| Company name | An IBC must have the endings 'Limited', 'Corporation', 'Incorporated', 'Societe Anonymne' , 'Gesellschaft mit beschraenkter Haftung' or their abbr. Restricted words: Assurance, Bank, Trust and similar. | The name of an LLC must have one of the following endings: "Limited Liability Company", "LLC", "L.L.C.", "LC" or "L.C.". |
| Formalities | Low (*3) | Low |
| Credit / funds | To be discussed with the corporate banker | To be discussed with the corporate banker |
| Accounting obligation | no | no |
| Management | There must be 3 directors and a secretary. However, if there are fewer than three shareholders then there may also be fewer than three directors. | Management of Limited Liability Companies may be accomplished by the members or by managers designated by the members. |
| Nationality | any | any |
| Image | Tax-exempt company | Offshore venture with a LLC structure |
| Taxation | Total exemption from taxes on worldwide income (*4). An IBC pays only annual Capital duty of USD 200. | No corporate tax, income tax, withholding tax, stamp tax, asset tax, exchange controls or other fees or taxes are levied on assets or income deriving outside of Nevis. |
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| Corporate Income Tax | Withholding Tax | Capital Gains Tax | Property Tax | |
| Tax rate | The rate has been reduced in the last few years from 40% to 38% and now to 35%. | 10% for companies remitting payments to persons outside of St. Kitts & Nevis. (*7) | 20% on profits or gains derived from a transaction relating to assets located in the Federation, which are disposed of within one year of the date of their acquisition. | The Land Tax ranges from 0.37 to 1.48 USD per acre. Also, there is a House Tax. (8*) |
*1 An IBC should not carry on banking business, trust business, insurance business, or registered agent business. It also should not conduct the business within St.Kitts & Nevis Federation or appoint local residents.
*2 Bearer shares and shares of no par value are allowed, but must be held by a custodian.
*3 There is no a requirement for a Registered Office in Nevis, but an IBC must have local Registered Agent. The name and location of a Registered Agent must be filed with the Registrar as well as Articles of Incorporation. There are no annual reporting requirements in St. Kitts & Nevis.
*4 An IBC has no access to St Kitts & Nevis double tax treaties.
*5 Practical uses of Nevis Limited Liability Companies:
- International Finance and Investment
- Real Estate Holding
- Estate Planning
- Asset Protection
- Professional Practices
- Joint Ventures
*6 LLC members are not liable for obligations of the company. The owners can participate in management without becoming personally liable for the company's debts.
*7 Individuals and companies remitting payments to persons outside of the Federation must deduct 10% withholding tax from profits, administration, management or head office expenses, technical service fees, accounting and audit expenses, royalties, non-life insurance premiums and rent.
*8 The Land tax in St. Kitts and Nevis is charged in accordance to the following schedule (showing the tax rate as US Dollars per acre):
- All cultivated land on the island of St. Kitts $1.48
- All uncultivated land on the island of St. Kitts $0.37
- All cultivated or uncultivated land on the island of Nevis $0.37
In Special Development Areas, such as the South East Peninsula on St. Kitts, there is a tax of 0.5% of the assessed market value of the land, or land and improvements.
A house tax is charged at the rate of 5% of the annual gross rental value for residences in St. Kitts or Nevis with a 25% rebate for properties that are occupied by their owner solely as residence. The minimum annual rental value is XCD 600 (USD 222) in St. Kitts and XCD 48 (USD 18) in Nevis.
