About Mauritius

Setting up a business in Mauritius

Choosing the right company structure or facility for your business

Mauritius is a political and financially stable mature democracy which has actively sought and welcomed foreign investors and business for many decades. The banking, communications, financial and professional infrastructure is adept at meeting the demands of international business and tax practitioners. The island offers a well-regulated and developed international banking and financial sector. International banking units are experienced in serving the demands of international business.

The most utilised facilities and structures include:

Mauritius Authorised Companies which are private companies having the Authorised Company status, such companies are flexible, cost-effective, tax exempt “offshore” business entities that cannot make use of Mauritius’ extensive tax treaty network.

Global Business Licence (GBC) companies are tax resident, liable to 15% income tax but may avail a partial tax credit on foreign source specified income whereby the effective tax rate is 3% and if they are correctly structured and managed may access Mauritius’ tax treaty network. Neither capital gains nor withholding taxes are levied.

Section 83 of the Financial Services Act 2007 provides for confidentiality concerning all matters relating to Global Business Licence and Authorised Companies.

Mauritius Global Business Licence (GBC)

Type of Entity
Company holding a Global Business Licence (GBC)

Type of Income

Chargeable Income
15%

Dividends paid out of income derived by a GBC
Exempt

Interest paid by a GBC to a non-resident
Exempt

Capital gains realised on securities by non-residents
Exempt

Foreign Tax Credit
A company which has suffered a tax on its foreign source income is entitled to the following tax credits as per the ITA 1995:

  • A credit for foreign income tax paid on its foreign source income.
  • A sparing tax credit – a credit for tax deemed to have been paid.
  • In the case of dividend income, an underlying tax credit, i.e. credit for tax paid on income out of which the dividends have been paid under certain conditions.
  • The foreign tax credits should not in the aggregate exceed that of the Mauritius tax payable on such foreign source income.

The Income Tax (Foreign Tax Credit) Regulation 1996 (under the Income Tax Act 1995) allow for foreign tax credit on the foreign source income of a Mauritian resident. These regulations had been amended by the Income Tax Credit (Amendment Regulation) 1997 whereby the presumed amount of foreign tax was increased from 80% to 90% of the Mauritius tax chargeable. However, the Finance Act 2000 amended the regulations bringing back the presumed foreign tax to 80% – this change became effective as from 1st July 2003. It is to be noted that such presumed foreign tax is available for qualified corporations.

In drafting the Foreign Tax Credit Regulations, the approach has been to be as generous as possible to the taxpayer with regard to foreign tax credit. Mauritius wishes to avoid international double taxation and not to have such double taxation operating as a block to foreign investment. Thus, in number of matters, these Regulations are as generous or more generous than provisions found in the laws of other countries. The foreign tax credit is available for the amount of income actually received in Mauritius and is treated as a foreign tax which is of similar character to the Mauritian income tax. In calculating the tax credits, the Regulations allow for the grossing up of the foreign source income, and provide in respect of foreign tax charged on dividend, credit for the underlying tax charged in the foreign country on profits out of which the dividend is paid. The underlying tax is available to all residents of Mauritius, whether they are companies, individuals or trusts. However, a holding of 5% of the share capital in the paying company is required. The amount of foreign tax credit is limited to the lower of the actual amount of foreign tax or the amount of Mauritius tax. If for example, the foreign tax is at a rate higher than the Mauritius tax, the surplus foreign tax cannot be credited. Moreover, the taxpayer can choose to compute the limit either on an item basis or on an overall basis.

How to proceed

We would welcome the opportunity to assist you with more information:

Contact us for a FREE consultation if you would like to discuss your requirements with one of our consultants in person.
Alternatively, complete our Online Questionnaire and a consultant will contact you directly.
For professional intermediaries and repeat orders, download the relevant Application Form and return by fax or email.

OCRA Worldwide announces strategic merger with Acclime

17th November 2022, Hong Kong - OCRA Worldwide (OCRA), announces today that it has completed the strategic merger with Asia Pacific’s premier corporate services provider Acclime (www.acclime.com). This is the latest step in Acclime’s active expansion as the Asia specialist in compliance and corporate services throughout the region.

Established in 1975 and led by Bart Dekker and Dharmesh Naik, OCRA is one of the industry pioneers in the corporate services sector with a full suite of corporate services from company formation, company secretarial support, accounting, and HR services. Over the past 40 years, OCRA has become a truly global business by providing very personalised services to their clients, most of whom are private investors or companies investing abroad.

From its founding base in Europe, OCRA has morphed over the past decade to focus on the faster growing markets of Asia and the Indian Ocean, and currently has teams in Hong Kong, Shanghai, Singapore, Mauritius and the Seychelles with around 80 staff. Additionally, OCRA is licensed in Samoa and the UAE to provide incorporation services to clients and referral partners.

"The high quality of the team, the interesting gateway jurisdictions of Mauritius and UAE which are important investment hubs for Africa and India, and the synergy of offering OCRA clients more services and Asian locations for expanding their business were the strategic logic for Acclime's interest in acquiring OCRA," said Martin Crawford, CEO and Co-Founder of Acclime. "We look forward to introducing OCRA’s corporate clients to our regional experts in China, Hong Kong, Australia, Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, India, Philippines, Singapore and Vietnam," he added.

The sale of the business was managed by the corporate advisory team of Mazars in London (Paul Joyce & Fred Dearden), acting for the ultimate shareholder of OCRA, and was opened for bids. "Acclime was chosen as the preferred bidder as the team recognised the cultural similarities, with high quality, personalised services at the core," said Bart Dekker, OCRA’s Managing Director, Asia Pacific. Dharmesh Naik, OCRA's Managing Director, Middle East and Indian Ocean, added, "We are excited and delighted to become an integral part of a large international team with the established resources across Acclime's network, and to execute the transaction in line with OCRA's long term succession plan in the interest of all of our stakeholders."

OCRA will operate as an independent business unit within Acclime, supported by funding, IT and marketing initiatives that will grow the business further. Bart Dekker and Dharmesh Naik will remain running the business post-acquisition.

The transaction is subjected to regulatory approvals in several locations and Acclime is expected to complete the acquisition by the end of 2022.

About OCRA
Established in 1975, OCRA is one of the industry pioneers in the corporate services sector with a full suite of corporate services from company formation, company secretarial support, accounting and HR services. For over 40 years, OCRA has been providing personalised services to its clients, most of whom are private investors or companies investing abroad.

About Acclime
Acclime, the premier corporate services provider in Asia, helps corporate and private clients to advance their businesses and interests in difficult-to-navigate markets in emerging Asia. The company’s vision is to reinvent the corporate services sector with innovative solutions that are seamlessly delivered to the highest global standards.

Enquiries: enquiries@ocra.com