Finding Suitable Offshore Jurisdictions

Starting an offshore company has become the most common idea for several business persons. Some people start their business offshore for tax benefits while some others open their business offshore to take advantage of the potential market. Whatever may be the reason, finding suitable offshore jurisdictions is important. You can't choose an offshore destination for your business without proper investigation. You need to have a few choices and after comparison, you can choose the jurisdiction that you feel can be profitable. There are certain major facts that you have to consider for comparison of jurisdictions.

While choosing offshore jurisdictions, you have to consider about offshore banks. Without these banks, you can't run the business successfully. You want the bank to maintain secrecy. There are jurisdictions in which the banks never reveal anything about the customer. Bank accounts are not identified by numbers that can be easily guessed. Unless the bank receives a court order from the country court, it should not disclose any information about you. This is the first and foremost factor you have to consider when you are interested in opening offshore companies. Moreover, you should choose offshore banks that deal with both local and international customers. Otherwise, you may face banking issues when you decide to acquire any local business.

You need to compare jurisdictions based on legal laws. The MLAT, mutual legal assistance treaty is signed by a number of countries. This agreement shows how legal cases against you are handled when you start an offshore business in that jurisdiction. It is always better to choose countries that have entered into treaty with your government. This ensures that all cases are properly approached. However, civil cases are not handled by this treaty. Again, the classification of civil and criminal cases differs with jurisdictions. In some countries, income tax offense is a criminal case while in other countries it is a civil case.

The most important factor considered by many businessmen while opening offshore company is the tax treaties. You must open a company in offshore jurisdiction only when you get tax benefits. There is no point in paying more in terms of taxes when you choose to open your company offshore. Certain countries have tax treaties such that you have to pay tax in both the offshore country as well as your own country. Hence, you should be clear with the tax policies of the government when you choose offshore companies.

The corporation policy of the government should allow you to stay anonymous when you open a business offshore. Imagine how desperate it would be when your information is disclosed to the public of another nation. The corporation of destination jurisdiction must allow you to maintain your privacy. The ownership need not be declared or reported in any place. Apart from this, infrastructure of the jurisdiction must also be considered. You must not choose a destination that has poorly connected roads. A proper telephone system with fast access to internet should also be checked when you are searching for suitable jurisdictions for your offshore company.