UAE offshore company is a legal entity registered within the territory of a free zone by public authorities and is not permitted to do business in the UAE. Offshore UAE registration provides countless benefits:
- 100% of shares can be owned by a UAE non-resident, and, unlike for a local company, no sponsor is required;
- the UAE is not in FATF black lists;
- confidentiality: the UAE is not a member of OECD, so the government is not obliged to exchange information with other countries. Moreover, public state registers do not disclose information about company directors and shareholders. Such an information can not be disclosed even in case of an official inquiry;
- affordable costs of bank services and transactions;
- reasonable registration price (as compared to other company types);
- no income tax;
- no limits on capital and profit exports;
- no requirements to charter capital size;
- no need for annual audit;
Guidelines to UAE offshore company formation should follow:
- The company name should not pursue listed businesses such as banking or insurance. The company name should end only with LTD, Ltd, LIMITED or Limited.
- The number of Director, Shareholder, and secretary is limited to one. Each of these should have visited the UAE in the last 6 months and should be able to show an entry stamp on the passport.
- The time period of company incorporation can take as long as 24 to 48 hours. However, the time period to open a bank account can take 2 to 4 weeks depending on the corporate structure.
