Seychelles Offshore Company Registration in 2025

Seychelles Offshore Company Registration

Favourable conditions for offshore registration in Seychelles will remain in 2025. Despite tourism’s central role in the Seychelles economy, the country is growing and aims to reduce reliance on international tourism. For sustainable future development, the government encourages corporate and financial services, as well as the overall expansion of the offshore industry and the formation of offshore companies.

Prospects for Using an Offshore Company in 2025

First, note that using offshore companies is lawful, and it will stay relevant in 2025. At the same time, international bodies are strengthening requirements for offshore jurisdictions, so they can better control company activities. This helps ensure transparency and prevent illegal uses, including tax avoidance and money laundering.

Similar measures are applied locally in many offshore centres, including Seychelles, as we will discuss later. If those requirements are met, offshore companies can serve as effective tools for lawful tax optimisation and asset protection.

Therefore, offshore entities will keep playing a key role in international business. However, business owners must understand modern regulations and standards in greater detail.

Choosing Seychelles for Offshore Registration

Choosing an offshore company in Seychelles for international business is supported by a range of key advantages offered by this jurisdiction:

Advantage Explanation
Stable Legal System Seychelles is known for its political and economic stability, along with a robust legal framework based on English law. This ensures a high level of predictability and flexibility in corporate regulation.
Simplicity of Offshore Registration In most cases, an International Business Company (IBC) is chosen for incorporation in Seychelles. The simplicity of IBC registration is ensured by:
  • A minimal number of directors and shareholders
  • No residency requirements for directors or shareholders
  • No share capital requirements
  • A minimal set of required documents
In addition, Seychelles offers low registration and maintenance costs for offshore entities.
Absence of Currency Controls Companies can transact in any currency, which simplifies international payments and reduces risks arising from currency restrictions.
Compliance with International Standards

In recent years, Seychelles has adopted several corporate and tax reforms to become more transparent and reliable for business activities.

One outcome is that Seychelles has been removed from certain “blacklists” of countries and territories deemed uncooperative on tax matters.

Major Changes in Seychelles Corporate and Tax Legislation

Seychelles is actively aligning with international standards, paying special attention to enhancing corporate transparency and preventing the jurisdiction from being used for tax avoidance. In 2020–2021, amendments were introduced that affected the country’s corporate and tax laws. Let us outline some key trends.

Corporate Legislation

Reform Content
Disclosure of Ultimate Beneficial Owners

In 2020, Seychelles passed the Beneficial Ownership Act, which clarified companies’ obligation to maintain a register of beneficiaries and keep it updated.

Beneficial ownership registers must be stored at the offices of registered agents. These agents provide the information to the Seychelles Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU), which maintains the centralised database of beneficial owners. The information in those registers and the centralised database is not publicly available.

Storage of Documentation

Legislative amendments require that accounting records be kept at the registered agent’s office in Seychelles.

If a company keeps these records outside Seychelles, it must submit them to the registered office at least once every six months. Regardless of where the accounting records are stored, they must be provided to the authorities upon request.

In addition to accounting records, companies must keep a financial summary at the registered agent’s office, prepared within six months after the financial year ends.

Further, companies must store:

  • A register of directors
  • A register of members
in the registered agent’s office. Please note that information from the register of directors and the register of members is submitted to government authorities, but it is not publicly accessible.

Tax Legislation and Economic Substance

The Business Tax (Amendment) Act 2020 changed Seychelles’ territorial principle of taxation. This act clarifies how Seychelles-resident companies are taxed if they are part of an international group. An international group includes at least two companies with tax residency in different states. In practice, any Seychelles company associated with a foreign company is deemed part of an international group.

For tax purposes, such a company’s income may be classed as Seychelles-sourced in certain situations, subjecting it to corporate tax. There are also additional rules for passive income, such as dividends, interest, and rental payments. The authorities assess whether the company has adequate economic substance in Seychelles. If this requirement is not met, that passive income may be taxed, even if it is earned outside Seychelles.

You can find more details about Seychelles’ corporate and tax reforms and the criteria for adequate economic substance in our further materials.

Seychelles Company Registration Process

A licensed registered agent plays a central role in setting up a company in Seychelles. They manage all communication with government authorities and prepare the main incorporation documents, including:

  • Articles of Association,
  • Memorandum of Association,
  • Director appointment resolutions.

The client must complete these steps:

Action Description
Choose a Unique Company Name Seychelles follows standard naming requirements:
  • The name must not match or closely resemble an existing company name
  • The name must include a reference to its legal form
  • The use of certain words is prohibited
Identify the Individuals Managing the Company and Provide Relevant Documents You must appoint at least one director and one shareholder. The same person can be both director and shareholder. Apart from directors, Seychelles companies are not required to appoint other officers.

For individual directors and shareholders, you need:
  • Identification documents (passport, ID)
  • Proof of residential address (for example, a utility bill)
In some cases, you must confirm a director’s relevant professional experience or special education.

If a shareholder is a legal entity, you must provide the full set of corporate documents, plus the personal documents of individuals in that corporate shareholder’s structure.
Provide Information on Beneficial Owners In line with the register of beneficial owners requirements, these individuals must provide:
  • Identification documents
  • Proof of residential address
  • Documents confirming their source of income and wealth

After the company registration is complete, the client receives a set of documents. These include the Certificate of Incorporation, the Articles of Association, the Memorandum of Association, and the initial resolutions appointing directors. In most cases, registration with the government authority takes up to three working days.

Bank Account for a Seychelles Offshore Company

Recently, offshore companies, including those in Seychelles, have faced difficulties opening bank accounts. This is due to stricter banking compliance measures and increased caution from banks regarding offshore businesses.

Generally, banks require detailed information about the company and every individual in its structure. In summary, you should be prepared to provide the following details:

Company Information Information about Individuals (Directors, Shareholders, Beneficial Owners)
• Main corporate documents
• Business plan
• Details about the company’s counterparties
• Justification for payments (usually contracts and invoices)
• Information on the company’s assets

• Identification documents
• Information on sources of funds
• Details of tax residency

In recent years, institutions also check whether individuals are Politically Exposed Persons (PEPs) and whether sanctions apply to them or if they have links to sanctioned persons.

Furthermore, banks in countries participating in automatic information exchange must identify the tax residency of offshore company beneficial owners. They then share account information with the relevant tax authorities in the beneficial owners’ tax-resident countries.

Conclusion

Registering an offshore company in Seychelles remains an appealing choice for international business. The stable legal system, simple setup, and affordable registration costs all contribute to its enduring popularity. Recent reforms allow Seychelles to maintain its reputation as a jurisdiction committed to global tax and corporate governance standards.

Nevertheless, Seychelles companies may encounter challenges with banks because of more rigorous compliance rules. Opening a bank account may require an extensive range of documents to verify the company’s activities, prove the source of funds, and confirm the tax residency of beneficial owners.

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