Astra Trust
+230 5452 4545 
info@astra-trust.com 
Anguilla is a British Overseas Territory and a widely known offshore financial centre located in the northern part of the Caribbean Sea, east of Puerto Rico and the British Virgin Islands.
The British monarch is the head of state, although the country is ruled by the local House of Assembly. The country is a parliamentary dependency and is part of the Commonwealth of Nations and an associated member of CARICOM.
Anguilla is renowned for its captive insurance and thriving financial industry, which has grown substantially in the recent past. The Anguilla offshore financial centre is underpinned by its zero-tax environment, strong reputation for British dependency and developed financial infrastructure. There are many trust companies operating on the island to provide first-class services to their clients.
Anguilla is a classic zero-tax jurisdiction with no direct taxation of any kind on corporations. This means that the effective rate of 0% is applicable to corporate income tax, withholding tax, capital gains tax and other taxes. Instead of these, an International Business Company (IBC) pays annual government fees through its registered agent.
Since there are no taxes in Anguilla, no reporting is required. Therefore, Anguilla company formation is the best way to reduce administrative and taxation expenses.
Anguilla has introduced a separate residence programme for individuals who can also benefit from the zero-tax regime, if they meet certain criteria.
No value-added or sales taxes are applicable in Anguilla.
Anguilla’s official currency is the East Caribbean dollar.
| Currency | East Caribbean dollar (XCD) |
| Corporate tax | 0% |
| Withholding tax | 0% |
| Capital gains tax | 0% |
| VAT | 0% |
| Exchange Controls | No |
The legal system, including the Anguilla Companies Act, is based on English common law and modern statutes. This provides flexibility for corporate structuring as the jurisdiction recognises trusts, and shareholder agreements can be regulated by English law.
The court of final appeal is the Privy Council in London. Judicial precedents established in England and other common law countries can be recognised in Anguilla’s courts. Consequently, Anguilla offshore company formation offers not only the opportunity to benefit from relaxed regulation, but also the possibility of using English law for the company’s structure.
Anguilla’s government is constantly updating its legislation. The latest update, which comprises the most modern legal provisions, took effect in 2019.
Overall, Anguilla’s legislation regulating offshore financial services includes, inter alia, the following acts:
Anguilla is one of the leading financial centres globally. As a British Overseas Territory, Anguilla is able to offer the most favourable conditions to international businesses and asset owners. One of the country’s latest achievements is the Anguilla Commercial Online Registration Network (ACORN), which provides facilities for the quickest incorporations and corporate filings. The ACORN executes functions of the Anguilla company registry that is now fully digitalised.
Apart from regular international trade or asset holding, Anguilla issues offshore licences to businesses that provide money services, such as money transmission, payment instrument operations and currency exchange services. As of 2018, an Anguilla offshore company can be involved in crypto businesses with the adoption of the Anguilla Utility Token Offering Act. This act allows for the licensing of two categories of service providers involved in utility token offerings, namely the utility token offering administrator and utility token offering issuer.
Anguilla company incorporation is suitable for those businesses that would prefer to be incorporated in a British Overseas Territory, but steer clear of the popular British Virgin Islands and the Cayman Islands.
Astra Trust can assist with Anguilla company formation and opening a bank account for such a company.
The following types of entities are available for incorporation in Anguilla:
Companies incorporated in Anguilla may be used, inter alia, for the following purposes:
Stage 1 Contact us for more information and quotes. We answer within three hours!
Stage 2 Fill in a form, provide us with the required documents and make a payment.
Stage 3 Receive the scanned incorporation documents within two days, and hard copies by courier in up to seven days.
For Anguilla company registration the following KYC documents are required:
The costs of company incorporation include services for the following:
Upon company registration in Anguilla you receive the following documents:
Under the International Business Companies Act of Anguilla, the company’s name shall end with the following words:
Alternatively, the abbreviations “Ltd.”, “Corp.” or “Inc.” may be used.
The act also allows the use of foreign names in the last part of the company’s name instead of the abovementioned words. The following words or their abbreviations may be used:
The proposed company name can be checked for availability by Astra Trust within 1-2 working days.
The company name cannot suggest any connection to Her Majesty, the Royal Family, the Government or any department thereof in the United Kingdom or elsewhere. It also cannot be a name that is prohibited by the laws and regulations of Anguilla.
In terms of share capital, there are a few types of companies that can be incorporated in Anguilla:
The standard authorised share capital of the company limited by shares is usually USD 50,000 or in another currency, with a denomination of USD 1 per share.
The issued share capital to shareholders can be of any amount, starting from 1 share and up to all 50,000 shares.
The authorised share capital can be both par value and no par value.
Companies in Anguilla can issue different classes of shares, as defined in their Memorandum of Association.
Bearer shares can be issued in Anguilla. They are stored with the special custodian in Anguilla that is obliged to keep the register of the owners of the shares. Bearer shares that are not being kept with the custodian are deemed to be inactive.
Anguilla is considered a highly confidential jurisdiction.
Information on registers of directors, shareholders and beneficial owners is private and not available to the public. The certificate of good standing or company search certificate does not show information about directors and members of an Anguilla IBC.
Corporate registers are kept at the company’s registered office and maintained by the registered agent. The Financial Services Commission of Anguilla may inspect the company’s corporate registers.
Information about the company may only be disclosed by the authorities of Anguilla to authorities of other countries and only upon official legal request from such authorities.
Anguilla’s legislation protects the privacy of companies incorporated under its laws. The penalty for unauthorised disclosure for FSC employees is a fine of USD 10,000, imprisonment for twelve months, or both.
The privacy of an Anguilla offshore company can be further enhanced by the appointment of a director and nominee shareholder. Astra Trust can provide directorship and nominee services upon request.
An International Business Company in Anguilla is subject to economic substance requirements. This means that the company must file economic substance returns with the Registrar of Companies for each relevant financial year on an annual basis.
Where a company is engaged in a relevant activity, it must ensure that it has an adequate presence on the island, employs a number of employees and is managed in Anguilla.
Relevant activities include:
The economic substance requirements for offshore Anguilla holding companies are much less restrictive, with only partial application of the original substance requirements.
For offshore companies that do not conduct business activities in Anguilla, there is no legal requirement to file accounts and tax returns in Anguilla.
General Information
Business Activity Restrictions
Requirements to Directors
Requirements to Secretary
Requirements to Shareholders
Share capital
Reporting Requirements
Other features
