Cyprus Company Registration

Are you interested in Cyprus Company Registration? In this article you will get fundamental information about the form of entities that are used in Cyprus, the procedure, the requirements, some basic steps to follow after the incorporation date of your business and a list of advantages that Cyprus jurisdiction offers.

Type of entities

  • Limited liability company in Cyprus (LTD)
    This is the most common business form in Cyprus. It must be registered in the Cypriot Registrar of Companies and can be established either by EU or non EU citizens. The number of shareholders can be at least one but no more than 50. The liability of the shareholders is limited to the number of their shares. Noteworthy is also the fact that if the company is not Cyprus resident it can be excluded from the corporate tax.  Only one director is managing the company and the General Meeting of the shareholders is taking all the major decisions. Also, a Secretary must definitely be appointed to keep under his custody the Register of Members, the Register of Charges, the Register of Directors and Secretary, the Company Seal, and the Minute Book.
  • Public limited liability company
  • Cyprus Company Limited by Guarantee
  • A general partnership in Cyprus
  • A limited partnership
  • A sole proprietorship

Procedure and requirements

Initially the investor chooses the type o entity he/she is interest in and then proposes a company name which must be submitted to the Companies Registrar for approval. The availability of the name can be checked online. After the name is approved, the investor can start gathering the documents needed to register the company.

The following documents will be requested by the Registrar of Companies:

  • declaration form;
  • declaration form for the registered address;
  • details about the company directors and secretary;
  • the company’s Articles of Association.

Depending on the industry the company will operate in, it will also need to obtain specific licenses and business permits.

A part of the company formation procedure in Cyprus is also the opening of a bank account as the shareholders need to deposit the share capital and obtain a statement that will be filed with the Trade Register. Even if the company has no specific share capital requirements, the stakeholders must establish the amount of money they need for the operations and deposit it once creating the bank account.

In order to open a corporate bank account in Cyprus, the company’s Articles of Association and information about the company must be submitted with the selected financial institution. The procedure can take a few weeks.

More about the procedure to register a company in Cyprus >>

Steps to follow after the incorporation

  • Registration at the tax department
    Each new incorporated company in Cyprus must within 60 days to apply for Taxpayer’s registration with the Tax Department and to obtain a tax number.
  • Registration at the social insurance services
    Every employer must submit the application form for employer registration. If the employer has branches in different locations and/or deals with more than one economic activities, then he/she must register separately for each district and/or activity.
  • Registration of trademark
  • In order to distinguish products or services in the market, companies are highly recommended to register their business trademark
  • Corporate Compliance
    Every company is obliged to inform the Registrar of Companies if any changes within the companies registrar information such as change of address, directors, secretary, share capital, amendments of its memorandum etc.

Why choose Cyprus to incorporate your business

There are multiple advantages for incorporating your business in Cyprus and the reasons are closely associated to advantageous tax conditions;

  • The general corporate tax rate is 12.5%.
  • A Cyprus company is not subject to taxation on dividend income.
  • A Cyprus company may carry forward losses.
  • A Cyprus company is not subject to capital gains taxes on profits from share transactions.
  • There is no successive recalculation of taxes owed
  • There is no taxation on the inheritance of shares in a Cyprus company
  • A Cyprus company is permitted to have bank accounts outside the EU.
  • Non domicile rules for individuals allows tax exceptions primarily the exemption from capital gain tax on income from dividends and interest.
  • The corporate structure of a Cyprus Limited is recognized worldwide.
  • The VAT number allows for problem-free “intra-Community trade”.

To search through the business register through the official page of the Department of the Registrar of Companies and Intellectual Property click here.

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