Where to open an offshore company in 2025

Every year, most offshore jurisdictions have changes (amendments) to their legislations, and these amendments usually are aimed towards reducing privacy/secrecy, implementing Economic Substance Requirements, increasing tax rates, or subscribing tax and banking information exchange agreements, all aimed towards getting out of a money laundering and tax evasion grey or black list.

Nowadays, It is not common to see jurisdictions loosen their restrictions but the opposite. Only aspect where we could expect an easement is on the ease of doing business, like removing license requirements.

Please remember that an offshore company is not necessarily a company formed in a tax haven, but just a company formed in a foreign jurisdiction.

Additionally, to answer the question where to form an offshore company will depend on your specific needs, tax optimization, asset protection, business needs, where the assets you want to protect are located, where will you receive payments from, you tax residency and your nationality, and more.

Herein we will address the most common jurisdictions and their main appeal when it comes to offshore companies formation. To learn more about each jurisdiction, please website our dedicated page for that jurisdiction on our website.

The Americas, including the Caribbean

British Virgin Islands

Probably the most popular offshore jurisdiction, and probably the jurisdiction with most offshore companies incorporated.

The BVI is a very prestigious tax haven and well regarded internationally, as it is a 0% income tax rate jurisdiction which is not badly regarded, and it is versatil 

A Company in the BVI will not have an issue opening a bank account 

BVI is a straight forward tax haven without complex tax legislation and yearly compliance that you must endure in order to benefit from the 0% income tax rate.

Nonetheless, the BVI has been changing its legislation lately, and has implemente new requirements this and past years in order to improve and keep its international reputation.

For example, BVI now requirements the disclosure of who the manager of a BVI offshore company is, and this information can obtained by the public under certain requirements, so for privacy purposes you can hire a nominee director or appoint another company as the director.

The Ultimate Beneficial Owner is also reported but this is not accessible to the public.

Additionally, the BVI is a very popular jurisdiction for setting up an Incubator or Approved Fund as it has very low regulations.

Wyoming (USA)

A Wyoming LLC is probably one of the most sought-after offshore jurisdictions for several reasons, being these:

1- 0% income tax.

2- Cheapest offshore company to form and to maintain

2- High legal and tax predictability, meaning this State and the USA in general are not expected to change their tax and privacy laws soon. 

3- Can open bank accounts in Fintechs like Mercury, Revolut, Wise, among others, with $0 mininum initial deposit, 

5- Very low KYC requirements to open company.

6- Company can be opened in one hour

The only con of having a Wyoming LLC is that the company must only be owned by a single member, this can be an individual or a company. 

Also, to have a brick and mortar bank account in the USA, it is usually required to physically go to the US to talk to the banker, and see if you can obtain a bank account, results not guaranteed.

Cayman Islands

Cayman Islands is a tax free jurisdiction (pure tax haven) but I would suggest it for businesses involved in Finance, Investments, Funds and hedge funds, Crypto, and related businesses. For trading companies, consultancy firms, etc., I would suggest a different option.

Panama

Even though Panama gained a bad reputation in due to the Panama Papers, it has resurged as a trustable and reputable jurisdiction has it has implemented legal recommendations and requirements to get out of grey lists it was previous in.

Panama has still a 0% tax regime, and we do not foresee this to change in the near future. Additionally, banks in Panama have a good reputation for being stable.

Panama companies can be used for many type of businesses, consulting firms, e-commerce including Amazon FBA, import and export.

Foundations formed in Panama are also a very popular asset protection vehicle.

Belize

Belize now charges income tax almost all companies, regardless if they are IBCs or LLCs, this tax rate will depend on the company’s business line, and it can go from 1.5% to 19% income tax on gross income without deductions, and payments to non-residents are subjecto to withholding tax, so for example dividends are taxed at a 15% withholding tax rate, while management fees or technical services are subject to a 25% withholding tax. This makes Belize not a very attractive option anymore.

Belize might be the best option for someone who is doing business or resides in Belize, as there are better options. 

Costa Rica

Costa Rica does not levy income tax on foreign earned income, but this is not what makes Costa Rica attractive. What makes Costa Rica attractive in general as an offshore jurisdiction is the ability to set up an online casino there easily without much licensing requirements, the issue is that most banks will not open a business account for this online casino if the company does not have a license, leaving the business with just a few and limited banking options.

Some online casinos set up via a Costa Rican Company accept crypto as a way for gamblers to pay in order to bypass the banking restrictions.

Curacao 

Curacao is mostly popular for its online casino license, as it is not expensive to get an online casino license, license is issued in a quick turnaround, and income tax is exempt; the only drawback is that it has more restrictions on the countries where online gambling services can be offered compared to jurisdictions like Malta, Isle of Man, etc, where gambling can only not be offered to residents or countries where gambling is illegal, but European online casino licenses are more expensive and higher license requirements.

Nevis

Just like the Cook Islands, Nevis is a jurisdiction with strong asset protection laws, and it does not recognize foreign judgments as well, but Nevis additionally has a bond requirement to bring a lawsuit against a Nevis company or Trust.

Nevis companies are also used for business purposes, having in mind the owner’s privacy and asset protection.

Asia and the Middle East

Dubai

Dubai is a great option because of its tax benefits, ease to get a residency visa and moving to Dubai, profit from a great business environment, etc.

Dubai, and the UAE in general, has suffered a big change on its tax and KYC legislation.

The UAE recently introduced corporate tax on onshore companies (companies formed in mainland Dubai), and Dubai Offshore Companies (Free Zone companies) would not be subject to this corporate tax on qualifying income (i.e. foreign income, or income generate in the Free Zone where it is formed, and other Free Zones in the UAE).

The issue lies in the fact that for that qualifying income, the company has to be a Qualifying company. To be a qualifying company, the company must:

1- Be formed in a Free Zone. 

2- Have at least one employee in the Free Zone.

3- Reasonable expenses in that free zone, in accordance to the company’s business line and profit.

4- Have audited financial accounts.

Additionally, most if not all banks in the UAE require that at least one company owner have one residency visa in Dubai. This is very easy to obtain and it is practically guaranteed, but this dubai set up would require.

So basically, a Dubai offshore company would work best for someone who intends to move to Dubai (reside in Dubai), or someone whose business will have economic substance in Dubai, so you can fully profit from and exploit what Dubai and the UAE has to offer. In other words, a Dubai shelf company would not be good the best option, given that a Dubai Offshore Company can be one of the most expensive to form and maintain,

To fully profit from what Dubai and the UAE has to offer, you would need: Company Formation + Residency Visa + Travel to Dubai (at least one day per year) + Dubai Bank Account + Economic Substance in Dubai.  

Singapore

Singapore is one of the best offshore and financial center, although taxation is not black and white like in what we call “pure tax havens”.

Singapore allows you to not pay taxes for money not generated in and nor remitted to Singapore, meaning the company would need to have a foreign bank account to receive and make payments.

Singapore companies also determine tax residency based on place of management and not place of incorporation. Tax resident companies in Singapore are exempt from capital gains tax.

If the company decides to take the taxation road in Singapore, it will benefit from several tal exemptions based on its income, excluding 75% of the first SG$100,000 from your tax base, and 50% of the amount exceeding SG$100,000 making Singapore a great option if you need a company in Asia that works perfect for e-commerce, international trade, exempt from capital gains tax, and more. 

Tax resident companies in Singapore are able to benefit from its many tax treaties, and strong banking system, as Singaporean banks are highly stable.

Seychelles

Seychelles offshore companies are popular as they are not expensive, have a straightforward 0% income tax system, a quick formation process, and Economic Substance Requirements set only for tax resident companies earning millions of dollars and engaged in relevant activities.

Additionally, Seychelles is a very popular jurisdiction for forming a Foundation, it allows the Council to be kept private, and Nominee Founders can be used for extra privacy.

Seychelles companies are also accepted by most crypto trading platforms and digital banks in Asia and Europe.

Europe

London (UK)

The UK has also been a popular offshore jurisdiction, but people often mistake the upside and downsides of forming a UK company. The UK most popular structures are the UK LTD and the UK LLP. People often see the UK companies are a great option because you can form those with less than US$200, which seems like an attractive option, but they often mistake or ignore the upside and downside of these companies, blinded by its formation price.

A UK LTD is taxed at a corporate tax rate between 19% to 25%, depending on the company’s profit, and there is also withholding tax on dividends. So this company, even though it is fast to set up, does not offer tax benefits.

UK LLPs on the other hand, are taxed at a 0% on foreign sourced income, making this a good tax free option.

The downside of the UK LTD and UK LLP is that the ultimate beneficial owner is public record, and anyone can find that information by doing a quick search. Additionally, the company’s accounts are public record as well. 

So a UK LLP would be a nice option for those who are ok with their identity as the ultimate beneficial owner being easily foundable on the Companies House website, which could be an issue for tax purposes in the country of tax residency, and also a loose link in any asset protection strategy. 

Malta

Malta is one of the few tax havens in the European Union, allowing a 5% effective tax rate through a system where you pay 30% corporate tax, but a big part of this tax is refunded when the company pays dividends to the owner(s), so at the end the effective tax rate ends up being 5%.

One good thing about Malta is that you don’t need substance for the company to have its tax residency there, allowing you to enter the European market with a very low tax rate, and access to the tax treaties subscribed by Malta.

Estonia

Estonia is also a good option in the European Union, as its tax system allows you to not pay corporate tax if the company does not pay dividends to its owners. 

Another advance of Estonia is that it allows VAT tax planning, as the export of services is exempt from VAT. 

To open a company in Estonia you would need an e-residency.

Cyprus

Cyprus can be a good option as a tax haven as it allows you to operate through a tax free european entity, this is because Cyprus determines its tax residency based on where the company is effectively managed, not where it is formed, so you can open a Cyprus company and 

Of course, if the company is not a tax resident in Cyprus it will not be able to benefit from the tax treaties subscribed by Cyprus.

Tax resident companies are subject to a 12.5% tax rate.

Luxemburg

Luxemburg appeal is mostly for its IP regime, where 80% of qualifying IP income is received by a Luxembourgese subsidiary, and then the dividends are sent to the Parent Company located in a different EU country, like Malta, or Estonia.

Bear in mind that even though the above is legal according to the EU Subsiriary-Parent directive, there are anti-abuse clauses whereby it is required that these companies have real economic substance in these jurisdictions, and that they are not merely shelf companies.

Pacific

Cook Islands

This jurisdiction has 0% tax, but what makes it different is its strong asset protection laws, like the non-recognition of foreign judgments. This makes the Cook Islands a great option for those looking to set up the strongest asset protection strategy, like a Trust or an LLC.