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St. Lucia company formation

Basic facts regarding St. Lucia

St. Lucia is a small island in the Eastern Caribbean located between Martinique to the North and St. Vincent to the South. It has a population of approximately 172,884 people and a land area of 616 sq. km. The island's topography consists of steep mountains intersected by valleys and short rivers. There are two major airports, a regional airport in the north and an international airport in the south.

St. Lucia taxation

Saint Lucia is a classical tax-free jurisdiction that does not require complicated procedures for the company maintenance or annual reporting.

Offshore business in St. Lucia

Currently, St. Lucia has seven offshore banks, two investment banks, 2,851 international business companies, 26 international insurance companies, four trust companies, three mutual fund administrators, and 15 registered agents. In comparision, as of year end 2009, St. Lucia had 3,686 International Business Companies (IBCs), 82 offshore international businesses, 4,000 exempt companies, 19 shell companies, 38 trust companies and agents, and 10 insurance companies.

Offshore banking in St. Lucia

Saint Lucia being an offshore sector has a combination of both international banks and domestic banks.

As of December 2007 there were a total of 6 offshore banks consisting of 1 class B licence and 5 Class A licences. With such limited numbers, Saint Lucia is not a significant offshore banking centre. The total assets as of December 2007 stood at USD 447,122,986.00. Off Balance sheet assets under administration stood at USD 0.00.

For domestic banks licensed under the Banking Act, the total number of banks stood at 6. Further there are a total of 7 deposit-taking companies. The total assets of the domestic banks as of December 2007 stood at ECD 5,247,247,000 with a total of ECD 3,102,744,000 in deposits. The 6 banks have 18 branches. Off-balance sheet assets under administration stood at ECD 609.1 million.

International cooperation

St. Lucia has executed Tax Information Exchange Agreements with Aruba, Australia, Belgium, Denmark, Faroe Islands, Finland, France, Germany, Greenland, Iceland, Ireland, Netherlands, Netherlands Antilles, Norway, Portugal, Sweden, United Kingdom.

[Sources: United States Department of State Bureau for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs; Caribbean Financial Action Task Force; Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development]

Offshore companies formation