Under Cyprus legislation, only a licensed lawyer is allowed to register a company and often this is through accounting firms/audit/consultancy firms that co-operate with lawyers so as to fulfil the regulatory requirement concerning the lawyer’s role. The application for having a company name approved, which precedes the registration process, can also be done by the applicant. The usual practice however is for applicants to entrust the whole procedure to their accountant.
FAQs
It depends. The processing and approval of the company name by the Registrar takes about 2-5 working days. The processing of a registration application by the Registrar usually takes another 2-5 working days (with accelerated procedure). A way to have a Cyprus company up and running in virtually no time exists for applicants for whom time is of the essence. Instead of going through the whole process described above, the applicant can simply purchase a “shelf company”, provided the shelf company’s memorandum and articles of association meet the applicant’s requirements. These are companies that have already been registered and kept “on the shelf” to sell to interested clients.
The company’s documents are available for public inspection at the office of the Registrar of Companies. It is possible to obtain absolute secrecy of the identity of the shareholders, either through trust fiduciary agreements or through nominees or through other companies. Also our firm provides professional directors services who can be appointed by the beneficial owners. A company must maintain a register of members, directors, charges and other records.
One director and one company secretary. Where there is only one director, the company secretary must be another individual or corporate entity unless the same person is also the shareholder of the company.
No statutory requirements regarding nationality or residence. However in order for the company to be tax resident in Cyprus, the directors or their majority should be Cypriot residents for establishing management and control in Cyprus.
Anywhere in the world. However in order for the company to be tax resident in Cyprus, board meetings should be held in Cyprus for establishing management and control in Cyprus.