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Curaçao,an island in the Caribbean Sea and a country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It is situated some 37 miles (60 km) north of the coast of Venezuela. Although physiographically part of the South American continental shelf, Curaçao and neighbouring islands off the northern coast of South America are usually considered to constitute the southwestern arc of the Lesser Antilles. The capital is Willemstad.
The island provided one special advantage for the Dutch—one of the finest natural harbours in the West Indies. At the southeastern end of the island, a channel, Sint Anna Bay, passes through reefs to a large, deep, virtually enclosed bay called Schottegat, the site of the capital town, Willemstad. The need for salt to preserve herring initially drove the Dutch to the Caribbean. During the period 1660 to 1700, the Dutch West India Company flourished; the slave trade boomed, and the port of Curaçao was opened to all countries both to receive the incoming food supplies and to dispose of products from the plantations of South America. The island was subjected to frequent invasions from competing privateers and suffered during the wars between the English and Dutch. It has remained continuously in Dutch hands since 1816.
In 1845 Curaçao was one of the six Dutch dependencies in the West Indies that were brought under collective administration. Those dependencies were reorganized as the Netherlands Antilles in 1954 and granted autonomy in internal affairs. In 2006 the people of Curaçao, along with those of the other islands and the Dutch government, agreed to dissolve the Netherlands Antilles. On October 10, 2010, Curaçao and Sint Maarten became—like Aruba, which had separated from the Netherlands Antilles in 1986—countries within the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
Recently, Curacao deserves more and more attention as a country where it is profitable to start doing business and create a promising company there. Among the main advantages of this jurisdiction are the following:
the country is trying to attract foreign investors to its pennies by modernizing the legal framework and introducing new benefits;
stability of the political field;
Curacao is independent of other jurisdictions in terms of tax legislation;
ties with the Kingdom of the Netherlands;
the rapid development of product markets and their reorganization;
favorable tax conditions.
In many ways, Curacao’s legal acts are similar to those used by Liechtenstein.
| Company type | Private company limited (Besloten Vennootschap met beperkte aansprakelijkheid, BV) |
| Governing corporate legislation | Book 2 of the Curaçao Civil Code |
| Shareholders | A Curaçao company may be formed by one or more shareholders, who can be resident or non-resident, natural persons or corporate bodies. |
| Directors | A Curaçao company may have 1 or more directors, who can be corporate bodies or individuals. However, a company should have at least one local managing director or a local representative to obtain a business license or a tax-exempt status. |
| Information published relating to company officers | Details of the shareholders are not disclosed in a public registry. Details of the directors are publicly available. |
| Liability | The liability of the shareholders for the company is limited to the amount of their shareholdings. |
| Accounting requirement/ compliance | Curaçao companies must file annual financial statements and an annual report annually. Only large companies are required to have their accounts audited. However, a Tax-exempt BV must have its accounts verified and approved by an independent expert (Registered accountant, accounting consultant or a certified public accountant). All Curaçao companies are required to file an annual tax return. |
| Corporate income tax | The corporation tax rate is 22%. However, there are several favorable tax regimes: Investment Institutions: A BV which activities are limited to investments in debt instruments, securities, and deposits, licensing of intellectual and industrial properties and similar assets may qualify for a full tax-exemption. E-Zone Companies: E-Zone companies are subject to a profit tax rate of 2% and exemption on import duties. To qualify as an E-Zone company all goods and services must be sold and rendered to clients outside Curaçao. Transparent entity (TV): Companies may request to operate as tax transparent legal entities (i.e. treated as a partnership for tax purposes). In order to meet requirements under the BEPS Inclusive Framework – Curacao has also adjusted its tax regime to abolish deemed ‘harmful’ features. |
| Standard currency | Antillean Guilder (ANG), also called the Florin |
| Shared capital/paid up | There are no minimum capital requirements, and share capital may be denominated in one currency, or in various currencies. Shares must be in registered form, and may be with or without par value, with full or limited voting rights or be nonvoting, and may have full, limited or no right to profits. |
| Basis of the Legal System | Civil Law(dutch) |
| Secretary | Curaçao companies may appoint a secretary but is not mandatory. |
| Shares | Shares must be in registered form, and may be with or without par value, with full or limited voting rights or be nonvoting, and may have full, limited or no right to profits. |
| Registered address | A company must have a registered office in Curaçao. |
| General meeting | In general, a general shareholders’ meeting of a B.V. must be held at least once every calendar year, within 8 months of the end of the financial year and must be held on Curaçao. |
| Electronic Signature | Permitted |
| Time to form | 5-7 days. |
| Renewal date | Anniversary date of the company / Each Year |
| Time Zone | Convenient world time zone: GMT-4 |
| Confidentiality | High level |
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