Isle of Man Background

Isle of Man companies may be registered for VAT purposes and the VAT prefix will be "GB", which is recognized in Europe. Apart from a limited treaty with the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man is not party to any double tax treaties.

Isle of Man Introduction

The Isle of Man, situated in the centre of the British Isles, is an internally self-governing dependent territory of the British Crown which is not and never has been part of the United Kingdom. It is however, part of the British Isles. Tynwald, the island's 1,000 year old Parliament, makes its own laws and oversees all internal administration, fiscal and social policies. External issues, such as foreign representation and defence, are administered on the island's behalf by the UK Government and the island makes an annual payment for these services. As a British Crown dependency, the ultimate responsibility for the island's good government is vested in the Crown but by long-standing convention, the UK Government does not legislate for the island except with the specific consent of the island's government.

The official and spoken language is English.

Law and Taxation

Common Law, based on English Common Law.

LLC's are fiscally transparent and taxed as a partnership, thus an LLC with no Isle of Man resident members or business in the Isle of Man is not taxed in the Isle of Man.

Corporate Requirements

One manager - either a natural person or a corporate body. They may be of any nationality or reside anywhere. The appointment of a company secretary is not applicable.
The minimum number of members is two.

A name cannot be used if that is similar to/or identical to an existing company or registered entity; names of well-known multi-national companies, without prior written consent; names that imply illegal activities; names that imply royal or government patronage, either local or foreign.

Many names require justification or high capitalization to allow their use. Words such as "International", "European" or other words indicating an international presence will only be approved if the company is incorporated with an authorized capital of £100,000 which must be paid up. Exemptions can be made for LLC's.

Use of the word "Group" will only be approved if the company can provide documentary evidence that the company owns a group of companies.

Names can be expressed in any language using the Latin alphabet, if the Registrar of Companies is in receipt of an English translation and the name is not considered undesirable.

Local Infrastructure

There are regular daily air and ferry services to the UK and Ireland. The Isle of Man, confronted with a decline in its two principal sources of income, agriculture and tourism, now places greater reliance upon industrial investment and its activities as a financial centre.