Extracts from commercial register of Dominica

Schmidt & Schmidt provides extracts from the commercial register of Dominica with a translation and an apostille. The Commonwealth of Dominica is an island country in the Lesser Antilles in the Caribbean, located between Guadeloupe to the north and Martinique to the south. Dominica gained independence from the United Kingdom in 1978, and became an independent realm within the Commonwealth of Nations. Dominica is a republic with the president as the head of state. Local currency is the East Caribbean dollar. Official language is English. Traditionally, the economy in Dominica was based on agriculture. Nowadays it is gaining popularity as a major international financial services centre, with the main focus on offshore banking. First of all, an International Business Company (the most common type of an offshore business) can be easily registered here, even over the Internet. Secondly, Dominica offers high level of confidentiality, broad range of provided services, low fees for licensing, no obligation on financial reporting, and full tax exemption. Lastly, there is the Dominica Economic Citizenship Program that legally allows to get citizenship in Dominica by investing 100 000 USD (per person – 200 000 USD for a family of four, with two underage children). Initial citizenship is not revoked, physical presence in Dominica is not required, neither is any interview. This is also the cheapest program of its kind. Solid privacy laws make obtaining information about companies in Dominica highly problematic. This information is kept by the Registrar who is usually only allowed to disclose it by court order or by prosecutor’s demand. Unlawful disclosure of information (by Registrar, auditor or bankruptcy commissioner) results in a fine up to 25 000 USD. Dominica managed to avoid the black list of OECD by committing to reforming its taxation to fit the international standards. Today OECD classifies Dominica as “provisionally largely compliant” in tax cooperation matters, and its progress its carefully monitored. The European Union has demanded Dominica to abolish the current tax regime by the end of 2018. Business activities in Dominica are regulated by, inter alia, 1994 Companies Act, 1996 International Business Companies Act, and 1999 Patent Act. Local legislation is based on the English Common law.

Main types of businesses in Dominica

• International Business Companies
• Private Limited Liability Companies
• Public Limited Liability Companies
• Non-profit Companies
• Individual entrepreneurs
• Partnerships

Commercial register of Dominica is administered by the National Companies and Intellectual Property Registry for the Commonwealth of Dominica (CIPO), a Department of the Ministry of Tourism and Legal Affairs. CIPO was established by the Patent Act in 1999.