A well-regulated, tax-efficient offshore jurisdiction with a proven track record — and one of the few where Melqart can handle your company formation and bank account opening entirely remotely, from start to finish.
Overview
Mauritius has established itself as one of Africa's most respected international financial centres — combining a strong regulatory framework, a competitive tax environment, and a sophisticated network of double taxation agreements.
The island operates under English common law, is ranked among the top jurisdictions globally for ease of doing business, and is regulated by the Financial Services Commission (FSC) — an internationally recognised, credible authority.
For Melqart clients, Mauritius is our flagship international offering. We work with a licensed, established partner on the ground — meaning you benefit from genuine expertise, fast turnaround, and a fully remote experience that requires zero travel.
"Mauritius is our most complete international offering — company formation, bank account, and ongoing compliance, all handled remotely."
100% Remote: Unlike many offshore jurisdictions, Mauritius allows the entire process — company incorporation, FSC filing, and corporate bank account opening — to be completed remotely. No travel required at any stage.
Key Advantages
Regulated by the Financial Services Commission (FSC) — aligned with international standards and widely accepted by global banking and investment institutions.
GBC companies can access Mauritius's extensive DTA network covering India, China, UK, France, South Africa, UAE, Singapore, and 40+ more countries — reducing or eliminating double taxation.
Mauritius is the most efficient routing structure for investments into Africa and India — offering treaty protection, capital gains benefits, and a credible holding jurisdiction.
Free movement of capital in and out of Mauritius. No restrictions on international transfers, profit repatriation, or currency denomination — except Mauritian Rupee for ACs.
Mauritius sits between Europe and Asia — making it possible to coordinate with global markets, financial institutions, and partners across all major time zones within a single working day.
Through our licensed Mauritius partner, clients can open a Mauritian corporate bank account without any travel. Documents are submitted digitally — the account is set up remotely.
Mauritius operates under a hybrid legal system based on English common law and French civil law — providing a familiar, transparent framework for international investors.
Ranked 1st in Africa for economic freedom and 2nd in Africa in the Global Financial Centres Index — consistently topping the continent for governance, stability, and investor confidence.
Compared to jurisdictions like the Cayman Islands or BVI, Mauritius offers a significantly more cost-effective operating environment — without sacrificing regulatory credibility.
Choose Your Structure
Mauritius offers two primary offshore structures for international investors. The right choice depends on your business activity, tax position, and whether you need access to Mauritius's treaty network.
Side by Side
| Feature | Authorised Company (AC) | Global Business Company (GBC) |
|---|---|---|
| Tax Residency in Mauritius | Non-Resident | Tax Resident |
| Corporate Tax | None in Mauritius | 15% (up to 80% exempt) |
| Access to Double Tax Treaties | Not Available | 46 Countries |
| Capital Gains Tax | None | None |
| Audit Required | No — Financial Summary Only | Annual Audit Required (IFRS) |
| Resident Directors Required | Not Required | Minimum 2 Resident Directors |
| Minimum Capital | None | None |
| Bank Account in Mauritius | Not Compulsory | Required |
| Remote Bank Account Opening | Yes — Via Melqart Partner | Yes — Via Melqart Partner |
| Setup Timeline | 2–3 Business Days | 2–3 Weeks |
| Annual Compliance Cost | Lower | Higher — Substance Requirements |
| Best For | Trading, holding & consulting from outside Mauritius | Treaty-based investment, Africa/India routing, funds |
Not sure whether an AC or GBC is right for your situation? Melqart will assess your activity, tax position, and objectives — and give you an honest recommendation, free of charge.
Get Advice →Getting Started
Documents Required
Fully Remote: All documents are submitted digitally. Our licensed Mauritius partner handles all filing with the FSC, ROC, and banking institutions. No travel required at any stage.
Registration Process
We assess your objectives and recommend AC or GBC — based on activity, tax position, and whether treaty access is needed.
We guide you through KYC requirements. Our Mauritius partner carries out due diligence on all promoters, shareholders, and directors.
Incorporation documents are filed with the Financial Services Commission (FSC) and Registrar of Companies (ROC). AC: 2–3 days. GBC: 2–3 weeks.
Once incorporated, we coordinate the opening of a corporate bank account — entirely remotely, through our licensed Mauritius partner.
Annual financial summaries, tax filings, compliance monitoring, and company secretarial services — all handled by our partner in Mauritius.
Important to Know
An Authorised Company is treated as non-resident for tax purposes in Mauritius only if its place of effective management is outside Mauritius. If management and control shifts to Mauritius — for example through resident directors taking operational decisions — tax residency may be triggered unintentionally.
A GBC wishing to benefit from double taxation treaties must obtain a Tax Residence Certificate (TRC) from the Mauritius Revenue Authority (MRA). The TRC is typically issued within 7 days of submitting all required documentation and must be renewed annually.
GBC companies must demonstrate genuine substance in Mauritius — including at least two resident directors, board meetings held in or chaired from Mauritius, and accounting records maintained locally. Failure to maintain substance may result in loss of tax resident status and treaty benefits.
Taxes for Authorised Company beneficial owners are declared and paid in the country where transactions take place. AC owners are strongly advised to consult their own tax advisors in their country of residence — Melqart does not provide personal tax advice.
Authorised Companies may not conduct financial services, banking, fund administration, trusteeship, or nominee/directorship services. These activities require a GBC or a separate licence from the FSC — Melqart will advise on the appropriate structure if these activities are planned.
Both the AC and GBC must have a registered office address and a licensed registered agent in Mauritius. Melqart's partner provides both services as part of the setup package — there is no need to source these independently.
These points reflect the current regulatory framework under the Financial Services Act 2007 and the Income Tax Act of Mauritius as administered by the FSC and MRA. Melqart works exclusively with a licensed, FSC-regulated partner in Mauritius — ensuring your structure is compliant, correctly maintained, and built to last.
Talk to us. We'll identify the right structure, walk you through the process, and handle everything — remotely.
Mauritius — Questions & Answers
Mauritius is one of the most sophisticated offshore jurisdictions available — and one of the most misunderstood. The answers below reflect years of advising clients on AC and GBC structuring, tax positioning, and remote incorporation.
The fundamental difference is tax residency and treaty access. An Authorised Company (AC) is treated as non-resident for tax purposes in Mauritius — it pays no tax there, but cannot access Mauritius's double tax treaty network. A Global Business Company (GBC) is tax resident in Mauritius — it pays up to 15% corporate tax (often reduced to as low as 3% via the 80% partial exemption), but gains full access to 46 tax treaties.
Choose an AC if your business operates entirely outside Mauritius, you have no need for treaty protection, and you want the simplest, fastest, and most cost-effective structure. Setup takes 2–3 business days and ongoing compliance is light.
Choose a GBC if you are routing investments into treaty countries — particularly India, Africa, or China — where treaty protection reduces withholding tax on dividends, interest, and royalties. The GBC requires more substance and costs more to maintain, but the treaty benefits can be substantial. Melqart will assess your specific situation and give you an honest recommendation.
Mauritius is not on the EU or OECD blacklists and is widely regarded as one of Africa's most reputable international financial centres. It is regulated by the Financial Services Commission (FSC) — an internationally recognised authority — and is a member of IOSCO, FATF, and the Eastern and Southern Africa Anti-Money Laundering Group (ESAAMLG).
Mauritius has committed to and implemented OECD BEPS standards, including substance requirements for GBCs and the abolition of the old GBC2 structure (replaced by the AC framework in 2019). These reforms strengthened the jurisdiction's credibility significantly.
Mauritius is accepted by major international banks, institutional investors, and global counterparties — unlike many other offshore jurisdictions. Its regulatory framework is credible, its courts follow English common law, and its track record as a gateway for Africa and India investment is well established.
A GBC is subject to a 15% corporate tax rate on its taxable income in Mauritius. However, on qualifying categories of foreign-source income — including foreign dividends, interest income, and income from certain licensed activities — an 80% partial exemption is available, subject to meeting substance conditions.
This reduces the effective tax rate on qualifying income to just 3% (15% × 20% = 3%). The exemption applies to income streams including foreign dividends (where not deductible at source), interest income, income from ship and aircraft leasing, and income derived by FSC-licensed investment managers and advisors.
To qualify for the partial exemption, the GBC must meet the substance requirements set out in the Income Tax Act — including having its place of effective management in Mauritius, employing qualified persons, and incurring expenditure proportionate to its activities. A GBC that claims the 80% exemption cannot also claim an actual foreign tax credit on the same income.
An AC is treated as non-resident for tax purposes in Mauritius — it pays no corporate tax there (except on any Mauritius-source income, which is rare for a properly structured AC). Tax on the AC's income is therefore declared and paid in the country where the transactions take place — or in the country of tax residence of the beneficial owners.
This means the AC's tax position depends entirely on the owner's personal tax situation and the laws of their country of residence. In some jurisdictions, Controlled Foreign Corporation (CFC) rules may apply — potentially attributing the AC's income to the resident shareholders regardless of distributions.
Melqart does not provide personal tax advice. AC clients are strongly advised to consult a qualified tax advisor in their country of residence before proceeding, to ensure the structure is appropriate for their specific tax position.
Yes — this is one of the key advantages of working with Melqart for Mauritius. Through our licensed FSC-regulated partner on the ground, the entire bank account opening process is managed remotely. You submit your KYC documents digitally — our partner handles all bank submissions, correspondence, and follow-ups.
This is genuinely unusual. Most offshore jurisdictions — including many within the GCC — require at least one in-person visit to open a corporate bank account. Mauritius, through the right partner, does not.
The bank account is typically opened within 2–4 weeks of company incorporation, depending on the bank's due diligence process. For GBCs, the principal bank account must be maintained in Mauritius — so the bank account is not optional for that structure. For ACs, it is not compulsory but is often advisable for operational purposes.
The Financial Services Commission is Mauritius's integrated financial services regulator, established under the Financial Services Act 2007. It regulates and supervises the non-banking financial services sector in Mauritius — including global business companies, investment funds, insurance, and capital markets.
The FSC issues and renews Global Business Licences (GBLs) for GBCs, and authorises Authorised Companies. It is responsible for ensuring that licensed entities meet ongoing substance, compliance, and governance standards.
The FSC is a member of the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) and follows international regulatory standards. It is widely recognised and accepted by global banks, institutional counterparties, and foreign regulators — which is a significant reason why Mauritius structures are accepted where other offshore jurisdictions are not.
GBC substance requirements are assessed by the FSC at both the initial licence application and at each annual renewal. To be considered managed and controlled from Mauritius — and to qualify for the 80% partial exemption and treaty access — a GBC must demonstrate:
Our licensed Mauritius partner provides resident directors, registered office, and administrative support — satisfying the majority of these requirements as part of the standard GBC service package.
A Tax Residence Certificate is a document issued by the Mauritius Revenue Authority (MRA) confirming that a GBC is tax resident in Mauritius. It is the document required by the tax authorities of a treaty partner country — such as India, South Africa, or the UK — before they will recognise the GBC's right to claim treaty benefits.
Without a valid TRC, a GBC cannot benefit from reduced withholding tax rates under Mauritius's double taxation agreements. The TRC is typically issued within 7 days of a complete submission to the MRA and must be renewed annually.
Whether your GBC needs a TRC depends on where your income originates and whether a treaty partner's tax authority requires it before applying treaty rates. Our Mauritius partner handles TRC applications and annual renewals as part of the ongoing compliance service.
Yes — this is one of the primary uses of both the AC and GBC structures. A Mauritius holding company can own shares in subsidiaries, hold real estate, intellectual property, financial instruments, and other assets across multiple jurisdictions simultaneously.
For a GBC acting as a holding company for investments in treaty countries — for example, holding shares in Indian or African subsidiaries — the treaty network provides significant benefits: reduced or zero withholding tax on dividends received, protection from capital gains tax in the investment country, and treaty-based dispute resolution mechanisms.
The GBC structure is particularly well-suited for private equity, family offices, and investors with multi-jurisdiction portfolios. Melqart works with tax and legal advisors across relevant jurisdictions to ensure the overall structure is coherent and compliant — not just the Mauritius element in isolation.
The AC has deliberately lighter ongoing compliance than the GBC — it was designed as a simpler, lower-cost structure for international operations that don't require treaty access. Annual obligations include:
All of these are managed by our licensed Mauritius partner as part of the annual administration service. You will receive reminders, drafts for approval, and confirmation of all filings — with no need to interact directly with the MRA or FSC yourself.
Yes — through our licensed Mauritius partner. A GBC requires a minimum of two resident directors of appropriate calibre. Our partner provides qualified, FSC-approved resident directors who can serve on your GBC board — satisfying the substance requirement without you needing to identify and appoint directors independently.
It is important to understand that resident directors provided by a management company are not a substitute for genuine substance. The FSC assesses whether the directors are genuinely involved in decision-making — not merely acting as a rubber stamp. Our partner ensures that board meetings are properly documented, decisions are minuted, and the director involvement is genuine and defensible.
If your GBC's activities are complex or involve significant assets, additional substance measures — such as local staff or a physical office — may be advisable. Melqart will advise on the appropriate substance level for your specific GBC at the outset.
The process is fully remote and straightforward. Here is exactly what happens:
You never interact directly with the FSC, MRA, or any Mauritius government body. All communication flows through Melqart and our licensed partner — giving you a single point of contact for the entire lifecycle of your company.
Get Started
Tell us about your objectives and planned activities and a Melqart advisor will get back to you within 24 hours. We'll assess whether an AC or GBC is the right structure — and handle the entire process remotely from start to finish.
Mauritius at a Glance
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