Offshore Corporations

Before setting up an offshore trust, bank account or payroll service, you need to put up an offshore corporation in the country or territory you will be basing your offshore transaction in. Another option is to buy an available Shelf Company.

As soon as the IBC has been formed, or the Shelf Company has been purchased, you are then allowed to set up an account of that corporation in the country you choose, with any offshore bank available there.

> International Business Corporations

IBC’s are corporations with highly regarded secrecy and non-disclosure policies that are only allowed to conduct business in any country except in the one they were created in. An IBC created you create in Malta, for example, allows you to do business through the IBC in any country except Malta. However your IBC is not restricted from doing any banking in the country they were formed in.

> Shelf Companies

Instead of putting up an IBC, you have the option of buying an existing Shelf Company. Usually these type of companies were already registered in the prior tax year. This is an ideal choice if you require an offshore company that can be shown to have existed for several years or months, or if you require a company that was set up in the previous tax year.