Category 1 Global Business Company (GBL 1)

A GBL 1 is defined as a Company engaged in a qualified global business activity, which is carried on from within Mauritius with persons all of whom are resident outside Mauritius and where business is conducted in a currency other than the Mauritian Rupee. The company is regulated by both the Companies Act 2001 and the Financial Services Act 2007, and  recent legislative changes in February 2011, allow for GBL1 companies to generate 10% of their income domestically in Mauritius. For tax purposes, GBL 1’s are Resident in Mauritius.

A GBL 1 also benefits from tax planning opportunities when using the extensive Double Taxation Treaties that Mauritius enjoys. A GBL1 company may elect not to provide written evidence to the Commissioner of Income Tax showing the amount of foreign tax charged and therefore enjoy a deemed taxation at 80% of the normal tax rate of 15%,  reducing the effective rate of tax in Mauritius from 15% to 3%.

A GBL 1 may be locally incorporated or may be registered as a branch of a foreign Company. The incorporation of a GBL 1 must be arranged through a licensed Offshore Management Company, such as Inter-Ocean Management Limited, and is licenced by the Financial Services Commission.

A GBL 1 can engage in the following Qualified Global Business Activities: