Samoa tax haven

Samoa New Pacific Basin Haven

Today, Samoa is an independent nation with a parliamentary government. The Constitution provides for a Head of State, Prime Minister and Cabinet of Ministers who comprise the Executive Council and the Legislative Assembly. There are two major political parties, and both strongly support the new Offshore Banking, Insurance and International Companies legislations allowing for tax-free operations by foreigners. Western Samoan tax law has its foundation in English and Commonwealth statutory common law. The five acts which are the basis for the Offshore Finance, Banking and Insurance Center are based upon English law, with an intermingling of the laws of the various financial centers. English remains the authentic text, and documents and records are required to be kept in the English language. Accessibility & Communications Apia on the island of Upolu is the commercial capital and administrative center of Samoa. Accessibility is good. There is a modern international airport which can accommodate 747 type aircraft. The countrys national airline, Polynesian Airlines, is managed by Ansett Airlines of Australia. Other carriers that service Western Samoa include Air New Zealand, Air Pacific, Samoa Air and Hawaiian Air. Direct flights to New Zealand, Tonga, Australia, Fiji, Cook Islands, American Samoa and Hawaii operate daily. The international telephone system is first class, and direct dialing under the country code (685) can be made 24 hours a day. Cable, telex, facsimile services, DHL and Skypack express courier services are available at a moments notice. Taxation & Exchange Controls Only companies organized under on of the special offshore tax regimes are exempt from Samoa's domestic corporate income taxes which top out at 39%. Individual residents are taxed on their worldwide incomes at rates as high as 50%. However, Western Samoa does not tax capital gains, and dividend income of residents is taxed at a top rate of 10%. International Companies, Offshore Banks, Insurance Companies, and International Trusts are exempt from income tax or other duties, including direct or indirect tax or stamp duty on any transaction or profits of or on dividends and interest paid by or to any company registered or licensed under the various Off-shore Acts. In addition, there are no currency or exchange controls, restrictions or regulations, and no foreign exchange levies payable on the taking or sending of any foreign exchange levies payable on the taking or sending of any foreign currency out of Western Samoa by an international or registered foreign company or trustee company, nor in respect of the transactions of an off-shore bank or registered trust or the business of a registered insurer. Strict Privacy Provisions Built into Law Western Samoa has signed no tax treaties with any nation. It is against the law for anyone having information pertaining to the business profits of any bank, company, insurer or trust to divulge that information to outside tax collectors or other investigators. Each of the various Acts has built-in provisions within their texts vigorously forbidding the divulgence of confidential information. Fines to $50,000 and jail terms to 5 years are provided for under Samoan law for anyone who contravenes Samoas secrecy provisions. Files kept by the Registrar and documents lodged with them are confidential and are not available for inspection by the public. Section 26 of the Offshore Banking Act 1987

Breaches of professional secrecy (1) every person commits an offense against this Act who(a) Divulges any information in Western Samoa or elsewhere in relation to (i) Any off-shore banking business in Western Samoa; (ii) The transfer of money or property into or out of Western Samoa in the course of any off-shore banking business; or (iii) The account of any person with a licensee or any item of such account or the fact of any person having had such account, which he has become aware of in his capacity as an officer, employee, or authorized agent of a licensee or as an officer or employee of an approved auditor; or (b) Tries to induce others to breach professional secrecy in relation to such matters. International Companies Act (1987) The procedure for incorporating an International Company are simple and rarely take more than one or two days. No prior Government approval is needed, and except for the incorporation fee, no other government charges will e incurred. Application is made to the Registrar of International & Foreign Companies through a trustee company, accompanied by a Memorandum and Articles of Association. The government provides a standard Memorandum and set of Articles which can be adopted with or without variation. There need be only one subscriber and normally this would be a trustee company or nominee company acting on behalf of the beneficial owner, whose name need not be disclosed. Capital: There is no minimum capital requirement and shares may have par value of no-par value. Currency and share warrants issued to bearer may be issued or exchanged for fully paid up shares. Directors: There need be only one director. A trustee company, if requested, will make available an officer for appointment as a resident director, but it is not a requirement that a director be a resident of Western Samoa. A director may be a company. Directors meetings need not be held in Western Samoa and written resolutions signed by all directors may be minuted instead of meetings. Secretary: A company must have a residential secretary who is an officer of a registered trustee company. A companys legal obligations are fulfilled by the resident secretary. Additional non-resident secretaries may be appointed. Registered Office: The registered office is required to be at the office of a trustee company. Certificate of Incorporation is valid for 12 months and is renewable on payment of the annual renewal fee and lodging of the companys annual return. Accounts: A company must keep proper accounts and records which must be presented at any meeting with a profit and loss account and a balance sheet. These do not require filing with the Registrar. Audited accounts are not required if the company does not invite the public to subscribe to its shares. Offshore Management & Trustee Companies Finding a good Management Trust company in your offshore tax haven is as important to the success of your venture as investing in the right stock or bond. Trust Companies or Management & Trustee Companies are available to help investors with all aspects of forming and running an offshore company, from the filing of the Memorandum and Articles of Association with the Government Registrar, to keeping proper books and records, to supplying company directors, to holding director and shareholder meetings, to furnishing a registered office. Management & Trust Companies in the offshore havens is ordinarily required by law to obtain licenses from the local governments. This helps protect you (the investor) from dealing with unscrupulous characters. Trustee companies in Western Samoa must be licensed under the Trustees Companies Act of 1987 before they can carry on the business of servicing non-residents. Before the government will issue a license a trustee company must have paid-up cash or unimpaired reserves of not less than US$210,000

Accounts of trustee companies must be audited at least once a year in every year, and a copy of the auditors report submitted to the Registrar within 6 months of the end of the companys financial year, with an annual report. No shares of a Western Samoan Trustee Company may be transferred without the prior written approval of the Minister of Finance. A trustee companys license may be canceled if it has contravened or failed to comply with any condition of registration, is in breach of any provisions of the Minister considers that it is undesirable that it should continue to be registered. A trustee company that commits a criminal offense anywhere in the world can have its license revoked. All monies paid to a trustee company under a trust must be held separate from its own monies and in trust for the purpose for which it was paid. Make Inquiries into Trustee Companys Tax Planning Department The American entrepreneur should make certain his offshore management & trustee company have clever staff inhouse knowledgeable and skilled in the application of the U.S. Tax Code otherwise the U.S. investor is apt to run afoul of the U.S. tax laws. If your trustee company informs you that the Privacy and Secrecy provisions supplied by local law will shield you from a U.S. Treasury Department inquiry, or will relieve you from U.S. income tax liability, you should high-tail it out of their office and find a tax specialist somewhere in that haven that has a thorough understanding of the United States rules and regulations as they apply to U.S. citizens operating in offshore tax havens. The Tax Reform Act of 1986 gives the U.S. Treasury Department power to make inquiries into the financial affairs of U.S. citizens offshore activities. Failure to supply information when requested could lead to further investigation, even a grand jury indictment. Bank secrecy while helpful is not adequate by itself to provide a U.S. taxpayer sanctuary from the U.S. tax authorities. Information presented here was furnished Registrar of the International and Foreign Companies. For more information on starting a business or forming an International Company in Western Samoa write: