Mauritius Company

A Mauritius Global Business Company (GBC) is a company licensed by the Mauritius Financial Services Commission (FSC) under the Financial Services Act. The GBC holds a Global Business Licence and is a Mauritius tax resident — meaning it can access Mauritius’ network of double tax treaties. This is the critical distinction from the Authorised Company (the former Category 2 GBC): an AC is not a Mauritius tax resident and cannot access treaty benefits.

Key GBC features: must be administered by a Mauritius-licensed Management Company; must have at least two directors resident in Mauritius; must hold at least one board meeting per year in Mauritius; must have a Mauritius bank account; bank and financial statements must be prepared under IFRS; FSC licence must be renewed annually. These substance requirements are real and must be genuinely met — not just ticked on paper.

The 2017 reforms to Mauritius-India DTA access are the most significant change to the Mauritius GBC framework in recent years. Prior to 2017, the Mauritius-India DTA provided 0% capital gains tax on India-sourced gains for Mauritius GBCs — making Mauritius the single most popular investment route into India. The 2017 renegotiation introduced source-based capital gains taxation — India can now tax capital gains on India investments, eliminating the historical primary advantage of the Mauritius route for capital gains purposes.

The Mauritius-India treaty still provides benefits: 7.5% withholding tax on dividends (vs the standard 20%), 7.5% withholding tax on interest, and 15% on royalties. For investors with India-sourced income (as opposed to capital gains), the Mauritius route still provides meaningful treaty savings. However, the treaty landscape for India investment has changed significantly — specialist India tax advice is essential.

The Mauritius Authorised Company (AC) — formerly the Category 2 Global Business Company (GBC2) — is a company incorporated in Mauritius that is not a Mauritius tax resident. Because it is not tax resident, it cannot access Mauritius’ double tax treaties. Its business must be conducted exclusively outside Mauritius and it must not deal in Mauritius rupees, own immovable property in Mauritius, or carry on activities in Mauritius.

The AC is the lower-cost Mauritius offshore vehicle for clients who do not need DTA access — private holding of foreign assets, international trading, or family wealth structures where the Treaty network is not the driving factor. Annual FSC fees are lower than for a GBC. The management company requirement is lighter.

Key AC features: incorporated under the Companies Act but registered with the FSC; must have a registered agent in Mauritius; business conducted exclusively outside Mauritius; not a Mauritius tax resident; no Mauritius income tax on income from outside Mauritius; no Mauritius capital gains tax; no Mauritius withholding tax on dividends to non-residents.

The AC provides privacy from public beneficial ownership registers — shareholder and beneficial ownership information is not publicly available in Mauritius for ACs. The FSC and law enforcement can access this information through regulatory channels, but civil litigants and the public cannot. CRS applies: financial account information held at Mauritius financial institutions is reported to the account holder’s home-country tax authority under CRS.

Mauritius is the pre-eminent jurisdiction for structuring investments into sub-Saharan Africa. Its treaty network covers all major African investment markets: South Africa (0% dividend WHT for qualifying holders, 10% interest), Kenya (10% dividend WHT, 10% interest), Uganda (10% dividend WHT, 10% interest), Zimbabwe (10% dividend WHT, 10% interest), Rwanda (no treaty currently), Mozambique (8% dividend WHT, 8% interest), Lesotho, Madagascar, Senegal, and others.

For private equity, infrastructure, real estate, and direct investment transactions into Africa, a Mauritius GBC provides reduced withholding taxes on dividends and interest repatriated from African subsidiaries or investments. The combination of the treaty network, English common law, FSC regulation, and geographic proximity to Africa makes Mauritius the standard African holding jurisdiction.

African Development Finance Institutions (DFIs) — including the IFC, AfDB, DEG, Proparco, and CDC — regularly use Mauritius-domiciled structures for Africa-focused fund and investment vehicles. The IFC in particular has used Mauritius GBCs extensively for its Africa private equity investments. This institutional acceptance is a strong validation of Mauritius as an Africa investment jurisdiction.

Important limitation: not all African countries have DTAs with Mauritius, and the quality and coverage of existing treaties varies. Source-country withholding taxes in non-treaty African jurisdictions apply at their standard rates. For specific Africa investments, the treaty position in the target country must always be verified and specialist tax advice obtained. Mauritius provides a well-positioned entry point, but does not eliminate all African tax complexity.

The Mauritius-India DTA was historically the most significant factor in Mauritius’ position as the leading investment route into India. Prior to May 2017, gains from the disposal of Indian shares held through a Mauritius company were taxed only in Mauritius (where the rate was 0%) — not in India. This created a very powerful and widely used planning structure.

The 2017 renegotiation of the India-Mauritius DTA fundamentally changed this position. Capital gains on Indian securities acquired after April 1, 2017, are now taxable in India at the applicable Indian capital gains tax rate — the capital gains exemption no longer applies. For capital gains investors using the historical Mauritius-India route, the primary advantage is gone.

What the India-Mauritius treaty still provides: reduced withholding tax on dividends (7.5% vs standard 20%); reduced withholding tax on interest (7.5%); reduced withholding tax on royalties (15%); and potentially other treaty benefits. For investors earning ongoing income from Indian businesses (dividends from Indian subsidiaries, interest on Indian debt investments), the Mauritius route still provides meaningful treaty savings.

For India investment structuring post-2017, the choice of holding jurisdiction depends on the type of return: for capital gains, Singapore may be more favourable for qualifying investments; for dividend income, Mauritius or Singapore provide comparable reductions. Specialist India tax advice from India-qualified advisers is essential for any India investment structure.

Following the 2017 tax reforms and the OECD BEPS project, Mauritius GBCs must demonstrate genuine economic substance to access treaty benefits. A GBC that has substance only on paper — nominal Mauritius directors who never attend meetings, no local expenditure, no real management decisions in Mauritius — will face challenges from source-country tax authorities claiming that the GBC is not a legitimate treaty resident.

Required substance for a Mauritius GBC: at least two directors resident in Mauritius who genuinely participate in board decisions; at least one board meeting per year held in Mauritius with Mauritius-resident director attendance; a Management Company appointed in Mauritius to administer the GBC; a Mauritius bank account; financial statements prepared under IFRS; and adequate physical presence (which the Management Company’s offices typically satisfy).

The Management Company is central to Mauritius GBC substance. Licensed Management Companies provide registered office, corporate secretarial, accounting, and compliance services to GBCs — they are the backbone of the Mauritius GBC ecosystem. The management company appointment is mandatory for all GBCs; costs vary from approximately $1,500–$3,000 per year for basic services.

For the substance to be genuine, the Mauritius directors should make real decisions about the GBC’s investments — not rubber-stamp decisions made elsewhere. We work with Mauritius-based Management Companies and advise on structuring the governance arrangements so that Mauritius substance is genuine, demonstrable, and defensible under scrutiny from source-country tax authorities.

A Mauritius GBC is a Mauritius tax resident and subject to Mauritius income tax. The standard Mauritius income tax rate is 15%. However, Mauritius law previously provided a “deemed foreign tax credit” that reduced the effective rate to 3% — this specific mechanism was eliminated in 2019 as part of Mauritius’ response to international scrutiny (EU and OECD reviews).

Currently, a Mauritius GBC’s income is taxed at 15% on Mauritius-source income. For foreign-source income, an 80% partial exemption applies to specified categories of income (dividends from foreign subsidiaries, interest, royalties, gains from disposal of securities) — reducing the effective Mauritius tax rate on those income streams to 3%. Conditions must be met to access the partial exemption.

No Mauritius capital gains tax. No Mauritius withholding tax on dividends paid by GBCs to non-resident shareholders. No Mauritius withholding tax on interest paid to non-residents. No Mauritius estate duty. No Mauritius stamp duty on share transfers.

Mauritius is a Hague Convention member. It participates in CRS and is FATCA-compliant. It is not on any OECD, EU, or FATF blacklist. Mauritius was on the EU’s watchlist in 2019–2020 but was removed following reforms. The FSC is internationally recognised as a competent regulator. For US persons, GBC ownership triggers CFC rules and Form 5471 filing. FBAR and Form 8938 apply to Mauritius accounts.

Africa-focused investors and private equity funds. For investments into sub-Saharan Africa — private equity, infrastructure, real estate, agriculture — a Mauritius GBC provides the most comprehensive treaty network available from an African-based jurisdiction. International development finance institutions use Mauritius regularly. For Africa-focused fund managers, Mauritius is the standard Africa holding jurisdiction.

India-connected investors earning dividend and interest income. Post-2017, the capital gains advantage is gone, but reduced withholding taxes on dividends (7.5%) and interest (7.5%) remain meaningful for investors with Indian income-generating investments.

Asian and Middle Eastern investors structuring Africa investments. For Asian or Middle Eastern capital deploying into Africa, Mauritius provides a geographically convenient, English common law, treaty-connected jurisdiction. The Mauritius-UAE DTA and Mauritius-Singapore DTA allow efficient structuring for Middle Eastern and Asian investors using Mauritius as an Africa investment holding platform.

Mauritius is not the right choice for: clients who need maximum adversarial creditor protection (Cook Islands or Nevis); clients who need EU Directive access (Cyprus, Malta, or Luxembourg); clients who need the deepest Asian fund ecosystem (Singapore or Hong Kong); or clients who want a low-substance, low-cost offshore holding company (BVI or Bahamas are cheaper and require less compliance).

1. Initial consultation. We discuss objectives — treaty access (GBC) or offshore holding (AC) — and advise on the substance requirements and cost profile.

2. Engage a Mauritius Management Company. All GBCs must be administered by a licensed Management Company. We engage our Mauritius MC partners and coordinate the full process.

3. KYC documentation. Mauritius has robust AML/CFT requirements. FSC licensing requires certified KYC for all beneficial owners, directors, and shareholders.

4. FSC licence application and incorporation. We coordinate the FSC Global Business Licence application alongside company incorporation. The process typically takes three to six weeks for a GBC. AC incorporation is faster — typically two to three weeks.

5. Post-incorporation setup. Mauritius director appointment, bank account opening, and Management Company engagement for ongoing administration.

6. Ongoing compliance. Annual FSC licence renewal, financial statement preparation, tax returns, and management company annual fees. We introduce you to our MC partners for ongoing administration.