Company registration in Namibia

Namibia is one of the richest African countries and may appear as beneficial for investmenting and operating in certain industries, including financial sectors. Establishing a business presence there doesn’t take a lot of time and can be made in one of the next forms.

Major Forms of Legal and Business Presence in Namibia

If you consider Namibia as the final destination for your investments, your business presence may be established here in one of the next major forms:

• Limited Liability Company – shareholders of this entity bear the restricted liability for all its undertakings within the amounts of their contributions only. There are no requirements for the statutory capital in this case. This business formation may be either (i) private where can be 50 shareholders maximum and are restrictions for the shares transfers and (ii) public where shares can be freely offered to the public.
• Unlimited Company – in this case, shareholders bear unlimited liability for the results of the entity’s operation. There are no requirements to the statutory capital in this case also.
• Partnership – entrepreneurs bear here equal liability for all results of the performed commercial activities.
• Close Corporation – a business vehicle that is something medium between a company and partnership designated to encourage doing small business with limited liability of its participants. The number of members here cannot exceed 10.

Registration Requirements and Steps

Company registration in Namibia may require passing these preliminary steps:

1. Emphasizing your business priorities in Namibia.
2. Choosing a business name for a future company and its registered office.
3. Drafting and notarizing the Memorandum and Articles of Association.
4. Submitting all registration documents to the Business and Intellectual Property Authority.
5. Registration for tax and social security purposes.
6. Opening a bank account.
7. Obtaining additional licenses and permits (depends on the exact types of commercial activities you are going to conduct).

Legal and Regulatory Framework

The local regulatory framework may be generally considered as advantageous. The registration process is comparatively simple and straightforward. The Companies Act is the major legal act regulating the process of operating companies. The main regulatory bodies are the Ministry of Industrialization and Trade, the Ministry of Finance, the Central Bank of Namibia.

Advantages of the Jurisdiction

Opening a company in Namibia may be turn out to be beneficial in view of these benefits:

• Actively growing African economy
• Developing telecommunications and infrastructure
• Stable and well-developed banking system

Tax System in Namibia

Setting up a company in Namibia, you may need to know about the following tax highlights relevant to this jurisdiction:

• Corporate tax rate – 32 %
• Personal income tax rate – 37%
• Value-added tax rate – 15 %
• Withholding tax rates (for non-residents) – (i) dividends – 10 or 20% (ii) interests – 10 % (iii) royalties – 10 %
• Capital gains tax rates – (i) corporate – not applicable (ii) individual – not applicable

How Prifinance Specialists May Assist You

If you consider Namibia as your target jurisdiction, Prifinance specialists may consult you more precisely on various local business opportunities and peculiarities of the registration process. Reach us shortly for more precise discussions and suggestions.