Cyprus has become, if not the capital, then at least the center of attraction for IT companies. There are a lot of reasons for this: English law, liberal tax policy and low rates are applied on the island. All these and some other factors make Cyprus a very convenient platform for entering the European and international markets.
George, CEO of an IT startup (mobile app), tells about his experience of setting up a company in Cyprus. He has done it completely online.
Utility Bill and Resume for the Bank
“I am engaged in providing IT services, and talking about promoting my own products, I thought about setting up a company abroad. I compared the USA, Estonia and Cyprus and finally settled on Cyprus: today IT business is especially developed there. In addition, my friends and colleagues advised me this way.
Two factors were important to me: the tax regime and the opportunities associated with the copyright. My basic plan was to register a company, develop a mobile application and then sell it together with the company. It’s convenient. After that, I started seeking how to do it. Through friends, I learned about YouReg. The platform offers remote registration of a company and a bank account in Cyprus. I was told in detail about the conditions, and took some time to think. We are used to registering companies in old-school way: bring the documents personally, and sign them also personally. While here I needed to send my personal data and, of course, this caused anxiety. But I went back to them: I liked the clear and transparent pricing and speed”.
After registering on the platform, you may choose the necessary option: set up or transfer a company as well as open a bank account.
The cost of services is formed in the personal account. You can choose either month or year subscription.
Then, a list of documents required for registration is immediately available, the place and time of the meeting can be selected there.
“I collected all the documents, there were no special problems: everything was at hand. Among other things, it was necessary to prepare my resume for the bank in English. There was one unusual thing: I had to send documents confirming the address of residence. For such confirmation, it is necessary to send utility bills at the place of residence. An alternative may be a bank statement indicating the place of residence. In general— it is not a usual scheme. I sent a copy of the utility bill and this issue was settled.
The first time, I met a courier to sign the necessary documents. The second time, I was given the originals of the constituent documents. The whole process from the date of my application to registration took 1.5-2 weeks.”
Advantages of the Cyprus Jurisdiction for Companies
If you register a startup in your country and register the rights to a product, when selling them abroad, you will need to re-register the rights, for example, in the EU. If the company is initially set up in a foreign jurisdiction, then it is already prepared for sale. This expands the opportunities and simplifies the whole process.
“A Cyprus company allows using a unique IP-BOX tax regime, thanks to which the effective corporate tax rate is reduced from the base rate of 12.5% to 2.5%. In addition, the company’s founder and director enjoy a simplified and accelerated process of obtaining a work permit. And the registration of software as an intellectual property item in Cyprus provides it protection throughout the whole territory of the EU. Of course, a separate procedure is required for registration of the intellectual property rights, but this requirement applies to all jurisdictions. And in Cyprus, registration takes only 2 months”, – comments Antonios Karitzis, the lawyer of A. KARITZIS & ASSOCIATES L.L.C., a Cyprus law firm.
