Bahamas LLC Formation 

Want a company that protects your personal assets and pays no corporate income tax on profits earned outside the Bahamas? A Bahamas LLC may be the answer. The Bahamas has been a go-to place for offshore company formation since the 1930s. It is a stable, English-speaking common-law jurisdiction. You can own 100% of your company from anywhere. You get limited liability protection, strong asset protection, and simple yearly upkeep. Still weighing a Bahamas IBC vs an LLC? This guide covers both. You'll learn the rules, the real costs, and each step to get started.

For more>> Bahamas as a Tax Haven

What Is a Bahamas Limited Liability Company?

Here's something many guides skip. Under Bahamian law, an “LLC” is usually a normal company that ends its name with “LLC.”

The law gives you two routes to limited liability companies:

• The IBC route. You form an international business company (IBC). The International Business Companies Act, 2000 covers the incorporation, registration, and operation of international business companies. It lets any company with limited liability end its name with “LLC” or the words in full (s.12). This is the usual pick for owners who work abroad.
• The domestic route. You form a company under the Companies Act (1992). This suits you if you plan to run a local business and trade within the Bahamas.

Most foreign owners choose the first route, so this page focuses on it. Your LLC will usually be a company limited by shares. That means each owner's risk is capped at any unpaid amount on their shares (s.8). The company is its own legal entity, so your personal assets stay separate.

Bahamas IBC vs LLC: Which One Fits You?

Is one better than the other? Here, they are often the same legal vehicle with a different name tag.

• Same law. An LLC formed this way follows the same rules as any other Bahamas IBC. Taxes, privacy, and filings match.
• Different label. “LLC” can help if your bank, partners, or tax adviser expect that format.
• Who runs it. The law calls the people in charge “directors” and the owners “members.” A unanimous agreement lets the owners take over some or all of the directors' powers (s.41).
• Home-country tax. Your country may tax an LLC-style company differently from a plain corporation. Ask your tax adviser before you pick a name.
• Local trade. Will your business operations mainly serve people in Nassau? A domestic company may fit better.

Either way, Bahamas IBCs and Bahamas LLCs share the same low-tax, high-privacy setup.

Why Choose a Company in the Bahamas?

What do you actually get when you set up a company in the Bahamas? Quite a lot.

• Personal protection. Members, directors, and officers aren't liable for company debts unless they didn't act in good faith (s.7).
• Asset protection. The Act gives your company the power to protect its assets for the company, its creditors, and its members (s.10).
• Tax benefits. No corporate income tax, no tax on capital gains, and no withholding tax for companies doing business abroad.
• 100% foreign ownership. Foreign investors can own every share. You don't need to be a resident of the Bahamas. You don't need a physical presence in the Bahamas either, beyond your official address.
• Simple management. One director is enough. It can be a person or a company (s.40).
• Privacy. Owner names stay off the public register.
• Currency freedom. Your company sits outside the company designation rules the Central Bank of the Bahamas uses for exchange control. You also choose the currency of your shares.
• Speed. The Registrar General's Department express service can form your company in about one hour.
• No minimum capital. You don't need to pay in a set amount.
• Clear licensing. You only need a business licence if you trade locally or run your business from the islands.

What Can You Use Your LLC For?

Good news: the Act lets your company conduct business activities of any kind, as long as they aren't illegal (s.13).

• Holding real estate and other assets
• Asset protection
• Estate planning
• International trade or e-commerce
• Holding intellectual property
• Acting as a parent company for a group of subsidiaries
• Holding bank accounts and investments
• Yacht ownership

Thinking of buying property in the Bahamas through your company? The old bar on IBCs owning local real estate was mostly lifted by the 2000 Act, but stamp duty still applies to any Bahamian property the company holds, and some property deals bring extra taxes and approvals. Get advice first.

Some work needs its own licence. Banking, insurance, and trust business are regulated.

Key Corporate Features

What's Included in Your Formation Package?

Everything you need to go live comes in one bundle.

Bahamas LLC formation package: from US$1,390

1. Government Registration Fee (First year)
2. Registered Office Address (First year)
3. Registered Agent Services (First year)
4. Company Secretarial Maintenance
5. Certificate of Incorporation
6. Memo & Articles of Association
7. Appointment of 1st Directors
8. Consent Actions of the BOD
9. Share Certificates
10. Register of Directors
11. Register of Officers
12. Register of Shareholders
13. FREE Phone and/or email consultations

How to Register an LLC in the Bahamas

Ready to start? Setting up a company here is simple. The registration process runs smoothly when your papers are in order. Here is the full LLC registration path. You can also read our guide on how to register an LLC.

1. Pick a unique company name. It can't match or closely copy an existing name. It must end with “LLC” or another approved ending. You can reserve a name for 90 days (s.12(9)).
2. Appoint a licensed registered agent. Only a licensed financial and corporate service provider, or a licensed bank or trust company, can form this type of company (s.4).
3. Pass KYC checks. Send certified passport copies, proof of address, and source-of-funds details for all directors and shareholders and beneficial owners.
4. Prepare your founding documents. Two people sign each one in front of a witness (s.13, s.14).
5. File with the Registrar General. Express service takes about one hour. Regular service takes about 48 hours.
6. Receive your certificate of incorporation. It proves your company exists (s.15).
7. File your register of directors and officers within 12 months of appointment (s.44).
8. Open a corporate bank account with a bank you choose.
9. Obtain a business licence if you will trade locally or run operations from the islands.

Forming an LLC this way usually takes a few days once your documents are ready. That makes it one of the quicker forms of company registration in the Caribbean.

What Goes in Your Memorandum?

Your memorandum and articles of association set up your company. Under section 13, the Memorandum must list:

• The company name
• Where the registered office is in the Bahamas
• Where the registered agent is in the Bahamas
• The company's objects or purposes
• The currency its shares are issued in
• Its authorised capital (for a company limited by shares)
• The number and classes of shares, and their par value (or a note that they have none)
• The rights and limits attached to each class of shares

The Articles hold your internal rules, such as how directors are chosen and how meetings work. Both are filed together.

Naming Rules

• Words like “Assurance,” “Bank,” “Chartered,” “Insurance,” “Royal,” and “Trust” need prior permission.
• You can use a dual name that pairs English with a foreign-language name.
• Don't want to pick a name? You can take a number instead, such as “001 Bahamas Limited.”

Registered Agent and Registered Office in the Bahamas

Every Bahamas company needs a local address and a licensed agent. No exceptions.

• You must keep a registered office in the Bahamas at all times (s.37). If the address changes, you must report it within 14 days.
• Your agent must hold a licence under the Financial and Corporate Service Providers Act (s.38).
• If your agent resigns and you don't replace it, your company can be struck off the register (s.39A).
• You don't need your own office or staff there. Your package covers both the agent and the address.

Directors, Owners, and Who Runs Your LLC

How many people do you need? Fewer than you might think.

• You need at least one director (s.40). A director can be a person or a company, from any country.
• Two people sign the founding documents. Your agent usually handles this.
• After that, one director and one shareholder can run the company. The law lets a single director or single owner pass written resolutions instead of holding meetings (s.53).
• Want to manage the LLC directly as the owner? Use a unanimous shareholder agreement. A notice of it must be filed within 15 days (s.41).
• Meetings can happen anywhere, including by phone (s.48, s.60).
• Shares must be registered. Bearer shares are banned (s.10).
• Nominee directors are no longer allowed. See the 2026 update below.

Corporate Tax and Other Taxes

Here's the headline: the Bahamas has no corporate income tax for most companies.

• No corporate income tax, capital gains tax, withholding tax, or dividend tax for companies not doing business inside the country.
• No personal income tax or net worth tax.
• Very large groups are different. The Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax Act, 2024 makes multinationals with €750 million or more in revenue pay a 15% top-up tax, effectively from fiscal years starting in 2025 (PwC summary).
• Selling goods or services locally? VAT is charged at 10%. Registration kicks in once taxable sales pass BSD 100,000.
• Stamp duty can apply to some asset transfers. Real property tax of up to 2% may apply to local property.
• If your country taxes worldwide income (the US does), you still report your income there.

Tip: choose a corporate structure that works with your home tax rules, not just local ones.

Do You Need a Business Licence?

Planning to run a business in the Bahamas that serves local customers? Then you probably do.

Under the Business Licence Act, 2023, no one may carry on a business in or from within the Bahamas without a licence (s.9).

• The rules cover activities in the Bahamas and work run from the islands. For an international business company, turnover includes all revenue recorded in its books there (s.32).
• A pure equity holding company is not treated as a business (s.10).
• No licence tax is due in your first year of operation. Businesses with prior-year turnover of $100,000 or less are also exempt (s.38).
• Tax rates depend on your turnover and type of business. For an IBC's revenue from outside the Bahamas, the Second Schedule rate is $2,500 on revenue up to $1 million, or 0.25% above that, capped at $100,000.
• Renew by 31 January. File your turnover return and pay any balance by 31 March (s.26).
• Foreign-owned applicants need approval from the Minister of Finance (s.21).

Operating a business from the islands means more paperwork, so plan early.

Registration Fees and Yearly Costs

How much will this really cost you? Here's the breakdown.

• Government incorporation fee: about US$330 (fee schedule).
• Annual government fee: US$350 if authorised capital is US$50,000 or less. US$1,000 if it is higher. It is due each 1 January.
• Agent and office fees: charged yearly and included in your first-year package.
• Licence tax: only if you trade locally or run operations from the islands.
• Our package: from US$1,390 for the first year, with the government registration fee included.

Most owners keep authorised capital at US$50,000 or less to stay in the lower fee band.

Records, Reporting, and Privacy

Privacy is strong here. But you still need clean books.

• Keep reliable accounting records for at least five years.
• You don't file accounts or annual returns with the government. Like other offshore companies, though, you must keep them ready.
• If your company carries out certain “relevant activities,” economic substance reports may apply.
• Your agent records beneficial ownership under the Register of Beneficial Ownership Act, 2018. It isn't on the public register.
• The register of directors and officers is filed with the registry and open to public inspection (s.44).
• Your share register stays at your company's official address (s.29).
• Your filed founding documents are public. Keep private terms in a separate owners' agreement instead.

Opening a Bank Account in the Bahamas

Your company is ready. So where does the money go?

• You can open a bank account in the Bahamas or elsewhere. Banks run their own KYC checks.
• The Bahamian dollar is pegged to the US dollar at par. The Central Bank uses exchange controls to protect that peg.
• Your company sits outside the Central Bank's company designation rules, which keeps foreign-currency banking simple.
• Bank approval often takes longer than incorporation. Start early.

Want both done together? Order a Bahamas Limited Liability Company, with or without a bank account.

More Corporate Details at a Glance

A few more rules worth knowing.

• Language: English is the official language. Registration documents must be in English.
• Moving in: A foreign company, or a domestic one, can move its registration here under Part VIII.
• Moving out: An IBC in the Bahamas can switch to domestic status or move to another country (s.88).
• Mergers: Your company can merge with a foreign company if that country allows it (s.79).
• Changes: Once your company is registered in the Bahamas, file any change to your Memorandum or Articles within 28 days (s.18).
• Shelf companies: Ready-made companies are available for a faster start.
• Legal system: Common law.

Setting this up for a US partner? Ask how they want the LLC company named before you file.

How Is Bahamas Company Formation Changing in 2026?

The biggest change this year? Nominee directors are out.

The fact: The International Business Companies (Amendment) Act, 2025, gazetted 19 June 2025, inserted a new Section 41A, "Prohibition of Nominee Directors," into the IBC Act — it bans anyone from serving as a director while acting on someone else's instructions. A parallel Section 80A does the same for domestic companies under the Companies (Amendment) Act, 2025. Existing nominee directors had a six-month transition window to step down. Nominee shareholders are still allowed, but a nominee arrangement must now be disclosed in the Memorandum and share register, backed by a declaration of trust (sources: Legal 500; Chambers Private Wealth Guide).

Our view: In 25 years of helping clients build an offshore business, we've seen one pattern again and again. Structures rarely fail because of tax. They fail when the paperwork says one thing and real control says another. Banks spot that gap fast. This law simply writes down what good practice already demanded: the person who signs as director must really make the decisions.

What's next: We expect banks and registered agents to ask harder questions about who controls a company. Director checks will likely get stricter through 2027. Agent fees may also creep up as compliance work grows. It makes sense to plan for that in your budget now.

Frequently Asked Questions

• Can a foreigner start a business in the Bahamas?

  Yes. A foreigner can own 100% of a Bahamas company. You don't need to live there or visit to set it up. You do need a licensed registered agent and a local registered office. If you plan to trade locally, you'll also need a business licence, and foreign-owned applicants need approval from the Minister of Finance.

• How much does it cost to form and renew a Bahamas company?

  The government charges about US$330 to form the company. The yearly government fee is US$350 when authorised capital is US$50,000 or less, and US$1,000 when it is higher. Agent, office, and service fees are extra. Our full formation package starts from US$1,390 for the first year. Licence tax applies only if you trade locally or run operations from the islands.

• What is the difference between a Bahamas IBC and a Bahamas LLC?

  In most cases, the LLC is an international business company that uses "LLC" at the end of its name. Both follow the same 2000 Act, so the rules on directors, taxes, and privacy are the same. The LLC label can help if your bank or home-country adviser expects that format.

• How long does registration take?

  Once your documents pass checks, the government's express service can form your company in about one hour. Regular service takes about 48 hours. Gathering and certifying your ID documents usually takes longer, often up to a week.

• Can I set up my LLC without travelling there?

  Yes. Your licensed agent files everything with the registry online. You send certified copies of your passport and proof of address, and your agent handles the rest.

• How many directors and owners do I need?

  You need one or more directors, who can be a person or a company of any nationality. Two people sign the founding documents at formation, and your agent usually arranges this. After that, the law recognises companies with a single director or a single owner.

• Will my LLC pay tax in the Bahamas?

  Most don't. The Bahamas has no corporate income tax, capital gains tax, or withholding tax for companies doing business outside the country. Very large multinational groups may owe a 15% top-up tax. Local sales can trigger VAT and licence tax. If your home country taxes worldwide income, you still report it there.

• Does my LLC need a business licence?

  Only if your company carries on business in or from within the country. A pure holding company that only holds shares is not treated as a business. New businesses pay no licence tax in their first year, and businesses with prior-year turnover of $100,000 or less are exempt from the tax.

• Do I need to file accounts or annual returns?

  No accounts or annual returns go to the government. But you must keep reliable accounting records for at least five years. You must also pay the annual government fee, keep your agent and office in place, and file economic substance reports if your activities fall in scope.

• Is my ownership information public?

  Owner names sit in the share register at your company's official address, not on the public register. The register of directors and officers is filed with the registry and is open to public inspection. Beneficial ownership details are held through your agent.

• Can I still use a nominee director?

  No. Since the International Business Companies (Amendment) Act, 2025 took effect, the law bans directors who act on another person's instructions. Nominee shareholders are still allowed, but they must be disclosed and backed by a declaration of trust kept on file by the company.

• Can I move an existing company to the Bahamas?

  Yes. A foreign company or a domestic company can move its registration to the Bahamas under Part VIII of the Act, if it meets the requirements. Your company can also move out later.

• Can my LLC open a bank account?

  Yes. You can open an account locally or abroad. Banks will ask for your company certificate, founding documents, ID for directors and owners, and proof of where your funds come from. Bank approval often takes longer than incorporation.