Offshore Services

Korten Consulting Ltd is not a licensed management company or fiduciary service provider in any jurisdiction. Accordingly, we do not as principle form companies or offer trustee services. Instead, these services are provided through our established network of trusted service providers in the jurisdiction of Mauritius, Seychelles, BVI, Hong Kong, Guernsey, Jersey, Isle of Man, Dubai, Cyprus, UK, USA, Barbados and the Cayman Islands. We are able to project manage and facilitate the establishment of legal vehicles, including-

• Offshore family trusts and purpose trusts
• Foundations
• limited liability companies
• Leases, Intellectual Property related agreements and Agency Agreements
• limited partnerships
• hybrid companies such as companies limited by guarantee and segregated portfolio companies

For South African and Mauritian resident clients we can-

• design and attend to the execution of bespoke structures, often involving the legitimate use of tax friendly jurisdictions
• optimize a trading structure with due regard to the laws of the jurisdictions where the business activities will be executed and the countries of tax residency of its beneficiaries
• applying business acumen as well as tax planning knowledge

The tax laws of South Africa, as well as the tax residency criteria in most international Double Taxation Agreements require that a Mauritian company be legally tax resident in Mauritius, which requires its “place of effective management” to be in Mauritius. This means that a Mauritian company would be expected to have Mauritian resident directors with the requisite knowledge, skill, experience and qualifications to actively participate on an executive level regarding the high level legal, commercial and technical affairs that relates to the business of a Mauritian company.

Korten Consulting Ltd, with its access to various qualified attorneys, accountants and technical specialists that are either resident individuals in Mauritius, or spend material amount of time in Mauritius, are able to offer-

• active director services with the required financial, accounting, legal and industry specific expertise in Mauritius
• Mauritian based business support, including sourcing business premises, accounting services, information technology services, banking services and bank account management

For clients interested in conservative passive investment structures offshore, we can-

• optimise estate planning, asset protection and associated tax planning
• advise on the most suitable jurisdiction to hold investments
• deal with tax issues in the countries where investments are made
• advise on succession plans and complex family arrangements
• act as directors, protectors and provide the best trustee services

Having regard to the risk of offshore trusts being attacked as being resident in the jurisdiction where their settlors are resident, the role of a “Protector” to an offshore trust is becoming more important to ensure that the settlors and beneficiaries of offshore trusts do not unduly influence the foreign resident trustees. In addition to addressing such tax risks, our Protector service also offers clients more protection and confidence given the powers of trustees that control the trust assets. By virtue of our legal, tax and commercial risk management knowledge, we offer the services of-

• acting as the Protector to offshore trusts
• fulfilling the role of an Enforcer to a Purpose Trust
• provide general legal advise with our tax knowledge and business acumen