News: Registration of Company in South Africa

The Republic of South Africa (South Africa) is the most developed and rich country in the African continent.

The state is situated in the southern part of the continent. South Africa shares border with Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe in the north, and with Swaziland and Mozambique in the north-east. The enclave state of Lesotho is located in the territory of South Africa. The capital is Pretoria.

Perhaps, South Africa is the most manifold republic in terms of the nationalities represented in the state. The population is about 49 million people.

11 languages (English, Afrikaans, etc.) have the status of state languages in South Africa.

The banking system of South Africa is represented by the central bank and several large banks, as well as a number of small banks.

The South African rand is the monetary unit of South Africa.

Why is it cost-efficient to buy or register company in South Africa? The main reasons are the following:

- the state is not included in the "black list" of offshore companies;

- developed and effective banking system;

- the possibility of carrying out successful tax planning.

Business registration in South Africa is rapidly gaining popularity.

Forms of doing business in South Africa.

In South Africa, it is possible to register companies of the following organizational and legal forms:

lPrivate Company

lPublic Company (PLC). The company is used as effective instrument for offshore business, for example, for the export of goods (services).

Registration of public company (PLC) in South Africa. Basic provisions

• The name of the established company should end with "PLC".
• The share capital consists of the shares contributed by the shareholders (owners) of the company in the total capital. The amount of capital can be in monetary equivalent, as well as real assets.
  The real assets can be represented by the object having actual market value. Intellectual property can act as the authorized capital of the company, provided that in the future third parties can obtain rights for it without any restrictions. The value of real assets which are expressed in real estate and contributed to the company's authorized capital in South Africa shall have confirmation of the licensed auditor, but it can be underestimated, if that is the will of the investor.
• The authorized capital of the PLC company shall equal to at least 100,000 rand. At the moment of registration, at least 1/4 of the total amount of the authorized capital should be contributed.
• Public company can start doing business activities only after the subscription for the total amount of the capital has been completed.
• The duration of registration of the PLC company is about 5 weeks.
• The director of the company can be legal entity or natural person, resident of any country. The number of directors is two or more, and there is no maximum limit.
• The company shall necessarily have the secretary.
• The issue of shares is possible without any restrictions.
• The meetings of shareholders/owners should be held annually. The shareholders themselves determine the place and time. All shareholders/owners should be present at the meeting.
• The first meeting should be held within 18 months from the moment of registration. Each subsequent meeting shall be held within 9 months after the end of the current financial year. At the same time, the interval following the previous general annual meeting should not be more than 15 months.
• The Memorandum and the Articles of Association shall be submitted in the Register of Companies. The Memorandum should specify the name of the company and the address of the registered office. The memorandum is signed by each shareholder in the presence of the witness. The Charter regulates the basic rules for conducting commercial activities of the company and its internal code of conduct.
• If the company belongs to the non-resident of South Africa, it is necessary to appoint "public official" from South Africa, who will monitor the source of the company's income.
• The company in South Africa can be engaged in any legitimate activities.

Bookkeeping of PLC in South Africa

It is necessary to maintain accounting records and reflect the transactions of the company conducted within one financial year. At the same time, current financial status of the company should be reflected in the report.

The accounting statement contains consistent daily calculation of all the amounts received or transferred. It is also necessary to make record regarding the amounts of the liquid assets, the value of the shares of the shareholders with the indication of their total amount in the report.

The reports should be stored at the legal address, which is indicated in the Register, within 6 years from the date of signing.

It is necessary to send statistics report to the Register of Companies. It should be done no later than upon the expiry of 21st day from the date of the end of the fiscal year.

The financial year of the company is the period from the first day of the reporting period with duration of no more than 365 days. The initial date of the reporting period for each individual company is assigned by the Register. It is the last day of the month in which the company was established. Within 9 months the director is entitled to change this date, but this is necessary to be preliminary agreed with the Register.

The first financial year of the company can be at least 6 months or not more than 18 months from the date of registration.

Private company in South Africa. Peculiarities of formation of the company in South Africa

• The company name should end with the words "Proprietary Limited" or "PTY Limited".
• The company can have one shareholder, who is either natural or legal person, and either resident or non-resident of South Africa. Maximum number of shareholders is 50 people.
• Only registered shares are allowed to be issued, and they can not be transferred to third parties without the consent of all participants.
• The company can have one director, who is either resident or non-resident of South Africa.
• The company's founding documents are Charter and Memorandum. The Memorandum should contain the address of the company's registration office and its name.
• Registration of the company in South Africa takes about 15 working days, then the company shall be registered with the tax authority. If the company is not registered within 45 days, it will be automatically stricken off and imposed with the penalty of 8000 rand.

Bookkeeping of private company

The company is obliged to keep accounting records and submit annual report, to which information concerning the operating directors and shareholders is attached. The report also includes the information on shareholders owning shares during the financial year.

Taxes in South Africa

The rate of income tax usually equals to 29%.

We will register ready-made company in South Africa for you within the shortest time possible. Buying company in South Africa is now easier than ever. Registration of business in South Africa is one of the simplest and cheapest ways to start legitimate international business. Company formation in South Africa is one of the main directions of our work.