Botswana company registration

DOING BUSINESS IN BOTSWANA IN 2023

Since 2003, Healy Consultants Group has assisted our Clients with business registration in Botswana. Our services include i) Botswana company incorporation ii) government license registration iii) corporate bank account opening in Botswana iv) employee recruitment v) visa strategies and vi) office rental solutions in Botswana.

Compare different Botswana entities	LLC	IFSC company	Fast setup solutions	Public limited company	Representative office	Branch office
Best use of company?	All purposes	Offshore financial services	Client to fast close local deal	To secure public funding	Marketing/ research	Specific projects
How soon to invoice Clients?	10 weeks	4 months	3 weeks	14 weeks	4 months	4 months
How soon can you hire staff?	10 weeks	4 months	3 weeks	14 weeks	4 months	4 months
How soon can you sign a lease agreement?	2 weeks	2 weeks	3 weeks	2 weeks	2 weeks	2 weeks
How long to supply corporate bank a/c?	14 weeks	18 weeks	3 weeks	18 weeks	21 weeks	21 weeks
How long to supply co. reg / tax numbers?	10 weeks	4 months	3 weeks	14 weeks	4 months	4 months
Corporate tax rate on annual net profits?	22%	15%	22%	22%	0%	30%
Limited liability entity?	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	No
Minimum paid up share capital?	US$1	US$1	US$1	US$1	None	None
Government grants available?	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	No	Yes
Govt approval required for foreign owners?	No	Yes	No	No	No	No
Can bid for Government contracts?	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	No	Yes
Corporate bank account location?	SCB Botswana	Barclays	FNB Botswana	Stanbic Bank	SCB Botswana	Barclays
Can secure trade finance?	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	Yes
VAT payable on sales to local customers?	12%	0%	12%	12%	0%	12%
Average total business set up costs?	US$23,455	US$11,405	US$29,405	US$13,505	US$9,850	US$15,600
Average total engagement period?	4 months	5 months	5 months	5 months	6 months	6 months

See full table

Accounting and tax considerations	LLC	IFSC company	Fast setup solutions	Public limited company	Representative office	Branch office
Statutory corporate tax payable?	22%	15%	22%	22%	0%	30%
Legally tax exempt if properly structured?	No	No	No	No	Yes	No
Must file an annual company tax return?	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Must file annual financial statements?	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Must appoint an auditor?	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	No
Access to double taxation treaties?	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	Yes
WH tax on payments to foreign s/holders?	8%	0%	8%	8%	None	0%
Company Registration	LLC	IFSC company	Fast setup solutions	Public limited company	Representative office	Branch office
Minimum number of directors/managers?	1	1	1	2	1	1
Min. number of shareholders/partners?	1	1	1	7	Parent company	Parent company
Maximum shareholding for foreigners?	100%	100%	100%	100%	100%	100%
Minimum statutory paid up share capital?	US$1	US$1	US$1	US$1	None	None
Shelf companies available?	Yes	No	Yes	No	No	No
Time to incorporate a new entity?	10 weeks	16 weeks	3 weeks	14 weeks	16 weeks	16 weeks
Can easily convert to a PLC?	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	No	No
Public register of s/holders and directors?	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Can have preference shareholders?	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	No
This entity will likely be regulated by?	MTI	IFSC	MTI	MTI	MTI	MTI
Business Considerations	LLC	IFSC company	Fast setup solutions	Public limited company	Representative office	Branch office
Good entity for trademark registration?	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	No	Yes
Can secure an import and export license?	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	No	Yes

Res. director/partner/manager required?	Yes
Sponsorship by a local citizen required?	No
Our Client must travel to Botswana?	No
Temp. physical office solutions available?	Yes
You need a local resident as bank signatory?	No
Can be wholly foreign owned?	Yes
Security deposit kept with government?	No
Monthly VAT reporting to the Government?	Yes
Must sign an office lease agreement?	Yes
S/holder/director docs attested/translated?	Yes
Foreign non resident director needs work permit?	No
Maximum number of staff allowed?	None
Expatriate to local staff ratio?	None
Can secure residence visa for business owner?	Yes
Group HQ tax incentives available?	Yes
Other useful information
What is included in my cust. sales invoice?	Click here
Botswana has signed free trade agreements?	Yes
This country is a member of WIPO/TRIPS?	Yes
This country is a member of the ICSID?	Yes
Average custom duties suffered?	5.3%
Average monthly office rental? (US$ per sq m)	US$25
Minimum statutory monthly salary?	Depends on the business
Average US$ salary for local skilled staff?	US$1,550
US$ deposit interest rate? (1 year average)	2%
Overseas remittance currency controls?	None
Banking considerations
Multi-currency bank accounts available?	Yes
Corporate visa debit cards available?	Yes
Quality of e-banking platform?	Satisfactory
Crowd funding available in this country?	Yes

Botswana business setup summary

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Advantages and Disadvantages
Advantages of Botswana company registration
1. A Botswana Limited Liability Company (LLC) requires only one shareholder and one director, with no restrictions on foreign ownership. There is also no minimum paid-up capital to register a company in Botswana;
2. Botswana has been a member of the World Trade Organization since 1995 and thus, enjoys all the benefits that membership provides;
3. The economy of Botswana is benefited by the world’s largest diamond market, producing over 30 million carats annually. Diamond exports have ensured an adequate flow of foreign exchange which has contributed to the strengthening of Botswana’s economy;
4. Botswana is positively ranked as the least corrupt country in Africa and ranks as the 28^th least corrupt country in the world, according to the 2015 Corruption Perceptions Index by Transparency International, a global measure of corruption amongst public officials and politicians;
5. Botswana was positively ranked as the 30^th freest economy in the Heritage Foundation’s 2016 Index of Economic Freedom, a measure of freedom enjoyed in business, trade, monetary, financial, investment and labour markets. Outstanding trade and fiscal freedom were listed as the main reasons behind the high rank;
6. It is easy to open global corporate bank accounts to support business setup in Botswana. Healy Consultants works with internationally recognized banks to provide Botswana corporate bank account services.
7. Botswana has been ranked positively in the 63^rd position (out of 137 countries) in the Global Competitiveness Index 2017-2018 edition. The country’s excellent macroeconomic environment along with an efficient labour market largely enhances the nation’s competitiveness and its global presence.
Disadvantages of Botswana company registration
1. Botswana company incorporation is complex and time consuming. According to the World Bank it takes 48 days on average to set up a business here, compared to an average of 27 days in Sub Saharan African countries and 9 in OECD countries;
2. A Botswana LLC is liable for a corporate tax rate of 22%, and may be liable for VAT at the rate of 10% as well;
3. Many business sectors in Botswana remain closed to foreign investment and in most cases, land cannot be sold to foreign investors;
4. The relative slow internet bandwidth and power situation present additional challenges to doing business in Botswana;
5. Botswana ranks as 72 out of 189 economies in ease of doing business according to the World Bank with the main business obstacles being trading across borders, dealing with construction permits and getting electricity;
6. Botswana has a small population of 2.3 million people and an adult literacy rate of 90%. Therefore, it is a challenging task for companies to acquire an adequate supply of low-skilled labour in Botswana.
Best uses for a Botswana company

Botswana is an ideal location to set up a manufacturing company as the government offers incentives such as i) low tax rates of 15% on taxable income ii) tax holidays for up to 10 years iii) free repatriation of profits and dividends and iv) double tax treaties with 12 countries that minimize withholding tax and allow investors to avoid double taxation.

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Our email address is email@healyconsultants.com and our phone numbers are +65 6735 0120 for Singapore and +971 55 967 0125 for Dubai. We are happy to answer your questions and assist you with your company setup needs.

Company purpose?

Will the LLC be a trading company or a holding company?
Will the entity be a subsidiary of a foreign company?
The LLC will be tax resident? Having local customers and local staff and local suppliers?
The entity will receive investment income or professional services fees or sales from trading with multi-national customers?
Is double taxation treaty access important?
Do you need our help to legally minimize your international tax obligations?
Do you need our help to increase e-commerce sales (click link)?
Company structure?

Will the shareholders be individuals or corporate?

In what country do you require a corporate bank account? Refer to this web page (click link) for ideas

Do you need multi-currency corporate visa debit cards?

Do you need a resident director?

Nationality of shareholders and directors?
Expected annual sales and net profits?
Does the entity need a special regulatory license or import or export license?
Additional comments?
Tell us about your existing business?

Name of your existing company?
Your business web site address?
What products and services does your company supply?
How many years are you operating this business?
Is your Firm regulated by a Government agency?
In what country are the majority of your customers?
Tell us about you?

Your name?
Your email address?
What country are you based in?

Specifically, what deliverables (click link) do you need?
What is your US$ budget for the services you need?
What does quality customer service mean to you?
How do we contact you?

For now, do you prefer Healy Consultants Group staff to phone you, or just email reply you with some corporate solutions?
If a phone call, on what number can our senior Consultant call you?
If an email, what email address can our Consultant email you at?
What alternative email address can our Consultant email you at?
What is your preferred date and time for a phone call?
In what language do you prefer we communicate with you?
What matters would you like to discuss during the call; the agenda?

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