Why do I need a national shareholder?
Aidan Healy
Chairman
In certain countries, governments will only permit company incorporation if the shares are partially held by local citizens. For example, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Indonesia, Argentina etc. Our Clients’ ask Healy Consultants to i) act as professional, passive nominee shareholder or ii) appoint a local joint venture partner.
How Healy Consultants can help?
- Healy Consultants will be pleased to offer Clients professional, passive nominee shareholder services in all jurisdictions across the globe. Please refer to the table below for our fees;
- Unless agreed otherwise with our Client, Healy Consultants nominee shareholders will not play an active role in our Client’s company. A detailed service agreement will be signed limiting the legal rights of our nominee shareholder;
- In some countries, it is necessary to appoint a resident bank signatory. For example Thailand, and Jersey, Pakistan etc. After a detailed service agreement is signed, Healy Consultants can be the bank signatory for our Client;
- Some of our Clients’ want Healy Consultants nominee shareholders to play an active role in the business, like a joint venture partner. This is common in countries like Saudi Arabia and Vietnam. After a detailed service agreement is signed, Healy Consultants can contribute to the success of our Clients’ local operations;
- For a high-risk business, Healy Consultants Group annual professional passive nominee resident director and shareholder fees may be higher. For example, Bitcoin / Crypto-currency business or retail forex brokerage business etc. Before we sign an engagement letter, the exact annual fee will be agreed between our Client and Healy Consultants Group.
| Jurisdiction | Minimum shareholding by Resident | Fees/shareholder |
|---|---|---|
| Abu Dhabi | 51% | US$15,600 |
| Ajman | 51% | US$10,800 |
| Algeria | 51% | US$17,500 |
| Dubai | 51% | US$10,800 |
| Indonesia | 0% | US$7,950 |
| Kuwait | 51% | US$28,550 |
| Libya | 51% | US$14,750 |
| Oman | 51% | US$14,600 |
| Philippines | 1% | US$3,420 |
| Philippines | 51% or more | US$5,600 |
| Qatar | 51% | US$41,320 |
| Saudi Arabia | 51% | US$28,550 |
| Sharjah | 51% | US$10,800 |
| UAE | 51% | US$10,800 |
What are other reasons to appoint a national shareholder?
In some jurisdictions, it can be beneficial for our Clients to appoint a national shareholder even though it may not be mandated by law. For instance:
- In many countries, like India, certain sectors including aviation, insurance and cable broadcasting are still partially restricted for foreigners. In such cases, the foreign companies who wish to invest in these sectors must have a local partner;
- In some countries like Malaysia and Iraq, the governments offer additional incentives to companies which allow certain percentage of shareholding for local individuals/entities;
