Cyprus company registration from abroad

For a closely held firm, Cyprus company registration means forming a private company limited by shares under the Companies Law, Cap. 113. The Registrar of Companies handles it, within the Department of Registrar of Companies and Intellectual Property (DRCIP; Greek ΤΕΕΔΙ). Name approval starts the process. Next, the memorandum and articles of association are signed in Greek. The lawyer handling the filing swears in court that it meets the law (form HE1). The file then goes to the Registrar online or on paper. The company exists once the certificate of incorporation is issued. Around these steps sit the choices: the form, whose identity must be proved, the office and officers, the first tax step and what follows.

As the rules stand, the company's own officers must enter its beneficial owners within 90 days of its formation. The entry goes in the Register of Beneficial Owners. They confirm it each year between 1 October and 31 December. The company also holds a first annual general meeting within 18 months, then one a year. It files an annual return with its financial statements. An auditor audits them, though a small company outside a larger group may be reviewed instead. Next, open the corporate bank account, a separate approval from Cyprus company formation. Under a Central Bank of Cyprus directive, the bank first maps who owns and controls the company and who its beneficial owners are.