Purchase a readymade offshore company with professional assistance

Would you like to take your business to a new stage and enter the international markets? Please find out how you can purchase a readymade offshore company from this text. Under certain conditions, buying a readymade company makes better economic sense than establishing a new one.

Please apply for legal support to the experts of InternationalWealth portal. We have vast experience in assisting clients with setting up foreign companies. You are welcome to apply for a free consultation on the matter prior to ordering our services. Please write to us at the address indicated above and we will get back to you shortly.

What is a readymade offshore company?

A readymade offshore company is a company that has already been registered with the authorities of the foreign state. If the company was established with the purpose of selling it, it can be referred to as a shelf company. If the company has a history of business operations, it can be referred to as a vintage company. The most important advantage of purchasing a readymade offshore company is that all the corporate documents are available and the company already has a business number at the Company Registry.

The transition of property rights takes some time but in most instances, the time required to become the owner of an existing company abroad is shorter than the time required to establish a new foreign company. This should be your choice if you would like to start doing business instantly via your offshore company.

Before you purchase a readymade offshore company, however, you have to find out the following:

• Has the company been engaged in any business operations? If it has, does it have any debts or other liabilities? 
• Does the company have a good reputation with the country’s authorities? Is a Certificate of Good Standing available?

Needless to say, you do not want to pay back somebody else’s debts and you do not want any problems with the registration authorities.

Some reasons why you may want to purchase a readymade offshore company

Every entrepreneur has to work under certain specific conditions and every one has some specific goals. When can you benefit from purchasing a readymade offshore company?

1. When you are short on time and you need a foreign company urgently. Buying a readymade company abroad is faster than registering a new one.
2. You have a chance to win in a foreign bidding process and you need a foreign company to participate in the bidding.
3. A readymade offshore company will already have an official name so you will not have to invent a new company name.
4. If you buy a company with a history (but with no debts!), then you will be able to use the old brand name to produce new goods.
5. If the brand name enjoys a good reputation, you can use it for your own purposes.

The process of buying a readymade offshore company

The process of acquiring a readymade offshore company can be broken down into several steps:

1. Apply for professional assistance in the matter.
2. Choose one of the available options.
3. Make a ‘reservation’ of the company by officially confirming your desire to buy it.
4. Cover the costs of the services.
5. Supply the required personal documents.
6. The reregistration process (the transition of ownership rights) will start.  
7. When it is completed, you will receive the corporate documents and other company attributes such as the seal, for instance.

Let us discuss what each step involves in a little more detail. Before we do so, however, we would like to draw your attention to the fact that you can purchase a readymade offshore company without leaving home. You can stay where you are, continue with your business operations, and simply relax while your foreign company is being reregistered in your name.

1. The first thing to do when buying a readymade offshore company is find a reliable legal adviser. InternationalWealth portal has partners in a large number of countries and we have first-hand information about all the legal requirements related to buying a readymade company in each country. We will be happy to provide reliable legal support to you.
2. When you specify the criteria that your prospective offshore company must meet, we will suggest several alternative options to you. We will also provide useful tips and hints on how to spot the best alternative. The final decision will rest with you.
3. To ‘reserve’ a readymade offshore company you have to make a prepayment. When you do, the company will be assessed for the registration data and credit history.
4. As we are going to put our time, effort, and expertise into buying an offshore company for you, you will have to cover the cost of our professional services (see below).
5. You will have to supply personal documents in order to purchase a readymade offshore company. You can find the list of the required documents below.
6. Depending on the particular jurisdiction, the company has to be registered at the national company register or via a notary public. When the company changes the owner, the new owner’s information has to be entered in all registers, including the tax authorities, the bank where the company has an account, and so on.
7. When the reregistration process is complete, the corporate documents with your name on them as the company owner will be delivered to you with a courier. 

The timeframe of purchasing a readymade offshore company 

Would you like to have a foreign company in an instant? This is quite possible! The transfer of ownership procedure will take the company registrar only a couple of hours. At the same time, the submission of the new company owners and directors’ data takes a bit more time.

You have to expect to wait a few days after you choose the readymade offshore company and submit the documents for reregistration. For the sake of comparison, establishing a new offshore company takes approximately twice as much time.

Required documents

The same document set is required to start a new company and to purchase a readymade company abroad:

• The buyer’s personal identification document such as a passport – a copy.
• A Power of Attorney in the name of the person who is going to act on the buyer’s behalf – the original.
• A document to serve as a proof of residential address: a recent utility bill or a bank statement – copies or originals. 

How much does it cost to purchase a readymade offshore company?

Depending on the country where you are purchasing a readymade offshore company, the prices will vary. Here are the costs that make up the total price:

State duties + registration agent services + document postage + legal address + additional services (a new bank account, nominee directors, nominee shareholders, etc.).

Please disregard ads that offer readymade offshore companies for less than US$ 500. The reasons for that are as follows:

• The registration of an offshore company has to be prolonged every year and the cost starts at US$ 300.
• Renting a legal address costs at least US$ 100 per month.
• Courier delivery costs from US$ 100.

The average price of a readymade offshore company should be around US$ 2,000.

When hiring an intermediary to buy a company abroad, please make sure that the following items are included in the cost of services:

• State duties.
• Ownership rights transition.
• A registered legal address for one year.
• A registered agent for one year.
• Issuance of the registration certificate.
• Issuance of the Memorandum and Articles of Association.
• Register of company directors.
• Register of company shareholders.
• Share certificates.

As anyone can post an ad on the Internet, you can find some ‘attractive offers’ that invite you to purchase a readymade offshore company for next to nothing. Please beware of such ads: the quoted price does not include many items that are mandatory and need to be paid for too.

Please apply for a free consultation to the experts of InternationalWealth portal. You can contact us via email, WhatsApp or the live chat. We will help you make the best choice when buying a readymade offshore company!