The Legal 500

Legal Developments in Gibraltar

• Gibraltar – Limited Partnerships

  UK commercial property purchasers lucky enough to find a willing vendor and financier may deem it worthwhile from a stamp duty land tax (“SDLT”) point of view to structure the transaction using a Gibraltar limited partnership (“LP”).
  - Hassans

• Why Gibraltar as a Jurisdiction?

  The Rock's attractions as a place to conduct international business or establish company structures have been enhanced in recent years by several developments – a warmer relationship with neighbouring Spain has been established and talks on closer cooperation at several levels continue; a new constitution is in place that, while retaining Gibraltar's ties with Britain, gives the Rock greater autonomy; and a glowing report by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) lauding the high standards of the jurisdiction's regulatory regime was issued at the end of May 2007.
  - Hassans

• Tax Fact Sheet ‘A home for your Holding Company’

  Many jurisdictions now have in place a specialist “Holding Company Regime”. At present Gibraltar does not distinguish between holding companies and companies for other purposes, but certain characteristics of the overall Gibraltar regime for companies make the jurisdiction particularly attractive.
  - Hassans

• So you found your ideal house... What next?

  Once you have paid a deposit on a property it is important to note that on the whole, reservation agreements tend to be “subject to contract”. This means that until such time as exchange of contracts is effected either the purchaser or the vendor may withdraw from the transaction at any time. However, you should consider the terms of the reservation agreement very carefully as some estate agents will retain the reservation deposit if the purchaser fails to complete the transaction.
  - Hassans

• GROWTH IN THE GIBRALTAR FUNDS INDUSTRY

  Following the introduction of the Experienced Investor Fund regime (EIF) a couple of years ago there has been a substantial growth in the Gibraltar funds industry. The number of funds established has been growing at a compound rate and funds now range from $1Million to over $1Billion. The funds invest in all areas of the world including America, Europe, Eastern Europe and the Middle East with investors in a number of different jurisdictions.
  - Hassans

• Funds find a New Home in Gibraltar

  Despite numerous proposed changes, Gibraltar is well placed to capitalise on to the proposed European Directive controlling Fund Managers, argues Joey Garcia
  - ISOLAS

• Banking Briefing - November 2009

  An introduction to the banking industry in Gibraltar
  - ISOLAS

• Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive - Funds find a new home in Gibraltar

  Everyone in the fund industry is more than aware of the European Commission’s draft directive on Alternative Investment Fund Managers (AIFM). The Directive, generally speaking, will not only affect the European hedge fund industry but also private equity and other sectors including real estate investment products. Needless to say, this is a matter which will no doubt need to be given significant consideration by Gibraltar-based funds and managers in the future.
  - ISOLAS

• the proposed legislative framework for the incorporation of limited liability partnerships

  The Limited Liability Partnerships Bill 2008 (the “Act”) is little more than a framework piece of legislation, only containing details of incorporation, membership and taxation. The Act empowers the Minister for Finance to adopt regulations, likely to be known as the Limited Liability Partnerships Regulations 2008, to regulate the management and winding-up of limited liability partnerships (LLP(s)).
  - ISOLAS

• Gibraltar crosses the OECD white line

  At the conclusion of a very busy period of negotiations with a large number of jurisdictions, Gibraltar’s government yesterday signed a further three Tax Information Exchange Agreements (‘TIEA’) with the Faroe Islands, Greenland and Finland. This brings the total number of TIEAs signed by the Gibraltar government to thirteen, one more than the magic number twelve, as a result of which, Gibraltar has now been moved on to the so-called ‘White List’ of jurisdictions that have substantially implemented the internationally agreed standard (see below progress report updated 20 October 2009).
  - ISOLAS