The Legal 500

by Vittorio Tommasone

Arare congruence of exemptions under the US and BVI tax codes has prompted United States (“U.S.”) citizens holding British Virgin Island (“BVI”) property to undertake inter vivos transfers to their heirs during 2012.

On 15 March 2012 the British Virgin Islands Financial Services Commission (the “Commission”) published guidelines for practitioners requesting exemptions for funds from the requirement to appoint a manager, custodian or both (the “Guidelines”).

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British Virgin Islands

BVI Funds - Legal and structuring considerations

So far as tourism is concerned, the British Virgin Islands (the BVI) is described as "Nature's Little Secrets"; in the financial services industry this could not be further from the truth.

On 20 July 2011 the Eastern Caribbean Court of Appeal (“ECCA”) handed down the latest decision in the long running case of Alfa Telecom Turkey Limited v Cukurova Finance International Limited and Cukurova Holdings AS.

The British Virgin Islands’ Mutual Legal Assistance (Tax Matters) Act, 2003 as amended in 2005 (the “Act”) has given effect in the BVI to EC Directive 2003/48 on the taxation of savings income in the form of interest payments (the “Directive”) for the last six tax years. 

Companies often consider “what if” they could transfer to another jurisdiction based on what is currently happening in their current jurisdiction or simply to take advantage of developments within another jurisdiction.

Directors of British Virgin Islands (“BVI”) companies have certain fiduciary duties which arise both at common law and under statute. These fiduciary duties ultimately seek to protect companies and their shareholders whose destiny lie primarily in the hands of the directors in charge.the hands of the directors in charge.