Caribbean » British Virgin Islands

British Virgin Islands

It is now more than 10 years since the British Virgin Islands enacted insurance legislation. In that time, this British Overseas Territory has become one of the world’s leading captive domiciles, setting the standard for business friendly insurance regulation. The establishment, licensing and operation of captive insurance companies are governed by the Insurance Act 1994 as amended, and by subsidiary legislation. The BVI Business Companies Act 2004 makes provision for the establishment of Segregated Portfolio Companies.

The principal features of the regulatory requirements are:

• Captives must be licensed under the Act - license renewable annually
• Company name subject to approval
• Minimum of two directors
• Captives must appoint a resident insurance manager
• Annual audit of all captives to be submitted to the Financial Services Commission
• Actuarial valuation of life insurers annually

Capital, Margin of Solvency and Government Fees

Companies carrying on long-term business must have paid-in capital of at least US$200,000.

Companies carrying on general business must have paid-in capital of at least US$100,000 and must maintain a net worth based upon its net premium income as follows:

Government fees are payable as follows:

Application

When applying for an insurance license, the applicant company must provide a detailed business plan accompanied by 5 year financial projections.

The entire establishment process, from the time of submitting a completed license application to the Financial Services Commission, including incorporation, should be accomplished in 6 to 10 weeks.