Seychelles operates two unconnected corporate registries. Domestic companies are incorporated under the Companies Act (Cap 40) of 1972 by the Registrar of Companies in the Registration Division of the Department of Legal Affairs. Everything non-domestic — international business companies, foundations, limited partnerships, trusts and special-licence companies — is registered by the Financial Services Authority (FSA). The two regimes differ sharply in transparency: parts of the FSA registers are open to public inspection, while the international business company register itself is not.

The company registries in Seychelles

The domestic register

The Companies Act (Cap 40), enacted as the Companies Ordinance 1972, remains in force and is expressly preserved by the international companies legislation. The Registrar of Companies is appointed under that Act and sits in the Registration Division. Business names are registered under the Registration of Business Names Act, and associations under the Registration of Associations Act. Licensing is a separate matter handled by the Seychelles Licensing Authority, which issues a business licence either to a sole trader holding a national identity number or to a registered company or business, and tax registration is separate again with the Seychelles Revenue Commission.

A practical warning for anyone researching Seychelles: the domestic registry’s own website is offline, and the government business register front end carries an “under construction” registration form with test data while its search function returns a server error. There is currently no working online public company search for domestic companies.

The international register

The FSA is the registrar for non-domestic vehicles. Under the International Business Companies Act, 2016, consolidated through amendments up to 2025, the registrar is the chief executive of the FSA. An international business company must at all times have a Seychelles registered agent licensed under the International Corporate Service Providers Act, and it can only be incorporated through such an agent, which makes licensed agents the gateway to the whole regime.

Legal forms that can be registered in Seychelles

Domestic, with the Registrar of Companies:

  • Company limited by shares — Companies Act (Cap 40); members’ liability is limited to the unpaid share capital. It is the only limited form the 1972 Act provides; a company limited by guarantee exists only under the international companies legislation.
  • Proprietary company — a closely held sub-type under the same Act: membership is capped, all shareholders are members, corporate members and holding companies are excluded, no preference shares may be issued and no prospectus may be issued. The word “proprietary” forms part of the name.
  • Company with the word “Limited” dispensed with — the Act’s route for charitable and non-profit companies.
  • Business name or sole trader — under the Registration of Business Names Act, with unlimited personal liability and a separate business licence requirement.
  • Partnership — registrable with the Registration Division; the substantive law is the Commercial Code, and partners bear unlimited joint liability.
  • Association — under the Registration of Associations Act, for non-profit membership bodies.

Registered by the Financial Services Authority:

  • International business company — International Business Companies Act, 2016; it may be limited by shares, by guarantee, or by guarantee while having shares. It cannot carry on domestic business without falling into the assessable income regime.
  • Company Special Licence — Companies (Special Licences) Act, 2003; a company incorporated by the Registrar of Companies under the 1972 Act which then holds a special licence issued by the FSA. Used for treaty access and licensed activity.
  • Protected cell company — Protected Cell Companies Act, 2003, with FSA consent; cellular assets are ring-fenced from the creditors of other cells, and the form is restricted to insurance, mutual funds and activities approved by the FSA.
  • Limited partnership — Limited Partnerships Act, 2003; general partners are unlimitedly liable while limited partners answer only up to their contribution. Used for funds and joint ventures.
  • Trust — Trusts Act, 2021. An important correction for anyone working from older material: the International Trusts Act 1994 was repealed by the 2021 Act, so the term “international trust” is obsolete and the vehicle is now a Seychelles trust registered with the FSA through a licensed trustee.
  • Foundation — Foundations Act, 2009; an orphan legal person with no members, used for succession and asset holding.
  • International Trade Zone entity — a free zone operator licensed under the international trade zone legislation.

Information available from the Seychelles registers

What is actually obtainable differs entity by entity, and the pattern is unusual.

International business companies are the most opaque. The only official online search is negative: a struck-off and dissolved company search that returns the name, number, strike-off and dissolution flags and the effective date. Active companies cannot be searched online. The register of directors is filed with the FSA but is not public: the Act provides that the filed copy is kept by the registrar and may not be disclosed except under court order, when compelled by law, to the registered agent, or to a third party authorised by the registered agent or a director. The register of members is not required to be filed at all, and filing the registers of members, of charges or of beneficial owners with the registrar is optional. What a member of the public can obtain is a certificate of official search — the name, number, previous names, date of incorporation or continuation, registered office, registered agent, annual fee due date, status and the number of outstanding and discharged charges.

Foundations, limited partnerships and trusts are more open. The foundations register is open to public inspection and shows the name, number, registered office, registered agent, the name and address of each councillor, the date of establishment, fee status and any striking off, and the charter itself is public. For limited partnerships the register and the filed statements are expressly available for public inspection, showing the name, nature of business, registered office, general partners and registered agent, though limited partners are not filed. For trusts the register is open to inspection by any person, showing the trust name, reference number, the approved trustees and the registration and termination dates, while the trust deed, settlor and beneficiaries are not.

Beneficial ownership and accounting records

The beneficial ownership arrangement is often misdescribed, so it is worth stating precisely. Under the Beneficial Ownership Act, 2020 the register of beneficial owners is kept by the entity through its resident agent, and the national database is maintained by the Financial Intelligence Unit, not by the FSA, with the resident agent uploading data within a short statutory period. The register must be maintained in confidentiality: only directors and members, councillors and founders, trustees, settlors and beneficiaries, partners, and a named beneficial owner as to their own entry may inspect it, and database access is limited to the competent authorities listed in the Act. There is one public exception: the beneficial ownership register of extractive companies is filed with the Registrar of Companies and is open to public inspection.

Accounting records must be reliable and, following the 2021 amendments, records kept abroad must be lodged at the Seychelles registered office at regular intervals, with smaller companies additionally preparing an annual financial summary kept at the registered office. These are not public: they sit at the registered office and are produced to the authorities on request. Filing annual financial statements with the registrar is optional, and the general annual return obligation for international business companies has been repealed, applying only where the company derives assessable income in Seychelles.

Documents that can be obtained from the register

  • Certificate of incorporation — proof that the entity exists and of its date of incorporation, issued by the Registrar of Companies for domestic and special-licence companies and by the FSA registrar for international business companies. A duplicate may be issued if the original is lost or destroyed.
  • Certificate of good standing — certifies that the entity is on the register and has paid all fees, annual fees and penalties, and states whether articles of merger, consolidation or arrangement have been filed, whether winding up has commenced and whether striking-off proceedings have been instituted. The equivalent certificates exist for foundations and limited partnerships.
  • Certificate of official search, or company extract — the standard registry extract described above, issued under the official seal. Where an entity is not in good standing, the registrar issues this certificate instead of the good standing certificate.
  • Certified copies of constitutional documents and filed registers — certified or uncertified copies of any qualifying filed document, including the memorandum and articles, the foundation charter and filed partnership statements. Certified copies are prima facie evidence and are admissible in court as if they were originals. Note that the register of members and the register of beneficial owners are obtainable only where the entity has filed them voluntarily, and the register of directors is excluded from disclosure.
  • Annual return — filed by domestic companies under the 1972 Act and by special-licence companies with audited accounts; for international business companies only where they derive assessable income in Seychelles. It shows the registered office, officers and share capital position for the year.
  • Certificate of dissolution and gazette notices — strike-off and dissolution are gazetted and evidenced by certificate.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many company registers does Seychelles have?

Two. The domestic register kept by the Registrar of Companies under the Companies Act of 1972, and the international register kept by the Financial Services Authority under the International Business Companies Act 2016 and related statutes.

Can I search Seychelles companies online?

Only in a very limited way. The one official online search covers struck-off and dissolved international business companies. The domestic search facility currently returns a server error, and there is no online search of active international companies.

Are the directors of a Seychelles company public?

No. The register of directors is filed with the Financial Services Authority but the Act prohibits its disclosure except under court order, when compelled by law, or to the registered agent or a person authorised by it.

Who keeps beneficial ownership information in Seychelles?

The entity keeps its register through its resident agent, and the national database is maintained by the Financial Intelligence Unit. The register is confidential; only the extractive sector register is open to public inspection.

Does the international trust still exist?

No. The International Trusts Act 1994 was repealed by the Trusts Act 2021, and the vehicle is now a Seychelles trust registered with the Financial Services Authority through a licensed trustee.

Are Seychelles company accounts public?

No. Accounting records and financial summaries are kept at the registered office and produced to the authorities on request; filing financial statements with the registrar is optional.

Sources

Keywords

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