Antigua and Barbuda Free Trade and Processing Zone Act

9 July 1998

Application for licence and Registration of the Investment therein Instructions for Completing and Filing Applications

The Commission welcomes investments in the Free Trade and Processing Zone, both domestic and foreign. No distinction is made as to the origin of the investment or of the investors.

The process of establishing operations in the Zone is straightforward. In order for the Commission to ascertain the background and qualifications of all proposed investors, a process has been established by which qualified applicants will be granted a Licence and their investments registered. Entitlements and benefits under thc Antigua and Barbuda Free Trade and Processing Zone Act are only available to a company which has been issued a Licence.

While we have tried to make this application as straightforward as possible, we appreciate that the furnishing of some of the Information requested may entail some difficulty. We will help if possible. Please con tact us at the address set out below to clarify any questions or other matter in connection with this application. Also should you believe that this application could be improved, please be certain to let us know.

Licence and registration of the investment in such company is available only to corporations. regardless of where incorporated, or a branch or other discrete division or unit of such corporation. It is recommended that individual investors or partnerships incorporate before making an application for a Licence.

The process of applying for a licence is meant to be as simple as possible.

To begin the process. obtain a copy of the Act and its Regulations and review them thoroughly. This will provide the applicant with an understanding of benefits or entitlements available to Companies as defined by the Act as well as to the obligations contracted upon being granted a Licence.

The application form is composed of three parts, all of which must be filled out completely. Incomplete applications and those which do not conform to the requirements of the Act and the Regulations will be returned unprocessed.

Where indicated, and as necessary, please provide requested information on separate sheets which should be marked with the Part number (One, Two or Three) and the question number to which it responds.

Applications must be accompanied by a non-refundable processing fee of US$525.00

Part One -- The Application
Part Two -- Background Information of the Investors and Members of the Board of Directors
Part Three -- Duty Free Importation of Equipment and Materials

PART ONE =97 THE APPLICATION

Line 1.	Fill in the name of the authorised representative and the name of the Company.
Line 2.	Insert legal name of Company, and other required information.
Line 3.	Insert name of country and locality incorporated For example. State of Delaware, USA. Please attach a Copy of the document establishing the company, such as the Memorandum of Association or Articles of Incorporation.
Line 5.	Insert details as to the authorised representative who may be an attorney, accountant Or other party representing the applicant, one ofitsofficersorastockholder. This is the. person withwhom the Commission will communicate as necessary in connection with the application.
Line 6.	Activities to be performed may include such operations as "Data entry for health care claims processing" or "Conversion or engineering drawings to digital electronic files," or "Software development for Microsoft Corporation." Be as specific as possible. If more space is needed, use a separate piece of paper. NOTE: Only companies which perform services within the definition of the Act may be granted a Certificate.
Line 7.	Full-time employees are those people who are expected to work 30 or more hours per week in an ongoing manner. Part-tine employees are people who work less than 30 hours each week, or are hired to handle seasonal volumes on an regular basis.
Line 8.	Foreign employees normally require work permits. The granting of a certain number of work permits is specifically authorised by the Act. Others must be approved separately. The position description of those requiring work permits should closely reflect their role in building a successful new company.
Line 9.	The anticipated investment for the company should include the total amount expected to be invested within the stated time period. The total should include; capital. labour and training costs, anticipated unrecoverable expenses, equipment, and any other assets supplied. The total for the first year would include the initial three months plus additional requirements for months four through twelve. The total for the third year should include year one as well as years two and three.
Line 10.	List the names of all actual or proposed investors owning or who will Own 10% or mote of the Company and the percentage interest they have or will hold in the Company. If the Company is. or will he. a wholly owned subsidiary of another corporation, the investors to be listed must be those investors owning 10% ormore of the parent company. if the Company is, or will be a branch or other unit of an existing corporation, the investors listed should be those in the corporation.
Line 11.	Follow the instructions for Line 12 as to wholly owned subsidiaries or for branches or units within existing corporations.

THE GRANTING OF A CERTIFICATE AND THE AWARD OF ENTITLEMENTS REQUIRES CERTAIN OBLIGATIONS ON ThE PART OF INVESTORS AND THE COMPANY. PLEASE READ CAREFULLY THE THREE PARAGRAPHS IN BOLD ON PAGE THREE OF THE APPLICATION.

PART TWO =97 BACKGROUND INFORMATION OF THE INVESTORS AND MEMBERS OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

The Free Trade and Processing Zone Commission will give the broadest latitude as possible to applications to ensure that investments in the Free Trade Zone are welcome in this country. However, the requested information is necessary to ensure that only those with legitimate business objectives are permitted to establish operations in this country.

This information on the background and history will establish that the investors and Board members are cumulatively capable of building a boriafide successful Company and that key skills and capital are available to the Company when necessary.

Misinformation, or the failure to furnish complete information as requested will result in the rejection of the application for Licence and Registration of the Company. If determined subsequent to the issuance of the Licence that the application was complete or contained misstatements, the Licence may be cancelled and the individual or individuals concerned as well as the Company may be subject to such other penalties as are prescribed by the Act.

A separate Part Two is required for

(ii) each member of the Board of Directors.

All of the above should have been listed in Part One of the Application. Inconsistent applications will be returned for correction.

If the Company is to be a wholly owned subsidiary of another corporation, the information furnished should be with respect to each investor owning 10% or more of the parent company. Similarly, if the operations are to be carried out by a branch or other unit of a company operating. another business, for ex ample, a bank, the information furnished should refer to the investors or Board member of the banking, entity. or other business. In these cases, please furnish also additional Part Two indicating the name of the corporation [i.e. the banking entity), and provide such other information requested as is applicable to a juridical entity.

Line 1.	Provide the name of the investor or Board member for whom this Part Two is furnished. If the sole investor is a corporate entity, so indicate. In which the information required pertains to the investors and Board members or that corporate entity.
Line 2.	It is possible that an individual may have multiple roles in the Company, possibly as an investor as well as a board member and/or a principal officer, if so please indicate each of these roles.
Line 3.	Provide information requested.
Line 4.	Provide information of your business activities associations, positions held.etc.. forat least the past five years. Also provide educational background if relevant to the business operations contemplated.
Line 5.	Furnish one or more banking references. This should be the principal bank(s) utilize, the name of an officer of the bank(s), account number, etc.
Line 6.	Furnish one or more commercial or credit references and attach a recent credit report that was issued by a well known credit rating company.
Line 7.	If you are to have a role in the actual operations of the company, such as a General Manager. Treasurer, etc. please indicate.
Line 8.	Indicate perentage owernship in the Company.

PART THREE =97 DUTY FREE IMPORTATION OF EQUIPMENT AND MATERIALS

The information required in Part Three is to facilitate the importation of required equipment and materials and to enable the registration of the investment in the Company. Registration of this investment provides certain safeguards for the withdrawl of capital and the remission of dividends as provided for in the Act.

Equipment to be used in starting up the company or needed for ongoing operations should be described in detail including model numbers and model years. Hardware, software. and other necessary equipment worth more than US$100 must be listed. Items of lesser value which might incur substantial duty can be listed.

Documents or other materials which will continually be imported as part of the Company=92s operations should be specified so that the Customs Department may facilitate theirduty free entry This will also expedite shipments. Type of material and frequency.

To obtain additional information or clarification, please contact:
Antigua and Barbuda Free Trade and Processing Zone Commission

P.O. Box _____________
Telephone:___________
Fax: ____________
E-mail:_____________