Branch registration
Introduction
All companies, incorporated outside the Republic of Cyprus, are allowed to establish a branch in Cyprus under the Companies Law Cap. 113. The main characteristic of a branch is that it is not considered as a separate legal entity from the overseas company. The formation of a branch takes approximately four weeks to become finalized and the majority of the documents must be submitted into Greek, which is the official language of the Republic of Cyprus
Procedure of Registration
Under section 347 of the Companies Law, all overseas companies (or “branches” as most commonly called) that wish to establish a branch within the Republic of Cyprus should deliver to the Registrar a written report which includes the following details:
The aforementioned documents should be legalized and apostilled in the country of issue and translated into Greek *. The translated documents are to be filed together with forms AE1, AE2 and AE3 that have to be completed and filed to the Registrar of Companies. In the event of any changes to the company’s particulars the Registrar of Companies should be notified. The registered office of the branch should be situated in Cyprus and the name of the branch must be the same as the parent company’s name.
A Shareholder cannot be appointed for the branch due to the fact that it is only an extension of the head office.
(*) It is important to remember that the above documentation needs to be officially translated into Greek by the Press and Information Office (PIO) and the translation to be filed with the Cyprus Company Registrar.
Why is a Cyprus resident required?
The Cyprus resident will assume the role of the company representative. Authorized by a Power of Attorney, s/he will be the representative of the company before the Cyprus authorities during the registration procedure and will be the person in charge of any communication that may occur after the registration with the authorities.
Accounts and Reports
Every foreign corporation that maintains a branch in the Republic must submit, for every financial year, copies of its financial statements as presented in its last AGM and published in accordance with the laws of the country of incorporation.
A foreign company which is exempt shall deliver to the Registrar of Cyprus Companies a certificate signed by the director and the secretary of the company to the effect that the company is an exempt company and it shall state that the law applies such exemption.
A certified copy of your balance sheet for the branch office must be translated into Greek and sent annually to the Department of the Registrar of Companies and Official Receiver.
Charges by overseas companies
If the overseas company creates any charges over any of its assets that are located in Cyprus then these charges must be registered with the Cyprus Company Registrar in the same manner and procedure as if the company has been incorporated in Cyprus.
Benefits
Obligations
Every overseas company is obliged by law to have legible characters in all of its invoices, notices, official publications and office letters the name of the company, the country of its incorporation and state if the liability of its members is limited.
We here at Alpha IBC Limited are ready to assist with the translation of documents through (PIO) in Cyprus and to provide the necessary company representative in order to register your branch in a efficient and simplified way.
If you have any additional queries or would like to discuss the matter further please do not hesitate to contact our team