Company migrations on the up due to new laws, says Walkers
SPECIALIST laws introduced locally to encourage corporate migrations of companies into the island is starting to pay off, according to a corporate law specialist at law firm Walkers.
Most recent figures on company migrations for the period between 2019 and 2021 show a net flow of 68 companies per year into the island, and it is expected that figure will be beaten this year.
The island introduced new legislation for this purpose in 2020, which has facilitated and encouraged migrations. This continued flow demonstrates the island’s sustained appeal, flexible company law and regulatory framework, said Samantha Gramoney, an associate in the Guernsey investment funds and corporate practice group team at Walkers. It has advised companies migrating into Guernsey from a variety of jurisdictions worldwide. They do so for a number of reasons, including streamlining group administration, facilitating lending and the regulatory environment.
The process of migrating a company into or out of Guernsey is a straightforward one, and the statutory regime for migrating limited partnerships was updated in 2020, to enhance it.
‘There are potential legislative driving factors for the increase in migrations, including the implementation of the Limited Partnerships (Guernsey) (Migrations) Regulations, 2020, which sparked interest in the more simplified migration of limited partnerships and the continuity of the limited partnership structure, after migration, into Guernsey,’ said Ms Gramoney.
‘With the introduction of economic substance legislation at the beginning of 2019, Guernsey joined the whitelist of the OECD solidifying its commitment to meeting the substance requirements of the OECD and the EU. For investors and managers, this strategically positioned Guernsey as a robust leader in compliance.
‘There is also strong investor preference for Guernsey as it is a politically and economically stable jurisdiction. Guernsey is recognised as an established and competitive market of service providers providing high quality services at competitive costs.
‘These factors, coupled with the efficiency of the Guernsey Financial Services Commission’s fast-track migration process, has statistically shown that “Guernsey plc” is leading the way and attracting the attention of investment managers globally.’
