Jamaica

Starting a Business in

Jamaica

Listed below is a detailed summary of the bureaucratic and legal hurdles an entrepreneur must overcome in order to incorporate and register a new firm, along with their associated time and set-up costs.  It examines the procedures, time and cost involved in launching a commercial or industrial firm with up to 50 employees and start-up capital of 10 times the economy's per-capita gross national income (GNI).

The information appearing on this page was collected as part of the Doing Business project, which measures and compares regulations relevant to the life cycle of a small- to medium-sized domestic business in 183 economies. The most recent round of data collection for the project was completed in June 2011.

  • Standardized Company

  • Legal Form: Private Limited Liability Company
  • City: Kingston

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No. Procedure Time to Complete Associated Costs
1 Ascertain from the Registrar of Companies whether the desired name is available and acceptable


1 day JMD 500
2 Have company documents stamped by the Stamp Commissioner

The documents must be duly stamped by the Stamp Commissioner before being filed with the Registrar of Companies. The articles of incorporation are now stamped as a deed (that is, at a flat rate of JMD 500).
1 day JMD 500
3 File the company deeds to the Registrar of Companies

Only a single document, the articles of incorporation, is now required to constitute a company. Previously, both the memorandum of association and the articles of association had to be filed with the Registrar of Companies. The rationale for this new requirement is that because the Companies Act, 2004 abolished the doctrine of ultra vires and because companies now have the same legal capacity as individuals, there is no need to set out the company’s objectives in its memorandum of association. The articles of incorporation capture all the essential facts of the company (e.g., the number of shares, the subscribers’ names, and the company’s internal rules and regulations) and is signed by at least one person (for a private company). Articles may be prepared according to the model set out in Table A in the First Schedule of the Companies Act. The other documents that must be submitted to the Registrar of Companies are:
- Form 2: The declaration of compliance—made out by an attorney at law, an International Customer Service Association (ICSA) graduate, or a company promoter (member or director of the company engaged in its formation). This document attests that all the documents conform to the provisions of the Companies Act.
- Form 17: Notice of registered office.
- Form 23: Notice of appointment/change of directors.
- Form 3: Particulars of shares. Where there are two or more classes of shares (e.g., ordinary or preference shares) on incorporation, this form must be filed to set out the rights and obligations of each company share class.
-Form 20: Notice of appointment of company secretary
Within 3-4 days, the Registrar of Companies, if satisfied that all is in order, will issue the certificate of incorporation and assign the company a designated company number. A notice of appointment of company secretary, including particulars of directors, must be filed within 14 days.
1 day with expedited service JMD 15,000 (registration fee) + JMD 3,000 for each additional document of which there are three:(a) Notice of Registered Office, Notice of Appointment of Directors and Notice of Appointment of Company Secretary; an additional JMD 6,000 for expedition service (same day)
4 Obtain national insurance scheme (NIS) reference number from the Ministry of Labour and Social Security

Documents to be submitted are the following:
- Completed Employers/Business Registration Form (2 copies)
- Certified copy of Certificate of Incorporation

 2 days no charge
5 Obtain taxpayer registration number (TRN) from Collector of Taxes

The taxpayer registration number (TRN) is used for the payment of income tax. Income tax returns are to be filed annually by March 15. The TRN must be affixed to all written communications to all revenue departments.

Documents to be submitted are the following:
- Completed application for TRN number.
- NIS number or clearance letter.
- Articles of association.
- TRN of the directors.
- Certified copy of the certificate of incorporation.

Currently, a print-out of the TRN is available within 24hrs and the TRM may be used immediately.
1 day no charge
6 Obtaingeneral consumption tax (GCT) registration

The GCT is a form of Value Added Tax (VAT). The company should earn at least a gross income of JMD 3,000,000 (effective January 1st, 2009) per annum before it becomes liable for such tax. The application for GCT must be submitted within 21 days after taxable activity has started. A temporary GCT certificate is issued to the client upon receipt of the application for GCT. An original certificate is issued within 21 days thereafter to the client.
1 day no charge
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