St. Kitts and Nevis

Starting a Business in

St. Kitts and Nevis

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: Basseterre

About This Topic

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No. Procedure Time to Complete Associated Costs
1 Search and reserve company name

The Financial Services Department has developed a database that allows company name searches to be conducted immediately.
1 day XCD 54
2 Prepare company statutes

The lawyers usually prepare the company documents and it’s not mandatory by law but it’s a common practice to ask Lawyer to do that. In addition to company owner, only lawyers can prepare the company documents.
1 day XCD 2500 (lawyer’s fees)
3 Register with Commercial Registry and obtain certificate of incorporation

The registration fee is XCD 270, and the annual filing fee is XCD 270. For changes of directors, addresses, and so forth, the fee is XCD 80.
2-3 days XCD 270
4 Purchase company ink stamp

The company can choose either an ink stamp or a company seal (they serve the same purpose). However, because company uses ink stamp.
10 days XCD 60 - XCD 190
* 5 Obtain business license

The Ministry of Finance issues the company the business license and notifies the Inland Revenue Department to issue the tax number.
10 days, simultaneous with procedure 4 XCD 200
6 Obtain tax identification number


3 days no charge
* 7 Register firm as an employer with the Social Security Office

A new company must register with the Social Security Office within 14 days by providing the necessary information on a designated registration form.
1-2 days, simultaneous with procedure 8 no charge
* Takes place simultaneously with another procedure.