The Consulate General for the Republic of Trinidad & Tobago

Starting a Business

Last Updated on Monday, 05 January 2009 15:40

Starting a Business in Trinidad and Tobago

Legal Form: Private Limited Liability Company
City: Port of Spain

No.	Procedure	Time to complete	Cost to Complete
1	Request company name	4 days	TTD $25.00
2	Statutory declaration before Commissioner of Affidavits	1 day	TTD $7.00
3	Emboss Articles of Incorporation at the Board of Inland Revenue	1 day	TTD $25.00
4	Registration with the Commercial Registry	4 days	TTD $600.00 TTD $400 for Form 1 TTD $40 for Form 31 TTD $40 for Form 4 TTD $40 for Form 8 TTD $40 for Form 27 TTD $40 for Certificate of Incorporation
5	Make a company seal*	2 days	TTD $115.00
6	Apply for tax payer identification number	1 day	no charge
7	Apply to register as an employer with social security (obtain national insurance number)*	1 day	no charge
8	Receive employer’s registration number*	30 days	no charge
9	Register for VAT*	30 days	no charge

* Takes place simultaneously with another procedure.



Procedure 1. Request company name
Time to complete: 4 days
Cost to complete: TTD 25

Comment: To request a search for company name, the promoter must submit to the Commercial Registry Form 25 and a minimum of three proposed names. After 4 days, the promoter must return to the Registry to collect the approved (stamped) form. All name approvals expire within 3 months.

 

Procedure 2. Statutory declaration before Commissioner of Affidavits
Time to complete: 1 day
Cost to complete: TTD 7

Comment: If an attorney-at-law is not engaged in the company formation, a statutory declaration by a person named in the incorporation documents as a company director or secretary must be sworn to before a Commissioner of Affidavits.

 

Procedure 3. Emboss Articles of Incorporation at the Board of Inland Revenue
Time to complete: 1 day
Cost to complete: TTD 25

Comment: Stamp duty must be paid on the company’s articles of incorporation.

 

Procedure 4. Registration with the Commercial Registry
Time to complete: 4 days
Cost to complete: TTD $600 (TT$400 for Form 1; TT$ 40 for Form 31; TT $40 for Form 4; TT$ 40 for Form 8;TT$ 40 for Form 27; TT$ 40 for Certificate of Incorporation)

Comment: The company is legally registered and acquires its own legal personality on the day that properly completed incorporation documents are filed in person with the Commercial Registry, along with the required fee. However, it takes about 4 business days to obtain the certificate of incorporation, which provides required evidence for the company to undertake other procedures (for example, registering with tax authorities).

The following documents must be filed in duplicate: (a) Form 25, the company name request application; (b ) Form 1, the embossed articles of incorporation; (c) Form 31, Statutory declaration of compliance; (d) Form 4, Notice of address of registered office; (e) Form 8, Notice of directors; and (f) Form 27, Notice of secretary. All forms are available at the Government Printery.

 

Procedure 5. Make a company seal
Time to complete: 2 days
Cost to complete: TTD 115

Comment: The TTD 115 quoted is for a rubber company seal. A metal seal costs about TTD 400.

 

Procedure 6. Apply for tax payer identification number
Time to complete: 1 day
Cost to complete: no charge

Comment: To apply for a taxpayer identification number, the company applies with the Board of Inland Revenue for a corporate file number and a pay-as-you-earn file number.

 

Procedure 7. Apply to register as an employer with social security (obtain national insurance number)
Time to complete: 1 day
Cost to complete: no charge

Comment: To obtain a national insurance number, the company must apply to register as an employer by completing an application form (Form NI 1) and filing it with the National Insurance Board of Trinidad and Tobago.

 

Procedure 8. Receive employer’s registration number
Time to complete: 30 days
Cost to complete: no charge

Comment: After applying to be registered as an employer and receiving a national insurance number, the company must enroll with the National Insurance Board any qualifying employee who has not been enrolled previously. The employee is required, within 7 days of employment, to provide the company with the information needed to complete Form NI 4, Application to register as an employed person. This form must be signed by the company and filed with the authority. It takes about 4 weeks for the social services authority to notify the company that the application is in order and to supply the company with the employee’s national insurance number.

 

Procedure 9. Register for VAT
Time to complete: 30 days
Cost to complete: no charge

Comment: If the company earns gross income over TTD 200,000 per year or if it anticipates earning such an income within 12 months from the date that it applies for VAT registration, it may apply by completing, signing, and filing two forms (VAT No. 1 and VAT No. 2) with the required supporting documentation. The company can start operating without being registered for VAT and apply only once it has reached the TTD 200,000 threshold. Upon registration, it will receive a certificate and a VAT registration number.

 

Details can be found here.