Company formation and external companies
The starting point is the Companies Act (Cap. 89:01). A foreign investor commonly either incorporates a company in Guyana, or registers an external company if it was incorporated abroad and will carry on business here. Other structures may be appropriate in particular cases, including a registered business name, a partnership or a joint venture. Incorporation, external-company registration and business-name registration are administered through the Deeds and Commercial Registries Authority, which also administers several other commercial and intellectual-property registries. The formalities, reserved names, registered office and filing obligations are those of the Companies Act and the Authority’s current practice.
Registration of a company, or of an external company, does not itself confer any sector licence, land title, tax exemption, work permit or right to commence petroleum, mining or other regulated activity. Those matters are governed by the applicable special statutes and must be addressed separately. Before a structure is chosen, it is usually necessary to consider ownership and control, shareholder rights, management, capitalisation, distributions and repatriation, tax and accounting treatment, exit and deadlock, land-holding requirements, any sector-specific ownership or licensing rules, and beneficial-ownership and anti-money-laundering obligations. A corporate structure chosen only for speed of registration can prove awkward later if those points have not been considered at the outset.
GO-Invest and investment incentives
The Guyana Office for Investment (GO-Invest) is the government agency that facilitates investment. It can assist with introductions, information and the process of seeking any incentive or approval that the applicable law actually provides. Incentives depend on the relevant fiscal legislation, the sector, and any approval that is in fact granted. This note does not list rates or exemptions that have not been confirmed in current official materials. An investor should not treat a facilitation meeting, or a statement of policy, as a substitute for the statutory instrument or the written approval on which a tax or customs treatment depends.
Work permits and land
Taxation, customs and excise are administered by the Guyana Revenue Authority. A new business will ordinarily need to consider taxpayer and, where applicable, value-added-tax registration, corporation and withholding taxes, employment and payroll obligations, customs classification and import requirements, and record-keeping. The general rates and the special issues that arise in the energy sector are outlined in the firm’s [tax note](/insights/energy-sector-taxation-in-guyana). Banking and the taking of security are supervised or regulated, in the respects described in the firm’s [banking note](/insights/guyanas-banking-and-financial-regulatory-framework), by the Bank of Guyana and, for securities, the Guyana Securities Council. Foreign-exchange and banking requirements can change and should be verified for the particular transaction.
A foreign national who intends to take up employment in Guyana requires a landing permit for employment (a work permit), administered through the Immigration Support Services of the Ministry of Home Affairs. Official materials require that the vacancy be advertised in the newspapers for three consecutive months before a permit is sought. Permission to work should be in place before the individual starts work. The employment contract and immigration status need to be coordinated; the labour-law position is outlined in the firm’s [note on employment and immigration](/insights/employment-and-immigration-for-energy-contractors-in-guyana).
Land is held under a dual title system, described more fully in the firm’s [note on real estate and land](/insights/real-estate-and-land-title-in-guyana): transports and leases are recorded at the Deeds Registry, and certificates of title are recorded at the Land Registry. Company registration does not create an interest in land. Due diligence on the particular parcel — including encumbrances, survey, planning and, where they apply, environmental and sectoral consents — should precede any commitment to acquire or lease. Section 15 of the Investment Act 2004 (Cap. 73:03) provides that, subject to the laws for the time being in force, investors may purchase or lease land in Guyana and dispose of or transfer their interests in or rights over the land. That is not a blanket override of other statutes. Particular lands, State lands, Amerindian lands and sector titles may be subject to their own statutory limits or conditions. Fiscal incentives, investment agreements and the protections in the Investment Act are described in the firm’s [note on investment incentives](/insights/investment-incentives-and-foreign-investment-legislation-in-guyana).
Additional licences may apply depending on the activity, including in petroleum, mining, environmental, financial, insurance, telecommunications, aviation, maritime, construction and other regulated sectors. Contracts for Guyanese operations should address governing law, conditions precedent, regulatory approvals, payment and currency, tax allocation, liability, insurance, termination and dispute resolution, and should be reviewed for compatibility with Guyanese law rather than transplanted unaltered from another jurisdiction. Dispute-resolution options are outlined in the firm’s [note on that subject](/insights/dispute-resolution-in-guyana).