Company formation wizard guide

Before the wizard opens

The first time you start an application you go through three screens:

1. Profile: your full name and phone number, if they are not already on the account
2. Eligibility: two questions, whether your business is in a restricted industry, and whether you or any shareholder is a national of a restricted country. Both lists are shown in full on the screen, and a yes to either question stops the application
3. Policies: the General Terms and Conditions, Refund Policy, Privacy Policy and AML Policy. All four have to be accepted

What to have ready

• A valid passport or government ID for each shareholder
• Three company name options
• A description of the business, 80 to 500 characters
• A payment method

Step 1: Country

Each card shows the entity type, the annual fee and what the fee covers. Fees are per year, in euro:

• United States: US LLC, Delaware or Wyoming, €1,999 / year
• Hong Kong: HK Limited, a private limited company, €2,999 / year
• United Arab Emirates: Free Zone company (FZC) in IFZA, Dubai, €6,999 / year
• Panama: Panama S.A., a Sociedad Anónima, €4,500 / year
• Seychelles: Seychelles IBC, an International Business Company, €4,999 / year

For Hong Kong, the UAE, Panama and Seychelles the registration and government filing fees are included in the annual fee. The United States is the exception: state government fees are not included and are quoted separately and upfront, before you pay.

Step 2: Entity

Step 2 has two screens. The first collects the structure of the company and the fields specific to your jurisdiction. The second collects the company names, an optional website and a business description of 80 to 500 characters. The description is used for verification, so it has to match what the company will actually do.

United States

• State of incorporation: Delaware or Wyoming. It cannot be changed after you submit the application
• Single member. The wizard does not ask for a shareholder count
• Three company name options. "LLC" is added to the name

Hong Kong

• Number of shareholders, 1 to 7
• Share capital, minimum HKD 1,000. No deposit has to be made
• HSIC code, the main activity of the business. It cannot be changed after you submit the application
• Three company name options. "Limited" is added to the name

United Arab Emirates

• Number of shareholders, 1 to 10. For more than 10, contact your client engagement manager
• Share capital in AED. Above AED 150,000 a paid share capital letter from a bank is required. AED 48,000 per shareholder is the recommended level if you intend to apply for a partner or investor visa
• Up to three business activities, selected from the free zone list
• Three company name options. The free zone naming rules are strict (at least two words, the main activity in the name, no country or city names, no existing brands) and the wizard shows them in full

Panama

• Number of shareholders, 1 to 3. Directors can also be shareholders
• Authorised share capital in USD. The standard for a Panama corporation is US$10,000 authorised, with no paid-up requirement
• Board composition. Panamanian law requires three directors, so the wizard asks whether you will serve as one yourself and how many nominee directors to appoint; the remaining seats are directors you provide. A Power of Attorney is required when a nominee director is used, and both are priced separately from the annual fee
• Three company name options. "S.A." is added to the name

Seychelles

• Number of shareholders, 1 to 7
• Authorised share capital in USD
• One nominee director can be added. A Power of Attorney is required with it, and both are priced separately from the annual fee
• Three company name options. "Limited" is added to the name, which is the legal suffix a Seychelles IBC is incorporated with

Step 3: Shareholders

For each shareholder the wizard asks for first name, middle name, surname, nationality and date of birth. Shareholders must be at least 18 years old.

This step is a screening, not the full identity check. Nationalities restricted under our AML policy are rejected here, before any payment is taken. Identity verification with documents comes after payment.

Step 4: Review and pay

The last step shows the jurisdiction, the entity details you entered, the shareholders and an order summary.

The Stripe checkout is embedded in the page, so you pay without leaving the application. Card details go to Stripe; OffshorePRO never sees them.

All payments are final and non-refundable. Paying starts the formation.

After payment

Payment is not the last thing you do. Every stage below runs on the company page the application creates in your dashboard, and the formation only moves when your part is done.

1. KYC pack:you fill in each shareholder's personal details, residential address and passport data, and upload the passport photo page. Nothing proceeds until this is submitted
2. Identity verification: for the United States, the UAE, Panama and Seychelles a verification link is emailed to each shareholder, and to each director in Panama. The link also stays on the company page, so a lost email never blocks you. Each person uploads an identity document and completes the facial check, and the result is written to your dashboard per person. For Hong Kong the checks run off-platform with the local agent and our team emails you their link
3. Enhanced due diligence: Hong Kong, the UAE and Panama have a second pack on the company page: company profile questions and further documents, per shareholder in Hong Kong and the UAE, and for every person in the structure in Panama. A Seychelles application has no second pack. The full list is in the compliance guide
4. Review: if a document is rejected you get an email and a dashboard notification with the reason, and you re-upload only that document
5. Registration: we file with the registry and answer any question the authorities raise
6. Documents: your incorporation documents are delivered on the company page in your dashboard

Hong Kong companies are ready to operate in 5 business days, Panama companies in 7 working days. For the United States, the UAE and Seychelles we publish no formation time: it is confirmed at onboarding, once your file has been reviewed. In every jurisdiction the clock depends on how quickly verification is completed.

What the annual fee includes

• United States: EIN, registered agent and US business address for one year, scanned mail in the client portal, and the annual filings we prepare for you: Form 5472 with Pro Forma 1120, FBAR (FinCEN Form 114) when the company holds accounts outside the US, and the state annual report or franchise tax filing. The state government charge itself is quoted separately
• Hong Kong: company secretary, registered office, Business Registration Certificate, Articles of Association, share certificates, scanned mail, and the Annual Return (NAR1) with its government fee
• United Arab Emirates: business license for one year including the government fee, certificate of incorporation, memorandum and articles, virtual office with a Dubai address, and corporate tax registration. Residency visas are quoted separately
• Panama: resident agent and registered office in Panama for one year, apostilled corporate documents with the originals sent by courier, and the annual Tasa Única government fee paid on your behalf. Nominee directors and the Power of Attorney are quoted separately
• Seychelles: registered agent and registered office for one year, the government registration and annual renewal fees, and a virtual office. The optional nominee director and its Power of Attorney are quoted separately

What is never included, in any jurisdiction, is the tax the company owes on its own results: corporate tax, profits tax or VAT. We prepare and file the returns tracked for your jurisdiction; the company pays the tax.