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Accounting Services in Cayman Islands
Updated on Tuesday 21st September 2021
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Companies in the Cayman Islands are required to maintain books that prove the financial transactions and many businesses choose to outsource the processes of maintaining these proper books of accounts.
Choosing to work with a team that offers accounting services in the Cayman Islands is popular among foreign investors who choose to open an offshore here.
Our team of Cayman Islands incorporation specialists can also help you with dedicated accounting and bookkeeping services.
Accounting services offered by our Cayman Islands specialists
Our team offers a wide range of services suited to the needs of a Cayman Islands exempted company. The following list highlights our basic services:
- • Bookkeeping services: this includes bookkeeping outsourced to our team of experts, a dedicated account manager and services for scheduled financial reports, as needed for your business.
- • Preparing financial statements: the Cayman Islands do not have a specific accounting framework. The IFRS standards can be used and our team will handle the preparation of all of the reports and financial statements.
- • Payroll services: calculating and managing the employee salaries, complete any necessary filings and payroll tax reports.
- • General management: our team can also help you with general activities and operations, such as issuing invoices.
The regular bookkeeping services included in a standard accounting package are preparing the bank statements and accounts, inputting sales and purchase invoices, debtors and creditors maintenance, general ledger maintenance, the monthly profit and loss statement, the profit and loss and control accounts, and others. When a company in the Cayman Islands has employees, the dedicated payroll services will handle all of the matters related to the management of the workforce in terms of necessary payments, deductions and calculations.
Consultancy can also be included as part of the dedicate services for a client. We advise new businesses as well as already established companies. We help with general commercial advice, cost and cash-flow management, preparing strategic reviews and, as needed, different types of valuations (for example, for businesses or shareholdings).
Companies in the Cayman Islands enjoy light requirements in terms of accounting and statutory financial reporting requirements are only imposed in relation to the particular activities undertaken by that legal entity. Examples include insurance companies and banks, mutual funds and others.
Our team of accounting and financial experts can help investors who wish to open a company in the Cayman Islands prepare their profit projections as well as manage the financial risk. Although the Cayman Islands impose no taxes for the exempt companies, and the accounting and reporting requirements are quite low compared to other jurisdictions, growing your business in the Cayman will often mean having a team of partner accountants and business specialists you can trust.
Solutions for Cayman Islands companies
Our Cayman Islands company formation experts offer complete solutions, tailored to the needs of investors. The Islands are a popular location to base an offshore company and many of the entrepreneurs who choose to incorporate here are looking to set up an offshore investment fund.
We offer professional services, according to your own business interests and priorities. Accounting, general consultancy services, financial and tax advisory are all offered by our agents. Moreover, we provide complete assistance for Cayman Island incorporation, irrespective of the chosen type of legal entity.
The Cayman Islands is an attractive offshore jurisdiction not only because of the tax-free regime for exempted companies but also because the general management of the legal entity is a simple one, with few statutory requirements for accounting and audit.
The only existing professional accountancy organization in the Islands is the Cayman Islands Institute of Professional Accountants (CIIPA) and it is mandatory for auditors in this jurisdiction to be a practitioner member of CIIPA and also hold a license. The law governing this profession is the Accountants Law of 2016.
When setting up a Cayman Islands company investors should consider working with local licensed professionals and for this purpose, they can reach out to our team.
In some cases, business owners in the Cayman Islands, or those who are considering purchasing a company here, may require forensic accounting services. These are useful when the company owners suspect that their company was subject to fraud or misconduct or when they need to have adequate proof to take action against the parties at fault. In other instances, these investigative services are required as part of a larger background information package, useful before engaging in a corporate merger or acquisition or even before buying a company in the Cayman Islands. Essentially, forensic accounting is the practice of preparing an in-depth investigation that includes an expert’s report and, as needed, a testimony that may be required in legal proceedings. The report includes a complete investigation of the finances of a business (or an individual, in some cases) and it can be used both before an important transaction, or after an event such as the discovery of certain discrepancies in the financial reports.
In those instances when investors are ready to close down or sell a business in the Cayman, our team of accountants can provide solutions for the transition phase and preparing the business valuations, preparing the business for sale, preparing the final financial statements and managing the due diligence, as needed.
Our team can help companies take timely action against financial difficulties. We guide our clients and help them recognize issues before they arise and, when needed, we offer expert advice on how to approach an already existing issue. The role of our accountants is important in restructuring and insolvency cases, and we strive to help companies in the Cayman find and implement suitable solutions for business recovery. While it is advisable to reach out to a team of accountants and experts before the business enters into a financial crisis (which may mean that is it faced with a lack of liquidity and unable to pay the staff or finance the business), the crisis management phase will focus on two clear options: save or close down the business. Whatever the choice, our team will help those in this situation complete the procedure and, when stabilization is the chosen route, we will advise on a long-term financial plan to help the business recover. This can mean changing the management team as well as implementing other changes.
We invite you to watch a short video about our accounting services:
Annual filing requirements for a Cayman Islands exempted company
The exempted company is the business form generally incorporated by foreign investors who wish to perform various offshore activities in this jurisdiction. The general incorporation process is fast and straightforward and, as listed below, the annual filing requirements are simple.
Companies are required to file an annual return that contains the following information:
- - relevant changes: these include any changes to the company’s articles of association and memorandum since the last filing took place.
- - the nature of the operations: a statement proving that the operations of the company were mainly conducted outside of the Cayman Islands, so as to comply with the exempted status.
- - non-trading compliance: a statement showing that the company is not engaged in trading with local companies, except for the promotion of the offshore business.
- - the fees: upon filing the annual return the company must also pay its annual fees with the Companies Registry.
Companies in the Cayman Islands need to keep books of accounts but are not required to file the financial statements. This is because they are not under the regulation of the Monetary Authority nor any other government authority. Small and medium companies may also need to prepare a general purpose financial statement and for this purpose, they can use the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) for SMEs or any other recognized Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) framework.
The company’s registered agent files the annual return and all of the other submissions necessary throughout the year. The registrar of beneficial ownership of the company also needs to be updated, however, this information remains confidential. One of our agents who specialize in Cayman Islands incorporation can help you with detailed information about confidentiality and the use of nominee directors and shareholders.
Accounting and auditing requirements for a regulated Cayman Islands company
The statutory accounting and auditing requirements differ for companies in the Cayman Islands that are regulated by the Monetary Authority. These companies need to prepare and file financial statements on an annual basis.
The companies that are regulated by CIMA include those who are established and function under the Banks and Trust Companies Law, the Mutual Funds Law, the Insurance Law or the Securities Investment Business Law.
Audit reports for these types of regulated businesses need to be issued by a licensed member of the Institute of Professional Accountants. In most cases, the audit is performed by observing the US Generally Accepted Auditing Standards (GAAS) or the International Standards on Auditing (ISA). According to the Companies Law, however, companies established on the territory of the Cayman Islands are not subject to an annual audit although it is permitted by law to audit the financial statements periodically as determined by the company. One of our Cayman Islands company formation agents can give you more information about the auditing requirements as well as recommendations according to the type of business the company is engaged in.
The Cayman Islands allows for a flexible adoption of the accounting and auditing standards that are to be used by regulated entities. In practice, many of these are performed by observing the United States auditing standards or the international financial reporting standards.
Cayman Islands company statistics
The Cayman Islands offers many important business and tax advantages to companies, making it a popular location to base a business. Our team of company formation agents presents several statistical data concerning the number of companies in the Islands, as per the information provided by the General Registry:
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- 113,183 active companies in the first quarter of 2021;
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- 1,418 companies were registered in April 2021;
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- 83% of the registered companies are exempted companies (carrying out most of their activities outside of the Islands), followed by 6.6% non-resident companies and 5% foreign companies; 2.8% of the companies are limited liability companies and 2.5% are non-resident ones.
If you have just opened an exempt company in the Cayman Islands, or are considering opening such a company or another business form, our team can help you during the incorporation phase as well as with dedicated accounting services.
Contact us for complete details about our services and how we can assist you.
Meet us in George Town
Call us now at +1 888 959 8022 to set up an appointment with our lawyers in George Town. Alternatively you can incorporate your company without traveling to Cayman Islands.
As a Compass client, you will benefit from the joint expertize of local lawyers and international consultants. Together we will be able to offer you the specialized help you require for your business start-up in Cayman Islands.
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