SEYCHELLES - UPCOMING REGULATORY ACTIVITIES

#SeychellesAccountingRecords #SeychellesFinancialSummary #SeychellesCompanies

ACCOUNTING RECORDS

REMINDER for submission of accounting records (including underlying documentation) for the period 1^st of January 2025 up to 30^th of June 2025.

All entities are required to maintain their accounting records (including underlying documentation) and a “Financial Summary” following the International Business Companies (Amended) Act, 2021 - Accounting Records.

The Financial Services Authority (“FSA”) would like to draw the attention of all International Business Companies (“IBCs”), Foundations, Limited Partnerships and Trusts on the new obligations relating to the keeping of accounting records brought about under the following new legislations (“2021 amendments) enacted on 06th August 2021.

Accounting records (including the underlying documents) can take on many forms and include:

a) Bank statements

b) Receipts

c) Invoices

d) Vouchers

e) Title documents

f) Contracts and agreements

g) Ledgers

h) Any other documentation underpinning a transaction

Please note that the submission of the Accounting Records (including underlying documentation) for the above period will be due by 31^st July 2025.

Financial Summary

The new requirements of accounting records keeping also make it an obligation for all companies (except “Non-Large Holding Companies”) to submit their “Financial Summary” within 6 months of the end of a company’s Financial Year End.

Definitions of Large, Non-Large Companies & Holding Companies:

• Large companies are companies with an annual turnover of over SCR50 million

• Non-large companies mean companies with an annual turnover of less than SCR50 million

• “Holding company” means a company with no trade or business operations of its own but holding interests in other companies or assets.

  
  

The Financial Summary for the year ended December 31, 2024, will be due for submission by June 30, 2025.

•  The “Financial Summary” is not the “Financial Statements”. As its name states, it is only a financial summary of a company at the end of a financial year.

• If the Financial Statements are being provided for a company’s year-end and the contents of the Financial Statements include what is required in the “Financial Summary”, the company will not be required to issue the “Financial Summary” for that particular year-end.

  
  

Kindly ensure that the Accounting Records (including underlying documentation) and Financial Summary (if applicable) are submitted by their due dates.

In this regard, we take this opportunity to remind you that the Accounting Records for the second half of 2024, i.e., from July 1, 2024, to December 31, 2024, were due on January 31, 2025. If you have any pending period to send, we encourage prompt compliance to avoid potential penalties.

PENALTIES

Please be advised that not complying with those mentioned above and submitting accounting records accordingly could bring significant penalties to the company (from US$2,000.00 up to US$10,000.00).

The level of penalty applicable will be on a case-by-case basis depending on the severity of non-compliance identified.

COMMON REPORTING STANDARD (CRS) SURVEY:

The Seychelles Revenue Commission (SRC) has launched comprehensive compliance activities to ensure all Financial Institutions fully adhere to the Common Reporting Standard (CRS) Regulations 2015 under the OECD framework for the Automatic Exchange of Information (AEOI).

Given the above, we are required to determine the population of the Reporting Financial Institutions in Seychelles. The SRC is conducting a survey, which is an essential activity to ensure compliance with the AEOI framework.

If your entity qualifies as a Financial Institution, please notify us immediately so we can update our records accordingly.

If you have any questions or require additional assistance, please do not hesitate to contact us at Contact@viss.com.hk.