Botswana is an African republic with a subtropical climate, rich in the finest diamonds. It shares borders with South Africa, Namibia, Zimbabwe, and Zambia. Botswana’s main foreign policy partners are the member states of the South African Development Community (SADC), with which the country has signed free trade agreements.

In the state, there are only 34 people for every 100 km². The country has some nature reserves, in particular – the largest nature reserve in the world, Central Kalahari. The unique ecosystem and prehistoric rock paintings dating back several millennia in the northwest of Botswana, as well as the remains of small houses of the Iron Age, attract many tourists, which allows registering a company in Botswana in the tourism business.

You can also open a company in Botswana in the following areas:

• Agrarian economy: on the soils of the Seloko in the eastern and northern parts of the country, large yields are obtained from grain crops.
• Cattle breeding.
• Salt production: Botswana has one of the largest salt marshes in the world, with an area of ​​40 km² – Makgadikgadi.
• Mining.
• Other.

Botswana also has high-quality oil and coal deposits.

How to register a company in Botswana?

The basic corporate tax rate for resident companies is 22%. Botswana is an ideal place to start a manufacturing company as the government offers benefits such as a low tax rate of 15% on taxable income for:

• manufacturing companies;
• IFSC companies;
• Botswana Innovation Hub.

There is no industry tax, but affiliates are taxed at a rate of 30%. Tax incentives are available for the group of companies, such as tax holidays of up to 10 years. Botswana has double taxation treaties with 12 countries that minimize withholding tax.

Botswana company registration: Requirements

• Mandatory appointments: at least 1 shareholder, 1 resident director, and 1 secretary. Shareholders ‘and directors’ documents must be certified/translated.
• The physical office required (temporary physical office solutions available). Average monthly office rent – $ 25 per sq. m.
• Monthly VAT reporting to the government is a must.
• Time for incorporation: 2 months.
• Minimum capital: $ 1.
• The non-resident founder can own all the shares of the company, as well as register the company in Botswana remotely.
• Often, entrepreneurs choose to register a company in Botswana as an LLC.

Botswana business registration: 5 benefits

• Botswana’s economy benefits from the world’s largest diamond market, producing over 30 million carats annually. The export of diamonds provided an adequate flow of foreign exchange, which contributed to the strengthening of the state’s economy;
• Botswana is rated positively as the least corrupt country in Africa and is ranked 28th among all countries in the world.
• The jurisdiction was also positively rated as 30th in the list of countries with the freest economies in business, trade, monetary, financial, investment and labor markets.
• Easily open global corporate bank accounts to support business setup in Botswana.
• The state ranks 63rd out of 137 countries in the ranking of the Global Competitiveness Index for 2017-2018. Favorable macroeconomic conditions in the country, along with an efficient labor market, greatly enhance the country’s competitiveness and its global presence.

Disadvantages of company registration in Botswana:

• Company registration in Botswana takes on average 48 days.
• Quite a high tax rate (22% corporate tax, and may also be subject to VAT at a rate of 10%).
• Many business areas in Botswana continue to close to foreign investment and in most cases, land cannot be sold to foreign investors.

How to open an account for a company in Botswana

Multi-currency bank accounts and corporate visa debit cards are available in the state. You can open a corporate account in Botswana remotely at the following banks:

• SKB Botswana;
• Barclays;
• SWF Botswana;
• Stanbic bank.

Company registration in Botswana

A company can be incorporated in Botswana as one of the following types of legal entities.

Sole Proprietorship: A Sole Proprietorship is a company owned by one person known as a sole proprietor. He/she receives all the profits and also has unlimited liability for the business, meaning that he/she is personally liable for any debts or obligations of the company.

Partnership: A partnership is like a sole proprietorship in every way, except that it is owned by 2 or more people.

Private Limited Company: A private limited company in Botswana can be formed from 2 to 50 members. A Botswana private limited company must appoint at least 1 director (who must be local) and 1 shareholder (who can be of any nationality). He must have a registered office in Botswana.

Public Limited Company: A public limited company in Botswana can be formed by more than 50 members. He must appoint at least 2 directors (1 of whom must be a resident of Botswana) and 7 shareholders.

Branch: A foreign firm can set up a 100% foreign-owned company in Botswana in the form of a branch. It can be used to conduct business in Botswana and only requires 1 director and 1 shareholder to register.

Representative Office: Representative office is established solely for market research or promotion. It is not permitted to engage in commercial or business-related activities.