Mauritius not on the European Commission’s blacklist

The European Commission, in a Press Release issued on 13th February 2019, announced the adoption of a new list of 23 countries with strategic deficiencies in their anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing frameworks.

Mauritius is not in the European Commission’s Blacklist.  This not only confirms that Mauritius has in place the necessary legal framework and controls to prevent money laundering and terrorist financing risks but also underscore the effectiveness of their implementation.

Mauritius has recently adopted a development strategy for its financial services sector which is based on continuous improvement, transparency and compliance with international norms and standards.  It will continue to do so to ensure the sound repute and credibility of our jurisdiction.

OECD latest report on Peer Review Results on Preferential Regimes – Mauritius tax regime ‘NOT HARMFUL’

According to OECD’s report on Peer Review Results in in relation to the assessment of harmful tax practices of preferential Regimes in 53 jurisdictions, Mauritius meets all the international requirements of the BEPS Action 5. Thus, it is deemed not to have any harmful practices in its tax regimes.


The areas which were reviewed by the OECD Forum on Harmful Tax Practices (FHTP) are as follows:

• Category 1 and Category 2 Global Business companies;
• Banks, as regard their foreign source income also known as segment B income;
• Captive Insurance;
• Partial Exemption System;
• The newly introduced tax regime for banks;
• Freeport;
• Global Headquarters Administration;
• Global Treasury Activities;
• Investment Banking; and
• Shipping

It is to be noted that the reforms that were undertaken in the Global Business Sector, Banking Sector and the introduction of the Partial Exemption System, amongst others played a determine factor in this favourable rating.

The FSC as regulator for the non-bank financial services sector and Global Business, will continue to monitor and supervise the new regimes in line with its mandate so as Mauritius remains committed to uphold its adherence to international norms and best practices.

Forbes’ ‘Best Countries for Doing Business’: Mauritius ranks 1st in Africa, 39th worldwide

Forbes’ ‘Best Countries for Business 2019’ ranks Mauritius 1st in the African region and 39th worldwide. This rating reconfirms the position of Mauritius as a destination of choice for doing business and a platform of choice for investing in the African region.

The top five performers in the whole ranking are the United Kingdom in first position, followed by Sweden, Hong Kong, Netherlands and New Zealand. While at the African region level, Mauritius is followed by South Africa (59th), Morocco (62th), Seychelles (66th) and Botswana (83rd).

The index, which has been published annually in the past 13 years, assesses 161 nations based on 15 criteria which are as follows: property rights, innovation, taxes, technology, corruption, infrastructure, market size, political risk, quality of life, workforce, freedom (personal, trade and monetary), red tape and investor protection. Each category bore equal weight and only countries having data across at least 11 categories were included.