If you dont wanna post it in public email me acix44@gmail.com
the problem is that you are certainly going to need to shell quite a few $$$
here in CR obviously that is not a great idea
I would explore Panama and Curacao where it works in the standard way (you pay a fee for the thing and then you pay a yearly fee for the wages of the board of directors etc)
I dont know about the Cayman Islands but I mention it only because I have always wanted to go there ROFL
(btw the only way I would pay to get one of those is if the price includes opening a bank account)
here in CR obviously that is not a great idea
I would explore Panama and Curacao where it works in the standard way (you pay a fee for the thing and then you pay a yearly fee for the wages of the board of directors etc)
I dont know about the Cayman Islands but I mention it only because I have always wanted to go there ROFL
(btw the only way I would pay to get one of those is if the price includes opening a bank account)
Contact this lawyer... I can personally vouch for him.
http://www.crtitle.com/jaco-law-firm-services.html
Tico
http://www.crtitle.com/jaco-law-firm-services.html
Tico
CR is not a feasible offshore banking solution... For starters it is not a tax haven, there aren't any real privacy laws in place and the CR government has been in bed with the USA too long. Also with all the anti-money laundering policies, basic everyday banking procedures that are normal for other countries are a huge beaurocratic hassle in costa rica.
on top of what fuzebox said....its a pain to open a bank account for a newly created corporation (that is the standard way to me, get corp then get bank account, can't do much without an operational bank account)
the other thing is, and I don't know the answer to this, in CR at least, imagine that you sell me a condo...and want to offer me the 'advantage' of just transfering the shares of the SA......it is impossible for me to know if the SA itself has engaged into contracts/loans etc that might jeopardize the collateral (apartment/farm/condo etc)
as 'privacy tools' they work fine but the way its been used right now to avoid transfer fees......it would scare me quite a bit (it IS very useful however as a way to avoid the horrible/lenghty/expensive/complicated probate procedure)
Also, keep in mind that while I am sure that there are similar cases of not-so-honest 'company directors'.....I've heard my share of problems here in CR.......lawyers that suddenly sell the corp property are not uncommon......in other words......I would not be comfortable paying $ to individuals here so that they fill the positions in the 'board of directors/junta directiva'
the other thing is, and I don't know the answer to this, in CR at least, imagine that you sell me a condo...and want to offer me the 'advantage' of just transfering the shares of the SA......it is impossible for me to know if the SA itself has engaged into contracts/loans etc that might jeopardize the collateral (apartment/farm/condo etc)
as 'privacy tools' they work fine but the way its been used right now to avoid transfer fees......it would scare me quite a bit (it IS very useful however as a way to avoid the horrible/lenghty/expensive/complicated probate procedure)
Also, keep in mind that while I am sure that there are similar cases of not-so-honest 'company directors'.....I've heard my share of problems here in CR.......lawyers that suddenly sell the corp property are not uncommon......in other words......I would not be comfortable paying $ to individuals here so that they fill the positions in the 'board of directors/junta directiva'
You're also dealing with the competency factor. I'm not sure how smart the Panamanians are, but they can't be any slower than here regarding banking (and pretty much everything else)...
It took me months to get a bank account here. At BAC, the guy took all my original docs for 3 weeks, then told me he couldn't open the account. When I told him to bring my docs back, he said his people wanted to review them further. Long story short, I had to go to his branch and get nasty with him to get my docs back.
believe it or not, I believe they CAN be and they ARE.........(I have been dealing with them for a while .......and geesh.....sometimes here feels like the 'road runner' compared to the pace some things move over there)
but your story makes total sense.........opening a bank account in CR has become ridiculous
The cool thing about Costa Rican corporations is there is virtually no annual maintenance cost (never did figure out how to pay that cultural tax).
Everywhere else you are looking at $1000-$3000 per year for each corporation for government fees, resident agent fees, lawyers fees, etc.
Here you can find a cheap lawyer, and incorporate a different corporation for each phone line, each car, each piece of real estate, each bank account, each internet domain name, etc; without bogging yourself down in prohibitive renewal fees. (In fact I've never seen a lawyer here charge a renewal fee, despite the fact they are listed in incorporation papers as resident agent).
Speaking of which I have one lead here in Escazu that will charge $300 per S.A./S.R.L. Anyone have other good leads? I'd like to get a cheap or wholesale price somewhere, setup 5-10 at a time.
For what its worth, it took an hour to setup a bank account at Banco Nacional (in dollars, euros and colones), and for an S.A. with a numbered name (e.g. 3-101-xxxx Sociedad Anonima) which I was surprised they'd do, with no documentation requirements other than a Persona Juridica, cedula and utility bill. Of course it also took 1 hour 15 minutes in the bank to send a simple wire transfer, so it's useless for many purposes.
Anyone have good contacts for Panamanian corporations? I've a few, but they are $1500/year.
As for paying for incorporation inclusive of bank account setup, how could you ever trust someone else to have signatory authority in your accounts?! There are services that will instead walk you into the bank (introduction), but do they truly offer an advantage over walking into the bank yourself?
Everywhere else you are looking at $1000-$3000 per year for each corporation for government fees, resident agent fees, lawyers fees, etc.
Here you can find a cheap lawyer, and incorporate a different corporation for each phone line, each car, each piece of real estate, each bank account, each internet domain name, etc; without bogging yourself down in prohibitive renewal fees. (In fact I've never seen a lawyer here charge a renewal fee, despite the fact they are listed in incorporation papers as resident agent).
Speaking of which I have one lead here in Escazu that will charge $300 per S.A./S.R.L. Anyone have other good leads? I'd like to get a cheap or wholesale price somewhere, setup 5-10 at a time.
For what its worth, it took an hour to setup a bank account at Banco Nacional (in dollars, euros and colones), and for an S.A. with a numbered name (e.g. 3-101-xxxx Sociedad Anonima) which I was surprised they'd do, with no documentation requirements other than a Persona Juridica, cedula and utility bill. Of course it also took 1 hour 15 minutes in the bank to send a simple wire transfer, so it's useless for many purposes.
Anyone have good contacts for Panamanian corporations? I've a few, but they are $1500/year.
As for paying for incorporation inclusive of bank account setup, how could you ever trust someone else to have signatory authority in your accounts?! There are services that will instead walk you into the bank (introduction), but do they truly offer an advantage over walking into the bank yourself?
BTW, what information can you find out about an S.A. here, online and physically?
Anyone can just walk into the Registro Nacional (e.g. in Plaza Mayor) and buy a Persona Juridica and find out the name of the President of any corporaton.
What else can you do?
Do power of attorneys actually work well? I'd use nominee officers except (a) I wouldn't trust them and (b) I'm not sure how well a power of attorney works for setting up bank accounts and performing other activities.
If I pick my own nominee officers, how do I protect them from any potential liability? That whole undated letter of resignation never made sense to me, for either party. How can an officer resign without a corporate act recognizing the resignation and appointing a new officer (and doesn't that require changes with the National Registry?).
One thing Costa Rica doesn't have that I really like elsewhere is you can use corporations as officers. (And there again is a good use of CR corporations -- setup CR corporations to hold each officer position of Panama/Cayman/etc corporations, and you avoid paying annual nominee officer fees.
Anyone can just walk into the Registro Nacional (e.g. in Plaza Mayor) and buy a Persona Juridica and find out the name of the President of any corporaton.
What else can you do?
Do power of attorneys actually work well? I'd use nominee officers except (a) I wouldn't trust them and (b) I'm not sure how well a power of attorney works for setting up bank accounts and performing other activities.
If I pick my own nominee officers, how do I protect them from any potential liability? That whole undated letter of resignation never made sense to me, for either party. How can an officer resign without a corporate act recognizing the resignation and appointing a new officer (and doesn't that require changes with the National Registry?).
One thing Costa Rica doesn't have that I really like elsewhere is you can use corporations as officers. (And there again is a good use of CR corporations -- setup CR corporations to hold each officer position of Panama/Cayman/etc corporations, and you avoid paying annual nominee officer fees.
have you heard of 'firma digital' (digital signature)
what that can do (and the fact that AFAIK you can't 'opt out' is even more terrifying to me.
(in case you haven't heard, a CR'can can apply for a digital certificate and its used as a signature so that you can sell a car/property/do anything that would ordinarily require a signature ....all online
I don't find it the least amusing that a crooked lawyer (is there any other kind??) and a certification company......can conspire to strip a person of everything
http://www.amcostarica.com/082405.htm
They do offer an advantage when the banks are a pain in the neck to deal with in the first place (I didnt mean to leave anyone with signatory powers I only meant, hand me the shell corp WITH the bank account setup and then we can deal with setting up new authorized signatures/removing old ones etc)
btw I am truly shocked about your description of how easy it was to setup a bank account at BNCR with a fresh corp (I can only guess that the 'give us papers/show us where your money is from etc' begins at a later stage?)
Yeah, but the notaries are crooked anyway, so not like a physical signature is any better. Crooked certificate authorities and trojan horse viruses just add spice to the property theft fiesta!
*Anything* that would ordinarily requires a signature? What about the formerly mentioned, establishing corporations, changing directors, transferring shares, etc.? That would be cool, I could just buy some certificates from a handful of fiduciaries and I don't ever even need to bother them about signing a paper ;-) LOL!
Where do you do such things online? (Never mind, just read, papers still go thru a notary. Cool though, I wonder how many notaries support this service.)
Undue trust in cryptographic processes and computer security are definitely an issue, but honestly I'm all for digital government processes despite the risks.
Ok, that would be cool, although I haven't seen that service offered frequently, usually they just offer an introduction or send you account application. Changing signatories on the account would requires physically visiting the bank, no?
You see shelf corps with setup bank accounts offered somewhere reputable, let me know.
