The Cayman Islands Monetary Authority (CIMA), regulates and supervises the registration and operations of insurance business licensed in the Cayman Islands under the Insurance Law.
Key Features
The Insurance Law defines “insurance business” as the business of accepting risks by effecting or carrying out contracts of insurance, whether directly or indirectly, and includes running-off business including the settlement of claims.
The Insurance Law gives the CIMA the responsibility of regulating the insurance industry in the Cayman Islands. This includes licensing, ongoing supervision, and enforcement. Under the Insurance Law, CIMA may issue the following categories of insurance licences:
- Class A Insurer’s Licence – permits a local or an external insurer to carry on domestic insurance business or limited reinsurance business as approved by the Authority.
- Class B Insurer’s Licence – permits an exempted insurer to carry on insurance business other than domestic business in respect of which:
- at least ninety-five per cent of the net premiums written will originate from the insurer’s related business;
- over fifty per cent of the net premiums written will originate from the insurer’s related business; or
- fifty per cent or less of the net premiums written will originate from the insurer’s related business.
- Class C Insurer’s Licence – permits an exempted insurer to carry on insurance business involving the provision of reinsurance arrangements in respect of which the insurance obligations of the class C insurer are limited in recourse to and collateralised by the class C insurer’s funding sources or the proceeds of such funding sources which include the issuance of bonds or other instruments, contracts for differences and such other funding mechanisms approved by the Authority.
- Class D Insurer’s Licence – permits an insurer to carry on reinsurance business and such other business as may be approved in respect of any individual licence by the Authority.
Legal Requirements
|
Requirements |
Description |
|
General |
|
|
Cayman Company or Limited Partnership |
|
USD 92,000 (Class A) USD 12,800 (Class B) USD 6,000 (Class C) USD 102,500 (Class D) |
|
USD 92,000 (Class A) USD 12,800 (Class B) USD 6,000 (Class C) USD 102,500 (Class D) |
|
Yes |
|
Share capital or equivalent |
|
|
· Minimum paid up capital |
USD 1,000,000 (Class A) USD 200,000 (Class B) USD 500 (Class C) USD 50,000,000 (Class D) |
|
Directors |
|
|
2 |
|
Yes |
|
No |
|
Shareholders |
|
|
2 |
|
Yes |
|
No |
|
Service Providers Required |
|
|
No |
Tax Treatment
Tax neutrality: no capital gains, income, profits, corporation or withholding taxes
Duration to Set Up
About 3 months
Distinctive Benefits of Licence
- Tax neutrality: no capital gains, income, profits, corporation or withholding taxes.
- Ease and speed of set up
- Credible global reputation of license
The Valsen Advantage
- End to end comprehensive service
- Speedy and efficient service
- Expert advice on structuring options
- Dedicated ongoing compliance support
- Extensive network pool of service providers