BVI vs Cayman Islands: which 0% company fits you

Both are 0% tax islands with private shareholders. The differences are price, reputation and a few rules nobody else mentions.

Heirson prices with every government fee included, 4 November 2026.

The BVI costs less every year, and the gap grows from 2027.

Cayman's annual government fee rises to US$1,250 from 1 January 2027, and under the Companies Act it's billed every January. Our price already includes it. Pick a horizon:

Three years, itemised

"Directors are private" is wrong in both places.

In the BVI, anyone can request the current directors' names for US$75 under section 118B of the BVI Business Companies Act. In Cayman, the directors list is open to anyone for CI$50. What stays private in both: the shareholders. Beneficial owners are filed with the authorities, and open only to people with a legitimate interest.

Want your own name off the directors list? A local director can be added at extra cost, quoted before you order. Your ownership doesn't change.

The documents you receive

Both registries issue a certificate of incorporation, and both companies have a memorandum and articles, a register of directors and a register of members. A certificate of good standing costs US$100 in the BVI and CI$150 in Cayman; an apostille US$50 in the BVI and CI$150 in Cayman.

Cayman's premium buys recognition.

• Funds and investors use Cayman more than anywhere else, so a Cayman company rarely needs explaining in a term sheet.
• Token projects often use a Cayman foundation company, which can run with no shareholders and a supervisor instead. We found no statutory equivalent in the BVI.
• A holding company for your own assets rarely needs that recognition, which is why the BVI is the more common choice for it.

Forming one, step by step

1. Choose the name and the people

   One director and one shareholder in either place, who can be the same person and live anywhere.

   Day one
2. Prove who you are

   Passport, proof of address and a short note on where the money comes from. The licensed agent must check it.

   Day one
3. The licensed agent or office files

   BVI: a registered agent licensed by the FSC. Cayman: a company manager licensed by CIMA.

   After you sign
4. Certificate issued

   BVI: 2 to 5 working days. Cayman: 3 to 5, or about a day with express for US$610.

   Within a week
5. Registers and bank account

   BVI: registers of directors, members and owners filed privately within 30 days. Then the bank account, set up with you.

   Next

For your own crypto, both are free of licences. For clients, both have a route.

Holding, trading and getting paid in the company's own crypto needs no licence in either place. Serving clients does: FSC registration in the BVI, from US$5,000 to apply and US$7,500 a year, or CIMA registration in Cayman, with a full licence for custody and trading platforms since April 2025. Selling a token to the public needs registration in both. More in our licence check.

The BVI's listing is narrower than most pages suggest.

The EU's update of 9 October 2026 keeps the BVI on its grey list for one reason: it committed to request an in-depth review of how it exchanges tax information, by 15 February 2027. That's a procedural commitment, not a finding that its tax rules are harmful. Cayman isn't on either EU list.

For a holding company, the grey list rarely changes anything. If EU banks or partners are central to your plans, Cayman avoids the question.

Both bill once a year, on different calendars.

• BVI: companies formed from January to June pay by 31 May, the rest by 30 November. Late: +10% within two months, +50% after.
• Cayman: every company pays in January. Late: +33% from April, +67% from July, +100% from October.
• Both: economic substance rules, in the BVI Economic Substance Act and on Cayman's tax authority portal, target nine activities, such as fund management and holding IP. Most other companies file a short yearly notice.

Economic substance, in plain words

Both islands ask companies doing one of nine activities, such as banking, insurance, fund management, headquarters or holding intellectual property, to show real activity on the island. A company that only holds your own investments or trades for itself usually files a short yearly notice instead.

If a company is struck off

• BVI: a US$200 to US$400 application plus a US$500 to US$1,200 restoration fee, within five years.
• Cayman: restoration by court order, plus CI$1,400 (about US$1,707).

Either way, restoring costs more than a year of keeping the company.

Five questions. Your answer at the end.

Three founders, three different right answers.

Neither island is where you'll usually bank.

BVI and Cayman companies mostly bank in a third country, or with a payment institution. The bank asks who owns it, what it does and where the money comes from, and wants the certificate of incorporation, the register of directors and your passport.

The one real difference: a few EU banks look harder at places on any EU list, so the BVI's grey listing can mean an extra question. We set the account up with you either way.

Some groups use both, on purpose.

It works, but it doubles the yearly fees and filings. Most founders start with one company and add the second only when investors or a large asset make it worth it.

The yearly filings, side by side

• BVI: the annual government fee, an economic substance notice, and a yearly financial return kept with the registered agent, not filed publicly.
• Cayman: the annual return and fee in January, and an economic substance notification. No audit for an ordinary company.

Compare either one with seven other places in our comparison tool.