BVI economic substance legislation

The Economic Substance (Companies and Limited Partnerships) Act, 2018 (the Act) came into force on 1 January 2019 and imposes economic substance requirements on companies and limited partnerships in the British Virgin Islands (BVI). The Act was brought into force to address the concerns of the EU Code of Conduct Group (Business Taxation) regarding the existence of a favourable tax regime facilitating offshore structures generating profits without real economic activity. The Act also reflects the BVI’s commitment as a member of the OECD’s Inclusive Framework on Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) and, in particular BEPS Action 5.