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Overview

Identifiers

Collect two identifiers from each business customer in Guernsey and submit them as strings on the application body. Tax ID: Issued automatically by the Revenue Service when a Guernsey-incorporated company is registered at the Guernsey Registry (Income Tax (Guernsey) Law, 1975). Format: one digit, two letters, six digits, optional letter suffix — e.g. ‘1PP 123456 / F’. For companies incorporated outside Guernsey but tax-resident there, the same format applies but is issued on application. Guernsey has no corporate income tax at the standard rate (0%), with 10% and 20% rates applying to certain regulated and retail activities. No VAT or GST exists in Guernsey. Registration number: Sequential numeric identifier prefixed by entity type. Companies: ‘CMP’ followed by sequential digits (e.g. CMP10001). Foundations: ‘FND’ + digits (e.g. FND167). Limited Partnerships: ‘LP’ + digits (e.g. LP2075). LLPs use an LLP-series prefix. Allocated by the Registrar at incorporation under Companies (Guernsey) Law, 2008, and appears on the Certificate of Incorporation.

Sector regulators

Guernsey Financial Services Commission (GFSC) · Guernsey Registry · Guernsey Revenue Service · Committee for Home Affairs (gambling)

How documents combine

For each evidence area, this table shows whether the listed documents are alternatives (any one of) or a bundle (all required). The artifact-by-artifact lookup follows below.

Documents to collect

The physical documents you’ll collect from your customer, with the evidence area each one proves. One document can prove multiple areas — for example, Brazil’s Cartão CNPJ covers both tax and business-registration proof, so it appears once with both areas listed. Not applicable in Guernsey: Operating Permit. Skip these areas — no local artifact exists.

Collection notes

  • Legal Registration: Issued by the Guernsey Registry (Registrar of Companies) upon incorporation under Companies (Guernsey) Law, 2008. States the company’s registered name, registration number (e.g. CMP10001), type, and date of incorporation. Electronic certificates are available instantly (£2); certified paper copies take 2–3 business days. The Registry also holds the filed memorandum and articles as public records.
  • Constitutive Documents: The constitutive document for Guernsey companies under Companies (Guernsey) Law, 2008 s.9–10; formally called ‘Memorandum and Articles of Incorporation’ (not ‘Association’ as in UK practice). The memorandum states the company name, registered office location in Guernsey, company type, member liability, and (if restricted) objects. The articles govern internal management. Filed with the Registry at incorporation and publicly available. For LLPs, the equivalent is a Members Agreement (not public).
  • Tax Registration: Guernsey has no VAT or GST. The Revenue Service issues a Tax Reference Number (TRN) to all Guernsey-incorporated companies automatically upon registration; the TIN for international reporting purposes is the company’s Guernsey registration number (CMP-series) as issued by the Registry. Companies pay income tax at 0% (standard), 10% (banking, insurance, fiduciary, investment management services to individual clients, custody services, licensed fund administration, operating an investment exchange, aircraft registry, cannabis/controlled drug cultivation and production), or 20% (retail/property exceeding £500k profit, regulated trading). Investment management services provided to collective investment schemes are taxed at 0%, not 10%. Taxable entities must file an annual corporate tax return. No separate tax certificate document is issued — the TRN appears on Revenue Service correspondence. Additionally, effective 1 January 2025, Guernsey enacted a Qualified Domestic Top-up Tax (DTT) and Multinational Top-up Tax (MTT) under the Income Tax (Approved International Agreements) (Implementation) (OECD Pillar II) Regulations 2024, applying to MNE groups with EUR 750 million+ consolidated revenue. In-scope groups must register a Domestic Filing Entity with the Revenue Service using the existing TRN framework — no new separate identifier is issued.
  • Sector-Specific License: The Guernsey Financial Services Commission (GFSC) supervises banking, fiduciary (trust and corporate service providers), insurance, investment (funds and asset managers), and pensions. The Protection of Investors (Bailiwick of Guernsey) Law, 2020 requires a licence for controlled investment business. The Banking Supervision (Bailiwick of Guernsey) Law, 2020 governs banking. The Insurance Business (Guernsey) Law, 2002 governs insurance. The Regulation of Fiduciaries, Administration Businesses and Company Directors, etc (Bailiwick of Guernsey) Law, 2020 governs fiduciary services. Gambling is licensed by the Committee for Home Affairs under the Gambling (Guernsey) Ordinance, 2005.
  • Governance Records: Every Guernsey company must maintain a Register of Directors under Companies (Guernsey) Law, 2008. Director names, addresses, and appointment dates are publicly accessible via the Guernsey Registry portal (free basic search). The annual validation submission includes current director details. The Registry portal (portal.guernseyregistry.com) displays directors as part of the company’s public record.
  • Signing Authority: No statutory form prescribed. A written board resolution passed by the directors is standard practice to authorise a specific signatory to act on behalf of the company. Power of attorney may also be used, executed as a deed under Guernsey law. Companies (Guernsey) Law, 2008 s.44 governs execution of documents.
  • Address: Conduit accepts a signed lease (no time limit), utility bill, or bank statement dated within 90 days as proof of registered or operating address. The same document satisfies both registered-address and principal-place-of-business checks.
  • Good Standing: Issued by the Guernsey Registry; certifies that the company is incorporated, has filed its annual validation declaration (due by 28 February each year for companies; 31 March for LPs, LLPs and Foundations), and remains on the register in good standing. Cost: £10 for electronic; £15 for certified paper copy (2–3 business days; legacy companies up to 5–10 days). Electronically signed by an authorised officer of the Guernsey Registry. If the company is not in good standing, the Registry issues a search extract confirming current status instead.

Person roles

When you submit a person on the application body, set their role to one of Conduit’s canonical BusinessPersonRole values. Use this table to map a local corporate-governance title onto the right canonical role.

Notes

  • Guernsey is a Crown Dependency, not part of the UK or EU. It is a separate jurisdiction with its own legislation, courts, and regulatory framework. Documents are in English.
  • The Guernsey Registry replaced legacy system ‘greg.gg’ with a new Online Services Portal (portal.guernseyregistry.com) in December 2023. All company searches, filings, and document orders are through this portal.
  • Annual validation must be filed between 1 January and 28 February each year for companies (confirming directors, resident agent, business activity, share capital, and audit-exempt status as at 31 December). LPs, LLPs, and Foundations have a separate window: 1 March to 31 March. Failure to file risks striking off.
  • No VAT or GST applies in Guernsey. The standard corporate income-tax rate is 0%. The 10% intermediate rate applies to: banking, domestic insurance, insurance intermediary and management, custody services, licensed fund administration, regulated fiduciary activities, regulated investment management services to individual clients (services to collective investment schemes remain at 0%), operating an investment exchange, compliance services to regulated financial-services businesses, operating an aircraft registry, and cannabis/controlled drug cultivation and production. The 20% rate applies to retail businesses and domestic utility providers with Guernsey-source profits exceeding £500,000, and to property income. Tax registration is automatic for Guernsey-incorporated entities. Effective 1 January 2025, a Qualified Domestic Top-up Tax (DTT/QDMTT) and Multinational Top-up Tax (MTT/IIR) apply to MNE groups with EUR 750 million+ consolidated annual revenue under the OECD Pillar Two framework (Income Tax (Approved International Agreements) (Implementation) (OECD Pillar II) Regulations 2024); both have received OECD Transitional Qualified Status.
  • Cell companies (PCC and ICC) are widely used in Guernsey’s funds and insurance sectors. The Guernsey Registry registers PCCs and ICCs under the Companies (Guernsey) Law, 2008. Each incorporated cell of an ICC has its own CMP-series registration number.
  • Foundations (Fdn.) must be established through a GFSC-licensed fiduciary (Corporate Service Provider). Registration number uses ‘FND’ prefix.
  • A company registration application can only be submitted to the Guernsey Registry by a licensed Corporate Service Provider (CSP) holding a GFSC fiduciary licence — direct self-registration is not permitted.