U.S. Virgin Islands

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Overview

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Identifiers

Collect two identifiers from each business customer in U.S. Virgin Islands and submit them as strings on the application body. Tax ID: The U.S. Virgin Islands operates a ‘mirror’ tax system under 26 U.S.C. § 932 in which the Internal Revenue Code applies with ‘Virgin Islands’ substituted for ‘United States’. Businesses use a federal Employer Identification Number (EIN), obtained from the IRS via Form SS-4. This same EIN is registered with the Virgin Islands Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) for gross receipts tax, income tax withholding, and payroll tax purposes. Businesses with annual gross receipts of $225,000 or less file Form 720-B (annual); those above$225,000 file Form 720VI monthly. EDC beneficiary companies and Exempt Companies are also required to register with BIR and obtain an EIN before commencing operations. Registration number: Assigned upon registration through the Catalyst online filing system (corporationsandtrademarks.vi.gov) under Title 13 (corporations, LLCs) or Title 26 (partnerships) of the Virgin Islands Code. Appears on the Certificate of Incorporation, Articles of Organization, Certificate of Limited Partnership, and all subsequent annual report filings. No publicly confirmed fixed-length format; issued as a numeric or alphanumeric sequence.

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Sector regulators

Division of Banking, Insurance, and Financial Regulation (DBIFR), Office of the Lieutenant Governor · Virgin Islands Economic Development Commission (EDC) / Virgin Islands Economic Development Authority (VIEDA) · Department of Licensing and Consumer Affairs (DLCA) · FinCEN (federal AML/BSA oversight) · Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) · U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)

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Legal structures

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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.

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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.

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Collection notes

• Legal Registration: Issued by the Division of Corporations and Trademarks, Office of the Lieutenant Governor, via the Catalyst online filing system (corporationsandtrademarks.vi.gov) under Title 13 (corporations, LLCs) or Title 26 (partnerships) of the Virgin Islands Code. For corporations: Certificate of Incorporation (or certified Articles of Incorporation). For LLCs: Certificate of Organization (or Articles of Organization). For limited partnerships: Certificate of Limited Partnership. For foreign entities: Certificate of Authority. All documents publicly accessible in the Catalyst system.
• Constitutive Documents: For corporations: Articles of Incorporation (Title 13, § 2) filed with the Division of Corporations and Trademarks set out the company name, purpose, authorized share capital, and initial directors/officers; By-laws govern internal management and are adopted at or after incorporation. For LLCs: the constitutive filing is the Articles of Organization; an Operating Agreement (Title 13, Chapter 15) is not legally required but is standard practice. For partnerships: the Partnership Agreement governs internal arrangements. All articles are public records accessible via Catalyst.
• Tax Registration: The USVI operates a mirror tax system; businesses obtain a federal Employer Identification Number (EIN) from the IRS (Form SS-4) and register that EIN with the Virgin Islands Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR). The IRS issues an EIN confirmation letter (CP 575 or 147C letter) as evidence of the EIN. The BIR does not issue a separate tax registration certificate in a standardized form; the EIN letter combined with the BIR gross receipts tax account number serves as the primary tax identification evidence. Gross receipts tax (5%) applies to all USVI businesses under Title 33 of the VI Code. EDC beneficiary companies receive a separate EDC Benefits Certificate confirming tax-incentive status.
• Operating Permit: The Department of Licensing and Consumer Affairs (DLCA), operating under Title 3, Chapter 16 of the Virgin Islands Code, requires every person, entity, or association wishing to engage in business within the territory to obtain a Business License before soliciting or engaging in any business, occupation, profession, or trade. This applies to all business entity types. Prerequisites for the DLCA Business License include: (1) a Certificate of Trade Name/Partnership and Corporation Registration from the Office of the Lieutenant Governor; (2) a Tax Clearance Letter from the BIR; (3) a police background check conducted electronically by DLCA on behalf of the applicant (Virgin Islands Police Department); (4) zoning approval from the Department of Planning and Natural Resources; and (5) fire inspection clearance. Processing typically takes 6–8 weeks. The Business License must be renewed annually.
• Sector-Specific License: The Division of Banking, Insurance, and Financial Regulation (DBIFR), under the Office of the Lieutenant Governor, regulates financial services under Titles 3, 9, 12A, 20, 22, and 28 of the Virgin Islands Code. Key licences: (1) Banking/financial institution licence under Title 9; (2) Money Transmitter Licence under Title 9, Chapter 22 (Uniform Money Services Act) — minimum net worth $25,000; (3) Securities dealer/broker licence under Title 9; (4) Insurance company/producer licence under Title 22; (5) Captive insurance company licence; (6) International Financial Services Entity (IFSE) licence under Act 7968 — for entities conducting international financial operations; (7) Check casher/currency exchange licence; (8) Mortgage broker/lender licence under Act 8168. The Lieutenant Governor serves as Chairman of the Virgin Islands Banking Board and Commissioner of Insurance.
• Ownership Records: Under Title 13 of the Virgin Islands Code, every domestic corporation must maintain at its principal office a record of the current names and addresses of all shareholders and the number and class of shares held by each. These internal shareholder records are not filed publicly with the Division of Corporations and Trademarks; annual reports filed with the Division list directors and officers but do not disclose shareholders. The USVI Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) exemption (effective March 2025, per FinCEN interim final rule) means USVI-domestic entities are no longer required to file BOI reports with FinCEN. LLCs are similarly not required to publicly disclose members — annual reports list managers only. Exempt Companies may not have more than 10% US ownership.
• Governance Records: Every domestic corporation must maintain at its principal office a list of current names and addresses of all directors and officers. Annual reports filed with the Division of Corporations and Trademarks by June 30 of each year must include the names and addresses of all directors and officers, and the expiration of their terms of office; these annual reports are open to public inspection via Catalyst. LLC annual reports disclose managers but not members. Directors must be natural persons (not corporate entities).
• Signing Authority: No statutory prescribed form in the Virgin Islands Code. A board resolution on company letterhead — signed by a majority of directors and certified by the corporate secretary — is the standard instrument authorizing a named signatory to act on behalf of the company. For LLCs, the equivalent is a Manager’s Resolution or Member’s Consent. A notarized Power of Attorney is used for external delegation. No mandatory notarization of board resolutions, but notarization is recommended for international use.
• Address: No statutory form prescribed for KYB address verification. Standard practice follows US territory norms: lease agreement (no fixed time limit) OR utility bill OR bank statement dated within 90 days of submission. Common utility providers in the USVI include Virgin Islands Water and Power Authority (WAPA) and telecommunications providers. The document must show the company’s registered or principal operating address in the USVI.
• Good Standing: Issued by the Division of Corporations and Trademarks, Office of the Lieutenant Governor, for corporations, LLCs, and partnerships in active/good standing. Confirms the entity is validly registered and that franchise taxes and annual report obligations are current. Fee: $25 per certificate (Title 13, § 431). Requested via the Catalyst online system. Note: certificates issued by the Division are not conclusive proof of payment of franchise taxes — the Division distinguishes between confirmed good standing and conditional good standing (where compliance is assumed pending verification). Entities in arrears on annual reports or franchise tax filings will not receive a certificate until all outstanding obligations are cleared.

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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.

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Notes

• The U.S. Virgin Islands is an unincorporated territory of the United States. It operates under a ‘mirror’ tax system (26 U.S.C. § 932) in which the Internal Revenue Code applies with ‘Virgin Islands’ substituted for ‘United States’; businesses use a federal EIN and file both federal-equivalent returns with the BIR and US federal returns in certain cases. There is no separate USVI-issued TIN.
• All corporate and business entity filings (except Exempt LLCs) are processed through the Catalyst online system at www.corporationsandtrademarks.vi.gov. Annual reports and franchise taxes are due by June 30 each year for all entity types (corporations, LLCs, partnerships). Failure to file results in loss of good standing and eventual administrative dissolution.
• The Exempt Company structure is unique to the USVI — the only US-flag jurisdiction offering a fully tax-free entity for non-US nationals. Conduit may encounter these in cross-border holding and captive insurance contexts; they are restricted from USVI or US domestic business activity and may not have more than 10% US ownership.
• The Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) domestic-entity exemption (FinCEN interim final rule effective March 26, 2025) removed BOI reporting requirements for entities formed in the US, including USVI entities. Only foreign entities registering to do business in a US state remain subject to CTA filings. Shareholder/member information is therefore not available from any public USVI registry.
• The DLCA Business License is a mandatory prerequisite for all businesses — it must be obtained before commencing operations. Prerequisites include a Tax Clearance Letter from BIR and a Certificate of Trade Name/Corporation Registration from the Division of Corporations and Trademarks. The DLCA Business License is separate from any professional or regulatory licence required by the DBIFR.
• The EDC tax incentive program offers substantial benefits (90% income tax reduction, 100% gross receipts tax exemption) to qualifying corporations that meet employment (at least 10 USVI residents) and investment ($100,000 minimum) thresholds. Benefits are contractually guaranteed for initial terms of 10–15 years, extendable to 30 years. EDC beneficiaries are subject to annual compliance reporting to VIEDA.
• Money transmitter and financial services licensing is handled by the DBIFR (not DLCA). The USVI adopted the Uniform Money Services Act (Title 9, Chapter 22); money transmitters must apply directly to DBIFR (not through NMLS) and maintain a minimum net worth of $25,000.
• Branch registrations of foreign corporations require a certified copy of the home-jurisdiction articles of incorporation plus a certificate of good standing from the home jurisdiction, a registered agent consent, and a statement of assets and liabilities. All supporting documents in a foreign language require certified English translations.
• The Virgin Islands Supreme Court separately issues Certificates of Good Standing for licensed attorneys admitted to its bar — these are not corporate good standing certificates and should not be confused with the Division of Corporations and Trademarks certificates.