Capital requirement for foreign companies in Ghana is Gh¢74,500

Foreign companies that intend to register and do business in Ghana will be required by law to have a minimum capital of Gh¢74,500 or $52,000.

This requirement applies to wholly-owned foreign limited liability companies (LLC).

However, it takes 10 procedures and 72 days to establish foreign-owned LLCs that want to be involved in international trade, a study by the World Bank on investment opportunities in the country has found. And comparing the length of time and procedures with other countries covered in the study known as Investment Across Borders (IAB), the World Bank found that it takes longer in Ghana than the IAB regional average for Sub-Saharan Africa to register a business.

Additionally, foreign investors are required to obtain a certificate of capital importation, which can take 14 days and the local authorized dealer must confirm the import of capital with the Bank of Ghana, which will then confirm the transaction to the Ghana Investment Promotion Centre (GIPC) for investment registration purposes.

The report cited the Ghana Investment Promotion Centre Act (1994), which says all foreign investors must register their investment with the GIPC. This registration, however, is only required of foreign companies and takes 11 days to complete. E-copies of Ghana’s commercial laws and regulations can be obtained for a fee from a private firm that has computerized all the laws, it indicated.

Foreign investment companies are required to have at least one member of the Board of directors who must be a Ghanaian resident and foreign companies can hold foreign currency bank accounts.

However, the study found that Ghana is one of the more open economies to foreign equity ownership in the Sub-Saharan Africa region. All of its major sectors covered by the Investing Across Sectors indicators, with the exception of the primary sectors, are fully open to foreign capital participation, it added.

By Emmanuel K. Dogbevi