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If you are weighing an offshore company ownership privacy question for Mauritius, the honest answer is: the owner is not anonymous, but not every record is open to everyone. Mauritius requires companies to know who owns and controls them, to write that down, and to produce it for the competent authorities on request. Privacy here means limited access, not absence of records.
This page separates three layers: what sits in a company's own internal registers, what is held by the authorities, and what a bank or service provider will ask you for. It gives general information only; how it applies to you depends on your situation and on your home country.
The short answer
For an Authorised Company, privacy is best described in three layers:
- Internal registers kept by the company and its registered agent, which hold the full ownership detail.
- Official registers held by the Registrar of Companies and the Financial Services Commission (FSC), reachable by the competent authorities.
- Counterparties such as banks, which carry out their own checks before opening an account.
Nobody in this chain is invited to treat the owner's identity as a secret from the authorities. The privacy you can reasonably expect is protection from casual public curiosity, not from regulators, tax administrations or a bank's compliance team.
Is shareholder information public in Mauritius?
This is the most common worry behind the query "is shareholder information public Mauritius". The position depends on which record you mean.
The online incorporation form asks for the name, identity and addresses of directors, the secretary and shareholders, along with the registered office and the company's activities. That information is supplied to the Registrar of Companies when the company is formed. What a third party can then see of it depends on the Registrar's public search facilities, which can change, so check the current position rather than relying on an old article.
The register of beneficial owners is a different matter. The Registrar of Companies maintains a Beneficial Ownership Register that is accessible to all competent authorities and to other prescribed public authorities. The Companies Act does not describe that register as public. That is the clearest statement the law gives, and it is worth quoting precisely: accessible to authorities, not described as public.
The share register stays with the company
Separately from any official filing, the company keeps its own register of shares. The Companies Act requires that register to be retained for at least seven years after the transaction concerned. This is a working record of who holds what, kept by the company and, in practice, by its provider.
What an Authorised Company must record
Every Mauritian company must identify its beneficial owner at all times and, where relevant, any nominee. It records these details in a separate register: full name and residential address, national identity or passport number, nationality, and the holding structure that leads to the ultimate beneficial owner.
The beneficial owner is the individual who ultimately owns or controls the company, or on whose behalf a transaction is carried out. Ownership may be direct or indirect, through shares in a prescribed proportion, voting rights, an ownership interest, or control by other means. The older wording of section 91 used a threshold of 25% of voting rights; the definition was reworked by Act 10/2024, so do not rely on the old figure without checking the current text.
The company must make sure that any register or information required about beneficial owners is accurate, up to date and made available without delay to the competent authorities when they ask. If the company stops trading, its last directors keep the beneficial ownership information for at least seven years.
This is why a "private owner" is a misleading phrase. The owner is private from the public at large, yet fully documented for those entitled to look.
The role of the registered agent
An Authorised Company must have a registered agent in Mauritius at all times, and that agent must be an FSC-licensed corporate service provider (Management Licence). The application for authorisation itself is filed through such a provider, in the form and manner the FSC decides.
The agent does more than provide an address. Its statutory tasks include filing the returns and documents required by the Financial Services Act, the Income Tax Act or the Companies Act, passing on communications with the FSC, the Mauritius Revenue Authority and the Registrar, carrying out anti-money-laundering and counter-terrorist-financing (AML/CFT) measures, and keeping records such as minutes, resolutions and transaction documents.
In practice this means your provider will know who you are. A corporate service provider is itself a regulated profession under the Financial Intelligence and Anti-Money Laundering Act (FIAMLA), with the Registrar of Companies as its regulatory body. It cannot treat your identity as something to be left undocumented. For background on the role, see the FSC-licensed corporate service provider (Management Licence) behind your Authorised Company and what a registered office is and who provides it.
What the authorities can see
A summary of who can see what, in general terms:
| Information | Where it sits | Who can reach it |
|---|---|---|
| Directors, secretary, shareholders at incorporation | Filing made to the Registrar of Companies | Subject to the Registrar's public search rules; confirm the current position |
| Beneficial Ownership Register | Registrar of Companies | Competent authorities and other prescribed public authorities; not described as public by the Companies Act |
| Company's own share register | The company and its provider | The company; authorities on request |
| Company's own beneficial ownership register | The company and its provider | Competent authorities, without delay on request |
| Owner's identity file | Registered agent (AML/CFT) | The agent; regulators when they inspect |
| Account opening documents | The bank | The bank and its own regulators |
The table shows why a single "yes, public" or "no, private" fails to describe the reality. The same fact can be open in one record and restricted in another.
The FSC and the tax authority
The FSC authorises the Authorised Company and supervises the provider that files on its behalf. The Mauritius Revenue Authority receives the filings made under the Income Tax Act. Both can ask the registered agent for records. For more on the regulator's role, read the Authorised Company and the FSC.
Information may also travel to your home country through international exchange arrangements. Whether that happens, and how your home tax authority treats the company, is a question for how the owner is taxed in their home country and for an adviser who knows your residence.
What banks ask for
A bank is not bound by the Registrar's rules about what is public. It applies its own due diligence, and it will typically ask for identification of the owner, proof of address, an explanation of the business, and the holding structure. A bank that cannot see through the structure to a natural person will usually decline the account.
This is one of the reasons offshore applications fail. A reader hoping that the corporate wrapper hides the owner from the bank is expecting something that does not happen. See why banks refuse offshore company accounts and the wider overview of banking options for an offshore company.
Can a nominee keep my name off the records?
Not in the sense people hope. The law requires the company to identify the beneficial owner and, where applicable, any nominee, and to record both. A nominee arrangement therefore adds a second name to the record; it does not remove the first. Bearer shares are a separate subject, covered in bearer shares and offshore companies.
Be cautious of any offer promising that your name will appear nowhere. An arrangement sold on those terms either misdescribes the law or exposes you to risk. See offshore company scams and red flags.
What changes the picture
Several practical points affect how visible an owner is:
- A corporate shareholder. If a company holds the shares, the register still has to trace the structure back to the individual who ultimately owns or controls it.
- A single owner. A one-owner company is simple to trace. The page on the one-owner Authorised Company explains the structure.
- Changes of ownership. A transfer alters the registers and triggers updates; the process is outlined in transferring ownership of an offshore company.
- Nationality of the owner. An Authorised Company is, by law, majority held or controlled by a non-citizen of Mauritius. See whether a foreigner can own an Authorised Company.
How to protect your information sensibly
Realistic steps for a lawful owner who wants discretion:
- Choose a provider whose licence you have verified, using the checklist to verify an FSC licence.
- Ask in writing what the provider files, what it records and who it can disclose information to.
- Share identity documents only through the provider's secure process, and keep copies of what you sent.
- Keep your own records of what has been filed on your behalf, so that you can check them.
- Ask what the provider's confidentiality terms say about disclosure to authorities, since they cannot override a legal obligation.
If you have a specific concern about your own situation, send a request through the contact form.
FAQ
Is the owner of an Authorised Company listed publicly?
Not in the way many people assume. The Beneficial Ownership Register held by the Registrar of Companies is accessible to the competent authorities and certain prescribed public authorities, and the Companies Act does not describe it as public. Some details supplied at incorporation may be visible through the Registrar's search facilities, so confirm the current position before relying on any assumption.
Can I stay anonymous with a nominee shareholder?
No. A company must identify its beneficial owner and any nominee and record both in a separate register. A nominee adds a record; it does not erase yours. The authorities and your provider will still see who stands behind the structure.
Who sees my details besides the Registrar?
Your registered agent, which must be an FSC-licensed corporate service provider (Management Licence), will hold your identity file. The FSC, the Mauritius Revenue Authority and the Registrar can obtain information through it, and any bank you use will carry out its own checks.
Does the company have to keep ownership records?
Yes. It keeps a register of shares for at least seven years after the transaction concerned. It also keeps a beneficial ownership register that must be accurate, current and handed to the competent authorities without delay on request. If the company ceases business, the last directors keep the beneficial ownership information for at least seven years.
Does a small company have fewer filing duties?
A small private company does not have to file an annual return unless there is a change in its shareholding, board or other details. That relief belongs to the domestic company regime. An Authorised Company has its own framework through its registered agent, so do not assume the relief carries over without checking with your provider.
Will my bank be able to see the real owner?
Yes, and it will ask. Banks require identification of the individual behind the company and an explanation of the holding structure. A structure that obscures the owner is the usual reason for a refusal.
Is a confidentiality clause with my provider enough?
It helps against casual disclosure, but it cannot override a legal duty. Where the law requires the provider to pass information to a competent authority, the clause will not prevent it.
Does the beneficial owner definition still use the old threshold?
The earlier wording of section 91 referred to 25% of voting rights. The definition was reworked by Act 10/2024 and now refers to a prescribed percentage, voting rights, an ownership interest or control by other means. The Companies Registration and Business Registration Department has also published guidance on identifying beneficial owners, so check the current text with your provider.
Sources
- Companies Act 2001, updated to 15 May 2026 — Registrar of Companies
- Financial Services Act, consolidated to 1 September 2026 — Financial Services Commission
- Guidelines for incorporation and registration of companies — Registrar of Companies
- Guidelines page, including beneficial owner guidance — Registrar of Companies
- Financial Intelligence and Anti-Money Laundering Act, updated 2026 — Financial Intelligence Unit