EP Services SA - Luxembourg
EP Services takes care of the legal and administrative procedures and assures you of control over your structure.
EP Services is a professional firm specialising in assessing your needs, providing tax advice and domiciliation services for international structures.
EP Services offers you wealth engineering services and takes care of their practical implementation.
S.I.F.
S.I.F. in a few words
A S.I.F. is a specialised investment structure, standing for Specialised Investment Fund.
S.I.F. structures are formed as open-ended investment companies or mutual funds, with a minimum capital of €1.25 million, by ‘qualified investors’. They can invest in all types of asset without restriction.
The sole tax applicable is a registration tax of 0.01% of the market value of fund net assets on the last day of the calendar month.
This collective investment vehicle, which is easy to set up, with flexible management and low taxation, is a solution much sought after by professional investors...
Investors
Investors in a S.I.F. must be ’qualified investors’. Article 2 of the Law of 13 February 2007, on S.I.F. formation specifies that ’qualified investors’ are to be understood as:
- Institutional investors.
- Professional investors.
- Investors who state in writing that they have the status of "qualified investors" and who invest at least €125,000.
Promoter
There is no requirement to appoint a promoter to launch a S.I.F. If the S.I.F. has a promoter, the promoter is not required to have a minimum amount of equity, or to apply for approval from the CSSF financial markets regulator.
Legal form
A S.I.F. may take two forms:
- An FCP (Fonds Commun de Placement) – mutual fund. Since mutual funds are not separate legal entities, they must be managed by a management company
- The management company must have a minimum capital of €125,000, and be managed by persons of good standing, with sufficient experience to manage assets of the type that will be managed in the S.I.F. (three years’ experience minimum).
- A SICAV (Société d’Investissement à Capital Variable) – Open-Ended Investment Company. SICAVs can take the form of a SA, SARL, SCA, SCOOP.
Whichever form is chosen, the S.I.F. can be formed as a single fund or as an umbrella fund made up of several separate compartments, each with its own investment policy.
The fund, and each of its compartments, can have an unlimited number of shares or different classes of shares, according to investors’ needs.
The fund can be ’open’ or ’closed’ to new investment.
Minimum capital
In a S.I.F., net assets must not fall below €1,250,000. Of this, only 5% needs to be paid up on subscription, but it must be fully paid up within 12 months of authorisation.
Minimum formation capital for a S.I.F.: For an SA €31,000 is required, for a SARL €20,500.
Eligible assets and diversification policy
For a S.I.F. there are no restrictions on eligible assets. Risk diversification details are given in CSSF circular no. 07/309 and are less restrictive than for funds covered by section I and section II of the law on UCITS.
Authorisation and supervision
Since S.I.F. funds are supervised by the CSSF financial markets supervisor, they must obtain authorisation from that supervisory body.
S.I.F. funds can start carrying out their activities without waiting for this authorisation, but the authorisation application must be submitted within one month of the company being formed.
Authorisation involves:
- approval of the Articles of Incorporation
- approval of the chosen custodian bank and auditor
- agreement on the fund directors or investment company managers.
S.I.F. funds must appoint a custodian bank to be responsible for holding the S.I.F. fund assets and for supervising the structure and its management company, if any.
The S.I.F. must prepare an annual report which must be audited by an independent auditor approved by the CSSF.
Marketing
S.I.F. funds do not have a UCITS-type European passport.
Tax treatment
The sole tax applicable to a S.I.F. is a registration tax of 0.01% of its net assets calculated on the last day of the calendar quarter.
S.I.F. funds do not systematically benefit from tax treaties. For a more detailed, up-to-date picture of the position, go to:
http://www.impotsdirects.public.lu/...
Central administration
The central administration of a S.I.F. must be in the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. Some functions can be subcontracted to third parties for purposes of efficiency. These include bookkeeping, calculation of net asset values, keeping the shareholders’ register and preparation of the financial statements.