Foreign company branches, representative offices and agencies in Libya

Representative office

The ministry lists five documents for a maktab tamthil sharika ajnabiya (representative office of a foreign company) ¹.

• A board resolution approving the opening of the office in Libya ¹
• A copy of the memorandum and articles of association and the last approved balance sheet ¹
• The appointment of the office manager, in the opening resolution or a separate one ¹
• A recent extract of the company's entry in its commercial register, or the equivalent ¹
• A bank account in Libyan dinars or foreign currency with a Libyan bank, fed by transfers from the parent, with a balance of at least LYD 150,000 ¹

Branch of a foreign company

The board resolution to open a far' (branch) must name the activity, which must match the parent's objects and be among the activities foreign branches may carry on in Libya ². It must state the amount allocated, the branch manager and deputy, and the branch head office in Libya ². One of the manager and the deputy must be Libyan ².

The page states that the allocation must be not less than "(250.000 د.ل)" mi'a wa khamsun alf dinar libi, that is 250.000 Libyan dinars in figures and one hundred and fifty thousand Libyan dinars in words ². A later line asks for a bank statement showing the transfer of the equivalent of "(250.000)" Libyan dinars ². The two figures conflict on the ministry's own page and are both shown here.

The file further needs a certified copy of the parent's memorandum and articles, an original recent commercial extract of the parent, an undertaking to prepare the branch's annual balance sheet and profit and loss account, proof of experience in the activity, and the parent's last approved balance sheet ².

Keeping a branch on the register

Licence

A branch or representative office needs a rukhsa (licence). The ministry lists six documents for it ³.

• The permit decision for the branch or office ³
• A recent extract from the commercial register where it is entered in Libya ³
• A certificate from the tax authority showing taxes due are paid ³
• The lease of the premises and a sketch map of the site ³
• A statement of the full address ³
• A copy of the previous licence ³

Commercial agencies

A wakala tijariya (commercial agency) needs a permit and entry in al-sijill al-khass bil-wukala' al-tijariyin (the special register of commercial agents) ⁴. Individuals must show Libyan nationality, a clean criminal record, a court certificate of no bankruptcy and a trade licence ⁴. Companies must declare that their capital is wholly owned by Libyans ⁴.

Both need the agency contract signed directly with the producer or service provider, stating the type, term, scope and fee of the agency ⁴. They must add an official extract from the foreign principal's commercial register and proof of the trade mark's registration ⁴. Papers from the principal's country must be translated into Arabic and certified there and by the Libyan embassy ⁴.

Certification and translation

For offices and branches, all listed documents must be originals ^1,2. Foreign-language papers are certified by the Libyan embassy in the parent company's country ¹. They are then translated in Libya by a legal translator and certified by the authentication office of the general department of consular affairs ^1,2.