Freeport Operators Association
2nd Floor c/r Farquhar & Dr Sun Yat Sen Sreets,
Port Louis,
Mauritius
Tel: (230) 242 2014
Fax: (230) 241 0833
Email: foa@intnet.mu
Paper Trading
(Section 8(2) of the Freeport Act 2004)
Paper trading activities shall refer to the international buying & selling of tradable commodities whereby the shipment of such commodities is made directly by the shipper in the original exporting country to the final importer in the importing country, without the goods being physically landed in Mauritius. This type of activities is also known as a triangular business.
But, the invoicing of the goods is done by the Freeport Operator and the financial transactions are made in Mauritius.
Any Freeport Operator willing to carry out paper trade activities shall submit an application to the Board of Investment on the prescribed form for approval prior to the activities (Appendix 1)
Paper trading shall be incidental to physical Freeport trade.
The maximum value of paper trade activities shall be limited to 60% of the total export trade value, (i.e: Export directly from Country of Origin to another country of Destination without the commodities being physically landed in a Freeport zone in Mauritius”). Only documentary procedures are routed through the company based in Mauritius.
Paper trade activities shall be incidental to physical Freeport trade, whereby no Freeport Operator or private Freeport developer shall carry paper trade activities unless he also carries out physical Freeport activities.
The Operator must submit:
A statement of his paper trade activities to the Board of Investment not later than 20 days after the end of every month, and
A statement by a qualified auditor not later than 6 months after the end of the accounting period showing the value of paper trade activities & the Customs value of the goods physically re-exported from the Freeport during the accounting period. .
Carrying paper trading without an authorization shall be deemed to have committed an offence with all its consequences.
