Trinidad and Tobago's Foreign Investment Act lets a foreign investor acquire up to 1 acre of land for residential use or 5 acres for trade/business use without a licence, and requires a licence only once foreign shareholding in a public company reaches 30% or more -- a comparatively liberal regime, though an NRI incorporating a company back in India still needs at least one India-resident director under India's own Companies Act, 2013.
Trinidad and Tobago's Foreign Investment Act -- land and share ownership thresholds
Trinidad and Tobago's Foreign Investment Act sets out specific thresholds before a foreign investor needs a
licence. For land, a foreign investor may acquire up to 1 acre for residential purposes, or up to 5 acres for
trade or business purposes, without a licence (subject to the Minister's power to restrict certain areas). For
shares, a private company generally only requires the foreign investor to supply prescribed information rather
than obtain a licence, while a public company requires a licence once foreign investors' collective holding
reaches 30% or more of total shareholding. These thresholds make Trinidad and Tobago's regime for NRIs and
other Indian-origin investors setting up or investing in a local business comparatively liberal relative to
some other jurisdictions this platform covers.
Incorporating a company in Trinidad and Tobago -- no confirmed local-director requirement
The Companies Act, Chapter 81:01 requires a company to maintain a registered office in Trinidad and Tobago
and have at least two directors (three for a public company), but this research found no explicit requirement
that any director be a Trinidad and Tobago resident -- confirm this with a Trinidad and Tobago-qualified
corporate service provider or attorney before relying on it, since incorporation practice details can change
and this platform's research is not a substitute for current local legal advice.
Incorporating an Indian company as an NRI founder based in Trinidad and Tobago
An NRI in Trinidad and Tobago setting up an Indian private limited company follows the same Companies Act,
2013 framework as a founder based anywhere else -- including the requirement that at least one director be a
person who has stayed in India for a specified minimum number of days in the preceding calendar year. This
resident-director requirement is commonly satisfied by bringing in an India-based co-director or professional
nominee. Foreign investment into the Indian company must also comply with FEMA's FDI reporting requirements,
generally through the RBI's online reporting portal, within the prescribed timelines after each equity
issuance or transfer.
Common mistakes NRI founders and investors in Trinidad and Tobago make:
- Not checking the Foreign Investment Act's land-acreage or 30% share-ownership thresholds before an
acquisition, risking an unlicensed transaction subject to forfeiture.
- Not appointing a resident director for an Indian company back home, causing compliance issues under
India's Companies Act, 2013 (a requirement Trinidad and Tobago's own company law does not appear to
mirror).
- Missing FEMA's FDI reporting deadlines after an equity issuance or transfer into an Indian company.
