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In business and commerce, the term flag of convenience is the use of a place, jurisdiction, state or country as a nominal (in name only) "home base" for one's operations or charter, even though either no or virtually no operations or business are conducted there. It is also used where the organization operates in one place even though nearly all of its customers are from elsewhere. It is a type of jurisdiction shopping.
There are several reasons for doing this.
The most common use of a flag of convenience is a U.S. corporation being chartered as a domestic corporation in Nevada or Delaware because of favorable corporate governance rules. The reason for this sort of a choice is that, in general, in the United States, a corporation which operates in more than one state (or country) has a particular state where it is incorporated, to which it is a domestic corporation. In all other states where it operates and has filed papers to be allowed to operate, it is a foreign corporation, and the requirements for corporate governance in the case of a lawsuit do not use the law where the corporation is sued, but instead, the law where the corporation is a domestic corporation.
For example, because the provisions on "piercing the corporate veil" are corporate governance matters, if a corporation is chartered in California, for example, (which has much more creditor friendly provisions permitting this) is sued anywhere, California law applies, but a corporation chartered in Nevada, which operates only in California, is sued in a California court, the California court would use Nevada law in determining what the requirements permitting this, and in this issue Nevada law applies (which is much more supportive of the corporation's interest), even if the corporation only operates in California and has never had any other contact with Nevada and is simply chartered there as a flag of convenience.
Another use is for tax reasons. At least one major software development company licenses its software through a subsidiary Nevada corporation, which has no state income tax, rather than licensing through the parent corporation (chartered in a different state that does have a state income tax), saving millions of dollars in taxes.[ citation needed ]
Use of a different base of operations than one normally operates within can often be done because of legal restrictions on operations in one area which are avoided by changing the nominal base of operations.
The United States has separate federal, state, and local governments with taxes imposed at each of these levels. Taxes are levied on income, payroll, property, sales, capital gains, dividends, imports, estates and gifts, as well as various fees. In 2020, taxes collected by federal, state, and local governments amounted to 25.5% of GDP, below the OECD average of 33.5% of GDP.
Business is the practice of making one's living or making money by producing or buying and selling products. It is also "any activity or enterprise entered into for profit."
In most legal jurisdictions, a financial institution is required to obtain a banking license before it is legally permitted to carry on a banking business. Besides other requirements, such a business is not permitted to contain in its name words such as bank, insurance, national, etc, unless it holds an appropriate license. Depending on banking regulations, jurisdictions may offer different types of banking licenses, such as:
A limited liability company (LLC) is the United States-specific form of a private limited company. It is a business structure that can combine the pass-through taxation of a partnership or sole proprietorship with the limited liability of a corporation. An LLC is not a corporation under the laws of every state; it is a legal form of a company that provides limited liability to its owners in many jurisdictions. LLCs are well known for the flexibility that they provide to business owners; depending on the situation, an LLC may elect to use corporate tax rules instead of being treated as a partnership, and, under certain circumstances, LLCs may be organized as not-for-profit. In certain U.S. states, businesses that provide professional services requiring a state professional license, such as legal or medical services, may not be allowed to form an LLC but may be required to form a similar entity called a professional limited liability company (PLLC).
A joint-stock company (JSC) is a business entity in which shares of the company's stock can be bought and sold by shareholders. Each shareholder owns company stock in proportion, evidenced by their shares. Shareholders are able to transfer their shares to others without any effects to the continued existence of the company.
Whiteclay is a census-designated place in Sheridan County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 10 at the 2010 census.
Recreational drug tourism is travel for the purpose of obtaining or using drugs for recreational use that are unavailable, illegal or very expensive in one's home jurisdiction. A drug tourist may cross a national border to obtain a drug that is not sold in one's home country, or to obtain an illegal drug that is more available in the visited destination. A drug tourist may also cross a sub-national border to do the same, as in cannabis tourism, or purchase alcohol or tobacco more easily, or at a lower price due to tax laws or other regulations.
In addition to federal income tax collected by the United States, most individual U.S. states collect a state income tax. Some local governments also impose an income tax, often based on state income tax calculations. Forty-one states, the District of Columbia, and many localities in the United States impose an income tax on individuals. Eight states impose no state income tax, and a ninth, New Hampshire, imposes an individual income tax on dividends and interest income but not other forms of income. Forty-seven states and many localities impose a tax on the income of corporations.
A liquor store is a retail business that predominantly sells prepackaged alcoholic beverages, including liquors, wine or beer, usually intended to be consumed off the store's premises. Depending on region and local idiom, they may also be called an off-licence, off-sale, bottle shop, bottle store or, colloquially, bottle-o, liquor store or other similar terms. A very limited number of jurisdictions have an alcohol monopoly. In US states that are alcoholic beverage control (ABC) states, the term ABC store may be used.
An international business company or international business corporation (IBC) is an offshore company formed under the laws of some jurisdictions as a tax neutral company which is usually limited in terms of the activities it may conduct in, but not necessarily from, the jurisdiction in which it is incorporated. While not taxable in the country of incorporation, an IBC or its owners, if resident in a country having “controlled foreign corporation” rules for instance, can be taxable in other jurisdictions.
A Nevada corporation is a corporation incorporated under Chapter 78 of the Nevada Revised Statutes of the U.S. state of Nevada. It is significant in United States corporate law. Nevada, like Delaware, is well known as a state that offers a corporate haven. Many major corporations are incorporated in Nevada, particularly corporations whose headquarters are located in California and other Western states.
In United States business law, a registered agent is a business or individual designated to receive service of process (SOP) when a business entity is a party in a legal action such as a lawsuit or summons. The registered agent's address may also be where the state sends the paperwork for the periodic renewal of the business entity's charter. The registered agent for a business entity may be an officer or employee of the company, or a third party, such as the organization's lawyer or a service company. Failure to properly maintain a registered agent can affect a company negatively.
Consumer fireworks are fireworks sold for use by the general public. They are generally weaker in explosive power than the fireworks used in professional displays.
A liquor license is a governmentally issued permit for businesses to sell, manufacture, store, or otherwise use alcoholic beverages.
Foreign corporation is a term used in the United States to describe an existing corporation that conducts business in a state or jurisdiction other than where it was originally incorporated. The term applies both to domestic corporations that are incorporated in another state and to corporations that are incorporated in a nation other than the United States. All states require that foreign corporations register with the state before conducting business in the state.
The Delaware Division of Alcohol and Tobacco Enforcement (DATE) is a law enforcement agency of the State of Delaware and is a division of the Delaware Department of Safety and Homeland Security (DSHS).
Gambling in Pennsylvania includes casino gambling, the Pennsylvania Lottery, horse racing, bingo, and small games of chance conducted by nonprofit organizations and taverns under limited circumstances. Although casino gaming has been legal for less than two decades, Pennsylvania is second only to Nevada in commercial casino revenues.
Alcohol laws are laws relating to manufacture, use, being under the influence of and sale of alcohol or alcoholic beverages. Common alcoholic beverages include beer, wine, (hard) cider, and distilled spirits. Definition of alcoholic beverage varies internationally, e.g., the United States defines an alcoholic beverage as "any beverage in liquid form which contains not less than one-half of one percent of alcohol by volume". Alcohol laws can restrict those who can produce alcohol, those who can buy it, when one can buy it, labelling and advertising, the types of alcoholic beverage that can be sold, where one can consume it, what activities are prohibited while intoxicated, and where one can buy it. In some cases, laws have even prohibited the use and sale of alcohol entirely.
Fireworks policy in the United States can be different in each jurisdiction.