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The Occupation Permit (OP) is a mix of work permit and residence permit, granted to a non-citizen to work and live in Mauritius as investors, professionals or self-employed.
A. Investor’s status
- Under the Immigration Act, an Investor is defined as a person who is not a citizen of Mauritius, an association or body of persons, whether corporate or incorporate, the control or management of which is vested in persons who are not citizens of Mauritius and registered as such with the Economic Development Board.
- An initial transfer of USD 50,000 or its equivalent in freely convertible currency in the bank account of the company under which the application will be made.
- Net asset value of at least USD 50,000 or its equivalent in freely convertible foreign currency, for existing businesses and businesses inherited and a cumulative turnover of at least 12 million rupees during the 3 years preceding the application.
Investors in High Technology Machines & Equipment
An initial investment of USD 50,000 or its equivalent in freely convertible currency, of which a minimum transfer of at least USD 25,000 to the bank account of the company under which the application will be made
The equivalent of the remaining value in high technology machines and equipment, subject to such criteria as the Chief Executive Officer may determine, such as:
- The high technology machines and equipment will be evaluated based on the invoice issued by the supplier and a report from a recognized Chartered Valuator in the country of origin.
- In case the high technology machines and equipment is yet to be shipped to Mauritius, the investor should submit the bill of lading to the Occupation Permit Unit at time of submission of the application.
Investment in high technology machines and equipment must be in a qualifying activity including but not limited to agro-industry, aquaculture, healthcare, ICT-BPO, fin-tech, life sciences, biotechnology, manufacturing, ocean economy and renewable energy.
Investor for innovative start-ups
Foreign nationals are eligible to apply for an innovator OP under the following options:
- Option 1 : No minimum investment required and submission of an innovative project to the Economic Development Board.
- Option 2 : Registered with an incubator accredited with the Mauritius Research and Innovation Council. The R&D expense component should constitute of at least 20% of total operational expenditure during the research phase.
B. Professional
A Professional should earn a monthly basic salary of at least MUR 60,000. For Professionals in the sector of information and communication technologies (ICT), business process outsourcing (BPO), pharmaceutical manufacturing and food processing, the monthly basic salary should be at least MUR 30,000. Professionals may also apply for a Short-term Occupation Permit for a period not exceeding 9 months. The permit may be extended only once for a period not exceeding 3 months.
C. Self-Employed
- A Self-Employed is defined as a non-citizen engaged in a professional activity under the services sector only and registered with the Registrar of Businesses under the Business Registration Act 2002. A Self-Employed should operate a one-person business activity, working exclusively for his/her own account.
- A Self-Employed should make an initial transfer of USD 35,000 or its equivalent in freely convertible foreign currency at the time of issuance of the OP to his/her local bank account in Mauritius.
- For renewal, the business activity should generate a business income of 800,000 rupees per year as from the third year of registration.
D. Retired Non-Citizen
- A Retired Non-Citizen is defined as a person who is not a citizen of Mauritius and aged 50 years or above.
- A Retired Non-Citizen should make an initial transfer of at least USD 1,500 or its equivalent in freely convertible foreign currency at the time of issuance of the OP to his/her local bank account in Mauritius.
- Thereafter, the Retired Non-Citizen should transfer at least USD 1,500 monthly or 6 the aggregate of at least USD 18,000 per year or its equivalent in freely convertible foreign currency during the 10 years’ validity of the residence permit.
- At the end of each year, the Retired Non-Citizen should submit to the Economic Development Board, the evidence of transfer of funds into his/her local bank account.
Sources :
www.edbmauritius.org
www.expat.com
https://smarttraveller.mu/
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