Under section 43 of the Myanmar Companies Law 2017 (“MCL”), an overseas corporation is not allowed to ‘carry on business’ in Myanmar unless it has registered its commercial presence with the Directorate of Investment & Company Administration (“DICA”). The central concept of ‘carrying on business in Myanmar’ has, unfortunately, not been defined in the MCL. […]

According to the recent Directorate of Investment and Company Administration (“DICA”) announcement issued on 8th March 2019, companies who missed the 31 January deadline now have until March 30 to re-register. However, any companies who fail to re-register by this new deadline will be struck off from the registry, and will not be able to carry on business […]

Looking back, it is evident that 2018 has seen a lot of changes in the Myanmar legal framework. There is also a number of developments that can be expected in the near future. Banking regulations Until early November, foreign bank branches could only provide banking services to foreign companies, i.e., companies incorporated in Myanmar with […]

Myanmar Companies Law 2017 (“MCL”) has introduced a special corporate approval procedure for “related party transactions” into the Myanmar legal system. While such type of transactions are often subject to particular scrutiny under corporate governance laws in many jurisdictions, there are a number of peculiarities to be followed under the MCL, and they are summarised […]

The recently effective Myanmar Companies Law (the “MCL”) brings about groundbreaking changes to the corporate landscape in Myanmar, as it modernizes the rules related to entities (companies, branches and representative offices) conducting business in Myanmar. Despite the changes companies still need to act so they can reap the benefits of the new measures. In this […]

In preparation for the launch of the new electronic companies’ registry system, Myanmar Companies Online (“MyCO”), the Directorate of Investment and Company Administration (“DICA”) is preparing a set of prescribed forms to collect the information required to be submitted to the Companies Registrar under the Myanmar Companies Law 2017 (“MCL”). In order to raise public […]

Re-register or be ceased! Directorate of Investment and Company Administration (“DICA”) has issued a draft of the Companies Regulations 2018 called Myanmar Companies (Electronic Registry System and Miscellaneous Matters) Regulations 2018 (“Regulation”) with a commencement date of 1 August 2018. The Regulation is a continuation of the Myanmar Companies Law issued in 2017 and is […]

The New Companies Act in Practice (1): Foreign and Single Shareholders, Resident Directors andCompanies Exempt from Auditors The Myanmar government has finally proposed to change the Companies Act after more than 100 years. The Draft Myanmar Companies Bill 2017 (“Draft”) was tabled at the Union Parliament, Amyothar Hluttaw for discussions on 21 July, 2017 by […]

A fairly big portion of new investment projects in Myanmar will no longer receive an actual MIC Permit in accordance with the old, often time consuming procedure. Instead, there is the lighter “Endorsement” procedure for those who need land approvals or who qualify for tax incentives.