How to Register a Company in Zanzibar (2026 Guide for Foreign Investors)

In short: to register a company in Zanzibar, you incorporate with BPRA (Business and Property Registration Agency), register for income tax with TRA and for Zanzibar taxes with the Zanzibar Revenue Board, obtain your business and sector licenses, open a corporate bank account and, if you hire, register with ZSSF and secure permits. Incorporation usually takes 1–3 weeks. Becoming fully operational usually takes 2–4 months, longer for hotels and tourism projects.

Zanzibar is part of the United Republic of Tanzania, but it runs its own company registry, revenue board, investment authority and social security fund. A company registered on the mainland is not automatically set up to operate in Zanzibar. Whether you want to start a business in Zanzibar, open a hotel or set up a services company, this guide covers the route for foreign investors, from choosing a structure to everything that must happen before your company can trade, invoice, employ and bank.

This guide is written and reviewed by Glenrich Consultants, an accounting and advisory firm led by a Certified Public Accountant. We set up companies in Zanzibar and on the mainland, and run their finance function afterwards, so we see where Zanzibar setups go wrong.

Want it handled for you? Chat with us — get a fixed-price proposal within 24 hours

In this guide:

1. Who this guide is for
2. How Zanzibar differs from the mainland
3. Choose the right company structure
4. Documents you need from abroad
5. Company registration in Zanzibar, step by step
6. Where investors in Zanzibar get caught out
7. How long company registration takes
8. Company registration costs in Zanzibar
9. Your first-year compliance calendar
10. Frequently asked questions

1. Who this guide is for

This guide covers registering a company in Zanzibar (Unguja and Pemba). It is written for you if you are:

• An investor starting a new business in Zanzibar, including hotels, tourism, property and services
• A foreign company opening a subsidiary or branch in Zanzibar
• A business already operating through a local partner or informal arrangement that now wants a proper company structure

Setting up on the mainland instead? Read our main guide to company registration in Tanzania.

2. How Zanzibar differs from the mainland

Zanzibar has its own system for most business matters, but some matters are shared across the whole of Tanzania. Knowing which authority handles what saves weeks.

Handled by Zanzibar institutions:

• Company registration: BPRA, under the Companies Act No. 15 of 2013
• VAT and Zanzibar taxes and levies: Zanzibar Revenue Authority (ZRA)
• Investment registration and incentives: ZIPA (Zanzibar Investment Promotion Authority)
• Social security for employees: ZSSF (Zanzibar Social Security Fund)
• Land: Zanzibar's land authorities, under Zanzibar land law
• Tourism licensing: Zanzibar's tourism authority

Shared with the mainland (Union matters):

• Income tax, including corporate income tax: TRA
• Immigration and residence permits: the Immigration Department

One practical difference stands out: a private company in Zanzibar can have a single shareholder, while the mainland requires at least two.

3. Choose the right company structure

For most foreign investors, a Zanzibar-registered private limited company is the right vehicle. A branch suits a foreign company running a defined project. ZIPA registration is an add-on, worth it when your investment qualifies for incentives or needs land.

Option 1: Private limited company (subsidiary)

A new Zanzibar company, owned by you or your parent company.

• Best for: hotels, tourism, services and most long-term investments
• Liability: limited to the company
• Key points: can have a single shareholder; separate legal entity; full BPRA, TRA and ZRB compliance

Option 2: Branch of a foreign company

Your existing foreign company, registered in Zanzibar with a Certificate of Compliance.

• Best for: project-based work and contractors
• Liability: the parent company is fully liable
• Key points: needs a local representative; the parent's documents must be certified and legalised

Option 3: ZIPA-registered investment

A company that also holds a ZIPA certificate of investment.

• Best for: larger projects needing incentives, land or immigration support
• Liability: the same as the underlying company
• Key points: minimum investment thresholds apply; often essential for hotel and resort projects on land

What should decide your structure

• Where you will operate. Only in Zanzibar, or on the mainland too? Registration in Zanzibar does not automatically cover mainland operations. Decide this before you register, not after.
• Premises and land. Will you lease, or build on land? Land in Zanzibar is held under Zanzibar land law, and foreign investors generally access it through leases and the investment route. A hotel or resort plan shapes your structure from day one.
• Tax. How will profits be taxed, and taxed again when they reach you? Income tax follows Union rules through TRA, while VAT (15% in Zanzibar) and other levies, including the hotel levy, follow Zanzibar rules through ZRA.
• Sector licences. Does your activity need a tourism or other sector licence? Hotels, tour operations and other regulated activities have their own approvals and conditions.
• Getting money in and out. How will you fund the company and take profits out? Recording the investment properly from the start keeps repatriation simple.
• Future partners and exit. Will you bring in partners or sell? The shareholding and constitution you set now decide how easy that will be.

Learn more: Land leases for investors in Zanzibar · ZIPA registration: is it worth it?

Activities with restrictions

Some activities in Zanzibar are reserved for residents or carry local-participation conditions, particularly small-scale tourism services and trading. Check your activity before you register.

Editor check before publishing: confirm ZIPA investment thresholds, land rules for foreign investors, activities reserved for Zanzibaris, and whether a Zanzibar company needs separate registration to operate on the mainland.

4. Documents you need from abroad

Document problems cause more delays than anything else. Before you notarise anything, send us copies. Our free document check catches problems before you pay for certification abroad.

For each foreign shareholder or director:

• Clear colour copy of passport, valid for at least six months
• Proof of residential address
• Signed consent to act as director (for directors)

For a foreign company shareholder or branch:

• Certificate of incorporation and constitutional documents of the parent
• Board resolution approving the investment and naming the authorised signatory
• Recent certificate of good standing
• Details of the ultimate beneficial owners
• For a branch: power of attorney for the local representative

How documents must be certified: notarise them in the country where they were issued, legalise them with an apostille or through the Tanzanian embassy, and translate any non-English document with a certified translator.

Common reasons documents are rejected: expired passports, notarisation without legalisation, names spelled differently across documents, and resolutions that don't name the new Zanzibar company.

5. Company registration in Zanzibar, step by step

On paper, setting up in Zanzibar is five stages. In practice, each stage depends on the one before, and two systems, Zanzibar and Union, run side by side.

Step 1: Company registration with BPRA

Your company is incorporated once BPRA approves its name, constitution, shareholders and directors. The real work is getting the structure, share capital and business objects right, because they shape your licences, tax and land options.

Where it goes wrong: business objects that don't cover the tourism or sector licence you need.

Step 2: Tax registration (TRA and ZRA)

Your company needs a TIN from TRA for income tax, and registration with ZRA for VAT and Zanzibar levies. Obligations start from incorporation, not your first sale.

Where it goes wrong: registering with one authority and forgetting the other.

Learn more: Zanzibar taxes: VAT, hotel levy and ZRB filings

Step 3: Licences

Most businesses need a business licence. Hotels, tour operators and other regulated activities also need sector licences and approvals, which often take longer than registration itself.

Where it goes wrong: building or fitting out a hotel before the tourism approvals are in place.

Learn more: How to open a hotel in Zanzibar as a foreign investor

Step 4: Corporate bank account

Banks run their own checks on the company, its directors and its owners. For foreign-owned companies, this is often the longest wait.

Where it goes wrong: ownership details that don't match the registry, and no clear evidence of where the funds came from.

Step 5: People — employees and permits

Hiring staff means registering with ZSSF and Zanzibar's labour authorities. Foreign directors and staff need work and residence permits before they start work.

Where it goes wrong: foreign managers arriving to run a hotel before their permits are issued.

6. Where investors in Zanzibar get caught out

"Zanzibar is part of Tanzania, so a mainland company covers it." It doesn't. Zanzibar has its own registry, revenue board and licensing, and operating there needs the right registrations in Zanzibar.

"We can buy the beachfront plot." Land in Zanzibar works differently, and foreign investors generally access it through leases and the investment route. Paying for land before the structure and approvals are clear is one of the costliest mistakes we see.

"Tax is just TRA." Income tax is, but VAT and Zanzibar levies go to ZRB. Missing one side means penalties, even if the other is up to date.

"A local partner makes everything easier." It can, but informal arrangements, nominee shareholders and land held in a partner's name leave investors with no secure ownership when the relationship changes.

"Permits can wait until the hotel opens." Managers and staff working without permits put both the company and the individuals at risk.

Warning signs of an unprofessional agent:

• They suggest holding shares or land in someone else's name "for convenience"
• They don't mention ZRB, ZSSF or tourism licensing
• They won't give you access to your own company's records
• They have no physical office, engagement letter or written scope

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This is where we come in. We handle every step as one fixed-price engagement, on both the Zanzibar and Union sides, and keep your books and filings running once you're operating. Chat with us — get a fixed-price proposal within 24 hours

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7. How long company registration takes

Expect 1–3 weeks for incorporation and 2–4 months to be fully operating. Hotels and tourism projects take longer because of sector approvals.

How we shorten it: we check your documents before you certify them, prepare tax and licence filings while BPRA reviews your application, and start bank and permit conversations early.

These are working estimates from practice, not official service standards.

8. Company registration costs in Zanzibar

Setting up involves two separate costs: government fees, set by the authorities, and professional fees for structuring, preparing and handling the process.

Government fees

A Zanzibar company, whether locally or foreign-owned, pays BPRA registration fees in Tanzanian shillings based on its share capital. A foreign company registering a branch pays a fixed fee in US dollars. USD figures are approximate, at TZS 2,500 to USD 1.

Registration fee for a Zanzibar company (local or foreign-owned subsidiary)

Registration fee for a branch of a foreign company: USD 1,300 (about TZS 3,250,000).

Watch the share capital above TZS 50 million. Unlike the mainland, where the top fee is fixed, Zanzibar charges 1% of share capital above this level. A company with TZS 500 million in share capital pays about TZS 5 million (USD 2,000) just to register. Setting share capital is a structuring decision, not a formality. We help you set it at the right level for your licences, bank and investment plans, without overpaying at registration.

Other costs:

• Name reservation and filing fees (BPRA): TZS [fee]
• TIN registration (TRA): free
• Business and sector licences: vary by activity; tourism licences are often the largest
• Notarisation, legalisation and translation abroad: vary by country

Professional fees

Our professional fees for company registration in Zanzibar start from TZS [amount] (about USD [amount]), separate from government fees, quoted as a fixed price for your situation.

What you get when you register with us:

• Register from anywhere in the world. Send us your documents by email, and we handle BPRA, TRA, ZRB and the licensing authorities. If your bank needs a director in person, we tell you at the start.
• A free document check before you spend anything on certification abroad.
• One fixed price, in writing. If our work takes longer than planned, that's our cost, not yours.
• Your company stays yours. We never hold shares, directorships or land in our name, and you get full access to your records.
• Progress updates every week, so you always know where things stand.
• Money-back guarantee. If we can't register your company, you get our professional fee back in full.

Get our Zanzibar registration proposal (PDF) — the full scope, timeline and fees, ready to download.

Editor note: confirm Glenrich can honour every promise above and set the guarantee terms before publishing.

9. Your first-year compliance calendar

Registration starts recurring filings with both Zanzibar and Union authorities.

• By the 7th of the following month: withholding tax returns and payments (TRA)
• Every month, by [date]: VAT and hotel levy returns (ZRB); PAYE and payroll levies; ZSSF contributions if you employ staff
• Every quarter: provisional income tax instalments (TRA)
• Within six months of your financial year end: audited financial statements and final income tax return (TRA)
• Every year: annual return (BPRA); business and sector licence renewals
• Whenever something changes: directors, shareholders or registered office (BPRA)
• Before expiry: work and residence permit renewals

What missing a deadline costs: penalties and interest build every month, and arrears block the tax clearance you need to renew licences and permits. Our Steady Books service keeps every filing on time.

Editor check before publishing: add due dates, and confirm which authority collects PAYE and payroll levies in Zanzibar.

10. Frequently asked questions

Can a foreigner own 100% of a company in Zanzibar?

Yes, in most sectors. Some small-scale activities are reserved for residents, and some regulated sectors carry conditions. Check your activity before you register.

How many shareholders do I need in Zanzibar?

One is enough. Zanzibar allows a single-shareholder private company, unlike the mainland, which requires two.

Does a mainland company cover Zanzibar?

1. Zanzibar has its own registry, revenue board and licensing. To operate in Zanzibar, you need the right registrations there.

Can I register a company in Zanzibar from abroad?

Yes. You can sign and certify documents in your home country. The step most likely to need a visit is opening the bank account.

How much does it cost to register a company in Zanzibar?

BPRA's registration fee for a Zanzibar company is TZS 200,000 (about USD 80) for share capital up to TZS 10 million, and TZS 300,000 (about USD 120) up to TZS 50 million. Above that, it is 1% of share capital. A foreign company branch pays USD 1,300. Licences, permits and professional fees come on top.

Can foreigners buy land in Zanzibar?

Not outright, in most cases. Foreign investors generally access land through leases and the investment route, usually with ZIPA involvement. Get the structure right before you pay for any land.

Should I register with ZIPA?

Yes, if your investment meets ZIPA's thresholds and you need incentives, land or immigration support. For hotel and resort projects, it is often essential. For small service businesses, BPRA registration is usually enough.

What taxes will my company pay in Zanzibar?

Corporate income tax through TRA, and VAT at 15% through ZRB, lower than the mainland's 18%. Hotels and other tourism businesses also pay a hotel levy of [rate] to ZRB. If you employ staff, there are payroll taxes and ZSSF contributions too. Obligations start from incorporation.

Can a foreigner open a hotel in Zanzibar?

Yes. Foreign investors own and run many of Zanzibar's hotels through a Zanzibar company, usually with ZIPA registration for larger projects. You need tourism licensing, land through a lease or the investment route, and permits for foreign managers. Smaller guesthouses and some tourism services may be reserved for residents, so check the size and type of your project first.

How long does it take to open a hotel business in Zanzibar?

Registration takes weeks, but tourism licensing, land and building approvals usually take months. Plan for the full approval timeline before committing to construction.

Do foreign managers need permits?

Yes. Foreign directors and staff working in Zanzibar need a work permit and a residence permit before they start work.

Do I need a local adviser?

Not by law. But Zanzibar's two-system setup, land rules and tourism licensing make early mistakes expensive. A good adviser costs less than fixing a poor setup.

Editor check before publishing: verify every FAQ answer against official Zanzibar sources.

Ready to set up in Zanzibar?

You don't need to be in Zanzibar, and you don't need to work through this alone. Send us your plans and documents from anywhere in the world, and we'll handle structure, registration, tax, licensing and banking support as one fixed-price engagement, reviewed by a CPA, with a money-back guarantee if we can't register your company.

Chat with us — get a fixed-price proposal within 24 hours

Official sources

• BPRA — Business and Property Registration Agency
• ZIPA — Zanzibar Investment Promotion Authority
• ZRB — Zanzibar Revenue Board
• TRA — Tanzania Revenue Authority
• Immigration Department

This guide is general information, not legal or tax advice. Rules and fees change; we review this page regularly.

Editor notes before publishing: fill in fees and the starting price; set the #contact, #mainland-guide and #proposal-pdf-zanzibar links; confirm every source link; verify every "Editor check" item, then delete these notes.