SI 148 receives Cabinet approval following review and clarifications |04 December 2021

PS Nalletamby during the press conference yesterday (Photo: Jude Morel)

Following the decision of the National Assembly on a motion brought by the leader of the opposition, Sebastien Pillay, to annul the Statutory Instrument (SI) 148 Seychelles Investment (Economic Activities) Regulations 2020, the document has now received the approval of the cabinet of ministers following several review and clarification work.

The instrument needed further reviewing as it presented certain challenges such as the regulatory bodies handling the processes of starting a business not having the appropriate tools to guide them in deciding whether a business should be open to non-Seychellois or treated as reserved for Seychellois.

The revamped document will improve the ease of doing business and correct the deficiencies of the previous regulation which was the SI 71.

It also proposes a few amendments to the previous SI 148 which was annulled by the National Assembly in 2020, taking into consideration the most recent input of stakeholders consulted in the process.

The previous regulations was gazetted on October 19, 2020 by the then Minister for Finance, Trade, Investment and Economic Planning Maurice Loustau-Lalanne at a time when the National Assembly stood dissolved as per the order of former President Danny Faure.

An analysis was formulated by the department of Investment surrounding the issues raised by the National Assembly, and it appeared that the Assembly was not part of the discussion in the formulation of SI 148.

In a press conference yesterday, principal secretary for Investment Michel Nalletamby explained that the amendments of the SI 148 regulations are being considered alongside work done by the High-Level Domestic Regulations Committee (HLDRC) – a grouping of the relevant MDAs and members of the National Assembly – tasked to address the SI 148 review and other ease of doing business requirements in Seychelles for non-Seychellois.

He said the previous document had several loopholes, especially regarding the limitation on the nature of businesses allowed by non-Seychellois.

The amended regulation also makes provision for Economic Needs Test (ENT) to evaluate applications by non-Seychellois to carry out activities, in which a non-Seychellois may wish to invest, based on a needs test, keeping in view the development of the economic activity in Seychelles, to the extent it may be considered in the interest of the domestic economy and consumers.

Roland Duval