Business
How to purchase stock in Jamaica – For non-residents
There is very little difference between a resident of Jamaica and a non-resident purchasing or investing in stock in Jamaica.
The same rules and processes apply regardless of the stock being purchased.
A resident of a foreign country who is investing in Jamaican stock(s) must initially open an account with a local stock brokerage firm.
The client opening forms are available online. The forms must be printed and sent to the brokerage house with an original signature. A notarized copy of the investor’s identification is also required.
Canadian residents are required to present a copy of their Social Insurance Number (SIN), similarly US residents are required to present a copy of their Social Security Number (SSN), or, alternatively, they could apply for a Jamaican Taxpayer Registration Number (TRN).
Persons investing in Government of Jamaica securities must have a TRN. Social security numbers (or social insurance numbers) are not acceptable for such transactions.
Tax Rates
Residents of Jamaica will now pay a 5 percent rate of tax on dividends earned from listed companies – up from zero as of Friday, June 1.
Residents of foreign countries are treated differently. The rate they pay is that specified in the tax treaty between Jamaica and their country of residence.
(More: Push in Jamaica for urgent discussion of new US tax law – FATCA)
There is only one company listed on the Jamaica Stock Exchange (JSE) which restricts ownership of its stock to residents of Jamaica, but with two exceptions. That company is the Jamaica Producers Group Ltd., (JPG).
The JPG was incorporated by an act of parliament which restricted ownership of shares in that company to residents of Jamaica, thus ensuring that no overseas interest gained control of the company. Beyond that restriction, no single shareholder or a shareholder and connected party is allowed to own more than 10 percent of the issued share capital of the company. The only persons residing abroad who may own shares in the JPG are employees of the company or individuals who became shareholders as the beneficiaries of a will.
Source: Jamaica Gleaner