MAURITIUS Law and Practice Contributed by: Sameer Tegally, Sonia Xavier and Ashvan Luckraz, Venture Law
and Commitments ). A foreign investor may appeal to the Supreme Court of Mauritius against a written direction within 21 days of its issuance. Similarly, the Executive Director has the right to appeal to the Supreme Court within 21 days if dissatisfied with an order or direction from the Commission, provided it concerns a restrictive business practice they inves - tigated or initiated. Given that Mauritius has a volun - tary notification regime, no prior approval is required before making an investment. 7. Foreign Investment/National Security 7.1 Applicable Regulator and Process Overview Mauritius welcomes foreign investment and has in place a single gateway government agency, the Eco - nomic Development Board (EDB), which is responsi - ble for promoting investment in Mauritius and facilitat - ing certain categories of investments in the country. Some business activities require permits and clear - ances from relevant authorities, such as a building and land use permit, an occupation permit, and an envi - ronmental impact assessment (EIA) licence (among others). These permits can be applied for through the EDB. Subject to a few exceptions, acquiring shares in a Mauritian company holding an interest in immovable property (freehold or leasehold) requires prior approval of the Prime Minister of Mauritius. The indicative timeline for applications to the EDB and the Prime Minister’s Office is one to three months. It is noteworthy that not all FDI needs to run through the EDB, and such FDI can be completed within a few days. 7.2 Criteria for National Security Review Where applicable, the foreign investment is reviewed at the EDB level. If the licence is not granted for the proposed business activity, an appeal may be made to the EDB or to the court.
Mauritius does not discriminate between local and foreign investment in nearly all business activities. All FDIs through the EDB or any Mauritius profes - sional (lawyers, accountants, real estate agents, etc) are subject to strict anti-money laundering, counter- terrorism and proliferation-financing screening. 7.3 Remedies and Commitments The foreign investor’s customer due diligence (CDD) documents would be required, and enhanced CDD would apply where, for example, the foreign investor is (or is linked to) a politically exposed person (PEP). 7.4 National Security Review Enforcement Property rights are well-protected in Mauritius. Prop - erties may be subject to attachment orders where they are derived directly or indirectly from a crime. These measures are generally enforced in fraud or drug- related cases. A person making an investment without the approval of the authority (where such approval is legally required) runs the risk of losing the investment. For instance, any transfer of shares in the foreign investor’s name would be considered invalid if the relevant govern - ment approval (if applicable) has not been obtained. In Mauritius, the general rule is that a foreigner may acquire immovable property, subject to the approval of the EDB or the Prime Minister of Mauritius. Mauritius has a National Sanctions Secretariat in place, which provides support to the National Sanc - tions Committee in the administration of the United Nations (Financial Prohibitions, Arms Embargo and Travel Ban) Sanctions Act 2019. There are no foreign exchange controls in Mauritius. There are only a few business activities in which the equity participation of foreigners is capped (to a cer - tain level) or where special conditions apply to foreign - ers. These include: 8. Other Review/Approvals 8.1 Other Regimes
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