On 12 June 2020, the Financial Services Commission of Mauritius (FSC) issued an important communique on the filing and reporting requirements of its licensees in view of the national lockdown which prevailed as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The FSC has thus confirmed that it will continue to maintain a flexible approach and will not impose administrative penalties on its licensees for late filings and reporting obligations.
However, the following caveats apply to the application of the FSC's flexibility:
- the obligations must relate to (i) audited financial statements and annual reports (ii) quarterly and interim financial statements and financial summaries (as defined by the Companies Act 2001) which are to be filed within 6 months of the balance sheet date;
- the relevant period must be the financial year which starts on 31 October 2019 and ends on 29 February 2020; and
- these obligations must be complied with by 30 September 2020.
For the avoidance of doubt, the FSC has emphasized that the term licensees captures entities which have been licensed, authorized and registered with the FSC as well as those registered as Reporting Issuers. Furthermore, it has also confirmed that the flexibility will not apply to the filing and reporting obligations which were already due prior to the start of the national lockdown namely, 20 March 2020.
As the regulator of activities of our international financial centre, the FSC has been continuously demonstrating an approach which shows adaptability to global changes especially during the unprecedented times which the COVID-19 pandemic has created and the 'new normal' which it has triggered.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
