Registering An Aircraft In Mauritius

1. Governing laws

   The Civil Aviation Act 1974 together with the Civil Aviation Regulations 2007 govern all aspects of aircraft registration, mortgage or leasing in the Republic of Mauritius.

   The Civil Aviation Department (CAD) is the authority overseeing all matters related to licensing, certification and regulation of aircraft, flight crew, aviation security and safety issues.

   Any application for registration with the Mauritius International Aircraft Registry (MIAR) must be made through a Management Company licensed by the FSC, such as AAMIL Ltd, which will also assist in all dealings with the CAD.

2. Determining factors in selecting a place of registration

   As the world-wide fleet of aircraft grows, so does the need to finance it. The aircraft is a mobile asset with a high capital cost and a strong residual value and as such has been particularly suitable for leasing.

   The leasing of aircraft is a cross border business activity. As such, the lessor must not only evaluate the credit and operational risks he is to take on the airline operator but also the political risk of the country in which the aircraft is to be based and the legal risks in terms of the enforceability in that jurisdiction of the leasing and financing contracts that are to be entered into.

   The place of registration of the aircraft is a critical factor in the evaluation of these risks. A financier will look for the following factors:

   A jurisdiction for registration, which provides for high standards of airworthiness and adequate supervision of the fleet subject to its authority;

   A registry, which evidences title to the aircraft, its engines and ancillary equipments and which facilitates the registration of all types of charges to which those equipments may be subject to;

   Any such registry to be administered efficiently, to be available for public inspection and to be reliable and up to date when it is so inspected; and

   Assurance that the laws of the jurisdiction of registration will not conflict with those governing the financing documents.

   3. Why register aircraft in the Republic of Mauritius?

   Some of the features attracting foreign operators to register with the MIAR are:

   Favourable tax environment and tax efficient structures;

   100% accelerated depreciation rate in the first year of operation of an aircraft;

   Excellent asset security with flexible and innovative financing and leasing structures provided under the proposed Foreign Aviation Equipment Registration...