The Madeira International Business Centre offers one of the EU's most attractive corporate rates — on a regime that runs against a clock and on real substance. If you're considering it, the decision has a timing dimension that's easy to miss until it's tight.
The Madeira International Business Centre (MIBC), sometimes called the Free Trade Zone, lets qualifying companies access a reduced corporate tax rate of 5% on eligible income — well below the mainland headline. It is not an offshore trick; it is a State-aid regime authorised by the European Commission, transparent and conditional on genuine activity. But two features make it time-sensitive in a way a standard incorporation isn't: the regime operates under a defined authorisation horizon, and access depends on meeting substance conditions within set periods after you license in.
Because it's a State-aid regime, the MIBC exists under a European Commission authorisation that covers a specific period. New companies can license into the current regime only while that window is open, and the tax benefits then run for the regime's defined lifetime. The precise dates shift as the regime is renewed and extended — which is exactly why you should confirm the current position rather than rely on a figure from an old article — but the structural point is permanent: this is a window, not a standing offer. Leaving the decision indefinitely is itself a decision, and occasionally an expensive one.
Getting the licence is not the finish line. To access and keep the 5% rate, a licensed company must satisfy substance requirements within set timeframes after starting activity:
Because those clocks start at entry, the timing question isn't only "is the licensing window still open?" It's "can I actually stand up the required substance in the period the regime allows?" A company that licenses in to beat a deadline and then can't hire or invest in time has bought itself the worst of both worlds.
The deadline that matters most isn't the one for licensing. It's the one for proving you meant it.
If Madeira is genuinely on your table, work the decision backwards from the substance you can realistically build:
For the right company — substance-backed services, holding structures, maritime and aviation assets that can use the MAR shipping register — the MIBC is one of the most compelling regimes in the EU, and worth acting on within the window. For a company that can't build real presence, it's a deadline for something you shouldn't be doing anyway. The value of getting advice early is that you find out which one you are while there's still time to act calmly.
We assess the fit, the numbers and the timing together, and we license and structure the entity through our Company Formation practice with the ongoing conditions handled by Corporate & Tax Support.
Tell us your model and the substance you can build. We'll run the numbers and the timing honestly, and only recommend Madeira if it genuinely earns its place.