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public Offshore verified Last Verified: 2026-11-02

Isle of Man

The Isle of Man Financial Services Authority licenses captives as Class 12 insurers under the Insurance Act 2008 and the Insurance Regulations 2025, in operation from 30 June 2025. A Class 12 insurer may insure its own group, connected entities and connected individuals, and may reinsure a related customer only where a qualifying ceding insurer remains liable for the underlying claim. At 31 March 2025 the Authority reported 81 authorised Class 12 insurers. For non-life Class 12 business the minimum capital requirement is the higher of 75 percent of the solvency capital requirement and £100,000, and the fixed floor is £0 for a protected-cell-company cell. The solvency capital requirement for a non-dormant Class 12 insurer is a one-year value-at-risk at a 90 percent confidence level. The standard rate of Isle of Man corporate income tax is 0 percent. From 1 April 2026 the annual fee for a Class 12 authorised insurer is £8,565. A draft Class 12 and Class 13 valuation framework, consulted on in CP26-01, is written to come into operation on 31 December 2026 and is not in force.

Quick Facts

Verified 2026-11-02
Jurisdiction
Offshore
Legislation
Insurance Act 2008 and the Insurance Regulations 2025, with the Insurance (Non Long-Term Business Valuation and Solvency) Regulations 2021
Tax Environment
The Isle of Man Income Tax Division states that the standard rate of income tax for corporate taxpayers is 0 percent. A 10 percent rate, increased to 15 percent in the circumstances the Division describes for large multinational groups, applies to banking business and to Isle of Man retail business with taxable income above £500,000. A 20 percent rate applies to income from Isle of Man land and property and, from 6 April 2024, to petroleum extraction. Insurance is not one of those categories. No premium-tax rate is set in the Authority's Fees Order. The regulatory charge is the annual fee.
Contact
Isle of Man Financial Services Authority, Prudential Supervision Division (non-life insurers)
Non-life@iomfsa.im
Last Verified
verified 2026-11-02
Financial Requirements

Minimum Capital & Surplus

Structure Type Minimum Capital
Class 12, non-life, other than a PCC cell The higher of 75 percent of the solvency capital requirement and £100,000. For a non-dormant Class 12 insurer the SCR is the one-year value-at-risk of basic own-funds at a 90 percent confidence level. Applies to Class 12 contracts within classes 3 to 9 and 11 (Insurance (Non Long-Term Business Valuation and Solvency) Regulations 2021, regulations 23 and 70)
Class 12 protected cell company cell The fixed floor is £0, so the minimum capital requirement equals 75 percent of the solvency capital requirement (regulation 70). This is the in-force rule. The draft regulations proposed to operate on 31 December 2026 would state a cell MCR of £0 and are not in force
Class 12 dormant insurer The minimum capital requirement equals the solvency capital requirement. For a dormant insurer that requirement is the regulatory capital needed so that assets exceed liabilities, including operational-management and regulatory-compliance liabilities
Class 12 long-term business Long-term Class 12 contracts, within classes 1, 2 and 10, are covered by the Insurance (Long-Term Business Valuation and Solvency) Regulations 2021 rather than the non-life floor above. A separate sterling floor for that long-term business was not located in the materials reviewed
Class 13 insurance special purpose vehicle Must be fully funded at all times, with total adjusted net assets covering maximum aggregate exposure (Insurance Regulations 2025, Schedule 2). Class 13 is supplemental and does not by itself authorise insurance business. No separate fixed sterling floor was extracted
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Regulatory Framework

Insurance Act 2008 and the Insurance Regulations 2025, with the Insurance (Non Long-Term Business Valuation and Solvency) Regulations 2021

Applicable Statutes & Regulations

Insurance Act 2008; Insurance Regulations 2025 (SD 2025/0138, in operation 30 June 2025), including Schedule 1 (Class 12 captive insurers), Schedule 2 (Class 13 insurance special purpose vehicles) and Schedule 3 (fast-track authorisation); Insurance (Non Long-Term Business Valuation and Solvency) Regulations 2021 (SD 2021/0274); Insurance (Long-Term Business Valuation and Solvency) Regulations 2021; Protected Cell Companies Act 2004; Incorporated Cell Companies Act 2010; Corporate Governance Code of Practice for Insurers 2021; Isle of Man Financial Services Authority (Fees) Order 2026 (SD 2026/0060, in operation 1 April 2026).

account_balance_wallet

Tax Environment

The Isle of Man Income Tax Division states that the standard rate of income tax for corporate taxpayers is 0 percent. A 10 percent rate, increased to 15 percent in the circumstances the Division describes for large multinational groups, applies to banking business and to Isle of Man retail business with taxable income above £500,000. A 20 percent rate applies to income from Isle of Man land and property and, from 6 April 2024, to petroleum extraction. Insurance is not one of those categories. No premium-tax rate is set in the Authority's Fees Order. The regulatory charge is the annual fee.

Detailed Profile

Regulatory & Statistical Profile

bar_chart Captive Market Volume

Reporting Year 2025
Total Active Captives 81
New Captives Licensed Pending verification
Surrendered Licenses Pending verification

pie_chart Structure Distribution

Pure / Single Parent Pending verification
Group / Association Pending verification
Sponsored / Cell Captives Pending verification
Individual Segregated Cells Pending verification
Other Allowed Types Pending verification

checklist Authorized Captive Structures

Class 12 captive insurers, writing direct insurance and reinsurance within the Schedule 1 related-party limitsClass 12 protected cell companies and cellsClass 12 incorporated cell companies and cellsClass 12 permit holdersClass 13 insurance special purpose vehicles, which must also hold another class

payments Fees & Solvency Compliance

Year Legislation Passed
2008
Licensing Speed
No published day-count. Schedule 3 of the Insurance Regulations 2025 lets the Authority apply a fast-track authorisation process to a Class 12 application, or a Class 13 application combined with another class, that meets the fast-track requirements the Authority has established. The Authority has not published a standard number of days for that process.
Premium Tax Rate
None. The standard corporate income-tax rate is 0 percent. The regulatory charge is the annual fee in the Fees Order 2026.
Incorporation / Initial Fee
Isle of Man Financial Services Authority (Fees) Order 2026, in operation 1 April 2026. Class 12 application fees: authorised insurer £6,960; ICC or PCC core £6,960; ICC or PCC cell £2,677; permit holder with an approved supervisor £2,677; permit holder without an approved supervisor £4,283.
Annual Maintenance Fee
From 1 April 2026: Class 12 authorised insurer £8,565; Class 12 ICC or PCC core £8,565; Class 12 cell £4,283; Class 12 permit holder with an approved supervisor £4,283; Class 12 permit holder without an approved supervisor £8,565. There is no volume band on the Class 12 annual fee.
Annual Filing Requirements
Audited annual accounts must be produced to the Authority within 21 days after the board meeting that approves them and in any event within six months after the close of the year, unless the Authority sets another time (Insurance Act 2008, section 14(3)). The annual regulatory return is submitted at the same time and includes the regulatory balance sheet, solvency capital requirement and minimum capital requirement, supplementary information, and a directors' certificate signed by two directors, at least one of whom is resident in the Island (Insurance Regulations 2025, regulation 19). A Class 12 insurer also submits a bi-annual return within three months after each six-month reporting period, unless the Authority approves another frequency. Class 12 insurers do not file the quarterly return required of other classes.

gavel Regulatory Contact Office

Supervisory Authority
Isle of Man Financial Services Authority
https://www.iomfsa.im/legislation-guidance/ open_in_new
Office Address
PO Box 58, Finch Hill House, Bucks Road, Douglas, Isle of Man, IM99 1DT
Regulatory Department Staff
Pending verification
Captive Administrator
Isle of Man Financial Services Authority, Prudential Supervision Division (non-life insurers)
Non-life@iomfsa.im
Phone: +44 1624 646000
Official Regulatory Sources
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