Many organisations have unnecessarily complex corporate structures. In our experience, this often includes several dormant or relatively inactive companies. While these companies may have once served a specific purpose, that may no longer be the case due to a change in business needs, tax structuring or otherwise. Companies are also often acquired as part of a larger acquisition process and have simply remained in existence after the acquired businesses have been integrated. When organisations consider the benefits of maintaining these companies against the costs and risks of doing so, it can become clear that the organisation would be better served without them.

Cost Savings

A key benefit of corporate simplification is the reduction of compliance and administration costs. An organisation can incur costs and expenses in excess of €8,000 a year to maintain a dormant, or relatively inactive, Irish company. These costs and expenses relate solely to ensuring that the company meets its ongoing compliance, audit and other legal obligations. This amount is in addition to the cost of employee and executives’ time spent in coordinating this compliance and administration. The long term cost savings that can result from a once-off corporate simplification exercise are clearly apparent where a company is no longer adding value to an organisation.

Mitigate Risk

The existence of a company can expose an organisation to risk, including error, fraud or failure to meet regulatory or compliance requirements. These risks arguably increase with dormant and inactive companies given the likely reduction in monitoring when executives are focussing on the core companies required to run and grow the business. There is also the risk that, with the passage of time, the corporate memory will disappear making it more difficult to assess whether or not the companies should be retained. There are ongoing personal risks to the executives of an organisation who act as directors of these companies.

Business Efficiency

Eliminating unnecessary companies allows management, legal, and compliance teams to focus their time on the core companies required to run and expand the business. A less complex structure can also simplify the payment of dividends and intra-group financing arrangements for the organisation as a whole.

Governance Standards and Transparency

With ever changing legal and corporate governance requirements for companies, including new anti-bribery and data protection laws, ensuring that companies are meeting the required standards is an on-going challenge for organisations. It is far easier to maintain these standards with a less complex corporate structure. Improved transparency through a simplified structure is also likely to be welcomed by investors, finance providers and other stakeholders.

Tax Benefits

Sometimes complicated structures can lead to tax inefficiencies such as tax leakage or additional tax compliance burdens when repatriating cash up through the group. Simplifying the complexity of your corporate structure may resolve such tax inefficiencies within the organisation and allow for improved tax planning.

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