business-registration, ownership, director-dutiesI am looking create a startup and I require a verified Paypal account. Due to my age, I am unable to use my passport to create this account.
I was wondering if anyone knew a country which allows me to be a director and shareholder despite my age.
Sadly, my home country (New Zealand), explicitly prohibits people under the age of 18 from being registered directors of companies.
Whichever way you proceed, there’s no escaping the PayPal verification process if you truly need a verified account. You probably don’t, but that’s a separate question. If you explore alternatives, you’ll find similar barriers. The country you incorporate into will actually make very little difference in this respect. Plus mind your taxman: if you’re the sole person working for a foreign company, that’s a giant red flag.
For what it’s worth, the easiest for you might be to ask one of your parents or some other family member to be the nominee director, with you operating as the managing director. The work involved on their end will include a signature every now and then. You’ll actually benefit in doing so: they’ll need to sign off your tax returns and such, and they won’t do so unless your accounts are sensible. That will force you to keep your books in order and keep an eye on your corporate expenses and your future tax bill if PAYE (pay as you earn) is not in place in your country.
Yes - the UK minimum age is 16.
“A director must be 16 or over and not be disqualified from being a director.”
Companies House
https://www.gov.uk/limited-company-formation/appoint-directors-and-company-secretaries
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