Bahrain Country Commercial Guide
Learn about the market conditions, opportunities, regulations, and business conditions in bahrain, prepared by at U.S. Embassies worldwide by Commerce Department, State Department and other U.S. agencies’ professionals
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Professional and Licensing Requirements
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Investors can apply for commercial registration with the Ministry of Industry and Commerce and track the status of their applications and approvals through the ministry’s Commercial Registration Portal at https://www.sijilat.bh/..

The most commonly used business vehicle in Bahrain is the limited liability company (called a W.L.L. in Bahrain but synonymous with an LLC) due to its flexible corporate structure. Foreign companies can set up branch or representative offices without being subject to the same provisions as for the formation of companies. It is also possible to establish shelf companies, which can take any form and are valid for one year, during which time approvals and licenses must be obtained.

All documents needed for a company’s incorporation can be found on the website of the Ministry of Industry and Commerce: https://www.moic.gov.bh/

Foreign documents must be notarized and legalized or notarized and apostilled. Companies offering financial services must also obtain a license from the Central Bank of Bahrain, which takes 60 days. Details can be obtained from www.cbb.gov.bh.

If all documents are in order, commercial registration by MOIC will be completed within approximately one to two weeks.

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Global Business Navigator Chatbot Beta

Welcome to the Global Business Navigator, an artificial intelligence (AI) Chatbot from the International Trade Administration (ITA). This tool, currently in beta version testing, is designed to provide general information on the exporting process and the resources available to assist new and experienced U.S. exporters. The Chatbot, developed using Microsoft’s Azure AI services, is trained on ITA’s export-related content and aims to quickly get users the information they need. The Chatbot is intended to make the benefits of exporting more accessible by understanding non-expert language, idiomatic expressions, and foreign languages.

Limitations

As a beta product, the Chatbot is currently being tested and its responses may occasionally produce inaccurate or incomplete information. The Chatbot is trained to decline out of scope or inappropriate requests. The Chatbot’s knowledge is limited to the public information on the Export Solutions web pages of Trade.gov, which covers a wide range of topics on exporting. While it cannot provide responses specific to a company’s product or a specific foreign market, its reference pages will guide you to other relevant government resources and market research. Always double-check the Chatbot’s responses using the provided references or by visiting the Export Solutions web pages on Trade.gov. Do not use its responses as legal or professional advice. Inaccurate advice from the Chatbot would not be a defense to violating any export rules or regulations.

Privacy

The Chatbot does not collect information about users and does not use the contents of users’ chat history to learn new information. All feedback is anonymous. Please do not enter personally identifiable information (PII), sensitive, or proprietary information into the Chatbot. Your conversations will not be connected to other interactions or accounts with ITA. Conversations with the Chatbot may be reviewed to help ITA improve the tool and address harmful, illegal, or otherwise inappropriate questions.

Translation

The Chatbot supports a wide range of languages. Because the Chatbot is trained in English and responses are translated, you should verify the translation. For example, the Chatbot may have difficulty with acronyms, abbreviations, and nuances in a language other than English.

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