The Bahamas was settled as a British Colony in 1648 and remained a colonial territory until July 1973, when it became an entirely self-governing territory. Since gaining independence, it has maintained a stable and robust economy.

The Bahamas has had its own legislature since 1729. Many of the older laws are based on U.K. statutes. In addition, the decisions of the Superior Courts in England, while not binding on the Bahamian courts, have enormous persuasive authority and are normally followed in the absence of local judicial authority or statute.

The political structure is based upon the British system, along with a bi-cameral legislature. The 40 members of the lower house, the House of Assembly, are elected by universal adult franchise within geographical constituencies. Of the 16 members of the upper house (the Senate) all are appointed by the Governor General, nine are appointed on the advice of the Prime Minister, four on the advice of the Leader of the Opposition and three on the advice of the Prime Minister after consultation with the Leader of the Opposition. The Governor General is the official representative of the British monarch in whom the executive authority of The Bahamas is nominally vested, which is exercised on her behalf by, the Governor-General, acting through her ministers. A general election (of members of the House of Assembly) must be held at least every five years. Dedicated to maintaining a healthy democracy, the Bahamas is a committed member of the Commonwealth of Nations.

The currency of The Bahamas is the Bahamian dollar which is equivalent to the U.S. dollar. The official language of The Bahamas is English, but a minority of migrants speak French Creole. According to the Government’s 2000 Census Report, the population of this nation is approximately 303,611.

The Bahamas has been and is regarded as one of the premier offshore financial centers with steady growth and experience in financial services. An independent nation since 1973, The Bahamas has passed legislation to meet the requirements of an increasingly sophisticated financial services marketplace and its reputation as an efficient, experienced and knowledgeable player in this area is universal. In fact, many of the world’s largest and most prestigious financial institutions have branches or subsidiary operations in The Bahamas, taking advantage of the country’s stable political and economic system. In using Bahamian vehicles, planners do not need to take local taxes into consideration, as there are no income, capital, gift or estate taxes in the jurisdiction.