• Submitted by: Luis Manuel Mazorra
• Business and Economy
• 10 / 01 / 2014

In Cuba there are over 600 branches of foreign firms responding to the Chamber of Commerce of the Republic. Attached to that entity is the National Registry of Foreign Branches and Agents Commercial Companies office to respond to requests for registration, renewal and cancellation of licenses.

Several licenses have been renewed at this time, among them are the French Sucres et Denrees (Sucden), the Barbados Sherritt International Investments (Cuba) Limited, China's Top Sport Holdings Limited, the Spanish Manuel Revert y Cia SA and Industrial Ibérica SA Distributions (SAIDI), Swiss Agostini GMBH and Slovak Slovenske Energeticke STRO-JARNE, SA, among others.

Moreover the entity denied the renewal application to the Spanish Billabona Eximport SL. The National Registry of Foreign Branches and Agents explained that Corporations "have varied the conditions and interests that justified the granting of the license which was granted to the said company."

These branches has as limiting in the island the inability to import and export directly with commercial; do the wholesale and retail trade in general of products and services, excluding after-sales service and warranty expressly agreed in contracts which cover foreign trade operations; or distributing and transporting goods in the country. Decree 206 of 1996 of the Executive Committee of the Council of Ministers authorized the establishment of a branch to have directly business relationships with companies and Cuban agencies.

The procedures for the establishment of a branch or to act as agent begin with the applicant's request to the Registrar and conclude with registration or refusal within a period not to exceed sixty working days from the date of filing of the application form.

Source: OnCuba