Hawaii Means Business

Central to Hawaii’s establishment as a world-class, regulatorily sophisticated, and proactive captive domicile in 1987 is the focus on driving a complete and sustained business partnership between regulators and captive owners. The State had modeled its enabling legislation after the best off-shore and on-shore regulatory models that seek to help Hawaii captive owners achieve a competitive advantage when organized in the State. The demanding captive owner expects all of the essential business infrastructure to run their business: world-class transportation access, sophisticated and instantaneous business communications, exceptional legal, accounting, and captive management professional services, and unparalleled virtual and face-to-face meeting faculties. It is all here, in Hawaii. For the intelligent captive owner, Hawaii Means Business.

Proactive and Flexible Regulatory Partnership

Hawaii Means Business by assuring prospective and current captive organizers and owners that doing business in Hawaii involves a solid working partnership between owners and regulators. Hawaii’s regulations are intent on helping your captive to succeed and prosper. Each new captive application is reviewed and discussed on its own merits. Proactive formation attention is paid to program structure, financial design, pricing, capital requirements/composition, and investment approach. What this means is that Hawaii Insurance Regulators encourage a refreshingly new dialogue concerning the “how and why” a particular captive’s approach would work and partner with the organizer or owner to maximize the “value” of the captive as a risk management and risk finance solution. By working together, a better captive solution can be reached.

Hawaii’s Cost of Doing Business is Competitive and Compelling

Hawaii Means Business by making sure that Hawaii is the most competitive domicile in the world with overhead costs that are lower than all other off-shore locations. There are no State Taxes on captives. Instead, Hawaii utilizes a graduated premium tax rate on applicable premiums with no minimum tax requirement. Premium tax rates have been capped at $200K.

Excellence in Service Provider Teamwork and Networks is Critical

As with any business, longevity and teamwork quality are essential ingredients to success. Hawaii Means Business because in Hawaii, all of the captive service providers have a long track record of client service excellence and attention to detail. Hawaii’s service providers are recognized experts in the areas of finance, law, risk management, alternative risk finance, claims management, captive-specific investment strategy, actuarial services, insurance, and reinsurance. The legal, accounting, captive management, investment and consulting community are committed to a level of professional excellence and innovative operational thinking unparallel elsewhere. New risk financing ideas and new uses for captives are a hallmark of Hawaii’s service provider network.

Special points of interest: 269 Active Captives in Hawaii, HCIC has over 100 active members, HCIC established since 1987, Annual Educational Conference

Quality and Security of Hawaii’s Regulatory Environment

When we say Hawaii Means Business, we are saying that Hawaii offers the discriminating captive organizer or owner the regulatory strength and security of an on-shore environment, with the flexibility and innovation of an off-shore domicile. The Hawaiian State Government is committed to “growing” the best captives in the world. You can only do that by being strong regulatorily, smart and inventive in application, and willing to listen and partner with your clients. Hawaii enjoys a time and place advantage as well. As a domicile that can be easily and inexpensively reached from all major North American, Canadian, Latin American, and Asian cities, Hawaii gives the thoughtful captive owner a time advantage to do business. Using Hawaii’s time zones as a tool, captive owners can easily execute underwriting, billing, reinsurance claims administration, and other vital risk financial analyses on the same day. In Hawaii, we call this our “time value of location.” Most importantly, Hawaii has demonstrated its ability to anticipate and quickly adapt to important captive business condition changes. Hawaii was the first to allow 501(c) not-for-profit captive formations. Healthcare and education companies have capitalized on this tax-efficient risk finance method. Hawaii also welcomes ERISA employee benefits and well-designed Risk Retention Group (RRG) captives. Also, Hawaii was among the first to license captives as Limited Liability Companies (LLC). What we will do next is entirely up to you, the captive organizer and owner. Captives are a serious business in Hawaii.