Filing IT Form 3 with the MRA in Mauritius Explained

Tax Filing in Mauritius: Understanding the Annual Return of Income (IT Form 3)Copy link to section

Tax filing in Mauritius centres on the Annual Return of Income (IT Form 3), the corporate income tax return every company must lodge with the Mauritius Revenue Authority (MRA) for each accounting period. The obligation applies broadly: companies incorporated locally or abroad, non-resident sociétés, trusts, trustees of unit trust schemes, foundations, and collective investment schemes all fall within its reach, regardless of whether tax is actually owed. The governing framework is the Income Tax Act 1995, administered under a self-assessment system through which you declare income and settle any liability at the same time.

This article explains who must file, what the return covers, when it is due, how payment works under self-assessment, and the penalties that attach to errors or delay. It is written for foreign owners and their advisers responsible for keeping a Mauritius entity compliant from outside the country, and the official guidance is consolidated on the MRA portal.

Who Must File the Annual Return of Income with the MRACopy link to section

The filing duty reaches almost every form of entity that can derive income in the jurisdiction. Companies, non-resident sociétés (partnerships), trusts, trustees of unit trust schemes, collective investment schemes, and foundations are each within scope.

A company must submit the return whether or not it is a taxpayer. The act of filing declares all income derived during the preceding accounting period; any tax owed is paid at that same moment.

For a foreign owner, the residency distinction matters. A corporation resident in the country is taxed on worldwide income, while a non-resident corporation answers only for income sourced there, subject to any applicable tax treaty.

An Authorised Company is a useful case to understand. Such an entity carries on business with central management and control outside the jurisdiction and is treated as non-resident for tax purposes, yet it must still file the Annual Return of Income with the MRA within six months of its year-end.

Under the Income Tax Act 1995, "company" means a body corporate other than a local authority, whether incorporated locally or elsewhere, and the definition expressly pulls in non-resident sociétés, trusts, and trustees of unit trust schemes. Returns lodged with the authority are confidential, accessible only to the MRA and parties it authorises.

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Legal Basis: The Income Tax Act 1995 and Income Tax Regulations 1996Copy link to section

The competent taxation authority is the Mauritius Revenue Authority, and the principal law is the Income Tax Act 1995, as amended by Parliament. A consolidated version is published as a downloadable PDF on the MRA website.

Secondary rules sit in the Income Tax Regulations 1996. Capital allowance provisions illustrate the split: Section 24 of the Act governs annual allowances, while the rates for capital expenditure appear in the Fourth Schedule to the Regulations.

The law is refreshed each year through the Finance Act, which gives statutory effect to measures announced in the annual budget speech delivered by the Minister of Finance, Economic Planning and Development. Foreign owners should expect thresholds and reliefs to shift with each budget cycle.

Two structural points shape every filing. First, the system is self-assessment, so the taxpayer computes and reports its own liability rather than waiting for an assessment. Second, the formal tax year runs from 1 July to 30 June, though a company may adopt its own accounting period.

One limitation works in the taxpayer's favour: the Director General cannot raise an assessment for any period beyond three years preceding the current tax year, although no statutory time limit applies to recovering tax already assessed.

Tax Registration with the Mauritius Revenue AuthorityCopy link to section

Before a company can file, it needs a Tax Account Number (TAN), the local name for the tax identification number. The TAN is allocated by the MRA once the entity has received its Business Registration Number (BRN) from the Central Business Registration Department.

The number takes a simple format: one letter followed by eight digits. It is linked to the BRN and, for VAT-registered firms, may be used alongside the VAT Registration Number.

A company applies for its TAN by email to registration@mra.mu, and issuance carries no charge. The same number doubles as the User ID for online filing, paired with a password allocated by the authority.

The TAN appears on every return, letter, and notice the MRA issues, so it functions as the entity's standing identifier in all dealings with the tax administration.

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What Must Be Reported on the Annual Return of Income (IT Form 3)Copy link to section

The return sets out the company's gross income, exempt income, allowable deductions, and the tax computation for the accounting period. Gross income covers all income other than exempt income; allowable deductions are the expenditure, losses, and allowances the Act permits.

Supporting detail falls into three groups:

• All sources of income earned during the period, including business profits, investment returns, and other receipts
• The calculation of taxable income after deductions, reliefs, and any applicable partial exemptions
• Accounts backing the declared figures, including the balance sheet and profit and loss statement, audited or unaudited as the case requires

A practical feature protects taxpayers acting in good faith. If you are uncertain how the law applies to an item in your return, you may flag that doubt by specifying it directly in the return itself, which carries consequences for penalties discussed later.

Filing is electronic, so no physical documents are lodged; every required figure is keyed into the online form. A valid email address must be entered to receive the acknowledgement confirming receipt, and the system calculates the tax automatically as entries are made.

An amended return cannot be filed more than three years after the end of the relevant year of assessment, except where it corrects undeclared or underdeclared income. Any amendment must be submitted electronically in the approved form, with reasons given for each change.

Global Business Corporations should note a consolidation. From the year of assessment 2022–2023, the separate 'IT Form 3F' was withdrawn, and these entities now file the standard IT Form 3.

Filing Deadline and Frequency for the Annual Return of IncomeCopy link to section

One return is due per accounting period, filed no later than six months from the end of the month in which the accounting year closes. The frequency is annual, with no interim corporate return beyond the advance payment statements covered below.

Companies on the two most common year-ends face a tighter rule. Where the accounting year ends on 30 June or 31 December, the return and payment are due two days, excluding Saturdays and public holidays, before the end of December and June respectively.

The live filing portal covers the year of assessment 2025–2026, meaning accounting years ending on any date between 1 January 2025 and 31 December 2025, alongside prior years back to 2019–2020. Corporate tax and advance payments are made in Mauritian Rupees, with foreign-currency amounts converted using rates prescribed by the MRA or the Bank of Mauritius.

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Payment of Tax Due Under Self-AssessmentCopy link to section

Tax owed is paid at the moment the return is filed, within the six-month window. The standard corporate income tax rate is 15% on net income, though reliefs and partial exemptions can lower the effective figure.

Larger firms carry an additional rhythm of payments. A company whose prior-year gross income exceeded MUR 10 million, or that has taxable income, files quarterly statements under the Advance Payment System (APS) and pays tax for each quarter immediately following the end of the accounting year. APS does not apply to a business with annual turnover below MUR 10 million.

Each APS statement and its payment fall due within three months from the end of the month in which the quarter closes. To pay electronically, a company completes a PLACH Direct Debit Mandate Form, signed by authorised signatories, which must reach the MRA at least 15 days before the payment due date.

The good-faith mechanism returns here. Where you have specified a doubt in the return, you are treated as acting in good faith, and no late-payment penalty applies to additional tax arising from an adjustment on that point.

A new layer affects only the largest multinational groups. A Qualified Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax (QDMTT) takes effect from the year of assessment commencing 1 July 2025, applying to resident entities within an MNE group with consolidated revenue of at least EUR 750 million in two of the last four fiscal years; its return and payment fall due within 15 months of the fiscal year-end.

E-Filing the Annual Return of Income Through the MRA PortalCopy link to section

Electronic filing has been mandatory for all companies, non-resident sociétés, and trusts since 1 January 2018, covering both the return and any tax payment. Returns must be completed in English, and the electronic format is the only one accepted.

You can file through two channels. The MRA e-Services portal at eservices.mra.mu is the secured platform, and the dedicated company and trust return page sits within it; alternatively, companies may file through Mauritius Network Services after first submitting a CNP Application Form.

Access requires a User ID, which is your TAN, together with a password issued by the authority. A valid email address must be entered so the MRA can issue an acknowledgement receipt and communicate with the filer.

Firms that prefer to delegate the mechanics may engage an approved eFiling Service Centre to file on their behalf, with the list published by the MRA. Payment is then made by Direct Debit or online credit card.

The penalty for ignoring the electronic obligation is sharp:

• Failure to file the return electronically attracts a penalty of 20% of the tax payable, capped at MUR 100,000, or MUR 5,000 where the return declares no tax liability.

Exceptions: Companies Declared 'Not in Operation'Copy link to section

A company that is dormant for an income year can avoid the return by submitting a declaration of not-in-operation for that year only. The relief is filed electronically through the dedicated MRA e-Services page.

The exemption does not roll forward. If the entity stays inoperative, a fresh declaration is required for every income year in which it does not trade or has ceased business.

Timing is strict. Where the declaration is not lodged within three months from the end of the month in which the accounting year ends, the company must instead file the full Annual Return of Income within six months of that period's close.

Two categories cannot use this route at all: a company holding a Global Business Licence under the Financial Services Act, and a trust. These must file the IT Form 3 whatever their operational status, and the responsibility for a correct and complete declaration rests with the taxpayer in every case.

Penalties for Late or Incorrect FilingCopy link to section

Penalties separate by the type of failure, and they stack where more than one applies.

The MRA's published rates for individuals differ slightly, showing a 2.5% late-payment penalty and 0.25% interest. The 5% and 0.5% figures reflect the corporate regime as set out in PwC's tax administration summary; for the exact provision applying to your company, confirm against the consolidated Income Tax Act.

If you disagree with an assessment, an objection must be lodged within 28 days, and you must first pay the assessed tax plus 10% of the amount assessed before the objection proceeds. This pay-to-object rule means a contested assessment ties up cash regardless of the merits.

Tax audits run on a sample basis through the year and tend to be detailed, with longer enquiries reserved for suspected fraud. The Director General cannot assess beyond three years preceding the current tax year, though tax already assessed faces no such limit.

Records that support income figures must be kept in English or French for at least five years.

ConclusionCopy link to section

For a foreign owner, the discipline that matters is simple to state and unforgiving in practice: file the Annual Return of Income within six months of your accounting year-end, pay any tax at the same time, and do it all electronically. The traps lie in the detail, particularly the compressed two-day deadline for June and December year-ends and the bar on Global Business and trust entities using the dormancy declaration.

The single step worth taking before your first filing is to confirm your year-end and APS status, because those two facts decide your deadlines and whether quarterly payments are owed.

How Expanship Can Help Your Business in MauritiusCopy link to section

Expanship prepares and lodges the Annual Return of Income (IT Form 3) on behalf of foreign-owned entities, managing TAN registration, the e-filing channels, payment mandates, and APS statements so deadlines are met from outside the jurisdiction. The same team supports the wider obligations a foreign owner carries once a company is established.

• Company incorporation and entity structuring
• Registered agent and registered office services
• Ongoing compliance and filing management, including corporate tax returns
• Accounting and bookkeeping aligned to MRA requirements
• Economic-substance and beneficial-ownership support
• Introductions to banking partners

To discuss your filing position or set up support for a Mauritius entity, contact Expanship Mauritius.

Frequently Asked QuestionsCopy link to section