Proprietary limited company
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| It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Proprietary company. (Discuss) |
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| Companies law |
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| Basic forms: |
| Sole proprietorship |
| Partnership (General · Limited · LLP) |
| Corporation (LLC) |
| Cooperative |
| United States: |
| Business trust LLLP · Series LLC Delaware corporation Nevada corporation |
| European Economic Area, including European Union: |
| SE · SCE |
| United Kingdom / Commonwealth / Ireland: |
| Limited company (By shares · By guarantee) (Public · Proprietary) Community interest company |
| Civil law countries: |
| AB · AG · ANS · A/S · AS |
| K.K. · N.V. · OY · S.A. · GmbH |
| Doctrines |
| Corporate governance |
| Limited liability · Ultra vires |
| Business judgment rule |
| Internal affairs doctrine |
| De facto corporation and corporation by estoppel |
| Piercing the corporate veil |
| Rochdale Principles |
| Related areas of law |
| Contract · Civil procedure |
Under Australian law, a proprietary limited company, abbreviated as Pty. Ltd. company, Pty. Ltd., or P/L, is a business structure that has at least one shareholder with a limited number of shares. The opposite of a proprietary limited company is a public limited company.
Under the governing Australian Corporations Act 2001 (Cth), a proprietary company must either be:
- limited by shares (ltd.), where shareholders are afforded more protection when it comes to the level of liability that they face for company debts; or
- unlimited, where shareholders face unlimited liability.
The proprietary limited company must have at least one shareholder and must have no more than 50 non-employee shareholders and at least one director who must live in Australia with an appointed secretary that must be at least 18 years of age. One person may simultaneously hold the positions of company director and secretary.
Proprietary limited companies are also classified as “large” or “small”. A proprietary company is classified as small only if it meets at least two of the following criteria:
- It has a gross operating revenue of less than $10 million for the financial year.
- It has assets of less than $5 million at the end of a financial year.
- It has fewer than 50 employees at the end of a financial year.
Most large proprietary companies have to lodge audited accounts. Small proprietary companies only have to prepare audited financial statements if ordered to do so by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) or members holding five percent of voting shares and, in some cases, if controlled by a foreign company.
In business strategy or finance presentations, P/L is often a reference for “profit/loss”.
