Specimen Island Dossier · Indian Ocean / Seychelles

Round Island, Praslin — Specimen Dossier

This is the second specimen of the Island Dossier format, chosen as a deliberate contrast to the Cave Cay specimen: a different ocean, a civil-law-influenced jurisdiction with a state approval regime, a stated euro asking price rather than a shifting dollar range, and — most instructively — tenure that the public listing does not state. Where Cave Cay demonstrates diligence on a developed freehold cay, Round Island demonstrates how a dossier proceeds when the single most important legal fact is missing from the sales material. Nothing below is a listing, an appraisal, or advice — it is a research orientation to be verified with Seychellois counsel and a current survey.

Island	Round Island (Praslin)
Location	Roughly 500 metres off the south-east coast of Praslin, in the granitic Inner Islands of the Seychelles; Praslin (PRI) by boat or helicopter, Mahé international a short hop beyond
Jurisdiction	Republic of Seychelles — foreign acquisition runs through the government's Sanction to Purchase process
Approx. size	Listing states 15 ha (~37 acres); public records give roughly 15–20 ha — a discrepancy to resolve on survey
Tenure type	Not stated in the public listing. Inner-Island holdings in Seychelles can be freehold, while many island interests are long government leases — which of these applies here must be confirmed on title before anything else is relied on
Development status	Former boutique resort offered as a renovation opportunity — four traditional wooden villas (renovation required), a belvedere villa with pool, two dining pavilions, a staff village, pontoon and helipad
Status per public record	Brought to market in 2024 by Marc Foujols International (ref. P7244) at a stated €18,000,000 guide, syndicated via Properstar; the listing remained active and unchanged as of January 2026. An adjacent ~20 ha building parcel on Praslin at Anse Lafarine is offered separately. Treat the figure as asking, not a verified closed price.

Title & Tenure Summary

Seychelles tenure is not one thing. The granitic Inner Islands — Mahé, Praslin and their satellites, of which Round Island is one — include genuinely freehold private holdings, while much island property, particularly in the Outer Islands and on resort islands, is held on long government leases with a defined horizon. The two are different assets: one conveys land, the other conveys time. The public marketing for Round Island states neither, and its own sales narrative flags that title should be confirmed — so the first diligence instruction here is not a formality but the gating question for the entire transaction.

The tenure review should establish: the exact registered parcel and its boundaries against the 15–20 ha spread in public records; whether the interest is freehold or a lease (and if a lease, its remaining term, rent-review and reversion provisions); whether the pontoon, helipad and any foreshore works sit on separately held rights; and the status of the separately offered Anse Lafarine parcel on Praslin, which is a distinct title and should never be assumed to travel with the island.

Foreign-Ownership Rules

A non-Seychellois buyer requires a Sanction to Purchase from the ministry responsible for land use before acquiring immovable property. The regime is established and routinely navigated, but it is a genuine government approval with assessment of the buyer and intended use — a process to budget real time for, and one that shapes deal structuring from the outset.

• Sanction to Purchase required before acquisition — approval is assessed, not automatic, and conditions may attach.
• Published rates commonly cited for non-resident purchases: a sanction duty of roughly 12% on residential acquisitions plus 5% stamp duty, with an annual immovable-property tax of 0.25–0.50% on foreign-owned residential property — material carrying costs to model before an offer.
• The island's zoning history is tourism / former resort: whether a purely private residential use, a returned hospitality use, or a hybrid is intended will bear on the sanction application and any operating licences.

Sanction required ~12% duty + 5% stamp Annual property tax 0.25–0.50%

Comparable Sales

The following are drawn from the attributed price records we maintain for the Seychelles and are stated as asking prices or reported figures, not verified closed transactions. Whole-island comparables are thinner here than in the Bahamas — most Seychelles islands trade quietly or not at all, which is itself the finding.

Comparable	Size / tenure	Reported figure	Orientation
Round Island (subject)	~15 ha stated; tenure unstated	€18M guide, 2024; unchanged at relisting, Jan 2026	One of few Seychelles islands with a stated ask at all
Cerf Island Estate (Ste Anne Marine Park)	~3.2 ac beachfront plot, freehold	€3.8M asking, 2025	Small freehold near Mahé commands a steep per-acre premium — plot-scale, not whole-island
D'Arros Island (Amirantes)	~422 ac, freehold	US$18M reported 1998; US$60M reported 2012	Past-sale benchmark; a rare documented whole-island trajectory
North Island	~496 ac, leasehold	US$5M reported 1997	Dated benchmark predating its resort development — shows what tenure and decades do to a figure
Desroches Island (Amirantes)	Residences on a ~995 ac government-lease island	~€2.35M / £3.4M residence offerings, 2026	Residence-scale leasehold interests, not whole-island — a different product wearing the same postcode

The pattern to note: the Seychelles record is dominated by quiet availability and on-application pricing, so a stated €18M guide is unusual transparency — but with almost no contemporary whole-island closings on record, there is very little evidence of clearing value to anchor to. The comparables above orient; they do not value.

Satellite Change Review — Notes

A structured review of publicly available satellite and aerial imagery over time would examine, and document with dated frames, the following:

• Structures and roofs: the four wooden villas, belvedere villa, dining pavilions and staff village are offered in renovation condition — successive imagery indicates roof integrity, vegetation overtaking paths and terraces, and whether any structure has degraded materially since the resort ceased operating.
• Pontoon and landing: confirm the pontoon's presence and condition over time, storm damage and repair cycles, and the practical landing options in different seasons.
• Helipad: confirm the pad's state and clearance against vegetation regrowth.
• Coastline and beaches: assess change at Anse Chez Gabi and the other beaches — granitic Inner Islands are more stable than coral cays, but beach movement between monsoon seasons is visible on imagery series.
• Lagoon and reef: the sheltered, dive-friendly water wrapping part of the shore is part of the asset's value; note any visible anchor damage, moorings or works.
• The adjacent Praslin parcel: if the Anse Lafarine land is under consideration, review it as a separate subject — clearing, access tracks and neighbouring development read clearly from imagery.

These are review notes: imagery indicates change and prompts questions; it does not by itself prove permit compliance or current condition, which require documents and inspection.

Red-Flag Checklist

• Tenure unstated in the listing — freehold and government lease are different assets; confirm on title before valuing, structuring or offering anything.
• Sanction to Purchase is a prior government approval, not a registration — budget time, and confirm the intended use is one the sanction will support.
• Model the ~12% sanction duty, 5% stamp duty and 0.25–0.50% annual property tax into total acquisition and holding cost before anchoring on the €18M guide.
• Renovation scope is undefined: all four wooden villas are stated to need renovation — commission a full condition survey of structures, power, water and communications before pricing works in an island logistics environment.
• Reconcile the 15 vs 20 hectare spread in public records with a current survey of the registered parcel.
• The adjacent Anse Lafarine parcel is a separate offering on a separate title — negotiate it explicitly or not at all; assume nothing travels together.
• Access is by boat or helicopter only — there is no airstrip; test the crossing from Praslin in unsettled weather before relying on it.
• Utilities are island systems from the former resort with specifics unpublished — desalination/supply, generation and communications all need direct assessment.
• Zoning is tourism / former resort: confirm what a change to private residential use requires, or what licences a returned hospitality use would need.
• Price discovery is thin: almost no contemporary Seychelles whole-island closings are on public record; the unchanged ask from 2024 to 2026 is itself a data point on the market's depth at this level.
• A stated guide price, named brokerage and documented structure inventory make this island unusually researchable for the Seychelles — the paper trail to verify actually exists.
• Granitic Inner-Island setting, protected dive water and existing hospitality bones are genuine value drivers if title and condition verify — verify, don't assume.

Scope & Limitations

This Island Dossier is a research product compiled from public record as of July 2026. It is explicitly not legal, tax, valuation or investment advice, and it is not a listing or an offer. Prices referenced are asking prices or reported figures, not verified closed transactions. Jurisdictional rules summarised here (the Sanction to Purchase process, duty and property-tax rates, tenure practice) are general orientation and change over time. Before acting, engage qualified Seychellois counsel, obtain the title and any lease instrument, commission a current survey and condition inspection, and verify the sanction position for the intended use. Queries via the contact page.

Commission a Dossier

A full Island Dossier is prepared to order on a single island: title and tenure, foreign-ownership position, comparable sales, a satellite change review and a red-flag checklist. It is a research product, not legal advice.

Request a dossier Specimen No. 1 — Cave Cay

See also the island's public profile and The Leasehold Question.