Company registration in Belgium

Belgium may appear as a suitable option for opening a company for many reasons. This country provides many opportunities for doing business in the European markets. It also cares about keeping and enhancing favourable conditions for entrepreneurs from various industries.

Major Legal Forms of Entities

You may register and operate here:

• Limited liability company (BV/SRL) – this entity is the most widespread. Its founders (shareholders) bear liability within the invested amounts only. The minimal threshold for the share capital is absent for this entity.
• Public limited company (NV/SA) – a company that may work well for a large-sized business who intends to enter stock exchange markets. The minimal threshold for the share capital, in this case, is EUR 61 500.
• General partnership – this legal entity may be incorporated by two and more individuals who jointly carry out business under one name. This partnership doesn't have a minimum threshold for its share capital. All partners jointly take all decisions and bear unlimited liability for them. In the case of winding up, even personal property of partners can be affected.
• Limited partnership – the entity can be established by (i) managing partners who run business, make decisions and bear unlimited liability for the obligations of the partnership, including within their personal assets, and (ii) silent partners whose liability is restricted to the amount of contributed funds and their personal assets are not affected by possible liquidation procedure. There is no requirement for the minimal threshold of the share capital.

Company Formation Requirements and Steps

If you consider this state as your target jurisdiction, here are preliminary stages for starting a company in Belgium:

1. Elaborating on your business plan.
2. Collecting all compulsory details about the founders, beneficiaries, and managers of the prospective enterprise.
3. Choosing the most preferable legal form, its organizational structure, registered office and name of a future company.
4. Opening a bank account for depositing the share capital.
5. Preparing the Deed of Incorporation, Memorandum and Articles of Association with the subsequent notarization of documents.
6. Filling required application forms.
7. Submitting all mentioned above documents to the Crossroads Bank for Enterprises for the registration in the Belgian Company Register.
8. Registration for purposes of taxation and paying social security contributions.
9. Obtaining licences and any other required permits (optionally).

Legal Framework

The major legal act that regulates business activities of Belgian companies – the Belgian Code of Companies and Associations. In general, local legislation encourages investments and entrepreneurship.

Advantages of the Jurisdiction

These are the main advantages of Belgium as the potential jurisdiction for your business:

• Transparent environment
• Skilled and experienced workforce
• Plenty of incentives for innovations, IP and R&D
• No currency control

Tax System

The Belgian tax system may be generally characterized this way:

• Many effective double-tax treaties
• Corporate income tax rate – 25 %
• Capital gains tax – 25 %
• VAT rate – 21 %
• Withholding tax rate – generally 30 % for dividends, interest and royalties

How Prifinance Specialists May Help You

Prifinance specialists render comprehensive legal advice for your business. We develop suggestions for incorporating a company and calculate taxes. Our specialists may also help you with filling and submitting registration and other documents, opening a bank account and dealing with other matters that may potentially arise. Reach us shortly for more precise discussions.