Slovakia is a member of the EU and NATO, an industrial country with a dynamically developing economy. Its official currency is the euro. The economic development of the country is mainly due to:

• conducting diversified agriculture
• organization of tourist trips
• automotive industry (Volkswagen, Peugeot, KIA Motors factories)
• foreign trade (export of vehicles and their spare parts, equipment and electrical goods, metals)

What are the benefits to a foreigner, starting a company in Slovakia?

• Soft tax treatment
• the ability of legal entities to receive investment incentives and various benefits
• low taxes
• Liberal business laws
• The possibility of obtaining a residence permit to an entrepreneur
• Lack of double taxation with the Russian Federation

In the Slovak Republic, the Сonstitution is the basic law. Economic rights and obligations of citizens are described in articles №35-43 and 55-59.

There are also the following groups of laws, conducting business in the Slovak Republic:

• commercial law,
• company law,
• labor law,
• tax law,
• banking law.

Among them the most important for the foreign entrepreneurs are:

• “On Entrepreneurship” – the law spells out the types of entrepreneurial activity and requirements for their conduct;
• “On accounting” – the law spells out requirements for maintaining accounting documentation;
• “On income tax” – the law governing income tax rates;
• “On Value Added Tax (VAT)” – the law governing VAT rates;
• “On consumer protection” – the law spells out requirements for the quality of products and services, the safety of their use, as well as information about the manufacturer.
• «On the Stay of Foreigners» – regulates the stay of foreigners in Slovakia on the basis of various types of visas.

In addition, entrepreneurial activity is also regulated by the following normative acts:

• Commercial Code – defines the types of legal entities and contracts, as well as general requirements for transactions in the business process;
• Civil Code – defines the principles for concluding various types of transactions, family law and inheritance conditions;
• Labor Code – defines the conditions for the preparation of an employment contract, the norms of working hours, wages, vacation time, etc.
• Acts on Investment Incentives, technical requirements for products, conformity assessment, Regulation in Network Industries, Consumer Protection, Product Liability, The Trades Licencing Act, etc.

You can register a company in Slovakia in four legal forms:

• Limited Liability Company – s.r.o. (Spoločnosť s ručením obmedzeným)
• Joint Stock Company – a.s. (Akciová spoločnosť)
• General Partnership – v.o.s. (Verejná obchodná spoločnosť)
• Limited Partnership – k.s. (Komanditná spoločnosť)

In addition, the forms of companies, recognized in the EU, are also allowed on the territory of the Republic:

• European company (Societas Europaea, SE) – registered presence in Slovakia,
• European Economic Interest Group (EEIG) – an official address in Slovakia,
• The European Cooperative Society (Societas Cooperativa Europea, SCE) – a registered office in Slovakia.

All of the above-mentioned legal forms of companies must be registered in the Slovak Commercial Register.

The tax year usually coincides with the calendar year, although the taxpayer can himself determine it. There is a system of self-determination of the amount of tax in Slovakia. Income tax is determined on the basis of an annual declaration, which must be filed by a company’s director annually within 3 months after the end of the tax period. In case of non-compliance with tax laws, there are following sanctions: pennies, fines (up to EUR 32,000) or a % of the unpaid tax.

List of taxes should be included in the annual financial statements:

• Income taxes: income tax (for legal entities – 21%), corporate income tax – 22%
• Value added tax (VAT) – 20%;

*except insurance and financial services – 10%.

• Excise taxes.
• Local taxes: corporate income tax – 22%, real estate tax – 0,033 euro / m², land tax – 0.25 euro / m².
• Special fees for regulated activities.
• Tax on dividends (0-35% in various cases).
• Real estate (for owners or tenants).
• Social tax – 35.2%.

For more information contact our consultant Prifinance

To open a business, foreigners as well as a Slovak citizen need to prepare some documents. This process is quite complex and time-consuming and requires the help of a professional, which you can find on our website as well.

The documents need to be prepared:

• charter of the future company;
• memorandum of association;
• certificate of a criminal record of the founder in Slovakia and his native state;
• document confirming the registration of the legal address of the company;
• bank statement confirming the transfer of the authorized capital to the company account;
• document on the introduction of all directors’ shares in the authorized capital.

Steps for preparing documents:

• notarize the collected documents
• register the company in the Commercial Register, and then in the Tax Service
• obtain a license (confirming the right to engage in a certain type of business) in the Department of Commerce

Appealing to our company for help, you can be sure that you will open a company in Slovakia as soon as possible and at the lowest cost. We have been cooperating with financial giants all over the world such as KSOB, Swedbank, Rietumu Banka, Raiffeisen Bank, Hellenic Bank and others for years. These and other our other reliable partners will provide you with the advantageous offers to open your business. Our clients are the largest companies not only in Slovakia, but also in the whole world.

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