Spanish Company Formation in Spain

Opening a company in Spain

Why start a company in Spain? What are the advantages in Spain?
Spain, a country that is part of the European Union, is a convenient solution for many entrepreneurs.

The country borders Portugal to the west, and is connected to the European continent through France on the northern border.

Being part of the European Union, the local currency is the Euro (EUR).

Spain is a convenient gateway to the European market, with cheap maintenance costs and a local market that understands the English language quite well.

Real estate in Spain
Spain has a diverse real estate market, especially in cities like Madrid and Barcelona. There are investment opportunities in rental properties, vacation homes, and development projects as well.

Renewable energy in Spain
With the transition to green energy, in Spain there are many opportunities for investment in the field of renewable energy, especially in solar and wind energy.

The process of opening a company in Spain
Opening a company in Spain begins with an application to keep the proposed company name in Spain. The process is very convenient for the company registration process in Spain, because once the name is saved, there is no chance of having problems with the company registrar in Spain.

In Spain there is no need for a local director or a local shareholder. In Spain you also do not need any European citizenship to open a company. You can open a Spanish company even if you are a foreign citizen. This means that it is possible to open the company with 100% shareholding in the name of a foreign citizen - in your name, or even in the name of a foreign company. The director can be foreign and there is no need for a local director.

Equity Requirements and a bank account to deposit the equity
In Spain, to open a company, a minimum equity deposit is necessary, which can be as low as 1 euro only, i.e. 1 EUR.

After opening the bank account and depositing 1 euro, prepare and sign the company's articles of association

After that, the incorporation document is signed in front of a notary.

Registration with the Tax Authority at the same time as the opening of the company
While in most countries in the world the registration with the tax authority is done only after the opening of the limited liability company (Israel, the USA, Germany, England, Bulgaria, Romania, and many other countries), the process of establishing a company in Spain depends on a number of actions that must be performed simultaneously with the tax authority .

Therefore, at the same time as signing the incorporation document in front of the notary, we will work to register a tax number with the Tax Authority for the director as well as the shareholder (if the director and the shareholder are not the same person). The personal tax number is called NIF.

After that, it is required to submit to the Spanish VAT an initial report for the individuals: the director and the shareholder.

In the next step after submitting the initial VAT report, we will register a temporary tax number for the Spanish company itself. The tax number for a limited company is called CIF.

After registering the temporary tax number for the company, the incorporation documents are submitted to the Registrar of Companies.

In the last step, the end of the process, we will register a permanent CIF tax number for the company (previously it was temporary).

At this stage, all incorporation documents are received from the state, and the company will already be in "active" status, with a bank account, and registered with the Tax Authority.

Opening a bank account in Spain - a current account for the company
After going through all the steps to open a company in Spain, the bank account of the company's equity in Spain will become a normal current bank account for all intents and purposes.

Since this is a European country, more or less starting in 2018, those who want to open a bank account are required to come to the country. However, we have a way to streamline the process of opening a bank account for you and leave it for a relatively late stage in the process.

There is also an alternative, which is opening an internet bank account. Indeed, similar to our "Zero One" bank, there are Internet banks in Europe that would be happy to accept your company in Spain as a client.

EORI number
If you need to, we can obtain an EORI number for you so that you can import or export with the company within Europe.

EORI is an abbreviation of Economic Operators Registration and Identification number.

Company maintenance
The company requires annual maintenance of payment of fees, annual submissions, local address (which we will provide for you), as well as submissions to the tax authority.

However, all costs in Spain are relatively low.

Tax in Spain
The corporate tax in Spain has been at a rate of 25% for years.

For sales to the local Spanish market, the VAT is 21%.

Questions and answers
Question: Is it necessary to physically fly to Spain to open a company in Spain?
Answer: The entire process of opening the company is carried out remotely and at no stage is it necessary to physically come to Spain. There is no need to fly to Spain to open the company. It is also required to physically arrive in Spain to open the company's bank account, towards the end of the process. However, the entire process of opening a company in Spain is carried out remotely without stepping on Spanish soil.

Question: Who provides the local address for the company in New Spain?
Answer: We will provide the local address.

Question: How can I find a good accountant who can take care of the company in our new Spain?
Answer: We will connect you with a local accountant.

Question: If I want to come to Spain to open a bank account, what should I do?
Answer: We will try ahead of time to arrange a meeting for you at the branch in order to sign the account opening forms, so that everything will be in order before you arrive, so that you don't just walk around the city in order to find a branch that will accept you and open a bank account for your new company in Spain.

Question: What type of company in Spain should I open?
Answer: In Spain there is only one type of limited company called Sociedad Limitada, or SL for short. This is the suffix of our "Ltd". This is the common and only type in Spain, so there is not much reason to be confused about types of companies in Spain.

Question: Do you need a European passport to open a company in Spain?
Answer: There is no need for a European passport. We can open a company in Spain for any foreign citizen as long as he has a valid passport.

Question: How long does it take to open a company in Spain?
Answer: The process of opening the company, including signing the power of attorney and sending it, should take about 3 weeks. After that, the process of opening a bank account takes between 1-3 weeks, depending on the readiness of the banks to accept the new company as a customer. Of course, these are times that depend on third parties, so this is only an estimate.

Question: Is it possible to open a company in Spain for a person with American citizenship or a person living in the USA?
Answer: Yes. We know how to open a company in Spain for a person with American citizenship or a person living in the USA.

Question: How much does it cost to open a company in Spain?
Answer: Click here to contact us and get an up-to-date quote for free!