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by kybernetyk 4486 days ago
This is even true for Germany. To form a GmbH here you need to invest at least 25.000 Euros and wait weeks until the paper work gets done.

In the UK you can get a Ltd. up and running within 24 Hours for what is essentially pocket change.

The UK has exceptionally friendly laws and regulations concerning doing business and I wish more European countries would imitate them.

2 comments

> This is even true for Germany. To form a GmbH here you need to invest at least 25.000 Euros and wait weeks until the paper work gets done.

You only need to pay in half of that though (until your GmbH goes bust with debts, that is). And since 2008 there's a mini-GmbH for 1 euro: https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unternehmergesellschaft_%28haf...

Things are slowly moving online in Europe, I think, though at varying speeds. In Denmark, you can now form an ApS in about a day, entirely online, without visiting any offices. It's a fairly simple web-form. For a traditional ApS you do need €6.500 in starting capital to incorporate (not a fee, just starting capital for the company's bank account). Options for covering that include state-subsidized loans, and as of the beginning of this year, a transitional form (Iværksætterselskaber), which can incorporate before raising the minimum capital, and then comes up with it later by diverting 25% of profits to the capital reserve until the €6500 threshold is met.

If you just want a registered business and VAT ID but don't need the corporate form, on the other hand, you can do that part for about 100 euros and an even shorter webform.