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Register a company in Europe, or take over one that is already on the register, in any of the 29 EU and EEA countries we cover. European company formation gives you access to the EU single market of 450 million consumers, the EU’s extensive treaty network, the Euro currency for cross-border invoicing, and one of the world’s most predictable corporate-law environments. ShelfCompanies24 maintains pre-formed entities and active formation services across 29 EU and EEA jurisdictions: all 27 EU member states, plus Norway and Liechtenstein in the wider European Economic Area. We also cover Switzerland, which sits in EFTA rather than the EEA, the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies of Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man, and Gibraltar, for European operators who need a non-EU angle.
Why incorporate in Europe rather than offshore in 2026? The EU single-market passport, your VAT-registered EU company can trade goods and services VAT-free across all 27 member states, is materially valuable for any operator with multi-country revenue. EU-formed entities are also outside the OECD non-cooperative-jurisdiction lists, which means counterparty payments don’t attract automatic withholding-tax penalties. And EU corporate law is genuinely predictable: codified statutes, transparent registry filings, and harmonised audit thresholds across the bloc.
Choose where the company should be headquartered and go straight to that country. Each country page sets out the local company type, what the register asks for, the corporate tax position, and whether a ready made company is on the shelf there right now.
EU and EEA, Western Europe: Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Ireland, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Netherlands.
EU and EEA, Nordics: Denmark, Finland, Norway, Sweden.
EU, Central Europe and the Baltics: Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia.
EU, Southern Europe: Croatia, Cyprus, Greece, Italy, Malta, Portugal, Spain.
EU, South East Europe: Bulgaria, Romania.
Outside the EU and the EEA: Switzerland, United Kingdom, Jersey, Guernsey, Isle of Man, Gibraltar.
The full index, including the Caribbean, Asia Pacific and the Middle East, is on our jurisdictions page.
The EU is not monolithic, corporate tax, formation timeline, capital requirements, and banking access vary substantially across member states. Quick guide by use case, with a longer ranking in our guide to the best EU country to register a company in:
| Use case | Recommended jurisdictions | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Lowest corporate tax | Hungary 9%, Bulgaria 10%, Ireland 12.5%, Cyprus 15% | Direct rate competition |
| Estonian-model (no tax on retained) | Estonia, Latvia | 0% on retained profits, tax only on distribution |
| Holding company | Luxembourg SOPARFI, Netherlands BV | Participation exemption + treaty network |
| IP licensing | Cyprus IP Box, Netherlands Innovation Box, Luxembourg | Low effective tax on IP income |
| Fintech / EMI / payment institutions | Lithuania (EU’s largest EMI hub), Malta, Ireland | Receptive regulators, fast licensing |
| Online gaming / betting | Malta, Gibraltar | Established licensing regimes |
| BPO / shared services | Poland, Romania, Bulgaria, Hungary | Skilled multilingual workforce, lower wages |
| Manufacturing / industrial | Germany, Czech Republic, Poland, Slovakia | Industrial supply chain, export infrastructure |
| Tech / software headquarters | Ireland, Estonia, Portugal | Tech ecosystem, English-friendly, talent |
| Treaty-network optimisation | Luxembourg (80+ DTTs), Netherlands (95+ DTTs), Cyprus | Cross-border tax efficiency |
Three strategic positions for European corporate setup in 2026:
There is no LLC in European company law. The European equivalent of a US limited liability company is the private limited company: the GmbH in Germany and Austria, the BV in the Netherlands, the SARL in France and Luxembourg, the Sp. z o.o. in Poland, the s.r.o. in the Czech Republic and Slovakia, the OU in Estonia, and the Ltd in Ireland, Cyprus and Malta. Each one is a separate legal person, each one limits the liability of the owners to the capital they subscribe, and each one is entered in a public company register.
The difference that matters to an American founder is tax treatment. A US LLC can be treated as a pass-through, with the profit taxed in the hands of its members. A European private limited company is taxed as a company in its own right at the local corporate rate, and the owner is taxed a second time only when a dividend is paid, at whatever rate the double tax treaty allows. If you already own a US LLC, the normal route into Europe is a subsidiary or a branch of it, not a registration of the LLC itself.
Whichever country you register in, the annual cycle looks much the same. Annual financial statements go to the company register, a corporate tax return goes to the tax authority, VAT returns follow the local filing period once the company is VAT registered, and the beneficial owner entry has to be kept current. A statutory audit only begins once the company passes the local size thresholds, so most new companies sit outside it. A registered office in the country of registration is required for as long as the company exists.
Every EU member state lets a non resident own a company outright. There is no citizenship test, no minimum stay, and in most member states the directors can be non resident as well. The exceptions are narrow and you know about them before you start: Ireland wants one director resident in the EEA or a Section 137 bond in place of one, and regulated activities such as payments, insurance and fund management carry their own local presence conditions.
Most of the work happens wherever you are. Identity documents are certified locally, a power of attorney lets the local agent sign at the register or in front of the notary, and the countries that accept a qualified electronic signature, among them Estonia and Bulgaria, need no paper at all. Notarial jurisdictions such as Germany, Austria and Luxembourg still need a notarial deed, which is normally handled under a power of attorney rather than a flight.
No. There is no residency or citizenship requirement for shareholders or beneficial owners of an EU company in any of the 27 member states. Most member states also have no residency requirement for directors. A few (Ireland for non-EEA owners, sometimes specific regulated activities) require a local-resident director or a Section 137 bond, we provide nominee director services where needed.
No, VAT registration is separate from corporate registration and applies once you cross the local turnover threshold (varies by member state, typically for distance sales, with lower thresholds for some services). For B2B EU trade, voluntary EU-VAT registration via the One-Stop Shop (OSS) is usually advantageous from day one. Our consultants set this up as part of formation where you need it.
Bulgaria and Estonia are the quickest reliable EU options, with Poland, Romania, Lithuania, Latvia and Hungary close behind them, all of them clearing the register in roughly 3 to 5 working days. The notarial jurisdictions take longer because the incorporation deed has to be signed in front of a notary: Austria and Luxembourg run to 2 to 4 weeks, Germany to 4 to 6 weeks. If you need a company that exists today rather than next month, buy one off the shelf instead.
OECD Pillar Two introduces a 15% global minimum effective tax rate for multinational groups with consolidated revenue above the Pillar Two threshold. Most EU member states implement this via a Qualified Domestic Minimum Top-up Tax (QDMTT). For SMEs and standalone companies below the threshold, Pillar Two has no impact, the regular jurisdictional CIT applies.
Yes, that’s the EU single-market passport. Your EU-formed company with EU VAT registration can sell goods and services across all member states without local establishment in each. There may be sector-specific regulatory authorisations needed in destination countries (financial services, healthcare, gambling) but the underlying corporate vehicle is recognised in all 27.
No. A company sits in one member state, with one entry in one register and one company number. To reach a second member state you either sell into it from the company you already have, which the single market allows, or you register a branch of that company there, or you set up a subsidiary. Moving the registration itself is possible through a cross border conversion under the EU mobility rules, but that is a formal registry procedure rather than a second registration.
EU formation gives you single-market access, treaty-network protection, and sits firmly outside any “non-cooperative jurisdiction” list. Offshore (BVI, Cayman, Belize, Seychelles) typically gives you 0% corporate tax but with Economic Substance requirements and counterparty-side withholding-tax friction. The right choice depends on whether your business is genuinely EU-facing (formation in EU is usually right) or genuinely offshore-facing (formation in IFC may be right).
24 hours: UK (Companies House digital). 3-5 days: Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Cyprus, Malta, Portugal, Spain, Ireland. 5-7 days: Netherlands, Belgium, Greece, Slovenia, Croatia. 2-4 weeks: France, Italy, Sweden, Finland, Denmark, Austria, Luxembourg. 4-6 weeks: Germany (notarial process). Faster for some specific structures or pre-formed shelf entities.
Every EU member state requires a registered office address in that jurisdiction. We provide registered-office service in every jurisdiction we cover, for the first year and renewed annually after that. Local representatives are typically not required, directors can be non-resident in most member states. Specific exceptions apply for regulated activities (banking, insurance, fund management) which need authorised local representation.