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Hungary offers international entrepreneurs an attractive entry point: Lowest CIT in EU at 9%. The Hungarian Kft. (korlátolt felelősségű társaság) is the dominant corporate form for SMEs, holdings, and trading entities, and we hold a stock of pre-formed, never-traded Kft.s ready for immediate ownership transfer through the Magyar Cégjegyzék (Cégjegyzék).
ShelfCompanies24 has been arranging company formation and the transfer of pre-registered Hungarian entities since 1995. We work with a network of Hungarian corporate-service providers, accountants, and banks to deliver a consolidated, start-to-finish service, whether you need your Hungary company ready in 48 hours or a brand-new one built from scratch in 5 days.
Ready-Made Shelf Companies in Hungary, buy a pre-registered Hungarian Kft. with clean history and Cégjegyzék entry. Transfer in 48 hours.
Company Formation in Hungary, register a new Hungarian Kft., Zrt. or other Hungarian corporate vehicle. End-to-end service: Cégjegyzék filing, tax registration, banking. 5 days timeline.
Bank Accounts for Hungarian Companies, corporate account introduction with banks active in Hungary. Multi-currency and online banking included.
| Legal form | Typical use | Liability |
|---|---|---|
| Kft. | SME, default form | Limited to share capital |
| Zrt. | Closed joint-stock | Limited to share capital |
Most Hungary clients choose the Kft. (korlátolt felelősségű társaság) for the combination of limited liability, ownership flexibility, and predictable Cégjegyzék treatment.
The 2026 headline corporate tax position in Hungary is 9%.
Flat 9%, lowest CIT in EU; combined with 0-2% iparuzesi (local) and KIVA alternative regime. EU but not Eurozone (HUF).
VAT, withholding-tax, and treaty-network specifics are jurisdiction-dependent and best discussed in a free first call, your consultant will map your operational profile to the correct Hungarian tax treatment before you commit to a structure.
A Hungarian corporate bank account is critical to operating the company, and one of the practical bottlenecks foreign owners hit when they apply directly. Our consultant introduces you to the right banking partner for your profile (high-volume international transfers, EUR/USD/GBP multi-currency, e-commerce processing, custodial, or simple operating-account-only).
A pre-formed Hungarian Kft. with clean Cégjegyzék entry typically passes bank KYC more smoothly than a newly formed entity, which is why operators in a hurry to begin trading specifically request a shelf company.
Operators looking at Hungary often also evaluate similar jurisdictions:
An off-the-shelf company in Hungary is a Kft. that is already entered in the Cégjegyzék and has been held in reserve since the day it was formed. Hungarian practitioners call it a készre hozott Kft. or an előre alapított társaság. The cégjegyzékszám, the adószám and the paid-up jegyzett tőke already exist, so what remains is a transfer of the ownership share rather than a formation.
Off the shelf does not mean used. Every entity we hold has never invoiced, never employed anyone and has filed nothing but nil corporate tax returns, so the Cégjegyzék record shows dormancy and nothing else. The company name, the registered office and the business purpose are changed in the same act as the transfer, which is filed within 48 hours, and the register amendment completes in 3 to 7 working days.
No, and it is worth being blunt about it, because an offshore company in Hungary is a common search. Hungary is a European Union member state with a public company register, a beneficial-owner register the authorities and the banks can see, mandatory annual accounts, VAT at one of the highest standard rates in Europe and automatic exchange of bank information under the Common Reporting Standard. A Hungarian Kft. is an onshore EU company in every sense that a bank, a tax authority or a counterparty will test.
What draws people to that search is the tax rate rather than secrecy. At a flat 9%, Hungarian corporate income tax is the lowest headline rate in the European Union, and it applies to an ordinary trading company with real activity rather than to a letterbox. If you are looking for anonymity or a nil-tax shell, Hungary is the wrong answer. If you are looking for the lowest company tax rate inside the EU single market, attached to a normal bankable entity, it is a strong one.
Most people who open a company in Hungary through us are not in Hungary. Enquiries come mainly from the United Kingdom, Romania, the Netherlands and the Gulf. Hungarian law sets no residency, nationality or work-permit condition on a member (tag) or on an executive director (ügyvezető), so the question is only how the documents are signed.
Hungary is unusual in Central Europe here: company documents are authenticated by a Hungarian ügyvéd (attorney) rather than by a notary. That single difference removes the notarial appointment from the critical path. You sign at a Hungarian consulate, with a qualified electronic signature under eIDAS, or under a meghatalmazás that lets our Budapest ügyvéd act for you.
Decide first whether to take over a Kft. that already exists or to register a new one. A ready-made Kft. is transferred by an ügyvéd-countersigned agreement, filed within 48 hours, with the register amendment completing in 3 to 7 working days. A new Kft. is drafted, countersigned and filed electronically with the Cégbíróság. In both cases you then need a registered office, a Hungarian accountant and the tax registrations that follow the Cégjegyzék entry.
No. Hungary is an EU member state with a public company register, a beneficial-owner register the authorities and the banks can see, annual accounts filed on the record and automatic exchange of bank information under the Common Reporting Standard. What makes it attractive is the 9% corporate income tax, the lowest headline rate in the EU, applied to an ordinary onshore company. Nothing about a Hungarian Kft. is hidden from a bank or a tax authority.
Choose the form, almost always a Kft., have a Hungarian ügyvéd draft and countersign the társasági szerződés, pay in the jegyzett tőke and file electronically through the Cégkapu portal. The Cégbíróság works to a 1 working day decision target for compliant electronic filings. The adószám arrives with the entry, the EU VAT number is applied for separately, and the beneficial owners are filed within 5 working days.
With a pre-formed Hungarian Kft. the share transfer is documented and the Cégjegyzék update filed within 48 hours; the register amendment completes in 3 to 7 working days; you can sign contracts in the company’s name from day one. A newly formed Kft. takes 5 days end-to-end because the Magyar Cégjegyzék and the tax authority each add their own processing time.
Both are Hungarian corporate vehicles registered with the Cégjegyzék. The Kft. is the standard SME limited-liability form chosen by most operators. The Zrt. is typically used for larger, capital-raising or listed structures. Most foreign owners arriving in Hungary pick the Kft. unless they have a specific reason, listing plans, multiple investor classes, or a partner-structure preference, to choose otherwise.
No. Hungary corporate procedures are remote-friendly through our consultant network. Documents are couriered, apostilled and sworn-translated where needed; signatures use either qualified electronic signature or notarisation in your home jurisdiction. We handle the Cégjegyzék interface end-to-end, most foreign clients never set foot in Hungary.
The 2026 headline rate in Hungary is 9%. Flat 9%, lowest CIT in EU; combined with 0-2% iparuzesi (local) and KIVA alternative regime. EU but not Eurozone (HUF). VAT/sales-tax, withholding-tax on dividends, and treaty-network impact depend on your operating profile, a free first call with our consultant maps your business model to the correct Hungarian tax treatment.
Yes. Hungarian law sets no residency, nationality or work-permit condition on the members (tagok) or the executive directors (ügyvezetők) of a Kft., and one foreign owner may hold both roles. What a foreign owner needs is identification the Hungarian authorities accept, a registered office (székhely) in Hungary and a beneficial-owner filing after registration. Hungarian banks may apply enhanced due diligence to non-EU owners, which is bank policy rather than a legal requirement.
All ShelfCompanies24 shelf entities in Hungary were incorporated solely to be held in reserve. They have never traded, never opened a customer-facing bank account, never invoiced a third party, and never accumulated tax losses, so the Cégjegyzék record shows pure dormancy. This avoids the loss-utilisation and beneficial-owner-disclosure complications that a real ex-trading company would carry.
Choose a shelf Kft. when you need to be trading immediately, when banking onboarding speed matters, or when a counterparty insists on dealing with an established legal entity. Choose new formation when you want to design the constitution, share classes, or registered name from scratch and you can wait 5 days for the Cégjegyzék entry. Both options come with the same service, banking introduction, and post-formation support.
Hungary does keep a beneficial ownership register, but it is not public and it is not part of the Cégjegyzék. The record sits with the tax authority NAV under the 2021 beneficial ownership Act, and banks and other obliged service providers report the data. Anyone holding at least 25 percent of shares or voting rights, or control by other means, is recorded. Access is limited to authorities, to obliged entities running due diligence, and to third parties who show a legitimate interest and buy a single company extract.
Ready to discuss your Hungary corporate setup? Contact our Hungarian desk, we reply within one working day with a service tailored to your needs. Specify whether you want a pre-formed Kft. ready in 48 hours or a fresh formation taking 1 to 3 weeks.