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ShelfCompanies24 has been forming Latvian companies for international founders since 1995. Our Riga team handles every step of company formation in Latvia on a single agreed service contract, from picking the right legal form through Uzņēmumu reģistrs registration, VID tax registration, UBO filing and your first Eurozone bank account. Most clients are trading inside 1 to 3 weeks, or in 3 to 7 working days if they choose a ready-made gatava SIA.
Our service covers UR filing, UBO register, virtual juridiskā adrese.
Company + adrese + Latvian banking + grāmatvedības birojs under one roof.
Standard formation 1 to 3 weeks. Latvian-speaking case manager.
eIDAS-qualified e-signature, Latvian consulate, or delegate to our Riga attorney via pilnvara.
We draft the statūti, file UR, register PVN, file UBO.
The SIA is the workhorse of Latvian commerce. Governed by the Komerclikums (Commercial Law).
For listed entities and capital-raising structures. Min capital €35,000, registered shares, dual-tier governance (Padome + Valde).
Latvian SIA registration has a short list of statutory requirements. You need at least one dalībnieks of any nationality, at least one valdes loceklis with no residency condition, a juridiskā adrese in Latvia, a NACE activity code, and paid-up share capital of €2,800 for a full SIA or €1 for the mazā SIA, which is capped at five individual-member shareholders and must retain 25% of annual profit to a statutory reserve until the €2,800 capital level is reached. An AS needs €35,000 of share capital and a dual-tier board. The table below compares the forms on capital, timing and fit.
Non-residents are the normal case. The largest group searching for Latvian company formation is in the United States, followed by the United Kingdom, Romania, Hungary and Germany, and none of them need to travel. Founders sign at a Latvian consulate, by eIDAS qualified electronic signature where they hold one, or by a notarised and apostilled pilnvara to our Riga attorney. What does need planning is banking: Latvian banks apply enhanced KYC to non-EU beneficial owners after the 2018 sector clean-up, so the account is opened against a prepared file rather than a cold application.
| Form | Min. capital | Formation time | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| SIA (full) | €2,800 | 1 to 3 weeks | Default, SMEs, holdings |
| SIA (small) | €1 | 1 to 2 weeks | Bootstrapping (≤ 5 individual shareholders) |
| AS | €35,000 | 4 to 8 weeks | Listed groups |
| Filiāle | Parent-dependent | 3 to 6 weeks | Multinational presence |
| Gatava SIA | €2,800 (paid) | 3 to 7 days | Need immediate trading |
To register a SIA in Latvia you confirm the legal form and the NACE activity codes, we draft the statūti, the founders sign with notarised or attorney-certified signatures, the pamatkapitāls is deposited, and the application goes to the Uzņēmumu reģistrs electronically through ur.gov.lv. UR processing runs 1 to 5 working days, and the full sequence from instruction to a trading company is 1 to 3 weeks. VID tax registration follows within 10 days and the beneficial-owner filing within 14. The eight steps below set out what happens at each stage.
Confirm legal form, member structure, business activity (with NACE codes), juridiskā adrese, banking preferences.
The articles of association are drafted by our Riga attorney, bilingual Latvian-English.
Founders sign with notarised or attorney-certified signatures. Foreign founders can sign at any Latvian consulate, via eIDAS qualified electronic signature, or delegate via pilnvara.
Open a deposit account at a Latvian bank, deposit €2,800 (full SIA) or €1 (small SIA). Bank issues a confirmation attached to the UR filing.
Files submitted electronically via the UR portal at ur.gov.lv. Processing: 1 to 5 working days. Registry filing fees are set by the Uzņēmumu reģistrs tariff.
The reģistrācijas numurs doubles as the tax ID. Within 10 days the company files with VID for:
Beneficial owners filed in the Patieso labuma guvēju reģistrs at UR within 14 days.
Convert deposit account to operating account. Latvian banks: Swedbank Latvia, SEB Latvia, Luminor Bank, Citadele, Rietumu Banka, BlueOrange.
| Scenario | Typical duration |
|---|---|
| SIA via electronic UR filing | 1 to 3 weeks |
| Mazā SIA | 1 to 2 weeks |
| AS (joint-stock) | 4 to 8 weeks |
| Filiāle of foreign company | 3 to 6 weeks |
| Gatava SIA, transfer rather than formation | 3 to 7 working days |
Standard SIA via electronic UR filing: 1 to 3 weeks total.
€2,800 for a standard SIA, fully paid. €1 for “mazā SIA” (small SIA) with restrictions: max 5 individual-person shareholders, mandatory 25% profit retention to a statutory reserve until €2,800 is reached.
No. Neither dalībnieki nor valdes loceklis need Latvian or EU residency. Latvian banks apply enhanced KYC to non-EU UBOs (post-2018 ABLV-related compliance tightening).
Latvian SIAs pay 0% CIT on retained profits. CIT triggers only when profits are distributed (dividends, deemed distributions like excess remuneration to related parties). Effective rate on the net distribution is 25% (20/80 grossup). For a company that reinvests earnings, this can mean tax-free compounding for years until distribution.
0% on retained profits. 25% effective on distributed profits. VAT 21% standard. Total effective rate depends entirely on distribution policy and reinvestment strategy.
Yes, with substance considerations. Most foreign clients use a Riga virtual juridiskā adrese with regular valdes loceklis visits.
VID tax registration (PVN, VAT-EU), UBO filing, bank-account activation, accounting engagement. Most clients are operational within 2 to 3 weeks.
Ready to register your Latvian company? Contact our Latvian desk.
Latvia is one of several jurisdictions where ShelfCompanies24 maintains pre-formed entities and active formation services. Why pick Latvia for your SIA specifically? Estonian-style; 0% retained, 2026 SME 15%+6% option is the headline reason, but it pays to understand the trade-offs against the alternatives. Below are concrete differentiators that matter when you are weighing a structure decision against the actual operating profile of your business.
Cross-border corporate structuring in 2026 is governed by a tighter web of rules than in any previous decade. Three forces shape every decision:
For Latvia specifically: 0% on retained / 20% nominal (25% effective via taxable-base divided by 0.8) on distributed, Estonian model since 2018. New 2026 alternative: 15% CIT + 6% PIT for individual-shareholder companies.
Issues we routinely see when prospects come to us after attempting the process directly with local providers in Latvia:
Yes. A name change is filed with the UR via a directors’ resolution and a routine filing, typically clears in 48 hours. We include up to one name change as standard for both shelf-company purchase and new formation.
Yes. A Latvian SIA that is tax resident in Latvia has the EU Parent-Subsidiary Directive and the Interest and Royalties Directive available to it, and Latvia has effective double taxation treaties with 64 countries, a slightly smaller network than the page currently implies. Entitlement still turns on the principal purpose test written into the treaties by the OECD Multilateral Instrument, so the structure needs genuine substance and a commercial reason.
Choose the form first: a full SIA, a mazā SIA if you have five or fewer individual shareholders, or an AS. We then draft the statūti, you sign with a notarised or attorney-certified signature at a Latvian consulate, by eIDAS certificate or by pilnvara, the pamatkapitāls is deposited at a Latvian bank, and the file goes to the Uzņēmumu reģistrs electronically. UR processing is 1 to 5 working days; the whole sequence normally runs 1 to 3 weeks.
Yes. Sabiedrība ar ierobežotu atbildību translates directly as limited liability company, and the SIA is Latvia’s equivalent of a UK Ltd or a US LLC in commercial terms. It is governed by the Komerclikums, liability is limited to the pamatkapitāls, the members are dalībnieki and management sits with the valde. What does not carry over is US tax treatment: a SIA is a separate Latvian taxpayer, not a pass-through entity.
Yes, and US founders are the single largest group searching for Latvian company formation. You will not hold an eIDAS certificate, so the usual route is a notarised and apostilled pilnvara authorising our Riga attorney to sign the formation documents, or signature in person at a Latvian consulate in the United States. Your identity documents are certified and apostilled at home. Expect enhanced bank KYC as a non-EU beneficial owner, which we prepare for before the account application goes in.
For a full SIA, yes: the share capital is deposited into a temporary account at a Latvian bank and the bank’s confirmation is attached to the UR filing, after which the account is converted into an operating account. A mazā SIA with its symbolic minimum is simpler. Either way the operating account and any fintech alternative are arranged alongside the registration, not after it, because the bank’s KYC takes longer than the register does.
A SIA is a separate legal entity Latvian-tax-resident with its own corporate tax filings and beneficial-owner record. A branch is an extension of a foreign parent, the foreign parent is the legal entity, the Latvia branch books local-source income but the parent’s overall tax liability cascades. Most foreign owners pick a SIA for liability ring-fencing and clean tax accounting; branches are sometimes preferred where the parent has specific group-relief or treaty considerations that depend on common legal personality.
Engaging us for your Latvian new SIA formation covers the following deliverables under one service:
The deliverable scope is identical regardless of whether you are based in the EU, the US, the UK, the Middle East, or APAC, we operate the same service globally for Latvian corporate setup. Optional add-ons (virtual office, accounting retainer, payroll, sector licences, transfer-pricing documentation) are scoped separately, so the incorporation or transfer work stays exactly as agreed.
Different jurisdictions are stronger for different commercial activities. Latvia consistently performs well for international operators in:
None of these are exclusive, a Latvian SIA can engage in any lawful commercial activity, but choosing a jurisdiction where the activity has a deep operating ecosystem (talent pool, regulatory familiarity, banking and supplier networks) materially shortens the time from incorporation to first revenue. Tell us your activity profile and we will confirm whether Latvia is the right fit before we begin.
A Latvian SIA sits within the EU treaty framework, automatic access to the EU Parent-Subsidiary Directive (zero withholding on intra-EU dividends meeting the holding test), the Interest and Royalties Directive, and Latvia’s bilateral double-tax treaties with non-EU partners. The treaty network is shaped by the OECD Multilateral Instrument since 2017, which embedded a Principal Purpose Test (PPT) into existing treaties to deny benefits where a structure was set up primarily for tax advantage rather than genuine commercial purpose.
Common Latvian SIA patterns we see: EU-wide trading hub with VAT one-stop-shop, IP holding with treaty-protected royalty flows, regional headquarters serving CEE/Western EU subsidiaries, and licensing-and-distribution structures using EU passport rights. Each pattern has its own substance and transfer-pricing implications which your consultant will map before structuring.
The 2026 corporate-law and tax landscape in Latvia: 20% nominal / 25% effective on distributed headline corporate tax. 0% on retained / 20% nominal (25% effective via taxable-base divided by 0.8) on distributed, Estonian model since 2018. New 2026 alternative: 15% CIT + 6% PIT for individual-shareholder companies.
Beyond the headline number, three regulatory currents shape every Latvian structuring decision in 2026: OECD Pillar Two and the local Qualified Domestic Minimum Top-up Tax (QDMTT) for groups above €750 million consolidated revenue; the EU’s progressive AML/CTF tightening (AMLD6 and AMLR transitioning into the Anti-Money-Laundering Authority’s direct supervision); and the UR’s ongoing migration toward digital-only filing and real-time beneficial-owner reconciliation. Smaller entities below the Pillar Two threshold continue under the regular Latvian tax regime, but reporting obligations to the UR apply to every entity regardless of size.
We track these regulatory currents continuously and flag anything material to active clients within working days of the change being announced. You do not need to monitor Latvia regulatory news yourself, that is part of what we provide for the annual retainer.
Three deadline buckets: UR confirmation/return (typically annual, on the company’s accounting reference date), corporate tax return (filed via the Latvia tax authority following the financial year-end, usually 6-12 months after period close), and VAT/sales-tax returns (monthly or quarterly cadence depending on turnover, where applicable). Beneficial-owner-register updates are event-triggered (filing required when ownership changes) rather than calendar-based.
Penalty consequences vary by jurisdiction but typically follow a pattern: small late-filing fee for short delays, larger automatic penalty for sustained non-filing, and ultimately strike-off from the UR for prolonged non-compliance. Strike-off voids the company and may require court application to restore. Our retainer service handles the full filing calendar so this never happens to a client on our books.
Three layers determine the after-tax dividend: Latvia corporate tax already paid at the SIA level on profits (20% nominal / 25% effective on distributed); Latvia withholding tax on outbound dividends, which is the variable that depends on where the recipient sits, zero under the EU Parent-Subsidiary Directive for qualifying EU/EEA corporate holders meeting the minimum holding test, reduced rates under bilateral treaties for non-EU recipients, default Latvian statutory rate where no treaty applies; and recipient-country tax on the dividend in the parent’s hands (often subject to participation exemption at the recipient level). Your consultant maps this end-to-end in the initial scoping so the after-tax economics are clear before incorporation.