The most common forms of incorporation under Portuguese law are a limited liability company (Lda) with one partner and a joint stock company (S.A).
Private Limited Company (LDA):
It can be established by one or more partners, individuals or legal entities.
The minimum capital requirement for the company is 1 EUR for each partner.
The obligatory appointment of a director is not required. The minimum requirement is the appointment of a manager, who can act, including the member of the company himself.
Public Limited Company (S.A.):
It can be established by one or more shareholders, individuals or legal entities.
The minimum capital is 50.000 EUR.
The management of this type of company is made up by the Board of Directors. If the authorized capital does not exceed EUR 200,000, one director is sufficient.
Holding Company (SGPS):
Must have a legal form of S.A. or Lda.
The only activity should be the management of shares held by her in other companies.
Holding companies are allowed to provide technical management services to their subsidiaries by agreement, which must specify the terms of the remuneration.
Branch:
A company that does not have an actual head office in Portugal but wishes to conduct business in Madeira, including under the IBCM, must establish a permanent establishment and comply with the provisions of the Portuguese Commercial Registration Law.
There is no minimum capital requirement.
Company registration documents:
- Legalized copy of the passport of the partner or shareholder of the future company.
- Utility bill or bank statement to confirm the address – no older than three months.
- A document confirming the taxpayer identification number in the country of citizenship.
- The power of attorney in the form of the registrar (we will send a draft), notarized and legalized.
Information:
- Offer of three legal names of the company.
- List of types of economic activities that the company plans to carry out.
- Indication of the desired share capital (the minimum statutory amount is 1 EUR per partner). We always offer to indicate at registration the minimum cost of capital in the amount of not less than 1,000 EUR. The capital must be paid by the end of the first calendar year.
Registration begins with the agreement and approval by the state registrar of the future name of the company.
The entire procedure for registering a company takes 1 – 2 days.
In the event that a company wishes to access the full range of tax benefits provided by IBCM and to request the appropriate license, the registration process in this case takes from 14 to 20 days.
