Business entities in Angola in 2023

Healy Consultants will assist our Clients with incorporating the optimum corporate structure in Angola. As outlined in the table below, the business entities most frequently used by investors are the limited liability company, the public limited company, the branch and the representative office.

The Angolan limited liability company (LDA)

The Angolan LLC is the business entity most commonly used by foreign entrepreneurs when incorporating a company in Angola. Capital is divided into quotas and shareholders are jointly liable for their investments. An Angolan LLC must appoint 1 director and 2 shareholders and does not require a minimum paid-up share capital;
Shareholders are allowed to defer 50% of the minimum share capital as long as the amount is paid in full by the date of incorporation of the company.

The Angolan public limited company (SA)

This Angola company setup will require at least 5 shareholders and 3 directors for company incorporation. The minimum paid-up share capital required is US$20,000, 30% of which must be fully paid before the incorporation of the company;
All Angola public limited companies are required to go through an annual audit and appoint for this purpose, a board of auditors with at least three members.

The Angola branch office (Sucursal)

This Angola business setup requires a local resident be appointed as the entity’s registered representative in the country. The scope of operations for this entity will be defined by the parent company. Also, the branch office will have an independent management team and corporate bank account based in Angola.

The Angola representative office (Escritório de representação)

An Angolan representative office is set up for the purpose of i) market research and ii) promoting the business of the foreign firm it represents. A representative office is not allowed to pursue production-related or commercial activities and can only have a maximum of 6 employees, with a 50% quota on foreign employees. The company must also deposit a performance bond guarantee in an Angola corporate bank account in the amount of US$60,000.

Comparison between different Angola business entities

	LLC	PLC	Branch	Rep office
Also known as?	LDA	SARL	Sucursal	Escritório de representação
How long to set the company up?	18 weeks	18 weeks	20 weeks	20 weeks
How long to open company bank account?	4 weeks	4 weeks	5 weeks	5 weeks
Legal liability?	Limited	Limited	Unlimited	Unlimited
Wholly foreign owned?	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Minimum paid - up share capital?	US$1,000	US$20,000	US$0	US$60,000
File annual tax return?	Yes	Yes	Yes	No
Tax registration certificate required?	Yes	Yes	Yes	No
Recommended corporate bank account?	Standard Chartered Bank	Banco de Fomento Angola	Banco BIC	Banco Angolano de Investmentos
Does our Client need to travel?	No	No	No	No
Resident director required?	No	No	No	No
Resident shareholder required?	No	No	No	No
Minimum directors allowed?	1	3	1	1
Minimum shareholders?	2	5	1	1
Tax identification code needed?	Yes	Yes	Yes	No
Angola resident company secretary required?	No	No	No	No
Corporate shareholders allowed?	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Corporate director(s) allowed?	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Angola corporate tax rate?	25%	25%	25%	0%
Annual financial statements required?	Yes	Yes	Yes	No
Statutory audit required?	No	Yes	No	No
Regulated by?	Ministry of Commerce	Ministry of Commerce	Ministry of Commerce	Ministry of Commerce
Allowed to issue sales invoices?	Yes	Yes	Yes	No
Allowed to sign contracts?	Yes	Yes	Yes	No
Allowed to import and export goods?	Yes	Yes	Yes	No
Can rent an office space in Angola?	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Can buy Angola property?	Yes	Yes	Yes	No
Can own equity in other Angola companies?	Yes	Yes	Yes	No
Total Angola business setup costs in yr. 1?	US$78,340	US$75,340	US$79,340	US$79,340
Subsequent annual costs (incl. accounting and tax fee)?	US$20,440	US$20,440	US$20,440	US$20,440
Sample engagement invoice?	View invoice PDF	View invoice PDF	View invoice PDF	View invoice PDF

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