South European country comparisons in 2024

Tax resident companies Hungary Bulgaria Austria Greece Montenegro
Summary at a glance
Total year 1 Europe company set up costs €9,990 €10,460 €14,920 €12,600 €10,020
Total year 2 Europe company set up costs (incl. audit and tax) €3,420 €4,730 €6,949 €5,500 €5,890
How long to set a Europe company? 2 weeks 2 weeks 2 weeks 3 weeks 2 weeks
How long to open Europe company bank account? 3 weeks 4 weeks 3 weeks 4 weeks 4 weeks
Issued share capital required €9,600 €2 €10,000 €1 €1
Corporate bank account location Citibank Raiffeisen Bank Bank Austria HSBC Greece Atlas Bank
Tenancy agreement required before Europe company incorporation? No No No No No
Annual tax return to be submitted Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Do you need to travel for Europe company setup? No No No No No
Legal considerations
Resident director required? No No No No No
Resident shareholder required? No No No No No
Minimum number of directors for Europe company 1 1 1 2 1
Minimum number of shareholders for Europe company 1 1 1 2 1
Resident company secretary required? No No No No No
Individual shareholders allowed Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Corporate shareholders allowed Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Corporate director(s) allowed No No No No No
Public register of shareholders and directors Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Tax and accounting considerations
Corporate tax payable % 9% 10% 24% 22% 9%-15%
Annual financial statements required Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Statutory audit required Yes Yes No Yes Yes
Access to how many double tax treaties 70 68 50 50 36
Europe tax exempt free zones available Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
VAT rates 27% 20% 20% 24% 21%
Withholding tax payable on international dividends 0% 5% 25% 10% 9%
How long to get Europe work permit approved 5 weeks 4 weeks 5 weeks 6 weeks 5 weeks
Can the entity hire expatriate staff? Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Logistics considerations
Allowed to sign sales contracts with local clients Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Allowed to invoice local clients Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Average monthly salary of skilled labour US$6,300 US$4,100 US$9,100 US$8,100 US$5,100
Average monthly salary of unskilled labour US$,4,000 US$3,600 US$ 4,600 US$4,400 US$3,600
English spoken by what % of the population 20% 25% 73% 51% 40%
Literacy rate % 98% 98.4% 98% 96% 98%
Computer literacy rate % 56% 42% 60% 50% 48%
Office rental per square meter per month US$10 US$8 US$18 US$10 US$10
Warehouse rental per square meter per month US$8 US$7 US$14 US$10 US$7
Country rating (out of 100) 46 52 96 9 38
Internet connectivity rating Excellent Good Excellent Excellent Good
GDP per capita (US$) US$13,481 US$7,499 US$50,547 US$21,956 US$7,107
Government liberal or controlling of daily business Moderately controlling Liberal Liberal Liberal Liberal
Population % tertiary enrollment 60 57 70 56 48
Global business efficiency index score (out of 100) 60 67 74 50 N/A
Ease of doing business global ranking (lower the better) 42 38 21 60 46
Europe population 9.9 million 7.3 million 8.5 million 11 million 0.6 million
Europe unemployment rate 10.2% 12.9% 4.9% 27.3% 19.8%
Inflation rate (2015) -0.4% -0.6% 0.7% -0.9% 1.7%
GDP 2013 US$ billion $133.4 billion $54.5 billion $428.3 billion $242.2 billion $4.42 billion
Average annual growth (2012) 3.6% 1.7% 0.3% 0.8% 1.5%
Estimate of Europe business engagement costs £
Healy Consultants engagement fees 3,630 3,400 7,400 5,400 3,050
Company secretary and legal registered office fees 1,100 1,200 1,100 1,100 3,100
Government fees 560 60 520 200 170
Corporate bank account opening 3,950 4,950 4,950 4,950 2,950
VAT registration 750 850 950 950 750
Estimate of total outgoings in Year 1 9,990 10,460 14,920 12,600 10,020
Draft sales invoice attached View invoice PDF View invoice PDF View invoice PDF View invoice PDF View invoice PDF

Contact us

For additional information on our Europe company incorporation services, please contact our in-house country expert, Ms. Rashi Garg, directly:
client relationship officer - rashi
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