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Georgia company registration

Georgia company registration

DOING BUSINESS IN GEORGIA IN 2019

Since 2003, Healy Consultants Group PLC has assisted our Clients with business registration in Georgia. Our services include i) Georgia business registration ii) government license registration iii) business bank account opening iv) employee recruitment v) visa strategies and vi) office rental solutions.

Summary table of Georgia company registration

SummaryTax resident LLCInternational Trading LLCInternational Finance Company
Free zone LLC
Representative office
Also known asLLCSpecial trade companyInternational finance companyFree industrial zone companyRepresentative office
Best use of company?All products and servicesTrading with global ClientsSupplying financial servicesManufacturing and export tradingMarketing & research
How soon can you invoice Clients\sign sales contracts?1 week3 weeks3 months3 weeks4 weeks
How soon can you hire staff?1 week3 weeks3 weeks3 weeks4 weeks
How soon can you sign a lease agreement?1 week1 week1 week1 week1 week
How long to supply corporate bank account numbers?2 months2 months5 months2 months2 months
How long to supply company registration/tax numbers?1 week3 weeks3 months3 weeks4 weeks
Corporate tax rate on annual net profits?15%0%0%0%None
Limited liability entity?YesYesYesYesNo
Government grants and tax incentives available?
YesYesYesYesNo
Government approval required for foreign owners?NoNoNoNoNo
Resident director/partner/manager/ legal representative required?NoNoNoYesYes
minimum paid up share capital?US$1US$1US$100,000US$100,000None
Can bid for Government contracts?YesYesYesYesNo
Corporate bank account location?Bank of GeorgiaVTBLiberty BankPeoples BankTBC Bank
Can secure trade finance?YesYesYesYesNo
VAT payable on sales to local customers?18%No local sales allowed.No local sales allowed.0%Cannot trade
Average total business set up engagement costs?US$11,500US$18,150US$32,550US$17,030US$11,200
Average total engagement period?2 months
2 months
5 months
2 months2 months

Georgia business setup summary

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  • Advantages and disadvantages

    Advantages of Georgia company registration

    business registration facts in Georgia

    1. It is possible to register a Georgia limited liability company with only one shareholder and one director, both of which can be foreigners and are not required to live in the country. Furthermore, there is no minimum paid up capital requirement;
    2. It is easy to set up a business in Georgia because:
      • The country has fewer and simpler registration steps that most other Central Asian countries. Therefore, starting a business in the country can be done in a week;
      • The application is done with the National Agency of Public Registry, and can be done either by one of the shareholders or by a legal representative;
      • For the above reasons, the country is ranked 6th in the Ease to do Business ranking by the World Bank.
    3. Foreigners registering a company in Georgia can take advantage of the country’s attractive tax regime, including:
      • Currently, the corporate tax rate is set at 15%, the 4th lowest after Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan;
      • Companies are exempt from i) capital duty ii) social security contribution iii) payroll tax and iv) branch remittance tax;
      • Clients that wish to set up their companies in one of Georgia’s free trade zones, are exempt from i) corporate income tax ii) property tax and iii) VAT and import/export tax for certain products.
    4. Furthermore, full exemption of corporate income tax on foreign source income may be granted to:
      • Special trading companies planning to re-export the goods;
      • Companies from corporate tax income of budgetary, international, and charitable organizations (including grants, membership fees, and donations), except for the profit from commercial activity;
      • Financial companies with foreign sourced income exceeding 90% of their total income;
      • Virtual Zone Entity (Company with 100% IT services);
    5. Georgia’s location can offer our Clients the following advantages:
      • Georgia is both culturally similar and geographically near to Russia, optimal for Clients that wish to expand their activities in the country;
      • Georgia is one of the countries which China’s “One Belt, One Road” project will pass through. The planned railway will link the Asian country with the European continent. Investments in Georgia will be able to take advantage of such link.
    6. Other benefits of investing in Georgia include:
      • Georgia has so far concluded 55 double taxation avoidance treaties with different countries including India, Germany, China, and the United Kingdom, Singapore, Ireland among others;
      • The country was positively ranked as the 16th freest economy in the Heritage Foundation’s 2019 Index of Economic Freedom. Additionally Georgia is ranked 8th among 44 countries in the Europe region, and its score is above the regional and world averages, a measure of freedom enjoyed in business, trade, monetary, financial, investment and labor markets. A free labor market and minimal trade regulations were listed as the main reasons for Georgia’s high rank;
      • Due to low electricity costs of just 4 cents per kWh, Georgia has become the Eurasian go-to destination to register crypto-mining companies.
    7. Georgia is a great country to get a talented pool of workers due to the following reasons:
      • Georgia is a country with abundance of quality labor that is affordable by the entrepreneurs;
      • The country has a top-ranked skill development, vocational education and training program namely, the OECD Eurasia Competitiveness Program that is offered by the OECD;
      • Georgia also benefits from the EU-Georgia Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement that allows Georgian companies to set up a subsidiary, a branch or a representative office in the EU. Moreover, EU companies can do the same in Georgia. Because of this, more jobs are being created in Georgia and citizens are directly benefiting from it.

    Disadvantages of Georgia company registration

    1. Clients that wish to produce for the domestic market are faced with several challenges, including:
      • Georgia has a total population of 3.7 million, the 5th lowest in Western Asia, just behind Armenia;
      • Georgia also has one of the lowest purchasing power of Western Asia; way below the medium for the European continent.
    2. Georgia has a taut relationship with Russia, due to:
      • Russia’s military continues to occupy the regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia in northern Georgia since the war in 2008 and considers them both independent territories under Russian control. Since Russia refuses to allow international interference, the issue continues to go unresolved;
      • Although Azerbaijan supplies the vast majority of gas to Georgia, Georgia’s consumption of Russian gas is essential to maintain a diversified gas supply and balance prices;
    3. The standard of living in Georgia is quite low standard irrespective of ongoing investments and developments. As of the latest data of 2017 poverty indicators published by the National Statistics Office of Georgia (Geostat), 21% of the population lived below the poverty line. This might be a major challenge for foreign entrepreneurs as they might find it challenging to adapt to the Georgian economy.

  • Best uses of a Georgian company

    • Georgian international trading companies and international financial companies are tax efficient solutions for Clients with international operations. Such companies can benefit from complete corporate tax exemption on their worldwide income;
    • Clients that wish to explore the Russian market, can consider setting up their operations in Georgia as the country allows easy access to Russia and offers several tax advantages for local companies.

Company registration

  • Time to incorporate: Four weeks
  • Cost to set up: US$11,550
  • Minimum capital: US$1
  • Physical office required: Yes

Required appointments

  • Shareholders: 1
  • Directors: 1
  • Company secretary: No
  • Resident director: No

Key facts

  • Corporate tax rate: 15%
  • Corporate tax base: Worldwide
  • Shelf companies: No
  • Main company type: LLC

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Useful links for Georgia

Contact us

For additional information on our company registration services in Georgia, please contact our in-house country expert, Mr. Seth Ochieng, directly:
client relationship officer - Seth
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