Choose the legal form of business activity
You can decide to go it alone or to start a company.
As a sole proprietor you can choose to practice as an entrepreneur without organized accounting or with organized accounting.
If you choose to start a company, the options are:
- Private limited company (minimum 2 partners)
- Single shareholder limited liability company (1 partner)
- Public Limited Company
Opting for partnership must be defined prior to incorporation
Object of the company: You must define and put in writing the activities that the company will develop or expects to develop.
Partners: Define the number of partners and their percentage of the capital.
Headquarters: This will be the company’s mailing address and tax headquarters.
Capital stock: Define the capital stock of the company. There is no minimum or maximum value, although some activities subject to special licensing may require a minimum amount of capital stock. It is always suggested that the minimum share capital should be reasonable.
Manager: The partnership will need to have at least 1 manager. It can be one of the partners or someone external to the company.
Incorporation of the company
Incorporate the company online: The online company allows the creation of sole proprietorship, private limited company and limited liability company with the use of a digital certificate, and the citizen card and the qualified digital signature associated with it can be used.
Forming the company on the spot: At the on-the-spot company desks, it is possible to form a sole proprietorship, limited liability company or a public limited company, simply by the partners bringing all the necessary documents with them. This is a very simple and fast process and all the necessary procedures can be followed in a short period of time.
Setting up the company in the traditional way: Setting up the company this way involves a series of steps in different entities and at different times, such as: applying for the certificate of admissibility, depositing the company’s share capital, preparing the memorandum and articles of association, filing the declaration of commencement of activity, and social security registration and enrollment
Start Activity
Before getting ready to start trading, it is necessary to comply with one more legal obligation. The Central Register of the beneficial owner (RCBE) must be made, which is nothing more than the information about the beneficial owners of the company, namely the natural persons who directly or indirectly own the share capital and the managers or directors of the company.
After the company is incorporated, it is necessary to open a bank account in the name of the company and deposit the amount of the share capital. You can choose to deposit the capital within 5 days after incorporation or by the end of the fiscal year.
The declaration of commencement of activity must be filed within 15 days after the date of incorporation of the company. The declaration of commencement of activity is delivered by the certified accountant on paper or online to the Tax Authority.
Only then can the company begin economic activity, with purchases, sales, and other expenses inherent to it.
Helpful links:
A guide for your business: https://eportugal.gov.pt/en/inicio/espaco-empresa/guia-a-a-z
Company on the spot: https://justica.gov.pt/Servicos/Empresa-na-Hora
Online company: https://eportugal.gov.pt/en-GB/espaco-empresa/empresa-online
Financing Portal: https://financiamento.iapmei.pt/inicio/home
Support for company creation: https://www.iefp.pt/empreendedorismo
