The process of opening a business in Romania is similar with the incorporation process that is applicable at the level of the European Union (EU). As a EU member state, Romania provides similar procedures and one can incorporate the same company types that are available under the EU law.
However, in most of the cases, investors will prefer to register a limited liability company in Romania, as this business form is the most suitable for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). If you are interested in registering a legal entity here or you want to find out what is the best business to start in Romania, our team of Romanian lawyers are ready to assist you with in-depth information.
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Open a business in Romania – the main steps
In order to open a business in Romania, investors will have to follow a set of steps, which are prescribed under the commercial law. The process of opening a company in Romania will start by selecting a suitable company name and obtain a reservation on the respective name. This will ensure that the trading name will respect the national law on the matter and, more importantly, that will be unique at a national level.
Another important step is to prepare the company’s statutory documents. The statutory documents will vary based on the selected company type. For instance, partnerships will be formally recognized under a partnership agreement, while corporate entities will gain legal personality through the articles or association, which is also the case of a limited liability company in Romania. Foreign businessmen interested in registering this company type can address to our Romanian law firm for assistance.
A set of documents, including the statutory documents (the notarized version), will then have to be registered with the Trade Register. Please mind that in order to open a business in Romania, investors have to initiate the process, by addressing a formal request with the Romanian Trade Register.
It is also necessary to know that various documents, such as the articles of association or other statutory documents, can be prepared by our team of Romanian lawyers, but other documents will require the participation of a notary public, as the notary is the sole entity entitled to conclude various legal procedures.
During this process, investors have to register to taxation purposes as well with the National Agency for Fiscal Administration (ANAF). When hiring employees, the company’s founders must also register their employees for social security and health insurance. Besides these, other compulsory incorporation steps can be required, such as obtaining business permits and licenses, a process which can apply based on the economic activity of the company.
What are the highlights of the Romanian economy?
If you want to register a limited liability company in Romania or another legal entity, as a foreigner, you will most likely be interested in finding out some of important figures of the Romanian economy. Below, we have prepared a short list regarding this subject, but more details can be offered by our team of lawyers in Romania as well:
- the gross domestic product (GDP) in Romania is US $245.4 billion, while the GDP per capita is US $12,757.5, according to the World Bank;
- one should also know that the World Bank classified Romania as a high-income country, based on the 2019 data which showed that the income per capita stood at US $12,630;
- in 2019, the foreign direct investment (FDI) flow reached US $5,971 million (in 2017, it stood at US $5,419 million);
- the FDI stock increased from one year to another – in 2017 it was US $90,968 million, in 2018 reached US $92,887 million and in 2019 increased at US $97,095 million;
- the number of greenfield investments also increased in the last years – in 2017 there were 204 projects, in 2018 – 231 projects and in 2019, Romania had 260 greenfield investments.
What is the best business to start in Romania?
Those who are interested in which is the best business to start in Romania should know that the IT and the startup industries provide attractive conditions, not only in terms of taxation, but also when we refer to the talent pool available here. With a large number of specialists and more and more legal entities registered as start-up businesses, Romania has become an important market not only in Europe, but at a global level as well. Here, Bucharest and Cluj stand out as the most important hubs.
The automotive sector is also an important industry; if you are interested to invest in any of these sectors, our team of lawyers in Romania can help in the formalities of registering a local business. We invite you to contact our law firm in Romania for advice and for legal representation.