The Country
Located in Central Europe, with the major business hubs of Milan, Munich, Vienna, Budapest and Belgrade within 500 kilometres, Slovenia is a member of the European Union (EU), the Eurozone, the Schengen Agreement (free movement of workers), the OECD and NATO. With more than 60% of its territory covered by forests, it is considered one of the greenest, most sustainable, safest and liveable countries in the world. The vast majority of people under 70 speak English and many are proficient in one, two or even three other foreign languages, such as German, Italian, French, Spanish, Russian, Serbian and Croatian.
Establishing a Company (for non-EU Nationals)
This is a fairly straightforward procedure with a manageable amount of bureaucracy, mainly related to proof of evidence of taxes and social security contributions paid and a clean criminal record from the country of the person(s) involved. These must be notarized, apostilled (both in the home country) and then judicially translated into Slovenian (in Slovenia). The entire procedure can be simplified by a lawyer by means of a power-of-attorney.
The minimum share capital has been set at € 7,500.00; the amount can be used to cover the new company’s expenses. The limited liability company, whose partners are not liable for the debts and obligations of the company, is the most common form.
Opening a bank account can be difficult, especially in the case of grey areas, such as crypto currencies and the like. However, the company is free to open a bank account in any country as long as it is reported to the tax authority. As a rule of thumb, the physical presence of the company’s director is required, with online (video) identification being the alternative with a growing number of banks.
Establishing of a company also opens the door for a residence and work permit in Slovenia. However, additional conditions may apply.
Doing Business in Slovenia
Most business activities can be conducted without any permits, certificates or any other bureaucratic approvals.
When considering the costs of running a business, some employment legislation peculiarities, such as a paid 30-minutes respite during workdays and the vacation allowance in the amount of at least the minimum wage, should be considered.
Slovenia surely is no tax heaven, but with some tax planning and optimisation, the tax rates can be brought down to reasonable levels.
There are no per se tax or other incentives or benefits for certain sectors of economy or types of companies (namely, state aids have been strictly regulated throughout the EU). However, there are numerous possibilities for companies in Slovenia to apply for public funding of their projects and operations through tenders, mainly in the fields of green transition, digitalisation, smart cities, electricity production and transportation.
This overview has been provided by Boris
Kozlevčar (Kozlevcar) JK Group,
Legal and Tax consultants Ljubljana, Slovenia
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