How to register a company (SIA) in Latvia, step by step
This guide follows a Latvian SIA from the founders' first decision to its VAT number. Each step shows the official fee, the processing time the Register publishes or the law sets, and the part that depends on your own route.
Choose the right SIA before you pay in the capital
Latvia's limited liability company comes in a standard form and a reduced-capital form.
The SIA (sabiedrība ar ierobežotu atbildību) is Latvia's private limited liability company, the local equivalent of an LLC or a Ltd. Founders and shareholders of a standard SIA can be natural or legal persons, resident in Latvia or not (Register of Enterprises). Once it is registered for VAT with the State Revenue Service (VID), it invoices with a Latvian VAT number.
Standard SIA, EUR 2,800 of capital
The minimum share capital is EUR 2,800 (Commercial Law, art. 185). It can be paid in cash or as a contribution in kind, which has to be valued. A company can be a shareholder, so this is the form for a group structure. The capital is not a fee: it sits in the company's account as company money.
Reduced-capital SIA, below EUR 2,800
Allowed under art. 185.1 only while every condition holds: 1 to 5 founders and members, all natural persons, every board member also a member, and no member holding a second company of this kind. The capital is paid in cash and a share is worth at least 1 cent. Each year at least 25% of the profit goes to a mandatory reserve before any dividend. If a condition stops being met, the capital must reach EUR 2,800 within 3 months, and on insolvency the members are jointly liable up to the missing amount. It cannot use the microenterprise tax regime (Register of Enterprises).
Keep profit in the company and the corporate tax is 0%
Latvia taxes company profit when it is paid out, not while it stays in the business.
Corporate income tax in Latvia is 0% on profit the company retains and reinvests. The tax falls due when profit is distributed, mainly as dividends. Money that stays in the company to pay for stock, staff, equipment or a reserve carries no corporate tax for as long as it stays there (VID).
The 20% rate applies to a gross base: take the net dividend and divide it by 0.8. Put simply, the tax equals 25% of the net amount paid to the shareholders. Profit left inside the company is taxed at 0%, however long it stays there.
Since 2026, a company owned only by natural persons can opt for 15% corporate tax on dividends, on a base of the net dividend divided by 0.85, plus 6% personal income tax on those dividends. That adds up to about 20.1% of gross profit, against 20% in the standard regime, so the option does not lower the total tax (Ministry of Finance). The microenterprise tax is not open to an SIA either: it is for sole traders and individual merchants.
Treat the 0% as a deferral. The 20% waits for the day profit leaves the company, so a plan that pays out most of the profit every year gains little from it. Your own tax as a shareholder depends on where you are tax-resident, which is a separate question from where the company is registered. How the two fit together is explained on the page about our tax optimisation service.
Every fee, time and condition in one table
The official figures, with the source for each row. Every row is explained further down the page.
| Item | What the rules say | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Company type | SIA (sabiedrība ar ierobežotu atbildību), the Latvian limited liability company | Register of Enterprises |
| Founders | Natural or legal persons, resident or not; natural persons only for the reduced-capital SIA | Register of Enterprises |
| Share capital | EUR 2,800 for the standard SIA; less only for the reduced-capital SIA, under conditions | Commercial Law, art. 185 and 185.1 |
| Capital payment | In full, before filing, into a payment account in the name of the company being founded | Commercial Law, art. 146 and 147 |
| Signing | Latvian secure e-signature online, or notary-certified signatures and documents sent by post | Register of Enterprises |
| State fee | EUR 75; EUR 225 for faster processing with two or more founders; EUR 20 for the reduced-capital SIA | Cabinet Regulation No. 583 |
| Register processing time | 1 to 3 working days with one founder; 3 working days with two or more; 1 working day with the EUR 225 fee | Register of Enterprises |
| VAT registration | Can be filed with the company application; VID decides within 5 working days of receiving it | VAT Law, art. 66 |
| Beneficial owners | Declared in the application; any change filed with the Register within 14 days | AML law, art. 18.2 |
| Corporate tax | 0% on retained profit; 20% on the gross distribution, which is 25% of the net dividend | VID |
Latvia is in the EU and the eurozone. An SIA is an ordinary Latvian company, registered with the Register of Enterprises and taxed by VID. If you want the case for the country before the mechanics, see why Latvia.
Register from abroad with the signing route that fits you
No residence is required. How you sign decides how the file reaches the Register.
You do not need to live in Latvia or hold Latvian citizenship to found or own an SIA. The Register does not ask you to come in person either: the application is filed online or by post, and the founders can authorise another person to submit it. What changes from one founder to the next is how the documents get signed.
With a Latvian secure e-signature
If every signatory has a Latvian eID card, an eParaksts card or eParaksts Mobile, the documents are signed in the e-service or with a secure e-signature and a time stamp. Those signatures need no notary, and the state fee is paid in the e-service at registrs.ur.gov.lv while the application is prepared.
Without one: notary, apostille, translation
A notary certifies the signatures and the documents go to the Register by post. Public documents issued abroad are legalised, in practice with an apostille, and come with a notarised translation into Latvian. A power of attorney to sign for you must itself be notarised (Commercial Law, art. 9). Notary, apostille and translation costs depend on the country and the provider.
Two things still tie the company to Latvia. Its legal address must be a property in Latvia with a cadastral designation, where the company can be reached and has a legal basis to be. And owning the company is separate from being tax-resident there: personal tax residence comes from a declared address in Latvia or at least 183 days of presence in a 12-month period, and a tax treaty can settle a dual residence. The details are on our page about Latvian tax residence.
Riga, Latvia
Nine steps from the founders' decision to the VAT number
The official fee and time sit on each step. The time before filing depends on your signing route and your capital account.
Decide who founds the company and who sits on the board
Founders and shareholders can be natural or legal persons, resident or not. Choose the board members at the same time: each one gives a written consent that goes in the file. If a company will be a shareholder, plan for its register extract from its home country, legalised (in practice with an apostille) and translated into Latvian with a notarised translation.
Choose the standard or the reduced-capital SIA
The standard SIA needs EUR 2,800 of share capital. The reduced-capital SIA can have less, but only with 1 to 5 founders and members who are all natural persons, a board made up of members, and one such company per member. A company shareholder rules it out. Settle the company name here too, since it goes into the founding documents.
Pay in the capital before you file
Since 1 July 2023, the capital set in the founding agreement is subscribed and paid in full before the application is filed (art. 146). It goes to a payment account opened in the name of the company being founded (art. 147), so that account comes first. A contribution in kind must be valued. A certificate from the payment service provider is needed only when cash contributions exceed EUR 50,000; below that, the founders confirm in the application that the account was opened and the capital paid.
Assemble the documents for the file
The application, signed by all founders, carries the founding agreement or decision and the articles of association, each board member's written consent, the board's notice of the legal address in Latvia, the first section of the shareholders' register and the beneficial owner information. The address notice gives the property's cadastral designation and confirms that the company can be reached there and has a legal basis to be there. Private documents in a foreign language need a certified translation into Latvian.
Sign online or before a notary
With a Latvian secure e-signature (eID card, eParaksts card or eParaksts Mobile) and a time stamp, the signatures need no notary. Without one, a notary certifies them, and documents issued abroad are legalised, in practice by apostille, then translated. This is the step whose length depends most on you: the notary, the apostille office and the translator set the pace, the Register does not.
File the application and pay the state fee
The state fee is EUR 75, EUR 225 for faster processing with two or more founders, and EUR 20 for the reduced-capital SIA. Online, you pay it in the e-service registrs.ur.gov.lv while the application is prepared. By post, you pay first and put the proof of payment in the envelope; a bank transfer can be made 2 days before posting. The Register registers the company only once the fee has reached the Treasury account (Register of Enterprises).
Wait for the Register's decision
The Register publishes these processing times: 1 to 3 working days for an SIA with one founder, 3 working days with two or more founders, and 1 working day with the EUR 225 fee. Its fees page gives no time for the reduced-capital SIA. These are the Register's own published times, and nobody outside the Register can promise its date.
Register for VAT with VID
The VAT application can go to the Register together with the company application (VAT Law, art. 66). VID decides within 5 working days of receiving it. If VID asks about the company's material, technical and financial capacity to carry out the declared activity, it decides within 5 working days of receiving that information, so the VAT number has no fixed date. The domestic registration threshold is EUR 50,000; for an EU-established business selling at a distance to consumers in other member states, the threshold is EUR 10,000. The standard rate is 21%, with reduced rates of 12% and 5% (VID).
Declare the beneficial owners and keep the record current
The beneficial owners are declared in the registration application itself. After registration, any change to them is filed with the Register within 14 days (AML law, art. 18.2). Put that deadline in the calendar on the day a shareholding or control changes hands.
If you want the drafting, the filing and the VAT application prepared with you in English, see company formation in Latvia with Balt Partners. The Register and VID keep their own processing times. What we make clear from the first call is which steps, documents and state fees apply to your case.
Know what you pay, and to whom
The official fees, the money that stays yours, and the costs that depend on your route.
The state fees are set by Cabinet Regulation No. 583. The rest depends on your founders, your signing route and your activity, which is why we quote our service per case instead of posting one price that would not fit every situation.
| Cost line | Amount | Paid to |
|---|---|---|
| State fee | EUR 75; EUR 225 for faster processing with two or more founders; EUR 20 for the reduced-capital SIA | The Treasury, once |
| Share capital | EUR 2,800 for the standard SIA, less for the reduced-capital form | The company's own account, where it stays company money |
| Notary, apostille, translation | Depends on the country and the provider; only on the paper route | Third parties, once |
| Legal address | Depends on the property; the company needs a legal basis to be there | The owner or provider of the address, recurring |
| Bookkeeping | Depends on the number of transactions | A bookkeeper, recurring |
| Formation service | Quoted per case after a call | Balt Partners, confirmed in writing before you commit |
Read the share capital row carefully: it is the largest number in the table and it is not spent. After registration, that EUR 2,800 is working money in the company's account. The service and the recurring bookkeeping depend on your activity, so we put an exact figure in front of you after a short call, as a fixed quote in writing. Ask for yours on the contact page.
Open the capital account first, because the file depends on it
A payment account in the name of the company being founded, at a bank or a payment institution.
In Latvia the account comes before the registration. The Commercial Law asks for the capital to be paid into a payment account opened in the name of the company being founded (art. 147), and the application goes in only once the capital is paid in full. That account can be held by a bank or by a payment institution.
Each provider runs its own checks before it opens an account, and it alone decides whether to open it and when. Nobody can promise that decision or its date, and that includes us. Ask the provider early what it needs from you, because a slow account holds up the whole file.
We help you pick a provider that fits how you sell and get paid, and we prepare the application file with you. More detail is on our bank account service page.
Plan the recurring obligations before the first invoice
What a registered SIA files once it is running.
Once registered, an SIA keeps books, files tax returns and, if it employs people, runs a payroll under Latvian rules.
Bookkeeping and annual accounts
Bookkeeping under Latvian rules and annual financial statements. Plan a Latvian bookkeeper from the first month: every tax return below is built from the books.
VAT returns
Once the company is registered for VAT, it files periodic returns with VID, charges 21% as the standard rate or 12% and 5% where a reduced rate applies, and reports intra-EU supplies under their own rules.
Payroll
Payroll if you put yourself or staff on a Latvian contract: the company withholds social contributions and personal income tax and declares them to VID.
Corporate tax returns
Corporate tax returns that follow the 0/20 model: the company reports, and tax arises mainly when profit is distributed.
None of this is heavy for a small company, but it runs all year. Put the bookkeeping in place before the first invoice goes out.
Old town, Riga
Latvia SIA or Estonia e-Residency: what actually differs
Both tax company profit on distribution. The rest decides it.
Estonia is the usual comparison for anyone weighing a Latvian SIA, most often through its e-Residency programme. Both countries tax company profit when it is distributed rather than while it is retained, so the headline looks like a tie.
| Factor | Latvia SIA | Estonia OÜ (e-Residency) |
|---|---|---|
| Tax on retained profit | 0%, then 20% of the gross distribution when profit is paid out | Also taxed on distribution; the rate has changed in recent years, so check the current one |
| What the status gives you | A Latvian company; personal tax residence is a separate question | A digital ID for Estonian e-services, not residence and not tax residence |
| Signing the founding documents | Latvian secure e-signature, or notary certification and post | The e-resident's digital ID, in Estonian e-services |
| Personal tax on dividends | Set by your own tax residence | Set by your own tax residence |
The point people miss: e-Residency is a login, not a tax status. If you stay resident in another country, its rules still apply to the dividends you take, whichever of the two companies pays them. For a side-by-side of both systems, see Estonia vs Latvia.
Quick answers before you register an SIA
Fees, times, capital and tax, from the official sources.
Yes. Founders and shareholders of a standard SIA can be natural or legal persons, resident in Latvia or not, and no Latvian citizenship is needed. The reduced-capital SIA is the exception: its founders and members must all be natural persons. The documents are signed online with a Latvian secure e-signature, or before a notary and sent by post.
The state fee is EUR 75, or EUR 225 for processing within 1 working day when there are two or more founders, and EUR 20 for a reduced-capital SIA. The standard SIA also needs EUR 2,800 of share capital, which stays in the company's account as company money. Notary, apostille and translation costs arise only on the paper route and depend on the country and the provider. Our service scope depends on the founders, documents, banking route, legal address and accounting, and we confirm it in writing after the first call.
The Register publishes 1 to 3 working days for an SIA with one founder, 3 working days with two or more founders, and 1 working day with the EUR 225 fee. By post, it registers the company only once the fee has reached the Treasury. The time before filing depends on your route: opening the capital account, then the notary, apostille and translations if you have no Latvian e-signature. For VAT, VID decides within 5 working days of receiving the application, or within 5 working days of receiving any information it asks for.
EUR 2,800 for the standard SIA, paid in full before the application is filed, into a payment account in the company's name. A reduced-capital SIA can have less, with each share worth at least 1 cent, but only with 1 to 5 founders and members who are all natural persons, a board made up of members, and one such company per member. It pays its capital in cash, puts at least 25% of each year's profit into a reserve, and must raise its capital to EUR 2,800 within 3 months if a condition stops being met.
The Register does not require it. The application goes in online or by post, and the founders can authorise another person to submit it. With a Latvian secure e-signature everything is signed online; without one, a notary certifies the signatures, and documents issued abroad need an apostille and a translation into Latvian. Banks and payment institutions set their own onboarding rules for the capital account, so ask the provider what it requires.
0% on profit the company keeps, and 20% when profit is distributed, calculated on the gross amount (the net dividend divided by 0.8). That equals 25% of the net dividend. Since 2026, a company owned only by natural persons can choose 15% corporate tax plus 6% personal income tax on dividends, about 20.1% in total, so the option does not lower the tax. Your personal tax depends on where you are tax-resident.
You need a payment account in the name of the company being founded before you file, because the capital is paid into it in full first. A bank or a payment institution can hold it. Each provider decides after its own checks whether and when to open the account. We help you choose one that fits your activity and prepare the application with you.
Both countries tax company profit when it is distributed, so the choice turns on other points. Estonian e-Residency is a digital ID for Estonian e-services, not residence or tax residence. A Latvian SIA is signed with a Latvian e-signature or through a notary, and its tax on distribution is 20% of the gross amount. In both cases your personal tax on dividends follows your own residence, so start from where you live and where the work is done.