Starting a Business in Afghanistan

This section identifies the bureaucratic and legal hurdles an entrepreneur must overcome to incorporate and register a new firm in Afghanistan.

The country data appearing on this page was collected as part of the Doing Business project, which measures and compares regulations relevant to the life cycle of a small- to medium-sized domestic business in 183 economies. The most recent round of data collection for the project was completed in June 2009.

The table below provides a summary of the procedures and the associated completion time and cost for setting up a standardized company. The table is followed by additional country-specific information on business registration requirements.

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Standardized company

Legal Form: Private Limited Liability Company
City: Kabul

Registration Requirements Summary:


  Procedure Time to complete: Cost to complete:
1 Register at the Afghanistan Central Business Registry (ACBR) and obtain Tax Identification Number (TIN) 1 day included in procedure 2.
2 Pay registration and publication fees at Da Afghanistan Bank (DAB) branch 1 day AFN 500 (registration) + AFN 1,000 (publication)
3 Obtain business license from AISA 5 days USD 100
*4 Receive inspection (AISA) 1 day (simultaneous with previous procedure) no charge
* Takes place simultaneously with another procedure.

Registration Requirements Details

Procedure 1.
Register at the Afghanistan Central Business Registry (ACBR) and obtain Tax Identification Number (TIN)
Time to complete:
1 day
Cost to complete:
included in procedure 2.
Name of Agency:
Comment:
The applicant must provide the following documents to register:

• An application form (available online)
• Copy of ID or passport of the Director(s)
• 2 sets of color passport photographs of Director(s)
• Articles of Incorporation

Specifications of all new businesses and investments are collected by the ACBR office and sent to the Ministry of Justice in Kabul for publication in the Official Gazette. The text is drafted by the ACBR. Businesses can draft their own text if they would like to do so. The gazette entry will include, at a minimum, the following information:

• Name of the company
• Name of the president and vice president of the company
• Location
• Initial Capital
• Type of Operation
• Type of Activity
Procedure 2.
Pay registration and publication fees at Da Afghanistan Bank (DAB) branch
Time to complete:
1 day
Cost to complete:
AFN 500 (registration) + AFN 1,000 (publication)
Name of Agency:
Comment:
The ACBR issues a bill, which can be paid at the DAB branch in Kabul.
Procedure 3.
Obtain business license from AISA
Time to complete:
5 days
Cost to complete:
USD 100
Name of Agency:
Comment:
Obtaining business license is done at the Afghanistan Investment Support Agency (AISA)
Procedure 4.
Receive inspection (AISA)
Time to complete:
1 day (simultaneous with previous procedure)
Cost to complete:
no charge
Name of Agency:
Comment:
AISA visits the company premises to check its equipment and activities. If the inspection results are fully satisfactory, AISA representative will write up the report on site, give the entrepreneur a copy, and place a public copy on file at AISA.