Eritrea

Starting a Business in

Eritrea

Listed below is a detailed summary of the bureaucratic and legal hurdles an entrepreneur must overcome in order to incorporate and register a new firm, along with their associated time and set-up costs.  It examines the procedures, time and cost involved in launching a commercial or industrial firm with up to 50 employees and start-up capital of 10 times the economy's per-capita gross national income (GNI).

The information 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 2011.

  • Standardized Company

  • Legal Form: Private Limited Liability Company
  • City: Asmara

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No. Procedure Time to Complete Associated Costs
1 Deposit initial capital in bank account

The minimum capital requirement is ERN 15,000 for a private limited liability company and ERN 50,000 for a share company.
1 day no charge
2 Search for company name

The search is conducted at the Commercial Registry.
2 days no charge
3 Notarize company statutes

At this point, the memorandum and articles of association will have been signed by the shareholders, and a stamp duty will have been paid.
3 days ERN 715.2
4 Register with the Commercial Registry

To Register with the Commercial Registry, five or six copies of the memorandum and articles of association must be submitted at the License Department of the Ministry of Trade and Industry.
7 days no charge
5 Incorporation notice published in official journal

An incorporation notice is published (in both Arabic and English) in the official journal, Hadas Eritrea, announcing the company incorporation. Protestors have 30 days to contest the company’s incorporation and name.
33 days ERN 600 –1000
6 Apply for tax identification number at the Inland Revenue Department

Once the company registers at the Inland Revenue Department for the taxpayer identification number, it is recognized as a VAT taxpayer.
7 days 450
7 Obtain tax clearance from Inland Revenue Department


1 day no charge
8 Apply for business license at Ministry of Trade and Industry

A business license application requires tax clearance and property title documents. The cost of the business license ranges from ERN 500 to ERN 1,000.
14 days ERN 500
* 9 Receive business license inspection from Ministry of Trade and Industry

The business license inspection, required for zoning purposes, may take only a day, but it also will take a day to set up an appointment.
7 days (included in previous procedure) ERN 500
10 Obtain approval from local municipality


2 days ERN 100-500
11 Notify Ministry of Labor and Human Welfare

All companies must notify the Ministry of Labor and Human Welfare by completing the registration form and submitting it to the Ministry for approval.
1 day no charge
12 Make a company seal

The practice is not regulated, but the seal will include the tax code for the company.
3 days ERN 400 - 800
13 Apply for tax receipts from the Inland Revenue Department

The company may either print the receipts directly at the Inland Revenue Department or obtain permission to print them itself.
10 days ERN 200 for 10 packs of receipts
* Takes place simultaneously with another procedure.
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