Lithuania

Starting a Business in

Lithuania

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: Vilnius

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No. Procedure Time to Complete Associated Costs
1 Open bank account with minimum capital and get a bank certificate proving the availability of the funds; pay the registration fee and obtain the document evidencing the payment

Some banks apply charges of (LTL 15–30) for issuing a bank certificate, which evidences payment of share capital. The ordinary issuance of a bank certificate costs LTL 15 and urgent issuance of a bank certificate costs LTL 30.
1 day LTL 15
2 Notarize the agreement /memorandum of incorporation and bylaws; notarize the application for the registration of the private limited liability company

Under the resolution establishing the Company Register, the notary public must verify all registration documents, including documents on establishing branches and representative offices for all foreign legal persons. Previously, the notary verified only the founding act and the founders’ signatures on the articles of association. Notarial fees have thus increased. The notarial fee for verifying legal compliance of registration documents for a limited liability company ranges from LTL 250 to LTL 800, but range around LTL 500 on average.
2 days LTL 500
3 Register at the Company Register, including registration with State Tax Inspectorate (the Lithuanian Revenue Authority) for corporate tax, VAT, and State Social Insurance Fund Board (SODRA)

To register for VAT, corporate tax, and social security insurance, the company must file the following documents:
- Application for company registration.
- Memorandum and articles of incorporation (certified).
- License, if applicable.
- Minutes of the statutory meeting.
- Company bylaws (certified).
- Corporate decisions on the appointment of directors.
- Receipt for registration fee payment.


3 days LTL 198
4 Complete VAT registration

A company must be registered as a corporate taxpayer within 5 days of registering with the Enterprise Registry. The Registry automatically forwards the relevant information to the Tax Office (see comment for Procedure 3). A single form must be filed with the Tax Registration Office to register. This form covers all taxes, except VAT and social security tax. VAT registration requires the completion of another application form at the same office.

The company must be registered as a VAT payer if its annual turnover is more than LTL 100,000 (about EUR 30,000). To register as a VAT payer, the company must file a special application, Form FR 0388, with the Tax Registration Office either in person or electronically. If the company's annual turnover does not exceed LTL 100,000, it may voluntarily register as a VAT payer. Foreign legal entities must be registered as VAT payers unless they engage in any activity (a) that is not a VAT object in Lithuania; (b) is liable for 0% VAT in Lithuania; or (c) for which VAT on goods delivered or services rendered by a foreign taxable person is chargeable on the purchaser or customer residing in Lithuania.
VAT payer must be registered at State Tax Inspectorate within 7 business days (10 calendar days). However, the company may be required to present additional documents and in such cases the process of registration as a VAT payer may take longer.

 10-15 days no charge
5 Open a settlement bank account (to handle normal commercial transactions)

Open a bank account
1 day no charge
6 Obtain the official seal of the company

Make a company seal
2 days LTL 30-90
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