Malawi

Starting a Business in

Malawi

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: Blantyre

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No. Procedure Time to Complete Associated Costs
1 Initiate a company name search.

To initiate a company name search, promoters must submit a name application to the Registrar General either in person, which takes a few hours, or by completing a form and submitting it to the Registrar general.
1 day MWK 500
2 Submit application for a Certificate of Incorporation to the Registrar General, Ministry of Justice.

The law provides standard articles of association. The procedure can be done by mail. By law, registration has to be completed in a maximum delay of 21 days.

3-7 days if done in person, 14 days by mail MWK 1,000 + MWK 100 for first MWK 1,000 of capital, and MWK 15 for every MWK 2,000 or part of capital thereafter
3 Register for payment of income tax with the Malawi Revenue Authority

Company promoters must register with the Malawi Revenue Authority by filing the memorandum and articles of association, the certificate of incorporation (copy), and an application letter or completed application for registration form, including the accounting date, the name of a public officer, and the nature of the business. The Malawi government then issues a taxpayer income tax number.
1 day if application is hand delivered no charge
4 Obtain a company seal

Making a seal may take up to a week. Costs depend on the length of the name of the company and the size of the seal.
3-4 days MWK 19,000
* 5 File an application form to obtain a license from the City Assembly

Under the Business Licensing Act, wholesalers must apply for a wholesaler’s license; and retailers, for a retailer’s license. For industrial activities, relevant fees, procedures, and licensing requirements depend on the manufactured goods. Licenses are thus administered by the corresponding ministry. By law, the licensing authority must post notices of application for wholesaler or retailer license for review for 21 days outside the licensing authority’s offices. The Department of Planning checks whether the premises location and business use is consistent with the city code.
29 days including time of publication, simultaneous with procedure 4 MWK 400 Blantyre City Assembly
* 6 Inspection of premises for the issue of the license

The inspectors differ by type of business, but typically, include fire, the environment, and health and hygiene. Scheduling of inspections depends on the nature of the business and the locality. With increasing distance from the inspectors’ offices, the company experiences delays owing to transport constraints, so some companies offer their own transport.
14 days, simultaneous with procedure 5 no charge
* 7 Pay license fee upon approval of license and obtain license

On approval, the license is issued in a couple of days and mailed to the investor.



1 day, simultaneous with procedure 5 20000
* 8 Apply for a registration of the workplace

Promoters must file Form Lab/W/1 (application for registration of workplace), with the Occupational Safety, Health, and Welfare Department of the Ministry of Labor.

Fee schedule for workplace registration:
- Fewer than 20 employees: MWK 1,000.
- 21 to 50 employees: MWK 3,000.
- 51 to 200 employees: MWK 5,000.
- 201 to 500 employees: MWK 10,000.
- More than 500 employees: MWK 15,000.
28 days, simultaneous with procedure 5 MWK 1,000, depends on the number of employees
* 9 Inspection of premises by the Occupational Safety, Health, and Welfare Department


7 days, simultaneous with procedure 5 no charge
* 10 Register for PAYE and fringe benefit tax with the Malawi Revenue Authority by mail

Promoters must file Form P1 (PAYE) and Form FBT1 (fringe benefit tax). On registering for pay-as-you-earn (PAYE) tax, applicants are provided with the following forms: WTF1 (withholding tax certificate); WTF2 (summary of withholding tax); P9 (PAYE certificate of total emoluments and tax deducted); P10 (advice of employees tax deduction certificates issued); P12 (PAYE monthly deduction payment form; and P16 (reconciliation of the number of tax deduction certificates and schedule of tax deductions to be sent to the Inspector of Taxes).
1 day (simultaneous with previous procedure) no charge
* Takes place simultaneously with another procedure.
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