Starting a Business in Eritrea

This table summarizes the procedures and costs associated with setting up a business in Eritrea.

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Legal Form: Private Limited Liability Company
City: Asmara

	Procedure	Time to complete:	Cost to complete:
1	Deposit initial capital in bank account	1 day	no charge
2	Search for company name	2 days	no charge
3	Notarize company statutes	3 days	ERN 715.2
4	Register with the Commercial Registry	7 days	no charge
5	Incorporation notice published in official journal	33 days	ERN 600 –1000
6	Apply for tax identification number at the Inland Revenue Department	7 days
7	Obtain tax clearance from Inland Revenue Department	1 day	no charge
8	Apply for business license at Ministry of Trade and Industry	14 days	ERN 500
*9	Receive business license inspection from Ministry of Trade and Industry	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	1 day	no charge
12	Make a company seal	3 days	ERN 400 - 800
13	Apply for tax receipts from the Inland Revenue Department	10 days	ERN 200 for 10 packs of receipts

* Takes place simultaneously with another procedure.

Procedure 1.: Deposit initial capital in bank account
Time to complete:: 1 day
Cost to complete:: no charge
Name of Agency:
Comment:: The minimum capital requirement is ERN 15,000 for a private limited liability company and ERN 50,000 for a share company.

Procedure 3.: Notarize company statutes
Time to complete:: 3 days
Cost to complete:: ERN 715.2
Name of Agency:
Comment:: At this point, the memorandum and articles of association will have been signed by the shareholders, and a stamp duty will have been paid.

Procedure 4.: Register with the Commercial Registry
Time to complete:: 7 days
Cost to complete:: no charge
Name of Agency:
Comment:: 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.

Procedure 5.: Incorporation notice published in official journal
Time to complete:: 33 days
Cost to complete:: ERN 600 –1000
Name of Agency:
Comment:: 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.

Procedure 6.: Apply for tax identification number at the Inland Revenue Department
Time to complete:: 7 days
Cost to complete:
Name of Agency:
Comment:: Once the company registers at the Inland Revenue Department for the taxpayer identification number, it is recognized as a VAT taxpayer.

Procedure 8.: Apply for business license at Ministry of Trade and Industry
Time to complete:: 14 days
Cost to complete:: ERN 500
Name of Agency:
Comment:: 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.

Procedure 9.: Receive business license inspection from Ministry of Trade and Industry
Time to complete:: 7 days (included in previous procedure)
Cost to complete:: ERN 500
Name of Agency:
Comment:: 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.

Procedure 11.: Notify Ministry of Labor and Human Welfare
Time to complete:: 1 day
Cost to complete:: no charge
Name of Agency:
Comment:: All companies must notify the Ministry of Labor and Human Welfare by completing the registration form and submitting it to the Ministry for approval.

Procedure 12.: Make a company seal
Time to complete:: 3 days
Cost to complete:: ERN 400 - 800
Name of Agency:
Comment:: The practice is not regulated, but the seal will include the tax code for the company.

Procedure 13.: Apply for tax receipts from the Inland Revenue Department
Time to complete:: 10 days
Cost to complete:: ERN 200 for 10 packs of receipts
Name of Agency:
Comment:: The company may either print the receipts directly at the Inland Revenue Department or obtain permission to print them itself.