Setting up a company in Andorra

SL or SA: which form should you choose?

The choice depends mainly on the capital to be tied up and on the number of shareholders: Llei 20/2007 provides for two forms of company, the SL and the SA, whose rules are largely the same. The registered office must be located in Andorra (art. 4).

Capital: Llei 20/2007, art. 14 and 15. Fees: the Govern’s “Fase de constitució de la societat” page, consulted on 11 October 2026; these amounts are revised periodically.

The capital is contributed in cash or in kind, never in the form of work or services (art. 17); a contribution in kind is in principle valued by an independent expert. The securities are registered in the name of their real holder: nominees are prohibited (art. 15).

The company is managed by a sole director, several directors or a board of directors.

Without a company, only a regulated profession allows you, when settling in Andorra, to work in your own name (professió titulada). Dedicated guides cover e-commerce, SaaS or online consulting and how to transfer an existing business from France.

SLU and SAU: the single-shareholder company

A company may have just one shareholder: it is then a “single-member” company and adds the letter U to its abbreviation (SLU, SAU), with the same capital rules and, according to the Govern, the same registration fee as the SL or the SA. If a company becomes single-member during its life, the sole shareholder has one month to have this situation entered in the Companies Register, together with their identity; failing that, they are personally, unlimitedly and jointly and severally liable for the debts incurred during that period (Llei 20/2007, art. 2).

Holding company: an SL or an SA used to hold shares

The law provides no specific form for holding companies: a holding company is an SL or an SA whose purpose is to hold equity interests. A company that holds securities is exempt from registering a business licence to prove its effective activity (regulation of 9 April 2025, art. 7), but pays the annual fee for asset-holding companies or companies without a business licence: €851 for an SL, €935.50 for an SA. Taxation, conditions and risks: see our guide to the holding company in Andorra.

Do you need a foreign investment authorisation?

Yes, if you do not reside in Andorra. Llei 5/2025 classifies as direct foreign investment the acquisition by a non-resident of a holding in an Andorran company, including on its incorporation, and makes it subject to prior administrative authorisation (art. 6.1). Only a holding of 10% or less is exempt, provided that foreign investors hold less than 25% of the capital; it must nevertheless be declared.

A person already legally resident in Andorra is not a foreign investor when acquiring shares in a company: the law covers them only for real estate (art. 1.1).

The application is filed online after the company name has been reserved, together with, among other things, a criminal record certificate less than three months old, a CV, a certified copy of the passport and a business plan. The ministry has two months to decide, which can be extended by one month; if there is no response, the application is deemed refused (art. 10).

Cases requiring authorisation, possible refusals, penalties: see our guide to the foreign investment authorisation.

Setting up a company in Andorra from France, without living there

It is possible: none of the texts we have read requires you to reside in Andorra or to have an Andorran shareholder in order to found a company. A non-resident can hold all of its capital, after the prior foreign investment authorisation (Llei 5/2025, art. 6.1). Shares are registered in the name of their real holder: nominees are prohibited, and entries in their name are void (Llei 20/2007, art. 15).

Three limits are worth knowing before you start:

• the company gives you no right to residency, even if you are its director (Llei 5/2025, art. 6.6);
• if it is foreign-owned, it must carry on an effective activity within 18 months, on pain of nullity;
• on the French side, a company managed from France may be taxed there, by virtue of its place of effective management or of a permanent establishment (tax treaty, art. 4 and 5), and a director who remains domiciled in France declares their income there.

Running a company domiciled in Andorra from France is the most exposed configuration: first read what domiciling your company in Andorra involves.

The documents to gather

Each step has its own forms. Here, grouped together, are the documents the Govern requires for a company founded by non-residents; foreign documents given to the notary must be apostilled and, if necessary, translated.

• for each shareholder’s NIA, a certified copy of the passport;
• for the company name, a form with three names, the detailed corporate purpose and the chosen form (SL, SLU, SA or SAU);
• for the foreign investment authorisation, one form per future shareholder or director, with a criminal record certificate less than three months old, an up-to-date CV with photo, a certified copy of the passport or identity card and a business plan: target market, added value, activity, amounts invested;
• for the bank, a know-your-customer (KYC) form per shareholder, in which the matrimonial property regime matters, and the supporting documents required under the anti-money laundering rules;
• for the notary, the company name and investment decisions, the signed articles of association, the bank certificate for the capital, proof of payment of the registration fee and of the professional fees, and the beneficial ownership form;
• after registration, for the tax administration, the forms for corporate income tax (850 A), IGI (900 or 910 A) and the declaration of existence (001 to 001 C).

The 8 steps to set up a company in Andorra

This process follows the Govern’s “Creació d’una empresa a Andorra” page and Llei 20/2007; some steps can be carried out in parallel.

1. 1

   Obtain an NIA and an electronic certificate

   Each non-resident shareholder applies for their administrative identification number (NIA), in person or online, with a certified copy of their passport. The electronic certificate then makes it possible to complete procedures online.

2. 2

   Reserve the company name

   The form proposes three names and precisely describes the activities of the corporate purpose. The fee is €5.69 according to the Govern. The certificate is valid for six months: the company must be registered within that period (regulation of 16 April 2014, art. 61).

3. 3

   Obtain the foreign investment authorisation

   One application for each non-resident shareholder or director, with the file described above. Fee: €300.

4. 4

   Choose the registered office

   An address in one of the seven parishes: a property you have bought, a rented office or a coworking space, the Govern states. The address appears in the articles of association.

5. 5

   Open an account “in formation” and deposit the capital

   The notary must receive a bank certificate confirming the deposit of the capital in the name of the future company (2014 regulation, art. 41). The bank first carries out its checks on identity and on the origin of the funds: see how to open a business bank account in Andorra.

6. 6

   Have the articles of association drafted

   By a professional in Andorran company law. The corporate purpose must match the company name reservation and the foreign investment application.

7. 7

   Sign the deed of incorporation before an Andorran notary

   The Govern lists five notaries in practice. Foreign documents must be apostilled and, if necessary, translated. The registration fee and the notary’s fees are paid before signing, and a form declaring the beneficial owners is submitted.

8. 8

   Have the company entered in the register

   The notary sends the deed to the Companies Register within 15 days; the register enters the company or refuses to do so within the following 15 days (Llei 20/2007, art. 6 bis and 7). The company then acquires legal personality. According to the Govern, the deed and the registration card can be collected 30 days after signing.

After registration: NRT, business licence and CASS

A registered company is not yet entitled to operate: three procedures remain to be completed, in the order indicated by the Govern.

1. 1

   Register with the tax administration and obtain the NRT

   The company registers with the Department of Taxation and Borders (Departament de Tributs i de Fronteres), with the corporate income tax, IGI and declaration of existence forms. It thereby obtains its NRT (número de registre tributari), the single identifier for all State taxes (Llei 5/2014, art. 53; corporate income tax regulation, art. 41).

2. 2

   Reserve the trade name and obtain the business licence

   Any commercial, industrial or service activity must be authorised by the comú (parish council) of the parish, which passes it on to the Govern’s Register of Commerce and Industry. You first reserve a trade name (€5.56 according to the Govern), then file the application for the business licence, for activities consistent with the corporate purpose.

   The procedure is simplified for certain activities and for premises with a public area of 200 m² or less, and ordinary in other cases. The business licence card obtained allows you to start the activity and to issue invoices.

3. 3

   Register with the CASS

   The company registers with the CASS, the Andorran social security system (form CASS-0079), so that it can declare its employees. Its director is affiliated as a self-employed worker: the obligation to pay contributions begins 30 days after entry in the Companies Register. During the first 12 months, the director can apply for the reduced 25% base, i.e. €146.99 a month in 2026, compared with €587.95 on the standard base: see CASS contributions in Andorra.

How long does it take to set up a company in Andorra?

No text sets an overall duration. Here are the known legal or maximum time limits; the actual duration depends on the file and on the administration’s responses. The Govern indicates, for example, that an application for a business licence is usually examined in 2 to 3 weeks.

Maximum or regulatory time limits, not guaranteed durations. Indicative calculation: 3 months at most for the authorisation (2 + 1), 1 month for the deed and the register (15 + 15 days) and 2 months at most for a business licence under the ordinary procedure, i.e. about 6 months if every maximum time limit is reached, excluding the preparation of the file and appointments.

How much does it cost to set up a company in Andorra?

The public fees are known; professional fees, which are freely set, are not: we do not publish any.

Govern amounts checked on 11 October 2026; trade name as recorded on 10 October 2026.

Thereafter, every year, a company without a business licence pays an annual fee of €851 (SL) or €935.50 (SA); a company that operates under a business licence pays only the contribution to the Register of Commerce and Industry, €214.21, according to the Govern. If the company is the basis for your self-employed residency, add the €50,000 payment to the AFA, the Andorran Financial Authority, which is not refundable.

Does setting up a company give you residency?

Self-employed residency, called “residence and work for self-employment”, relies on the company, with additional conditions (Llei 9/2012, art. 38 ter):

• reserve the authorisation, then provide proof within 6 months of the foreign investment authorisation and of the incorporation of a company in which you hold more than 34%;
• sit on the company’s administrative body and exercise effective management there;
• pay €50,000 to the AFA when submitting the application, a sum that is final except in the event of an initial refusal; an exemption exists for certain digital economy, entrepreneurship or innovation projects with high technological value;
• prove within 3 months that the company holds a registered and active business licence;
• for renewal, have resided and worked in Andorra for at least 183 days a year and demonstrate a genuine activity through the company’s income.

These authorisations are subject to quotas: Decree 75/2026 makes 200 residence and work authorisations for self-employment available. The details are in our guide to active (self-employed) residency.

Which status suits you?

Four questions to identify the residency status to look into, and its conditions.

Take the test

After incorporation: taxes, accounts and effective activity

Once set up, the company must:

• pay corporate income tax at 10% every year, file IGI returns and file its accounts: see the accounting and tax calendar of an Andorran company;
• if it is foreign-owned, prove an effective activity within 18 months (registered business licence, accounts filed, at least 75% of the forecasts in the application, account with a bank established in Andorra), on pain of nullity (Llei 5/2025, art. 17): see the evidence of economic substance.