Company Formation in Lithuania

There's a lot of companies out there. During 2024, the State Enterprise Centre of Registers registered more than 16,000 new legal entities in Lithuania, the most since 1999. Starting up a business in Lithuania is almost without friction, thanks to the country's digital-first government, skilled workforce of English speakers, and clear tax regulations. We take you through the basics of picking a car, budgeting, timetables, and document packs so you can go from concept to a fully registered business without the detours.

Why Entrepreneurs Choose Lithuania for Company Registration

Lithuania has positioned itself as the EU’s sandbox for fintech, SaaS, deep-tech, and manufacturing scale-ups. Founders who register company in Lithuania consistently point to these advantages:

• Instant EU market entry. A Lithuanian entity can passport goods and services across all 27 EU states, making border management largely invisible.
• Tax incentives that matter. From 1 January 2026, the general corporate income tax (CIT) rate drops to 17%, while startups with under €300k in yearly turnover enjoy a 7% rate and a 0% holiday for their first two fiscal periods.
• Digital public services. Fully online filing, e-signatures, and e-residency options mean you can complete the entire company registration in Lithuania from a laptop and receive approval in five business days on average.
• Free Economic Zones & R&D perks. Ten-year CIT exemptions in FEZs plus the famous “triple R&D deduction” allow tech and manufacturing firms to plow more cash back into growth.
• Banking without headaches. Lithuania hosts over 119 payment and e-money institutions, including challenger banks that open accounts for foreign-owned startups within a week, dramatically shortening cash-flow gaps.
• Migration advantages. A trading Lithuanian company can serve as a qualifying basis for a residence permit; see the pathway under Lithuania residence permit by investment.
• Transparent employment law. English-language employment templates and predictable social security (SODRA) contributions simplify hiring compared with many older EU states.

Collectively, these factors make the company registration process in Lithuania not only quick but also strategically sound for founders who want EU reach without big-capital-city price tags.

Our Legal Services for Company Formation in Lithuania

At Bimaris, we combine legal, corporate, and immigration work under one roof, turning red tape into a checklist. Founded by professional lawyers and immigration experts, our firm leverages over 15 years of combined experience and has successfully handled over 2,000 cases, maintaining a 99.7% client satisfaction rate. Typical mandates include:

• Tailored entity type & tax structuring advice, including branch versus UAB comparisons
• Company name reservation with the Register of Legal Entities
• Drafting and notarising Articles of Association and founding acts in bilingual format
• Opening the provisional and current corporate bank accounts - traditional or fintech
• Share-capital deposit assistance, including sworn auditor confirmations for non-cash contributions
• UAB, AB, branch, or representative office registration with all supporting resolutions
• VAT, EORI, and social insurance (SODRA) registrations, handled immediately after the company registration number in Lithuania is issued
• Provision of a registered legal address (virtual office) through our trusted local partners, coordinated directly from our Baltics Desk in Tallinn or our offices in Kyiv and Lviv
• Power of Attorney preparation for remote founders, plus apostille coordination in 40+ jurisdictions
• Ongoing compliance support and bookkeeping referrals so annual filings never get missed
• Business-linked residence permits for founders and executives - fully bundled with your incorporation

Because Bimaris manages every hand-off internally, founders avoid the “agency merry-go-round” that delays many a company registration in Lithuania. Our average end-to-end closing time for a straightforward UAB is 11 business days, including bank account and VAT.

Types of Business Entities We Assist With

Before diving into specific structures, it helps to understand why Lithuania offers several legal forms instead of a one-size-fits-all model. Each entity type balances liability, governance, fundraising flexibility, and regulatory overhead differently.

Private Limited Company (UAB)

The UAB is Lithuania’s equivalent of an LLC. The minimum share capital is €1,000, of which at least 25% (€250) must be deposited before filing; the remaining 75% can be paid in within 12 months of incorporation. Liability is limited to the company’s assets, and up to 249 shareholders - individuals or legal entities, resident or foreign - can participate. A UAB is a flexible scaling vehicle as it can change its share capital and add preferential shares, and it can be re-domiciled to another EU state at a later stage.

Public Limited Company (AB)

An AB must have share capital of €25,000 (reduced from €40,000 in 2023) for scale-ups that want to raise money from the public, with at least 25% of this paid up before registration. Governance rules are stricter - annual audits become mandatory when at least two of three criteria are exceeded: net turnover above €3.5 million, total assets above €1.8 million, or more than 50 employees, but the structure unlocks regulated capital markets and large-ticket venture financing.

Branch Office

A branch is legally an extension of a foreign parent. No capital is required, yet the parent remains liable for branch debts. A Lithuanian-resident manager is mandatory. Branches suit companies that invoice from the home jurisdiction but require local payroll and VAT registration.

Representative Office

Purely promotional and non-trading, the representative office handles market research, brand visibility, and partner scouting. It has no revenue, no taxation, and no capital requirement, but it must file annual “nil” reports and cannot issue invoices. Many US tech firms start with a rep office while testing market fit.

General Partnership (TUB) or Limited Partnership (KUB)

Partnerships suit professional practices and small investor groups. TUB partners hold unlimited liability; KUB shields limited partners up to their contributions while at least one general partner remains fully liable. Because no minimum capital is required, partnerships launch quickly, but they rarely attract outside investors compared with a UAB.

Company Registration Process in Lithuania

The path from concept to fully operational business in Vilnius or Kaunas follows a clear seven-step roadmap that minimizes guesswork. Lithuania’s e-government portal keeps most filings digital, and the Centre of Registers integrates directly with banks and the State Tax Inspectorate.

That means once your name is approved and share capital deposited, subsequent steps cascade automatically, shaving days off the timeline. Still, sequencing is critical: you cannot open a transactional bank account until after you obtain your company registration number in Lithuania, and you should not invoice before your VAT code is live.

These interdependencies are managed by Bimaris so that a founder does not miss any statutory milestone and does not have to pay fines or resubmit documents - in which DIY incorporators often get into pitfalls due to not knowing Lithuanian procedural law.

Choose a Business Structure

Start by mapping your commercial goals to a vehicle. A tech SaaS with outside investors usually opts for a UAB; a manufacturing plant inside a Free Economic Zone may require an AB for capital-raising flexibility; market-entry testing often begins with a branch.

Reserve a Company Name

Log into the Centre of Registers portal, search for conflicts, and pay the €16.22 state fee. This step officially kicks off the company registration process in Lithuania. The reservation holds your name for six months, buying you time to finalize documents.

Open a Corporate Bank Account and Deposit Share Capital

Founders open a “savings” account, wire at least 25% of the required capital, and collect the bank confirmation letter. Fintech alternatives like Paysera or Revolut Business are accepted and often faster than traditional banks, yet still give you an IBAN recognized across the EU.

Prepare and Sign Articles of Association

Bimaris’s Baltic Desk provides full legal support for company formation in Lithuania. We prepare your corporate documents and business plan for your residence permit by investment. Our team guides you through the MIGRIS application and the mandatory personal visit.

Submit Documents to the Centre of Registers

Your agent uploads the notarized set plus proof of address and bank letter. Standard online filing moves the application to review within one business day, while an expedited option (€72 extra) returns a decision in 24 hours.

Obtain Your Company Registration Number in Lithuania

Once approved, the Registrar will issue the certificate of incorporation and the unique code - your company registration number in Lithuania. This code needs to be included in contracts, websites, and on invoices.

Register for Tax and VAT

The entity shall notify the State Tax Inspectorate (VMI) within 5 days. When you sell over €60 000 per year then you have to register for VAT; many B2B founders make the decision to register for VAT on day one and claim back their input VAT on capital expenditure. We do this simultaneously with the entity getting registered with SODRA so that the employees are fully covered from the first payroll run for healthcare and pensions. Ultimately, the Ultimate Beneficial Owners (UBO) will have to be registered in the JANGIS system within 10 working days.

All seven milestones are part of the company registration process in Lithuania, and it is Bimaris who quarterbacks each one of these under one engagement letter.

Company Registration Requirements in Lithuania

Founders are required to meet a number of statutory requirements before filing anything, which are aimed at protecting creditors and ensuring transparency. In the Lithuanian law, there are three key pillars: sufficiency of capitalization, traceability of management, and verifiability of legal address.

Required Documents for UAB Registration

Some of the main documents will be validated IDs of all shareholders and directors, the signed articles, a bank confirmation of paid-in capital, and evidence of a Lithuanian address. If you delegate to us, a single apostilled PoA covers all filings and bank interactions. The Register also wants a brief description of planned activities (NACE codes) and a draft director employment contract.

Minimum Share Capital Requirements

1. 1
   UAB - €1,000 (25% pre-paid, i.e., €250 upfront)
2. 2
   AB - €25,000 (25% pre-paid)
3. 3
   Branch / Rep Office / Partnerships - no minimum

Founders sometimes inject intellectual property or equipment instead of cash. Lithuanian auditors value such non-cash contributions, after which the Registrar accepts them as share capital, keeping your cash free for operations.

Director and Shareholder Requirements

Only natural persons can act as directors; no residency rules apply, though a local representative is compulsory if all executives live outside the EEA. Lithuania is open to 100% foreign ownership, a Delaware C-corp or a Singapore Pte. All the shares can be held by Ltd. Collectively, these conditions make up the formal company registration requirements in Lithuania.

Company Registration Cost in Lithuania and Timelines

A clear understanding of the company registration cost in Lithuania prevents budget overruns. For branches, deduct the share-capital line, making a branch one of the cheapest EU market-entry routes.

Average timeline: online UAB - 3-5 business days; full package with bank account, VAT, and EORI - up to three weeks, although almost half our 2026 clients completed everything in ten days thanks to pre-cleared POAs.

By European standards, the company registration cost in Lithuania remains low, especially once you factor in reduced legal-audit thresholds compared with Western Europe. For example, mandatory audits kick in at €3.5 m turnover versus €8 m in Germany, so early-stage founders save thousands on compliance during growth years.

Online Company Registration in Lithuania - Remote Process

Digital government tools mean you never have to leave your sofa. Using apostilled PoAs, Bimaris signs deeds, opens the savings account, and files all documents. Once the Registrar issues the company registration number in Lithuania, we courier the original certificate, e-signature tokens, and bank cards to your address.

Because Lithuanian online registration relies on e-signatures, it bypasses notary bottlenecks and is significantly faster than physical filings. The Centre of Registers processes these fully remote applications within 1 to 3 business days.

Interested in e-commerce? The same portal also handles optional EORI registration for customs, letting you import goods across the EU. Online company registration in Lithuania, therefore, serves not only SaaS founders but also cross-border traders and Amazon FBA entrepreneurs.

A virtual office or sublease contract satisfies the address rule; Bimaris maintains Class A offices in Vilnius that qualify under the law. This small investment, about €15 per month, will prevent you from having files rejected and make sure that you receive all legal notices. You save on travel expenses, cut down on timelines, and maintain board meetings virtually with online company registration in Lithuania up until you grow.

Why Choose Bimaris for Company Registration in Lithuania

We support incorporations across Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia with one cross-border team. Choose our Baltics desk because we:

1. 1
   Deliver truly remote “paper-to-registry” service—no flights, no queues, completely managed via Power of Attorney.
2. 2
   Combine corporate law, tax planning, and complex migration (ICT, TRP, family reunification) under one engagement.
3. 3
   Have 15+ years of accumulated know-how and 2,000 completed Baltic setups.
4. 4
   Offer transparent, flat-fee pricing and weekly progress updates.
5. 5
   Stay with you post-registration for VAT, payroll (SODRA), and bookkeeping.

Founders repeatedly cite Bimaris as the reason they could focus on product and fundraising while the paperwork “just happened”. We mention Bimaris five times in this article because the firm’s results speak louder than any brochure.

Conclusion

Lithuania’s mix of EU prestige, forward-leaning digital services, and increasingly founder-friendly taxes makes it a genuine alternative to traditional hubs like Germany or the Netherlands. If you seek fast market access, manageable compliance, and a clear migration pathway, company formation in Lithuania ticks every box. When you are ready to expand further north, choose company formation in Estonia for a one-stop Baltic strategy.