I’m currently living in Portugal and want to start a company for an app which I expect to have customers worldwide.
I know people can create a company in other countries to the one they currently live in order to get various benefits like lower tax. For example I’ve seen many posts about Delaware or Estonia. But what are the criteria for doing so generally? Do you need to have clients in that country, or do you need to be operating the business from that country (so I would need a cofounder is living in US for instance)?
And could Portugal have their own laws which need to be considered to with regards to this?
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You need to speak with tax expert and an attorney.
The attorney should be in the country where you want to start the Business
Best to you
You need to speak to a tax expert for something with this many landmines. You can have a company mostly anywhere, Portugal will just apply personal tax when you pay yourself a salary. If you have NHR you have several options for optimising things but also there are several countries considered tax havens which have special circumstances.
So if you want to go with a special setup definitely talk to a tax lawyer.
Starting a company in a different country like Delaware in the US or Estonia for lower taxes or other benefits is common, but it’s not just about where your clients are. Key factors include the legal and tax implications in both the country where the company is registered and where you’re resident (Portugal in your case). You don’t necessarily need to operate the business or have a co-founder in that country, but you should consider where your company will be deemed as having its tax residence, which is often where the key management decisions are made.
Portugal will have its own rules about foreign income and companies, especially if you’re a tax resident there. So, if your company is abroad but managed from Portugal, it might still be liable for taxes in Portugal. Each country has different treaties and laws regarding foreign-held companies and income, so it’s essential to consult with a legal and tax expert in both Portugal and the country where you plan to register your company. This will help you navigate the complex legalities and make the most informed decision.While there are parallels and overlaps between countries, in effect each country is going to have its own laws about this; there’s no singular multinational standard. Absolutely talk to a business lawyer or legal expert who has knowledge about the country you’re interested in, or at the very least contact the country’s relevant embassy in Portugal to ask for information/assistance.
Legislation such as GDPR, CCPA, and VCDPA grants users the right to control how data is collected about them by apps and websites. As a result, you must obtain users’ consent before they store, retrieve, or use data stored on individual devices. Basically you have to meet the lowest common denominator.
I don’t see how this relates to my question though…I didn’t ask about user consent for storing data
Apologies if I didn’t interpret the question as you wanted. The headline says what are the country criteria. There’s all sorts of criteria including financial reporting, data privacy, trademark laws, taxes, etc. I chimed in with my knowledge that I thought would be helpful.