A business company in Portugal with its bank account in Switzerland – from 4,700 EUR

If you are looking for a place in Europe where you could set up a foreign company, we suggest that you consider Portugal. Apart from the possibility to register a company in Portugal remotely, there are several other advantages that this move will have. One of the central benefits that a Portuguese company will bring to you is the opportunity to open a corporate account in a Swiss bank without any trouble.

Why register a company in Portugal?

There are several strong points that make a Portugal resident business company stand out. If you find the following arguments convincing, you should start thinking of establishing your own LLC (or LDA, as it is called in Portugal) in this country:

• It will be a European company, which will give it good reputation by default;
• Establishing a company in Portugal is fast (ten business days maximum);
• There is a possibility to set up a corporate account with a local bank without too much trouble;
• It is even easier to open a bank account for a Portuguese company outside the country;
• Portugal has a transparent taxation system that is easy to understand;
• In comparison to other EU countries, company incorporation and maintenance costs are quite affordable in Portugal;
• Office purchase and rent prices are also attractive, which allows acquiring the necessary economic substance in the country at a low cost.

The most popular form of business proprietorship in Portugal is an LDA company, or a limited liability company. The required registered capital that such a company shall have starts at one euro. It is also possible to set up a sole proprietorship with limited liability in Portugal. These ownership types will suit small- and medium-size businesses very well. Establishing a company in Portugal will let you do business in Europe as well as in any other part of the world.  

The most challenging task involved in company incorporation in Portugal is acquiring a Tax ID. The company owners shall have personal Tax ID’s while the foreign company shall have its corporate Tax ID. In order to acquire this ID you have to have a Portuguese Tax ID holder who will ‘introduce’ you to the country’s tax authorities.

Our company can serve as such introducer (the price of this service is included in the total price) or you can hire somebody else for this purpose. Besides, you can obtain a Portuguese Tax ID if you receive a permanent residence permit in this country. If you would like to establish permanent residency in Portugal before opening a company there, we will gladly assist you in this matter too.

Documents required for company registration in Portugal

In order to register a business company with the Portuguese authorities you will have to supply the following documents:

• A legalized copy of the company owner’s passport;
• A legalized document that will serve as proof of address;
• Articles of Association for the prospective company (we will help you draft this document).

The costs of company formation in Portugal

Registering a company in Portugal costs 4,700 EUR if you select one of the preapproved company names. It will cost 5,900 EUR if you want to use the name of your choice for the company.

One of the peculiarities that the company registration procedure has in Portugal is picking the name for the company. You can come up with a name of your own but apart from the additional cost this will require additional fifteen days for the company to be registered in Portugal.

The following items are included in our company registration service price:

• Company registration and payment of state duties;
• Issuance of the package of corporate documents;
• Registration with the Portuguese tax and social security administrations;
• Provision of online access to the Certificate of commercial registration;
• Provision of the Certificate of commercial registration access card;
• A physical company ID card;
• Acquisition of the tax ID for the company owner;
• Company representative in Portugal services for three months;
• A legal address in Portugal for three months;
• Family Office (Basic) services for three months.

The cost of opening a corporate bank account for the company in Switzerland is also included in the overall service price.

Annual company renewal will cost you 6,750 EUR and this includes maintaining the legal address, accounting services, and access to the Certificate of commercial registration that is equivalent to the Certificate of Good Standing used in other countries.

It is mandatory for a foreign company to have a legal address in Portugal and use accounting services. You also cannot forgo the Tax ID introducer service. You can use the services of some other company if you wish but our price is highly competitive as we offer a combined service of company registration and bank account opening.

Our additional services that come at an additional pay

 In addition to these services, we invite you to use a complex company maintenance service that is called Family Office. Depending on the level, different services are included in the package:

Family office Package (Basic) for 300 EUR per month includes:

• • Legal address;
  • Keeping of original corporate documents, archive, incoming mail scanning, and communication with the accountant (up to five e-mails or phone calls per month);
  • Coordinative work with tax authorities, state agencies and banks (up to five conversations per months).

Family office Package (Medium) for 600 EUR per month includes:

• • Everything found in the Basic Package;
  • 2 hours of consultations or legal work;
  • 2 hours of other administrative work.

Family office Package (VIP) for 1,200 EUR per month includes:

• • Everything found in the Medium Package;
  • Additional 1 hour of consultations;
  • Transfer from the airport to the city and back;
  • Transportation in the city for two days;
  • 3 hours for simple tasks;
  • Unlimited assistance in cooperation with the accountant and the state bodies.

You have to open a corporate bank account within five days since the date of company registration. You also have to deposit the company charter capital into this account. All the other documents including the application for the Tax ID need to be filed within these five days.

Please note that in case you want to open an account with a Portuguese bank, you will have to pay a personal visit to Portugal. However, the country’s spotless reputation allows setting up a bank account in Switzerland and this can be done from the comfort of your home.

A corporate bank account for your Portuguese company: why in Switzerland?

Swiss banks enjoy full respect of the world financial communities. They provide for ample opportunities to develop and grow your business. The banks have earned this sort of reputation by carefully selecting the clients that they work with.

However, this is exactly the reason why respectable banks can be reluctant to open accounts for new clients, those they do not know very well yet. With our experience in establishing bank accounts all over the world, your chances of acquiring a corporate bank account in Switzerland will become extremely high.

In order to open an account in the Swiss bank that we are promoting here, you will have to visit Zurich or have a meeting with a bank representative in another European capital. You will also have to submit the full package of the required documents. This is mandatory when setting up a corporate account with any bank on the planet.  

It is important to realize that your chances of opening a bank account in Switzerland will increase if you are able to explain to the bankers the essence of your business, expose the company structure, and generally show that yours is a reliable company. Respectable financial institutions do not want to run any risks by servicing companies that are engaged in money laundering or some other types of illegal business activities.

Swiss financers boast such unshakable reputation because they are very good at managing their clients’ capitals, very professional at servicing them, and very secure to keep money with. Apart from everything else, Swiss banks provide for the following:

• High level of personal financial information confidentiality;
• High-quality client support in different languages;
• Possibility to access the account remotely;
• 24/7 access to the bank’s website.

However, the most important advantage of having an account with a Swiss bank is the instant opportunity to enter international markets. Your company will grow fast as a Swiss bank account will immediately provide for unlimited respect to it on the part of your business partners.

The bank has some strict limitations related to different aspects of the company operations but bringing a Portuguese company to the bankers’ consideration you will automatically comply with a large number of requirements.

You can open a corporate account in Swiss francs, US dollars, or euros with this bank. On a separate agreement, accounts in other currencies can also be opened there.

You can also set up a current and/ or an investment account in this Swiss bank.

The bank issues the following plastic cards to its clients:

• VISA cards (Classic, Premiere, Prepaid);
• MasterCards (Classic, Premiere);
• American Express cards.

The Swiss bank tariffs

You will have to supply the following documents in order to set up a corporate account with the Swiss bank:

• Company registration certificate;
• Articles of Association;
• Directors’ appointment protocol;
• Certificate of Incumbency;
• Power of attorney in case a trusted agent is going to manage the bank account;
• Passport copies of the company owners, directors, trusted agents, and other beneficiaries.

The procedure of registering a company in Portugal and opening an account in the Swiss bank: main steps

1. If you wish to set up a company in Portugal and a bank account in Switzerland, please inform us about it by contacting us via email [email protected].
2. You will have to describe your case to our specialist so that we can see if we are able to provide this service to you.
3. If we are, you will have to cover the cost of the service that starts at 4,700 EUR and supply the full pack of documents to us.
4. As soon as we receive the payment and the documents, we will launch the company registration and the account opening processes.
5. After just a few days, you will have your company functional and thus you can start doing business from Portugal.

If you would like to ask us certain questions before making the final decision, please do not hesitate to write to us to [email protected]. Combine the spotless reputation of Portugal with the Swiss banking system expertise and acquire a powerful business instrument! We will be happy to assist you in this endeavor.