In addition to the strategy itself, you must consider the legal side of beginning a business. Do you want to register a private business or a company? If a business, is it a public firm, LLC, CJSC, or OJSC? Organizations, both for-profit and nonprofit purposes, must register. You can register yourself, or you can hire a lawyer to handle it for you.
The benefits of opening a business in Armenia
Starting a business has various benefits and drawbacks regardless of the nation. The laws of Armenia tend to favor the advantages. The time needed to register a company is frequently less than one business day. Low registration fees apply. There is no set amount of money needed to launch a firm. There aren’t many annual reporting requirements. There are tax exemptions for small and medium-sized businesses, and business taxes are often cheap. There are neither linkages with regional banks nor requirements for local directors or personnel. There are no limits regarding nationality, and a local shareholder is not required.
Differences in company formation
Here are some of the different company formations.
LLC
Limited liability companies, or LLCs, are frequently SMBs in Armenia. There is no requirement for minimum share capital, shareholders’ liability is limited to the number of their investments, at least one investor must be present, and shareholder meetings should take place annually at a predetermined time, but they can be held remotely and involve written votes. A board of directors is not required, nor does the manager need to be a shareholder or have Armenian citizenship. Shareholders may leave the company whenever they want and collect the value of their shares. If the company’s manager is a visitor whose stay in Armenia will exceed the duration of their visa, they should apply for temporary residency. Without a work permit, an ordinary visa holder may work for up to the duration of the visa, but no longer. In such circumstances, a request for temporary or permanent residency is required.
JSC
While a JSC, or joint-stock company, operates similarly to an LLC in Armenia, there are certain distinctions in ownership, exit strategy, and managerial specifics. The shareholders are only responsible for the number of their contributions, and the annual meeting can take place anywhere in the world with a proxy. The share capital can be represented by common or preferred shares, voting or non-voting shares, and at least one investor is required. A board of directors with at least three members is necessary for businesses with 50 or more shareholders. An annual account, including an annual report, the balance sheets, and the profit/loss accounting, must be authorized at the shareholder meeting within six months of the end of the fiscal year in both the cases of an LLC and a JSC. In terms of an annual accounting, publicly traded corporations are subject to different legislation, while larger businesses with annual revenues greater than 1 billion AMD are subject to additional reporting and publishing requirements. An external auditor must evaluate non-cash contributions, and in the case of an OJSC, shares may be freely traded to third parties.
Armenian tax rates
Armenia has a global tax base with a flat corporate tax rate of 20%. This is true for both domestic businesses and subsidiaries or branches of international corporations. There is also a turnover tax, which has the following rates: 1% for trade, 3.5% for manufacturing, and 5% for all other activities. This is not required. You can choose between profit tax plus VAT and turnover tax. If your yearly sales are under 115 million AMD, you are not eligible to choose turnover tax. Property and land taxes are due if your business owns any real estate. Up to 120,000 AMD in gross income, employee income tax is 24.4%; between 120,000 AMD and 2,000,000 AMD, it is 26% + 29,280 AMD; and between 2,000,000 AMD and 518,080 AMD, it is 36% +. The 20% VAT and this can both be paid online.
