Starting a Business in Russia
Registration Requirements:
| Procedure | Time to complete: | Cost to complete: |
| Notarize foundation documents | 1 day | coordinate individually |
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Comment: Promoters must notarize the registration application and at least four copies of the charter, the foundation agreement, and the establishment act of a limited liability.
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| Deposit capital in the bank and get proof thereof | 1 day | no charge |
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Comment: At least 50% of the charter capital must be paid before company incorporation. The balance must be paid in the first year of operation. Required documents to open a bank account are (a) the application form and a notarized copy of the charter; (b) a notarized copy of the decision of establishment act of the limited liability company; and (c) a notarized copy of the foundation agreement. The capital deposit requires opening a bank account in the name of the entity to be formed. Depending on the bank, account setup may take more than a day, owing mostly to the bank's client acceptance procedures.
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| Pay registration fee | 1 day | coordinate individually |
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Comment: The registration fee of RUR 2,000 must be transferred to the account of the State Tax Inspectorate. Many applicants use Sberbank for this purpose because the tax authorities are familiar with Sberbank-issued payment orders. The authorities may request confirmation for payment orders issued by other banks.
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| Register with the unified register at the Ministry of Taxation of the Russian Federation on the local level, to obtain the single number of state registration and the number of tax registration (identification number of taxpayer,INN); register with the St | 18 days | coordinate individually |
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Comment: As of January 1, 2004, legal entities are concurrently registered with the state for tax purposes and with the State Pension Fund, the State Fund of Social Insurance, and the State Fund of Compulsory Medical Insurance (Funds) through the local office of the Federal Tax Service of the Russian Federation (the former Ministry of Taxation), which coordinates these registrations. Along with the relevant certificates, the newly established legal entity is granted a main state registration number (OGRN) and a taxpayer identification number (INN). These agencies send the registration confirmation documents to the newly established legal entity or company by mail. The company should apply to these agencies directly if it must confirm its registration with these agencies immediately upon registering with the state. It usually takes 5 days to complete tax and state registrations and 1–2 days to obtain registration documents from these agencies for a previously registered legal entity (if the founder submitted the application). Mail delivery may increase delivery time to 2–4 weeks. Tax authorities now directly accept the documents for state registration only when filed in person by one of the company founders. Otherwise, the authorities require that founders send these documents by postal mail. If they are filed in person, the founder receives a registration certificate under the power of attorney. Otherwise, the registration certificates are sent to the address of the newly established company by regular mail, which takes longer. The following are required for registration with the unified register at the Ministry of Taxation: - Decision of the founders meeting. - Charter (two copies). - Foundation agreement (two copies). - Registration application (notarized). - Payment receipt. Failure to comply with requirements stipulated by the tax authorities may lead to the rejection of the application. The tax authorities recently stopped issuing the original charter (articles of association) that is filed for the state registration. They issue only a certified copy. As a result, if the company has to file the copy of the charter with any other state authority, another copy of the charter must be requested by the tax authorities on a case by case basis. The copy is usually issued in 5 working days and requires a payment of RUR 200 to RUR 400.
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| Notarize Registration Certificate, Tax Payer Identification Number Certificate and Bank SignatureCard |
1 day | coordinate individually |
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Comment: For a limited liability company with 50 employees, the managing director and the chief accountant have signature authority. The following required documents must be notarized: - Registration certificate. - Taxpayer identification number (INN) certificate. - Charter and foundation agreement. - Documents confirming signature authority (decision on the founders on appointment and election of the directors, and so forth).
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| Open the company bank account | 1 day | nominal |
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Comment: The bank account set up may take 1–5 working days, depending on the bank’s account opening procedures. The bank may require documents on the founders of the newly established company and investigate its financial status and its founder's history.
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| Inform Ministry of Taxation of the Russian Federation of the company bank account number and obtain a special letter of confirmation | 5 day | no charge |
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Comment: The procedure takes from 3 to 7 days and must be completed 10 days from the date of opening a bank account.
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| Register the company with Moscow Center of Quotation of Work Places |
1 day | no charge |
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Comment: The company must be registered with the Moscow Center of Quotation of Work Places within 30 days of state registration. This requirement was introduced by the Resolution of the Moscow Government No. 125-PP of March 4, 2003, "On Approval of Regulation on Quotation of Work Places in the City of Moscow." Under Resolution No. 125-PP, all employers (companies and individual entrepreneurs) must register with the center’s local offices in each district of Moscow, irrespective of whether the companies are obliged to comply with the quotas (i.e., they have more than 100 employees). | ||