An overview of the establishment of companies in Switzerland

The most common type of companies in Switzerland is the limited joint stock company, also referred to as “Aktiengesellschaft (AG)” or “Société anonyme (SA)”. The Swiss company law requires such companies to have a minimum share capital of CHF 100’000.-, at least one shareholder and a Swiss director. Limited joint stock company may take the form of a Swiss holding company (with tax reductions in some cantons), of a domiciliary company (registered office in Switzerland while the management board is abroad) or of a mixed company (with tax reductions if the foreign owned company gans 80% of its profits from abroad).

The second type of companies in Switzerland is the limited liability company, also referred to as “Gesellschaft mit beschränkter Haftung (GmbH)” or “Société à responsabilité limitée (Sàrl)”. The Swiss company law requires such companies to have a minimum share capital of CHF 20’000.-, and at least one shareholder with Swiss residency. As a stock corporation, a limited liability company can have the form of a sole proprietorship (if it has an annual turnover of CHF 100’000.-), of a general partnership (if two or more partners agree to be jointly liable for partnership’s obligations) or of a limited partnership (if it has at least two Swiss residents, where one of them is a general partner with full liability for the company’s obligations, and the other(s) have only a limited liability).

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Author: Constantin Khovrin