If you set up a company in one place while living and working in another, how much real presence does it need there? Substance is a general idea, and what counts is set by each country, so the aim here is to help you ask the right questions rather than state rules.
Substance is the extent to which a company is genuinely present where it is based: people who work there, decisions taken there, premises or services used there. A company that exists only as a registered address, while everything real happens elsewhere, may be treated differently by authorities and by banks.
Which activities and which thresholds matter is a legal question per country and is not stated here.
If the directors sit elsewhere, ask how that is viewed where the company is based and where they live.
Staff and contractors can create a presence in the place they are in, even if the company is registered elsewhere.
If a bank or authority asks for evidence of real activity, what would you hand over?
Some structures expect a local director or office. Ask whether yours does.
The home of the person may matter more than the company's address. Ask a professional where the work is treated as taking place.
The team's location can create obligations. Map people before picking a place.
Ask what role it plays and whether the arrangement can be explained simply.
Low presence: Fewer local commitments. Real presence: A story that is easy to explain.
Low presence: More questions from banks and authorities. Real presence: More cost and local administration.
Low presence: Can I show the plan makes sense. Real presence: Is this scale of presence justified by the business.
This guide states no rules. For what applies to you, a licensed local professional must confirm.
This is business and structuring analysis, not legal, tax or investment advice. Where a legal or tax opinion is needed, we say so and point you to a licensed adviser.
It depends on the country and the activity. This page does not state rules and a licensed professional should confirm.
On its own, that is a question to put to a local professional rather than assume.
No. LATYNEX is not a law firm and says where a licensed professional is needed.
No obligation. We read your request and reply with a straight answer.
Describe your plan and your constraints. We reply with what we would look at first.
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