. |
Single owner business |
General Partnership |
Limited liability company |
Limited share corporation
|
Branch |
| French |
Raison
individuelle |
Société
simple |
Sàrl |
Société
Anonyme |
Filiale |
German |
- |
Gesellschaft |
GmbH |
Aktiengesellschaft |
Filiale |
| . |
- |
. |
(Click for more information) |
(Click for more information) |
(Click for more information) |
| Purpose |
To operate a commercial
business as sole owner. |
To run trading,
manufacturing or other commercial business under a single name. |
To run trading,
manufacturing or other commercial business under a single name. |
To run trading,
manufacturing or other commercial business under a single name. |
To run legally dependent
but commercially independent business belonging to a parent firm abroad. |
| Setting
up Procedures |
No special setting up
procedure required however, entry in the Commercial Registry is required in some cases. |
No special setting up
procedure is required, but a charter is recommended. Entry in the Commercial Registry is
required. |
A charter, entry in the
Commercial Registry and public founding deed necessary. |
Formal setting up procedure
and entry in the Commercial Registry required. |
Entry in the Commercial
Registry is sufficient. |
| Founding
members |
No restrictions |
Requires involvement of
actual persons; at least one manager must live in Switzerland. |
At least two founding
members, no other restrictions. |
Minimum of three founding
members (persons or corporations). The majority of the board must be Swiss, with
exceptions for holdings. |
A representative in
Switzerland with power of attorney is required. |
| Title of
owners |
Owner |
Partners |
Members |
Shareholders |
Foreign parent firm |
| Governing
bodies |
Owner |
Partners |
Minimum of one senior
manager living in Switzerland |
General meeting Board of directors
Auditors
|
Representative in
Switzerland with power of attorney |
| Liability |
Unlimited private liability |
Partnership's assets and
unlimited joint liability |
Limited to company's
capital for each member. |
Limited to company's assets |
Parent company is also
liable. |
| Capital |
No restriction |
No restriction |
SFR 20,000, of which at
least 50% must be paid up. Maximum SFR 2 million |
SFR 100,000, of which at
least 50% must be paid up. |
No minimum. |
| Advantages |
Simple |
Lower taxes No need for Swiss citizen as partners |
Only two members required Low minimum capital requirements
Liability is limited |
Equity holders remain
anonymous Limited liability
Share ownership is easy to transfer |
Lower capital required than
for a Swiss corporation No need for Swiss majority on
the board
Less expensive to set up
|
| Disadvantages |
Liability is unlimited |
Liability is unlimited |
Members cannot stay
anonymous More difficult to sell share in business |
More expensive to set up
and run Double taxation (corporate tax rate and
withholding tax on dividends) |
The parent company is also
liable Taxes slightly higher |
| If you have further
questions, we recommend you go to our extensive Frequently Asked
Questions section or contact us personally.
|
© Micheloud
& Cie
1999 |
No part of this site may be reproduced in
any form or by any means without our prior written permission. Information contained in
this website is not meant to substitute qualified legal advice given by a specialist
knowing your particular situation. We accept no responsibility for the consequences
of decisions taken following information found on this website. More... |
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| Swiss companies | FAQs
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This table gives you an
overview of different types of companies that can be legally incorporated in Switzerland.
Note that the most commonly used is the limited share corporation, and that both the