Company Formation in Lithuania for Non-Residents

Company Formation in Lithuania: Registering a UAB or MB

Companies are entered in the Register of Legal Entities (Registrų centras) through a notarial procedure — in person or by power of attorney — and the private limited liability company (UAB) is the structure most international founders use.

Register a Lithuanian UAB — Fast, Remote-Friendly and Compliant

Eesti Firma provides professional company registration services in Lithuania for international founders, non‑residents and foreign-owned businesses. As a licensed corporate service provider (TCSP), we handle incorporation, registry and ownership matters — so your company is set up correctly and ready for business from day one.

• Registration in a few business days, with remote setup by notarised power of attorney where the case allows

• UAB share capital from €1,000 — only 25% required before registration — with flexible shareholder structuring

• A recognised fintech and startup hub with a mature regulator and a deep network of licensed EMIs

• Ready-made Lithuanian companies for faster market entry, depending on the chosen share-transfer structure

Who this is for

Non-resident founders who need a company in the EU without relocating: exporters and cross‑border traders, IT and SaaS teams, consultants and agencies, e‑commerce sellers, fintech and other regulated projects drawn to Lithuania’s e‑money (EMI) ecosystem, and holding or multi‑shareholder structures that need real corporate substance rather than a template.

For founders outside Lithuania, the appeal is a credible EU base that is quick to set up and straightforward to run. The sections below cover the registration routes and their prices, who each one suits, the notarial steps involved, how Lithuanian company tax works, and what to plan for once the company is live.

Lithuania has quietly become one of the Baltics’ most accessible entry points to the EU. It combines full single-market membership with a fast, rules-based registration system and a regulator that is notably comfortable with fintech and cross‑border business — a strong fit for owners managing the company from abroad.

Together these make the UAB the default vehicle for foreign founders — with the MB as a lighter alternative when the project is small and owner-run.

Company Registration in Lithuania: Key Facts

A quick summary for founders and non‑resident owners.

UAB vs MB: Which Company Form Fits Your Business?

This is the one genuinely Lithuanian decision to get right. Both the UAB and the MB give you limited liability, but they behave very differently once the business grows, takes on investment or needs a licence.

The UAB is the standard choice for scalable commercial activity, outside financing and work with larger counterparties. The MB can suit simpler, owner-managed projects — but the final choice should reflect tax, governance, banking and licensing needs, not only registration convenience.

Company Formation in Lithuania for Non-Residents and Foreign Founders

A Lithuanian company does not need a single local participant. Foreign individuals and foreign companies can be the sole owner, the director can be a non‑resident, and there is no requirement for a Lithuanian partner — so founders from almost anywhere, EU or not, can own and run the business from abroad.

• Any owner. Shares can be held by non‑resident individuals or by a foreign parent company.
• Non-resident director. Management can sit entirely outside Lithuania.
• No travel needed in most cases. A notarised power of attorney lets our representative handle the notary and registry for you.
• Paperwork is the real work. Passports, corporate extracts, translations, apostilles and powers of attorney all have to line up precisely — this is where cross‑border files usually stall.

It is precisely this document layer — not the filing itself — where a foreign-owned Lithuanian setup benefits most from being handled properly from the start.

Company Formation in Lithuania: Procedural Steps

Every case differs slightly, but a Lithuanian incorporation is a notarial process that follows the same broad sequence — knowing it up front makes the timing predictable.

The registration process usually includes the following steps:

1. 1

   Name and activity

   Pick a unique company name and define the main business activity, then check availability and reserve the name in the Register of Legal Entities.

2. 2

   Founding documents

   We draft the articles of association and the founder’s resolution and set out the shareholders, management and share structure.

3. 3

   Capital and address

   For a UAB, a temporary accumulation account is opened and at least 25% of the €1,000 capital is paid in before filing; every company also needs a Lithuanian registered address.

4. 4

   Notarial filing

   Depending on the route, the file goes to the notary in person or under power of attorney, and from there to Registrų centras.

5. 

   Approval and go‑live

   On approval the company receives its registration code and can move on to a bank or EMI account, VAT, accounting and EORI where relevant.

With the structure decided and the file clean before the notary appointment, the rest tends to move quickly.

Key Considerations Before Registering a Company in Lithuania

A few decisions taken before filing shape how the company behaves afterwards — on tax, on banking and on day-to‑day admin — so they are worth settling early.

• Capital plan. €1,000 for a UAB (25% before filing, the rest within 12 months); nothing mandatory for an MB.
• Owner and director setup. Full foreign ownership is fine, and neither owner nor director has to live in Lithuania.
• Registered address. A Lithuanian address is required for the registry and official mail.
• Tax shape. Your real activity drives CIT, VAT exposure, dividend treatment and the accounting load.
• Banking route. A bank or EMI account is a separate process from registration and worth lining up early — Lithuania’s deep EMI market helps here.

Settling these in advance is what separates a company that merely exists from one that is actually usable.

Documents Usually Required for Incorporation

The exact document set depends on the founder profile, the chosen legal form and whether the registration is handled in person or remotely. In foreign-owned cases, document quality and consistency matter even more.

• Founder identification documents and contact information.
• Director details and management data.
• Company name options and intended business activity description.
• Registered address basis for the Lithuanian entity.
• Corporate founder documents where the shareholder is a foreign company.
• Power of attorney, notarisation, apostille or translation support where the case requires it.

Getting this right early saves time later by heading off follow-up questions from the notary, the registry or the bank.

Tax Framework Relevant for Lithuanian Companies

Lithuania taxes companies in a familiar way — profit is taxed each year, not only when it is paid out — so it is worth knowing the four moving parts before you start invoicing. Everything is administered digitally through the State Tax Inspectorate (VMI).

None of it is exotic: moderate rates, genuine relief for new small companies, and everything filed online through VMI.

What Usually Happens After Incorporation

A registration code is a starting line, not a finish line. To actually trade, most companies need a few more things in place — and this is where foreign-owned setups tend to need the most help.

• Open a bank or EMI account. The company can apply once it is registered; the options and what onboarding involves are covered below.
• Sort VAT and EORI. Depending on turnover and cross‑border activity, you may need one, both or neither at the start.
• Set up accounting. Bookkeeping and reporting should be running from the first invoice.
• Stay compliant. Annual financial statements are due to the registry on a fixed schedule.
• Keep local coverage. Foreign-run companies usually keep a Lithuanian address and representation in place for the long term.

So the useful question when choosing a provider is not “can you register it” — it is “can you keep it running.”

Banking and EMI Accounts for a Lithuanian Company

Opening an account is often the real test after incorporation — not the filing itself. Here Lithuania has an edge: alongside traditional banks, it hosts one of the EU’s largest networks of licensed electronic money and payment institutions (EMIs), so a Lithuanian company usually has more onboarding options than in most member states.

Whichever route you choose, onboarding is a compliance decision: the provider reviews the owners and beneficial owners, the business model, expected turnover and the source of funds. A clean corporate file and a clear description of the activity are what get an account approved — which is exactly what a properly structured incorporation gives you.

Ongoing Obligations and Key Dates for a Lithuanian Company

Once the company is live, a handful of recurring filings keep it in good standing. None are heavy, but the deadlines are fixed and missing them carries penalties — so it helps to put them on a calendar from the start.

Most newly formed companies fall below the statutory audit thresholds, so a formal audit is usually not required at the start. In practice an accountant runs this cadence — turning the calendar above into a routine rather than something to track by hand, which is why we pair company formation with ongoing accounting support.

Eesti Firma: Corporate and Legal Expertise

Much of a Lithuanian incorporation is routine — until a document is wrong, a structure needs a licence, or a bank asks a question the file cannot answer. That harder part is what Eesti Firma is built for, and we stay with international clients from planning through registration and the steps that follow.

• Licensed and supervised. Eesti Firma is a licensed Estonian Trust and Company Service Provider (licence FIU000144), supervised by the Financial Intelligence Unit (Rahapesu Andmebüroo) and a member of the Estonian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ECCI).
• A real track record. More than 10 years of practice and over 5,000 companies formed across a wide range of founder profiles and sectors.
• People, not a portal. Legal, accounting and tax sit in one team, so we take on the cases automated platforms turn away — several shareholders, e‑commerce, crypto‑related or licensed activity, non‑standard ownership.
• Built for cross‑border. Our clients are overseas founders and foreign-owned groups setting up across the EU, Lithuania included.
• Compliance first. Work is aligned with the relevant corporate and tax rules, so the company starts on solid ground.
• Support that continues. Documents, notarial and POA steps, VAT, annual reports and the rest of post‑incorporation life.

For most of our clients the relationship does not end at registration — that is where it starts.

Eesti Firma OÜ (registry code 14164797, VAT EE102081480) is a licensed Estonian Trust and Company Service Provider — activity licence FIU000144, supervised by the Financial Intelligence Unit (Rahapesu Andmebüroo) — based at Vesivärava 50, Kadrioru Plaza, Tallinn, supporting local and international entrepreneurs with company formation across the EU, including Lithuania.

How we see it

Filing a UAB is the easy part. The value is in the choices around it — UAB or MB, how the capital and shareholders are set, whether it will clear a bank or EMI — because those are what decide whether the company still works a year from now.

Ilja Nikiforov

Co-founder and Chief Legal Officer