Updated 21 August 2026 · 7 min read
The documents behind a Luxembourg company formation — three files, not one.
There is no single list of documents for setting up a company in Luxembourg, but three separate files addressed to different authorities and running on different clocks. The first goes to the Ministry of the Economy for the business permit and proves three things: professional integrity, a professional qualification matching the intended activity, and the existence in Luxembourg of appropriate physical premises. The second serves the incorporation itself: articles of association, identity of the partners and, for an SARL, proof that the share capital of at least EUR 12,000 is fully subscribed and paid up — while an SARL-S may be incorporated by private deed. The third feeds the registers: the filing with the trade and companies register, due no later than one month after the articles are signed, and the beneficial-owner declaration, due within one month of the entity becoming aware of the event. An incomplete file does not start the processing period — that alone is why the paperwork deserves to come before everything else.
File 1 — the business permit
The permit requires professional integrity, a professional qualification matching the intended activity, and appropriate physical premises in Luxembourg. It presupposes effective and permanent management of the business by the permit holder.
Source : Guichet.lu — source updated 14 July 2025 · checked on 21 August 2026
Each of these conditions is proved by different documents, and it is the qualification that sends back the most files: it must match the intended activity as it will be written into the corporate object. An object broader than the qualification produces a refusal; an object narrower than the real activity produces a problem later.
The chancellery fee for the issue of a business permit is EUR 50.
Source : Guichet.lu — source updated 14 July 2025 · checked on 21 August 2026
The application is in principle processed within 3 months of receipt of the complete file.
Source : Guichet.lu — source updated 14 July 2025 · checked on 21 August 2026
File 2 — the incorporation
| SARL | SARL-S | |
|---|---|---|
| Deed | Before a notary | Private deed possible |
| Capital | At least €12,000, fully subscribed and paid up | Between €1 and €12,000 |
| Partners | 2 to 100 — single-member form possible | Natural persons only, one SARL-S per person |
| Permit | Beforehand | Beforehand, attached to the RCS registration request |
An SARL requires a share capital contribution of at least EUR 12,000. The share capital must be fully subscribed and paid up at the time of incorporation.
Source : Guichet.lu — source updated 22 July 2019 · checked on 21 August 2026
The share capital of an SARL-S must be between EUR 1 and EUR 12,000.
Source : Guichet.lu — source updated 23 July 2019 · checked on 21 August 2026
File 3 — the registers, and their deadlines
The electronic filing must take place no later than one month after the articles of association are signed.
Source : Guichet.lu — source updated 6 May 2022 · checked on 21 August 2026
Registration of beneficial owners and of any change must be requested within one month from the moment the entity became aware, or should have become aware, of the event making it necessary.
Source : Guichet.lu — source updated 2 September 2019 · checked on 21 August 2026
A registered entity that fails to submit an RBE registration request is liable to a fine of between EUR 1,250 and EUR 1,250,000.
Source : Guichet.lu — source updated 2 September 2019 · checked on 21 August 2026
On fees, we stop where the official sources stop.
Guichet.lu publishes no amount; it refers to the tariff schedule of the trade and companies register. We therefore publish no figure here — the official schedule governs.
Source : Luxembourg Business Registers — Tarifs (version 14.0) · checked on 21 August 2026
Guichet.lu states that the fees are set by grand-ducal regulation and refers to the schedule without giving the amount. We therefore publish no figure.
Source : Guichet.lu — source updated 2 September 2019 · checked on 21 August 2026
The order in which to assemble the paperwork
Establish the qualification before the corporate object
It bounds the object, not the other way round. Diplomas, experience, equivalences: these take the longest to obtain when they come from abroad.
Gather the integrity documents
They concern the person, not the company, and must be requested in every country you have lived in — postal delays included.
Document the physical premises
The place from which the activity will genuinely be carried on, proportionate to that activity. It is prepared last and stalls files most often.
Obtain proof of capital
For an SARL the capital must be fully subscribed and paid up at incorporation — the proof comes from the bank, at the bank’s pace.
Frequently asked questions
- Is there a single official list?
- No, because three different authorities process three different files, and because the documents depend on the applicant’s activity and background. The Ministry of the Economy is the current source for the permit; Guichet.lu documents the register filing deadlines.
- Do foreign documents have to be translated?
- Translation and legalisation requirements vary by document and country of origin. We publish no general rule on this: we found no single official source stating one, and inventing it would cost more time than it saves. Check the point with the receiving authority.
- When does the processing period start?
- From receipt of the complete file: Guichet.lu states the application is in principle processed within the following 3 months. A missing document shortens nothing — it moves the starting point.