Remote Founding of a Company in Germany
The law expects as a standard that the founder(s) and new director(s) personally visit the notary to celebrate the founding of a new company. There the founder(s) sign the articles of association and the director(s) apply to register the company. Each director also affirms that he is in good standing.
At times, a foreign person opening a company might consider it too costly to come to Germany for a whole day just to execute the signatures with the notary and one hour later go online to register with a bank – triggering a physical presence of one hour.
As we also embrace economically wise approaches, we developed a solution with our notary how to legally avoid the founder(s) and director(s) having to travel. The exact approach depends on how many founders will be opening the company.
In the situation that only person wants to register the company, we have to apply a two step approach. We will provide you with the relevant power of attorney. After signing it in front of the German consul or alternatively your notary, you will send it back to us. We will then visit the notary. The founding takes place. You will then have to sign the remaining documents in front of the German consul or alternatively your notary.
Assuming two or more persons open a company, remote founding is less complicated. This will be a one-step procedure. After sending you a draft to "okay", and you approve it, we will go to the notary without power of attorney. Does this sound bogus? Relax! Legally nothing has yet happened. Only after you formally approve, my representation at my notary will be valid and legally binding.
In collaboration with the notary we will organize the power of attorney as well as the director's affirmations and let you sign them. Some of these documents need to be signed and some also notarized and legalized. When forwarding these documents to be signed to you, we will also provide you with instructions on how each document needs to be treated.
How does it work for a single person?
In the situation that only one person wants to register the company, we need to proceed in two steps. We will provide you with the appropriate power of attorney. After you have signed it in front of the German consul or alternatively your notary, after that we will visit the notary here. The incorporation will take place. You will then need to sign the remaining documents in front of the German consul or alternatively your notary.
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We are a handful of people that no one can get under one hat. Can we also get a long-distance foundation done?
When two or more people start a company, remote incorporation is less complicated. This is then a one-step process. After we send you a draft to "sign off" on and you approve it, we go to the notary without a power of attorney. Does this sound unserious? Don't worry! Legally, nothing has happened yet. Only when you formally approve, my representation at the notary is valid and legally binding. It is no problem if each individual goes to a notary or German consul in his area. So it is possible to organize people across continents without any problems.
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I noticed a jump in the fees. How come? What does it relate to ?
Yes, you noticed it correctly. The fee increase relates to the fact that I will then cover all legal fees (notary, commercial registry, transparency registry) plus a minor surcharge of a few Euros to cover the payment support and the special documentation needed for remote founding. This approach is applied on purpose because we want to keep everybody happy. You want the company and the notary, and the commercial registry wants to be paid. When the commercial registry is not paid, it can refuse entry. Notaries are reluctant to render their services when the payment is unclear to them. When I vouch for the fees, they are instantly happy.
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