Ireland · Company Registration
Entity types, registration process, required documents, costs, and official registries.
AI-drafted, editorially reviewed. Confirm specifics with the official authority.
Setting up from abroad
- Usual entity for foreign founders
- Ltd
- Non-resident can be sole director
- No
- Can be completed remotely
- Yes
Filed online through CORE; with no EEA-resident director, a section 137 bond goes with the application.
Official registry: cro.ie
Indicative costs and timing — Richbay estimates, not official figures
- Min. capital
- None
- Government fee
- $60
- Typical processing
- 5 business days
- Annual compliance
- $2,000
A 12.5% corporate rate, among the lowest in Europe; 1+ EEA-resident director required, or a bond instead.
A private company limited by shares is registered with the Companies Registration Office under the Companies Act 2014, and tax registration with Revenue follows. The rule that decides the shape of a foreign-owned setup is residency of the board: at least one director must be resident in the European Economic Area, and a company with no such director must hold a statutory insurance bond instead. Beneficial ownership goes to a separate register, and each company is given a fixed annual return date it must then keep.
- At least one director resident in the EEA, or a statutory insurance bond in place of one.
- CRO registration and Revenue tax registration are two separate steps.
- Each company gets a fixed annual return date; missing it has consequences.
- Companies Registration Office (CRO)
Company registration and annual returns.
- Revenue
Corporation tax and VAT registration.
Government portals
- Revenue — Irish Tax and Customs — PPS-linked tax registration, PAYE, self-assessment and customs.
- Immigration Service Delivery — Visas, employment permits interaction, IRP registration and citizenship.
- Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment — Employment permits for non-EEA workers, including the Critical Skills permit.
- Workplace Relations Commission — Statutory employment rights, minimum wage, and complaints procedure.