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Country guide · 2026

How to open a Bulgarian company from Austria 🇦🇹

An Austrian GmbH pays 23% on profits and 27.5% again when profits are distributed, giving an effective rate near 44%. Bulgaria's 10% and 5% produce roughly 14.5% on the same profit, with far lighter administration.

Austrian rate
23% corporate tax plus 27.5% on dividends
Bulgaria
10% corporate, 5% dividends
Setup
Remote, 3-7 business days

Why Austrian founders move to a Bulgarian EOOD

  • Effective distributed-profit cost of about 14.5% against roughly 44% in Austria
  • No €35,000 GmbH share capital requirement
  • Notarial and Firmenbuch steps compressed into a few days of Bulgarian filings
  • Social contributions capped rather than assessed on full profit

The remote registration process, step by step

  1. 1

    Reserve the company name

    We check availability in the Bulgarian Commercial Register and reserve your EOOD or OOD name. Takes a few hours; the reservation holds for six months.

  2. 2

    Sign the incorporation pack

    Articles of association, founder declarations and specimen signature. You sign in front of a notary or a Bulgarian consulate near you, or you give us a power of attorney and sign once.

  3. 3

    Open the capital accumulation account

    The statutory minimum share capital is BGN 2 (about €1). The bank issues a deposit certificate the register requires.

  4. 4

    File with the Commercial Register

    Electronic filing at the Registry Agency. Standard processing is 2 to 4 business days, and you receive an EIK (company number) on approval.

  5. 5

    Register for tax and, if needed, VAT

    The EIK doubles as your tax number. VAT registration is mandatory above the BGN 166,000 turnover threshold and voluntary below it; intra-EU sellers usually register voluntarily on day one.

  6. 6

    Open the operating bank account

    A Bulgarian business account for local payments, plus an EMI such as Wise or Revolut Business for multi-currency invoicing. Most non-resident directors need one video call.

  7. 7

    Appoint an accountant and start filing

    Monthly VAT returns, payroll if you hire, and an annual corporate return filed by 30 June. The 10% flat corporate tax applies from your first invoice.

Tax residency

Austria taxes residents on worldwide income and applies a place-of-management test. Holding board decisions in Vienna keeps the company Austrian in substance.

Exit tax and leaving Austria

Austria's Wegzugsbesteuerung allows instalment payment within the EU for business assets. Bulgaria's EU membership generally keeps that option open.

Banking and payments

Austrian clients pay a BG IBAN under SEPA. Combine an EMI for currency work with a Bulgarian account for local filings.

VAT on sales into Austria

Austrian B2B invoices are reverse-charged; consumer sales stay inside OSS at 20%.

Mistakes Austrian founders make

  • Treating a mailbox address in Sofia as substance
  • Ignoring KSt minimum tax obligations while an Austrian GmbH is still open
  • Missing the instalment election on exit taxation

Questions Austrian founders ask

Is Bulgaria worth it for a small Austrian consultancy?

Usually yes above roughly €60,000 of annual profit, because the saving outgrows the cost of running a second jurisdiction properly.

Do I need to speak Bulgarian?

No. Filings, accounting and correspondence run in English through us.

Full Bulgaria vs Austria tax tableRun your numbers in the tax calculatorFormation pricing

Start your Bulgarian company from Austria

We handle the register filing, bank introduction, VAT and accounting in English. 750+ EU founders incorporated, fully remote.

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