Foreign ownership is not the issue
A foreign company or a foreign individual may own 100% of a Swiss Sàrl or SA. There is no nationality condition on shareholders and no general requirement for a Swiss partner. The conditions bear on the company itself: a seat in Switzerland, a person domiciled here who can represent it, and registration in the commercial register.
Three usual forms
The Sàrl (GmbH) suits most SMEs: capital of CHF 20,000, fully paid, partners listed in the register. The SA (AG) needs CHF 100,000 of capital with at least CHF 50,000 paid in, keeps shareholders out of the public register and suits larger operations or investor entry. The branch is not a separate legal person: the foreign company remains liable and contracts in its own name, through a Swiss registration.
The steps
Choice of form and seat, drafting of articles, opening of a capital deposit account at a Swiss bank, notarised incorporation deed, filing with the cantonal commercial register, publication in the official gazette. Then the registrations that follow existence: social insurance if you employ, VAT if you are liable, cantonal tax.
- Bank onboarding of foreign shareholders takes time: start it first
- The resident signatory must be identified before the notary appointment
- Cantonal tax rates differ significantly: the seat is a tax decision too
After registration
A Swiss company must keep accounts, hold an annual general meeting, file tax returns and keep its register entries current. Where it employs staff, it registers with a compensation office, a pension fund and an accident insurer before the first salary. None of this is complex; all of it is mandatory.
Authorities decide; we prepare and carry the file. No timeline or outcome is guaranteed.