Best place to incorporate for SaaS solo-business?
I made my first few sales from my product while working remotely and I am now thinking about incorporation.
I want to incorporate to provide a Stripe wrapper for accepting payments and also legal separation.
Some things that I look for:
- Can be run fully online
- Stripe-Bank Account opening (and online)
- Minimal tax (I will be paying myself a 100% salary)
- Least paperwork and legal filings as possible
- Ability to pay sub 0% in company tax (And full taxation through personal
I am currently in Dubai, and this place seems perfect for incorporation. Unfortunately, the setup fees are very high $10,000, which is not in my budget.
So I narrowed it down to:
- Estonia
- Wyoming
Cons
Estonia
- Requires monthly filings/returns
- Running costs are ~$1000 per year
- Salaries / director pay is counted as distribution of income, subjecting you to a 20% corporation tax (+14% director tax / dividends tax)
- As of 2021, they have a crackdown on e-businesses
Wyoming
- Looks like you need to be physically be present in the US. It's not efficient/easy to run online.
- US taxation system is over-complicated. I still can't figure out how many forms I will need to file per year.
Pros
Estonia
- Can be run online
Wyoming
- Easy set up. More established. Supports the US economy.
Has anyone got any experience that they could share?
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Actual numbers from comparing all 6 major Estonian formation services side by side:
Year 1 total cost ranges from 618 EUR to 1,716 EUR. Same legal entity, same government, same tax rules. The difference is entirely in what the service provider charges monthly.
Formation fees: 265-315 EUR
Monthly fees: 10-99 EUR/month (this is where the real cost diverges)
Cheapest year 1: Dalanta at 385 EUR (265 EUR formation + 10/mo)
Most expensive year 1: Xolo at 1,483 EUR (295 EUR formation + 99/mo)
But cheap isn't always best. The 99/mo services handle your accounting, VAT filings, and annual reports. The 10/mo ones give you a registered address and a handshake.
If you're not comfortable doing your own Estonian accounting, the premium is worth it.
For SaaS specifically, also check whether the provider handles OSS VAT (One-Stop-Shop for selling to EU consumers).
Some do, some don't, and getting that wrong means registering for VAT in every EU country you sell to.
Setup fees can be around $1,500-$2,000 in the UAE if you choose the right Freezone. I think Ajman Media City and Sharjah Media City are the cheapest ones if that is still an options. Otherwise Estonia is pretty good. in the US you'll have a lot more bureaucracy to deal with. (In my experience)
Correct. We've set up our LLC in the UAE for AED10k in Sharjah Media city 4 months ago. The main hurdle in the UAE is not to set up the LLC shell but to open a bank account. We had to pitch your company to the banker in person and provide lots of personal financial documentation before they even consider taking us on as a client. We are lucky to serve principally UAE based customers, otherwise they will make your life hard . They are extremely strict due to money laundering practices
For anyone considering the UAE: get a UAE visa for one of the shareholders. It will make process smoother and you will be eligible for a resident simcard. It will cost you an additional AED 6-8K. Without a local visa, your simcard will expire every 3 months. And you need a UAE simcard to bank.
But once you get it, it's a dream. No corporate tax, no auditing requirements until you hit a revenue of AED 350k, etc.. The banker might poach you once in a while to put more money in the bank to pump his performance bonus. 😂
Ah, that's so good to know! I'm thinking about incorporating there and moving to the UAE too, since I like the weather and the tax benefits. Thanks for the insights!
Love the UAE for business but I personally won't live there ever. Give me Bali or Phuket! 👌
If ever you do proceed with incorporation, choose your incorporation agency wise. These incorporation companies have huge turn overs and as a results most of the agents are usually clueless themselves and have short term incentives. Par example, don't believe the BS that you can open a bank account with a POA (in theory allowing you to open a bank account without setting food the UAE). Unless you have a POA beneficiary with a local visa and willing to take risks for you (in UAE opening a bank account with a POA makes the POA beneficiary liable if ever anything illegal happens), it's just not possible.
Good luck 🤞
Stopped with UK. Can be difficult to open a bank account if you live outside UK though.
Checkout firstbase.io ?
Other options are:
Singapore & Cyprus, I think.
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