How to register a company in Belarus: A guide for employers

As a member of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU), the country serves as a vital bridge between Russia and Central Asia, making it an ideal gateway for businesses expanding into the region.

Strategically located at the crossroads of Europe and Asia, it offers seamless access to key markets like Poland, Lithuania, Russia, and Ukraine. Businesses here enjoy access to a skilled workforce, a strong IT sector, and investor-friendly policies.

The business benefits of registering your company in Belarus

Companies choose Belarus for its competitive tax system, access to Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) markets, and strategic location between Europe and Russia.

Setting up a business in Belarus offers several advantages:

• Thriving tech ecosystem: Belarus boasts a rapidly expanding IT sector and an emerging startup ecosystem.

• Favorable tax policies: The country offers business-friendly zones and programs to attract investment and boost the economy. These include:
  • Six free economic zones (FEZs): Brest, Gomel-Raton, Minsk, Vitebsk, Mogilev, and Grodnoinvest.
  • Bremino-Orsha Special Economic Zone
  • Hi-Tech Park (HTP): Designed for IT and innovation-driven businesses.
  • Great Stone Industrial Park: A central hub for manufacturing and logistics.
  • Targeted incentives: Are available in small and medium-sized towns, rural areas (based on activity type), Orsha District (Vitebsk Oblast), and the Southeast region of Mogilev Oblast.
  • Investment agreements with government-backed benefits
• Strategic location: Belarus is a Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) member, so its businesses face lower tariffs and simplified customs within the EAEU.
• Business-friendly regulations: Streamlined processes for foreign investments
• Skilled workforce: Strong education system producing top engineering and IT talent.
• Competitive operational costs: Compared to Western Europe, costs for office space, salaries, and services are lower in Belarus.

What are the options for setting up a business in Belarus?

In Belarus, companies must typically register as a sole proprietorship, limited liability company, or additional liability company. But traditional company registration isn’t the only option available. They can also expand their presence by leveraging an EOR.

Let’s explore both these options:

How EOR simplifies company registration in Belarus

An EOR helps businesses expand into Belarus without setting up a legal entity by handling hiring, payroll, tax compliance, and HR administration.

Key EOR benefits in Belarus:

• Fast market entry (start hiring in days)

• Simplified compliance (experts handle local regulations)

• Cost savings (avoid setup and ongoing legal costs)

• Easy scalability

• Seamless payroll management

• Reduced legal and financial risk

Your step-by-step guide to registering a company in Belarus

Starting a business in Belarus is a structured yet efficient process, offering equal opportunities for both local and foreign entities. Whether you’re a resident of Belarus or an international investor, the country provides a welcoming business environment with streamlined registration procedures.

Step 1: Choose your business structure

Sole proprietorship: Here, a single individual or entity owns the business. Individuals run the business under their name or trade names without forming a separate legal entity. While it’s easy to establish, this business structure offers no liability protection, meaning the owner is personally responsible for all debts.

Requirements for setting up sole proprietorship in Belarus:

• Only one individual is needed to establish this entity.
• No formal registration is required, but the owner must register with tax authorities.
• VAT registration is required if annual turnover exceeds 400,000 Belarusian rubles.

Private Unitary Enterprise (PUE): A PUE is a business entity owned by one person or company. Unlike joint-stock companies, it doesn’t have shares — the founder has full control. One big advantage of this structure is limited liability, meaning the founder isn’t personally responsible for the company’s debts.

Requirements for PUE:

• Requires a legal address in Belarus. A PUE can also be registered at a residential address, offering flexibility. 
• No minimum capital requirement, making it an easy and accessible option for entrepreneurs.
• The founder can either be a resident or a non-resident.

Limited Liability Company (LLC):  This structure is most popular for small to medium businesses.

Requirements for LLC in Belarus:

• You need a minimum of one founder (can be a foreign individual or entity).
• No minimum authorized capital requirement.
• The LLC must have a legal address in Belarus.

Open Joint Stock Company (OJSC): Suitable for larger businesses, a JSC can issue shares and is governed by a board of directors. An OJSC lets you raise funds by issuing shares to a wide range of investors. Shares can be freely sold or transferred through an open subscription.

Requirements for OJSC:

• Minimum of two shareholders; no upper limit for the number of shareholders.
• The minimum capital required is 400 basic units (about 16,000 Belarusian rubles or €5,000
• The OJSC must have a legal address in Belarus.

Closed Joint Stock Company (CJSC):  A CJSC is a business where only individuals can be shareholders, and shares can’t be sold to outsiders. If a founder wants to leave, they can only sell their shares to another founder.

Requirements for a CJSC:

• Minimum authorized capital of approximately €1,099 or 100 basic units.
• The CJSC must have a legal address in Belarus.

Representative office: Companies can establish a presence in Belarus via a representative office. This representative office will not be a separate legal entity and cannot engage in direct commercial activities, but it can conduct market research and promote the parent company’s interests.

Requirements for setting up a representative office in Belarus:

• Must be registered with the Ministry of Justice.
• A representative office requires a legal address and documentation proving the existence of the parent company.

Additional liability company (ODO):

An ODO is a less common type of business where the company’s capital is divided into shares based on what each owner contributes. There can be up to 50 owners, who can be either individuals or other businesses. If the company goes bankrupt, the debt is shared equally among all the founders.

Each option we’ve discussed has distinct advantages, limitations, and requirements, making it essential for foreign entrepreneurs to assess their business needs and consult with local legal experts before navigating the registration process effectively.

Step 2: Register your business name

Before registering a company, you must get its name approved. As per the Belarusian government, this is a free process and can be done in person, by mail, or online via the Unified State Register (USR) of Legal Entities and Individual Entrepreneurs website.

Additional documents (e.g., authorization proof or permission to use specific names) may be required in certain cases. Online applicants receive their approval or rejection via email with a digitally signed certificate from the registration authority.

Step 3: Prepare and submit required documents

When registering your company in Belarus, you can submit documents in-person or online. Instead of registering online yourself, you can also let a notary handle the process.

For an in-person registration, you need to submit:

• A completed state registration application (available on the USR website).
• Two copies of the charter or articles of association (in .doc or .rtf format).
• Proof-of-state fee payment (unless paid via the Unified Payment System).
• If the founder is a foreign company, it must submit a legalized extract from the commercial register, issued within the last year, with a notarized Belarusian/Russian translation.
• If the founder is a foreign individual, they must provide a notarized passport copy along with a translation.

Once you have done this, the registration authority will:

• Stamp and return an approved charter on the same day.
• Issue a registration certificate by the next business day.
• Register the company with tax, social security, and statistical authorities automatically (without any founder involvement). You can collect the registration notice within five business days.

For online registration:

• Submit via USR website or through a notary

• Requires electronic signature key from National Center for Electronic Services

• Multiple founders can authorize one person to apply digitally

For notary-assisted registration:

• No electronic signature key needed

• Notary can process applications regardless of company location

Once your online registration is approved, you will receive digital copies of the following:

• State registration certificate
• Charter with official stamp
• Registration confirmation with government agencies (within five business days)

If the online registration is rejected, applicants receive a notification explaining why.
Once your company name is registered, online or offline, you must obtain a tax registration.

Step 4: Obtain tax registration

Register with the Ministry of Taxes and Duties (MTC) to receive a taxpayer identification number (TIN). This step is essential for tax filing and compliance when operating a business in Belarus.

Step 5: Open a corporate bank account

Most businesses in Belarus must have a corporate bank account to handle financial transactions, including tax payments and employee salaries.

Multiplier helps to manage global payroll in multiple currencies while staying compliant with Belarusian tax laws without needing a local bank account.

Step 6: Register for social security and employment contributions

Ensure compliance with local labor laws by registering employees with the Social Protection Fund.

If you choose to leverage Multiplier for your expansion plans, it ensures that contracts adhere to local labor laws in Belarus.

Step 7: Secure any necessary licenses

Depending on your business activities, certain industries in Belarus require specific licenses or permits to operate legally. It’s crucial to identify whether your business falls under these categories and to obtain the necessary authorizations before commencing operations.

After completing these seven steps, your business will be legally established and operational in Serbia. However, understanding the financial commitment requires more than just upfront fees. Below is a concise overview of the costs involved in starting a business in Serbia.

The real cost of registering a business in Belarus

Understanding the costs involved is essential for effective planning. Below is a breakdown of key expenses associated with company registration and ongoing compliance in Belarus.

1. Registration fees

• Standard incorporation cost: €350 (covers legal document preparation, registration, fees, and taxes)

• Costs may vary by business type

2. State fees

• Joint-stock company registration: 1 basic amount (40 Belarusian rubles or €12)

• Online submissions: No state fee required

• Additional duties may apply for specific services

3. Share capital

• LLC: Negligible minimum requirement

• CJSC: Minimum €1,099 (100 basic units or 4,000 Belarusian rubles)

• OJSC: Minimum €4,598 (400 basic units or 16,000 Belarusian rubles)

4. Legal costs

Businesses must provide a registered address in Belarus, with costs starting at €15 a month.

5. Tax rates and obligations 

• Corporate income tax: 18%
• Value-added tax (VAT): 20% (lower rates apply in some cases)
• Special tax regimes: IT companies in the Belarus Hi-Tech Park (HTP) and certain small businesses may qualify for reduced tax rates or exemptions.

6. Notary fees 

Notary fees vary based on translation and certification needs.

Many companies who want to quickly set up in Belarus while keeping costs low choose to leverage an EOR solution like Multiplier that offers a single, predictable fee for company registration, handling payroll, taxes, and compliance.

Cost comparison: standard registration vs. EOR

When evaluating your expansion costs into Belarus, it’s essential to compare the traditional in-house model against the flexibility of an EOR solution.

Ultimately, EOR offers a streamlined approach that enhances cost predictability and significantly reduces the administrative complexities of managing compliance, payroll, and benefits.

Simplify your expansion to Belarus with Multiplier

Expanding into Belarus doesn’t have to be complex. However, businesses may be concerned about navigating economic sanctions imposed by the EU and other countries since 2020. These sanctions can affect cross-border payments and contribute to currency devaluation, potentially impacting salaries. Besides this looming uncertainty, multilingual compliance requirements offer another layer of complexity your business must navigate in Belarus.

Multiplier stands out as a true all-in-one solution, handling everything from onboarding to managing international talent seamlessly while reducing the risks you incur.

Here’s how Multiplier simplifies hiring, payroll, and compliance so you can focus on business growth:

• Local hiring expertise: Onboard employees in Belarus quickly through user-friendly platforms that help you manage international talent across different countries and time zones.
• Effortless payroll management: Intelligent, fully managed payroll systems handles multi-country taxes, benefits, and compensation.
• Comprehensive HR solutions: Multiplier’s global HR platform includes a timesheet tracking tool that lets you manage your entire workforce from one dashboard. It also has an expense tracking feature to monitor the expense requests submitted by your teams.
• Compliance assurance: Our globally compliant contracts include the necessary benefits, statutory leave, termination policies, working hours, salary details, and bilingual formats. Multiplier helps reduce risks and penalties from non-compliant hiring while building your reputation as a trusted global employer.
• Attractive benefits packages: Multiplier offers country-specific healthcare insurance and benefits that are fully compliant with Belarusian corporate and tax laws.

Ready to expand into Belarus? Book a demo today!