Setting up a company in Monaco

Putting together a project

Contact the Monaco Welcome & Business Office to discuss your plan and to receive advice and useful contacts.

Network with dedicated contacts:

  • Chambre de Développement Économique de Monaco (CDE) [Economic Development Chamber of Monaco]
  • Jeune Chambre Économique de Monaco (JCE) [Monaco Junior Economic Chamber]
  • Union des Commerçants et Artisans de Monaco (UCAM) [Monaco Association for Crafts and Trades]
  • Association Monégasque des Activités Financières (AMAF) [Monaco Association for Financial Activities]
  • Commission de Contrôle des Activités Financières (CCAF) [Financial Activities Monitoring Commission]

Speak to experts:

  • Accounting experts
  • Banks
  • Insurance companies
  • Legal advisers
  • Lawyers
  • Solicitors

Choose your legal form

  • Société à responsabilité limitée (SARL) [Limited liability company]
  • Société en nom collectif (SNC) [General partnership]
  • Société en commandite simple (SCS) [Limited partnership]
  • Société anonyme monégasque (SAM) [Monegasque public limited liability company]
  • Activité en nom personnel [Sole proprietorship]
  • Administrative office

Determine whether or not authorisation is required

The following require authorisation to exercise business activities:

  • Foreign nationals seeking to operate as sole proprietorships
  • Foreign individuals, companies or organisations seeking to become partners in a SNC, SCS or SARL
  • Foreign individuals, companies or organisations seeking to become non-associate managers of a SARL
  • Monegasque nationals seeking to operate in an area of business where access is subject to authorisation
  • Individuals wishing to set up a SAM or SCA, irrespective of the nationality of the founding members

Post-authorisation registration steps

STEP 1: REGISTER WITH THE REGISTRES ET REPERTOIRES DE LA DIRECTION DE L’EXPANSION ECONOMIQUE [REGISTER AND INDEX OF THE DIRECTORATE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT] (DEE)

This step only concerns legal persons permitted to operate business activity of a civil or small-scale nature, as well as foreign companies permitted to set up an administrative office, who are not required to register with the index of commerce and trade (go to STEP 2). Registration is subject to proof of ministerial authorisation or acknowledgement of receipt of a Monegasque declaration.

Please provide:

for sole proprietorship businesses:

  • ministerial authorisation or acknowledgement of receipt of the declaration to the right to operate business activity for Monegasque nationals;
  • the registration application form:
    * p1 completed for business operations;
    * for registration with the special register of sales agents for sales agents;
  • valid proof of identity;
  • proof of your marital status (marriage certificate, etc.);
  • any other additional documents mentioned on the list of documents to be provided (attached to your ministerial authorisation or acknowledgement of receipt of declaration).

for companies (SARL, SNC, SCS):

  • ministerial authorisation or acknowledgement of receipt of the declaration to the right to operate for Monegasque nationals;
  • the fully completed S1 registration application form:
  • valid proof of identity for manager(s) of a SARL, partners of a SNC and general partner(s) of a SCS;
  • proof of marital status for SNC partners and SCS general partner(s) (marriage certificate, etc.);
  • any other additional documents mentioned in the list of documents to be provided (attached to your ministerial authorisation or acknowledgement of receipt of declaration).

for SAMs:

  • Please note that the registration formalities for public limited liability companies are generally carried out by notary offices.
Directorate of Economic Development
9 rue du Gabian (2nd floor) - Fontvieille – Tel. (+377) 98 98 84 91 - This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Opening hours: 9.30am to 5pm, Monday to Friday.

STEP 2: RECEIVING YOUR IDENTIFICATION NUMBER

The Numéro d’Identification Statistique (N.I.S.) [Identification Number] is issued to each economic entity (individuals, companies or organisations) by the Institut Monégasque de la Statistique et des Études Économiques [Monaco Institute of Statistics and Economic Research] (IMSEE) in order to define its main area of activity.

Please provide:

  • for SAMs, SARLs, SCSs, SNCs and Natural Persons, an extract from the Index of Commerce and Trade.
  • for Craft Workers, Administrative Offices and Self-Employed Workers, a photocopy of ministerial authority to operate business activity in the Principality.
  • for Sales Agents, an extract from the Special Register for Sales Agents.
IMSEE
9 rue du Gabian (1st floor) - Fontvieille - Tel. (+377) 98 98 98 88 - This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Opening hours: 9.30am to 5pm, Monday to Friday.

STEP 3: DECLARATION TO THE TAX SERVICES OFFICE

You must inform the Tax Services Office of your company's existence.

Please provide:

  • the certificate of registration with the NIS Index issued by IMSEE;
  • where applicable, an extract from the Index of Commerce and Trade
  • the completed "VAT Regime" print-out (downloadable at spe.gouv.mc or available in a hard copy from the Tax Services Office)
  • where applicable, a mandate authorising your representative to carry out these procedures on your behalf.
Tax Services Office - Tax Division
57, rue Grimaldi - Tel. (+377) 98 98 81 21 / 22
Opening hours: 9.30am to 5pm, Monday to Friday.

STEP 4: REGISTER WITH CAMTI-CARTI

All natural persons authorised to operate business activity under sole proprietorship (crafts, trades, industrial, sales, self-employed) are required to register with CAMTI (Caisse d’Assurance Maladie pour Travailleurs Indépendants) [Health Insurance Fund for the Self-Employed] and CARTI (Caisse Autonome des Retraites pour Travailleurs Indépendants) [Pension Fund for the Self-Employed].

CAMI-CARTI
11, rue Louis Notari - Tel.:(+377) 93 15 43 93 - This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Opening hours: 9am to noon and 2pm to 5pm, Monday to Friday.

General partners of limited partnerships and associates of general partnerships as well as associate managers of limited liability companies are also required to register. Forms will be sent directly to your company's head office by the Monegasque social security bodies. They can also be collected from the Monegasque Service du Recouvrement des Cotisations des Caisses Sociales [Collection of Social Contributions Department] reception desk or from the Job Centre if you are opening an employer file (in this case, please refer to Step 5).

Registration applications must be sent within a maximum of one month from the date on which the business is set up or registered with the RCI in the case of limited liability companies.

Caisses Sociales de Monaco - Service du Recouvrement des Cotisations
11, rue Louis Notari - Tel.:(+377) 93 15 43 86 - This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Opening hours: 9am to noon and 2pm to 5pm, Monday to Friday.

STEP 5: STAFF RECRUITMENT

All new employers in the Principality who wish to employ staff - other than domestic staff - must make an appointment with the Job Centre in order to open an "employer file" with a view to registering the business with the social service bodies. During this meeting, you will be provided with information pertaining to procedures in force for recruiting staff as well as the essential rules for managing staff in the Principality. The Job Centre will take care of sending all necessary documentation to the various different social service bodies in the Principality in order to equip you with a registration number which will then allow you to recruit staff.

Direction du Travail - Service de l’Emploi
2, rue Princesse Antoinette - Tel.: (+377) 98 98 19 86 - 
Opening hours: 8.30am to 1pm (and by appointment in the afternoon).

Read more on www.gouv.mc