Good to know
Good to Know
- There is no requirement for a local Spanish co-owner, partner, or sponsor to set up a company in Seville — a foreigner (or a foreign company) can own 100% of a Sociedad Limitada and be its sole director.
- The NIE is the single most common source of delay for foreign founders: applying in person at a Spanish immigration office once you're already in Seville is generally faster than applying through a home-country consulate, which can take several weeks.
- Opening the company bank account, not the registry paperwork itself, is often the real bottleneck — Spanish banks run their own KYC/AML checks on foreign-owned entities that can take longer than the incorporation filing.
- Legally you can now form an S.L. with just €1 of share capital, but most lawyers and bankers still recommend funding closer to the traditional €3,000 threshold, since sub-€3,000 capital triggers extra legal-reserve and dividend restrictions and can make banks and suppliers more cautious.
- These corporate tax rates and filing rules are national Spanish law — they are identical whether you incorporate in Seville, Madrid, or Barcelona. What differs city to city is only where you physically go to register (Seville's Registro Mercantil, local Hacienda delegation, and Social Security office).
- Most foreigners testing the waters in Seville start as autónomo because it's fast (often 1-3 business days) and has no minimum capital, then convert to an SL once profits are reliably above roughly €40,000-€60,000 a year, since corporate tax rates plus dividend tax can beat the progressive personal income tax scale at that level.
- Non-EU nationals need a valid residence-and-work permit that allows self-employment (e.g. the Digital Nomad Visa) before registering as autónomo or as a company director; EU/EEA citizens can register as autónomo as soon as they have an NIE.
- Running an SL is not 'set and forget' — even a dormant or low-activity company must file quarterly VAT and corporate tax instalments plus annual accounts with the Registro Mercantil, so budget for an ongoing accountant/gestoría relationship rather than DIY filing.
- A phased e-invoicing mandate (Verifactu) requiring certified software with QR codes and tamper-evident records is rolling out for all SLs from January 2027 — worth factoring into your invoicing tool choice now if you're incorporating.
Illustrative Costs
SL Minimum Share Capital (Legal Minimum Since 2022 Reform)
- SL Minimum Share Capital (Legal Minimum Since 2022 Reform)
- €1.00
EUR
EUR
EUR
Autónomo Societario (SL Director) Minimum Monthly RETA Contribution
- AutóNomo Societario (SL Director) Minimum Monthly RETA Contribution
- €340
Modelo 347 Reporting Threshold per Client/supplier per Year
- Modelo 347 Reporting Threshold Per Client/Supplier Per Year
- €3,005
Structure Comparison Freelancer Vs Company
- Break Even Point
- Multiple professional sources converge on roughly €40,000-€60,000 in annual net profit as the point where incorporating as an SL starts to outweigh the extra fixed costs (notary, registry, accounting/gestoría fees, annual accounts filing) compared with staying an autónomo. Below that, autónomo status is usually simpler and cheaper; above it, the gap tends to widen in the SL's favor as profits grow.
Sociedad Limitada Sl
- Setup
- Minimum share capital is now €1 (reduced from €3,000 by the 2022 Crea y Crece law), though amounts below €3,000 trigger special legal-reserve rules. Formation requires a reserved company name at the Registro Mercantil Central, notarised articles of incorporation, a company bank account, and registration with Hacienda and Social Security — typically completable in a few days to a few weeks depending on complexity.
- Taxation
- Profits are taxed at corporate tax rates (19%-25% depending on size/age, detailed above) rather than personal IRPF rates. The owner is taxed personally only on salary and dividends actually drawn from the company.
- Liability
- Limited liability — personal assets are generally protected beyond the capital invested in the company, provided the business is run without fraud and personal/company finances are kept separate.
- What It Is
- Spain's standard private limited company, similar to an LLC; a Sociedad Limitada Unipersonal (SLU) is the single-shareholder version, common for solo foreign founders.
- Who It Suits
- Founders planning to hire staff, take on partners or investors, pursue higher-liability activities (e.g. property, construction), or those whose profits are consistently high enough that corporate tax rates plus dividend tax beat the progressive personal IRPF scale.
- Social Security
- A director who works in the company usually registers as an 'autónomo societario' under RETA, generally with a higher minimum monthly contribution than a regular autónomo (roughly €310-€370 per month in 2026, plus the MEI intergenerational equity mechanism contribution).
- Foreign Ownership
- Non-residents can be shareholders, directors, and sole owners of a Spanish SL. A NIE (foreigner ID number) is required, and a non-resident director without EU residency may also need a work permit depending on their role.
Autonomo Sole Proprietor
- Setup
- No minimum capital, no notary, no company registry step. Registration with Hacienda and Social Security (RETA) can typically be completed within 1-3 business days once documentation (NIE, digital certificate) is in order.
- Taxation
- Business profits are taxed as personal income under IRPF, a progressive scale that can exceed 40% at higher income levels (up to roughly 47% depending on the autonomous community's bracket).
- Liability
- Unlimited personal liability — personal assets (home, savings) are exposed to business creditors.
- What It Is
- The individual trades under their own name and Spanish tax ID (NIE/NIF); there is no separate legal entity.
- Who It Suits
- Solo freelancers, consultants, and small-scale service providers, especially those with moderate income and low legal/financial risk in their activity.
- Social Security
- Self-employed workers pay monthly RETA contributions. Since the post-2023 reform, contributions are based on actual net income across 15 income bands rather than a flat fee; new autónomos can access a reduced starter rate ('tarifa plana').
VAT Iva
- Standard Rate
- 21% (Impuesto sobre el Valor Añadido), charged on most goods and services and reclaimable/remittable via quarterly filings.
- Filing Form
- Modelo 303 — quarterly VAT return, filed within 20 days after each quarter.
Scope Note
Spanish corporate tax, VAT, and business-structure rules are set at the national level by the Agencia Tributaria and apply uniformly across Spain, including Seville. Registration formalities (Registro Mercantil, Hacienda delegation, Social Security office) are handled through Seville's local offices, but the rates and filing rules themselves do not vary by city.
Filing Obligations For A Company Sl
Filing Obligations For A Company Sl
- Modelo 200 — annual corporate tax return, filed within 25 days of the sixth month after the fiscal year ends (commonly July for calendar-year companies).
- Modelo 202 — quarterly advance/instalment payments toward corporate tax (typically April, October, December).
- Modelo 303 — quarterly VAT return.
- Modelo 111 — quarterly withholding tax return on employee salaries and professional fees paid.
- Modelo 347 — annual declaration of transactions exceeding €3,005.06 with any single client or supplier.
- Annual accounts (cuentas anuales) must be deposited at the Registro Mercantil every year.
- From 1 January 2027, the Verifactu e-invoicing system requires certified invoicing software with QR codes and tamper-evident audit trails or real-time submission to the tax agency; this was postponed from an earlier 2026 date.
Corporate Tax Impuesto Sobre Sociedades
- Standard Rate
- 25% on net profits for most resident companies (Sociedad Limitada / Sociedad Anónima), applied to worldwide income if the company is Spanish tax-resident (incorporated under Spanish law or with effective management in Spain).
- Large Group Minimum Rate
- Groups/entities with net turnover of at least €20 million are subject to a minimum effective corporate tax rate of 15% of taxable base after deductions (10% for certain special regimes).
- Newly Created Company Rate
- New companies (typically a first-time Sociedad Limitada) can benefit from a reduced rate of 15% for the first two profitable fiscal years, subject to conditions (e.g. not being part of a group, activity not previously carried out by a related party).
- Reduced Rate Small Companies
- For 2026, micro-enterprises with turnover under €1 million pay 19% on the first €50,000 of taxable base and 21% on the remainder, under a phased reduction introduced by Ley 7/2024. Reduced-dimension SMEs with turnover between €1M and €10M pay 23%.
- Administering Authority
- Agencia Tributaria (Spain's national tax agency).
Filing Obligations For An Autonomo Freelancer
Filing Obligations For An Autonomo Freelancer
- Quarterly IRPF (personal income tax) instalment payments and a quarterly VAT return (Modelo 303) where applicable.
- Registration via Modelo 036/037 declaring the business activity code (epígrafe IAE) with the Agencia Tributaria.
- Separate registration with Social Security's self-employed regime (RETA) within 30 days of starting activity.
- Income is declared and taxed as personal income (IRPF) on the individual's annual return — there is no separate 'corporate' filing since the business has no distinct legal personality from the individual.
Incorporation Process And Requirements
- Fast Track Option
- CIRCE (Centro de Información y Red de Creación de Empresas), Spain's official one-stop online system, bundles most of these steps into a single electronic filing (the DUE, Documento Único Electrónico) for a standard S.L. with model bylaws. It is free to use via a Punto de Atención al Emprendimiento (PAE) but still requires a foreign founder to already hold a NIE, since CIRCE cannot issue one.
- Most Common Vehicle
- Sociedad Limitada (S.L.), Spain's standard limited liability company, roughly equivalent to a US LLC or UK Ltd. A single-shareholder version is called an S.L.U. (Sociedad Limitada Unipersonal).
- Scope Note
- Company incorporation in Spain is governed by national law and a national digital registry system, so the process, costs, and timeline described here are the same for Seville as for any other Spanish city. Seville-specific detail is limited to which Provincial Commercial Registry (Registro Mercantil de Sevilla) and which local Notary/bank branches you use.
Typical Costs
- Notary Deed Fee Range Low
- €150
- Notary Deed Fee Range High
- €500
- Minimum Legal Share Capital
- €1.00
- Name Reservation Certificate
- €22
- NIE Government Fee Per Person
- €12
- Total Official Fees DIY Range Low
- €600
- Total Official Fees DIY Range High
- €1,500
- Mercantile Registry Filing Range Low
- €100
- Mercantile Registry Filing Range High
- €300
- Traditional Recommended Share Capital
- €3,000
- Gestor Or Law Firm Full Service Range Low
- €1,000
- Gestor Or Law Firm Full Service Range High
- €2,000
- Note
- Figures exclude ongoing costs (accounting ~€150-400/month, director Social Security ~€300-345/month, annual compliance ~€5,000-8,000/year).
Official Links
Core Requirements
- NIE (Número de Identidad de Extranjero) for every individual foreign shareholder and director — obtained at a Spanish consulate abroad (Form EX-15) or at a police station/immigration office in Spain (Form EX-18); without it the notary cannot sign the incorporation deed.
- If a shareholder is itself a foreign company (not an individual), that foreign entity needs its own Spanish NIF, plus an apostilled and translated certificate proving its legal existence.
- Certificación Negativa de Denominación Social — a name-availability certificate from the Central Mercantile Registry (Registro Mercantil Central), reserving your chosen company name for 6 months.
- Minimum share capital deposited in a Spanish bank account in the company's name: legally as low as €1 under the 'Crea y Crece' reform, though €3,000 remains the traditional/practical choice to avoid ongoing legal-reserve and dividend restrictions.
- Escritura de Constitución — the public deed of incorporation signed before a Spanish notary (in person, or via a representative under a notarised power of attorney if a founder cannot travel).
- Registration with the Provincial Mercantile Registry (for Seville: Registro Mercantil de Sevilla), which grants the company legal personality.
- Tax registration (Modelo 036 census declaration) with the Agencia Tributaria to obtain the company's definitive NIF and register for corporate tax/VAT, plus Social Security registration for the director (RETA regime) and any employees.
Realistic Timeline
- Typical Range
- 2-6 weeks total for a foreigner who already has or can quickly obtain a NIE.
- Best Case With Circe And Documents Ready
- 5-10 working days once NIE is already in hand and standard bylaws are used.
- Realistic Range Including NIE From Abroad
- 4-8 weeks, since obtaining a NIE through a consulate abroad can itself take several weeks and is the most common bottleneck, followed by bank account KYC checks on foreign-owned accounts.
Key Delay Points
- NIE processing via consulate abroad rather than in-person in Spain
- Spanish bank account opening — banks apply strict KYC/AML checks to foreign-owned companies and can take several weeks
- Provincial registry backlogs during peak filing periods
Step By Step Process
- 1. Obtain NIE for each foreign individual founder/director (consulate or in-Spain police station).
- 2. Reserve the company name via the Registro Mercantil Central (up to 5 name options, in order of preference).
- 3. Open a Spanish bank account for the company-in-formation and deposit the share capital; obtain the bank's deposit certificate.
- 4. Draft the Estatutos Sociales (articles of association).
- 5. Sign the Escritura de Constitución before a Spanish notary (in person or via power of attorney).
- 6. Notary requests a provisional NIF from the Agencia Tributaria and forwards the deed to the Provincial Mercantile Registry.
- 7. Registration at the Provincial Mercantile Registry converts the provisional NIF into the definitive NIF once entry is confirmed.
- 8. Register for tax (Modelo 036 — VAT/IVA, corporate tax) and Social Security (RETA for a controlling director; CCC employer code if hiring).
Local Partner Or Sponsor Requirement
- Caveat
- If a founder wants to live in Spain to run the business (rather than just own it remotely), that founder separately needs an appropriate immigration authorization (e.g. self-employment/entrepreneur visa) — this is an immigration matter, not a company-law partner requirement.
- Detail
- No Spanish partner, local shareholder, or local sponsor is legally required. A foreigner (individual or foreign company) can own 100% of a Spanish S.L. and act as sole director. There is also no residency requirement for directors or shareholders.
- Required
- No
AI-generated estimateData refreshed July 2026
Sources cited for this category
These are the sources cited in this business permits & incorporation for foreigners research for this city. Individual figures may not each trace to one of them.
More About Seville
Data last updated July 2026 · Verify anything important.