Business Setup in Tirana (2026)

Good to know

Good to Know

There is no local-partner, local-director, or residency requirement to incorporate — a foreigner can own and run an Albanian Sh.p.k. entirely remotely via a power of attorney, though you'll eventually want an in-country presence for banking and practical operations.
The single biggest delay is usually not QKB itself but getting home-country documents apostilled and translated — start that process early, especially if your home country's apostille turnaround is slow.
Minimum share capital is symbolic (ALL 100, about EUR 1), so capital requirements are not a real barrier — budget instead for notary, translation, and any professional service fees.
Opening a corporate bank account can take longer than the company registration itself and sometimes requires the director's physical presence, so plan a trip to Tirana around this step if you're not already resident.
Since May 2025, Albania has a public Beneficial Ownership registry at QKB — foreign-owned companies must disclose UBOs, and this is searchable by anyone, including counterparties and banks.
If you're a non-resident foreigner, you generally cannot register as a sole proprietor (Person Fizik) in Albania — you'll need to form an Sh.p.k. (LLC) instead, which has no residency requirement for foreign owners.
The 0% profit-tax band (turnover up to ALL 14,000,000, roughly USD 170,500) is a hard cliff, not a graduated allowance — going even slightly over pushes your entire year's profit into the 15% bracket.
VAT registration (mandatory above ALL 10,000,000 turnover) and the 0%-CIT small-business threshold are separate rules — check both independently rather than assuming one implies the other.
The 0% small-business CIT regime is currently legislated to run only through 31 December 2029, so long-term financial plans should account for the eventual return to the 15% rate.
A reduced 5% CIT rate for software companies expired for new registrations after 31 December 2023 (with benefit through 2025) — don't rely on outdated blog posts that still advertise it as currently available.
Minimum share capital for an Sh.p.k. is symbolic (ALL 100, about USD 1.22), so capital requirements are not a real barrier to incorporation.
Even very small, VAT-exempt sole proprietors must still file a quarterly turnover return and annual balance sheet — 'small' does not mean 'no filing obligations'.

VAT

Standard Rate: 20%
Filing: VAT is filed monthly, with returns and payment due by the 14th of the following month.
Export Of Services Rule: Services billed to clients based outside Albania are generally treated as VAT-exempt exports; VAT (20%, unless below the registration threshold) applies to sales to Albania-based clients.
Mandatory Registration Threshold: ALL 10,000,000
Threshold Independence Note: The VAT registration threshold (ALL 10M) and the 0%-CIT small-business threshold (ALL 14M) are separate and calculated independently — a business can be liable for VAT while still qualifying for 0% profit tax, or vice versa.

Reduced Rates

10%
6% (tourism/accommodation-related)

Corporate Tax

Standard Cit Rate

Rate: 15% on net taxable profit
Detail: The standard corporate income tax (CIT) rate applies to resident companies on worldwide income and to permanent establishments of non-resident companies on Albania-source income.

Reduced Sector Rates

5%
Detail
Applied to companies that registered this activity before 31 December 2023, and only for tax periods through 31 December 2025 — this incentive has now expired for new entrants.
Sector
Software production and development
5%
Detail
In effect until 31 December 2029.
Sector
Agricultural co-operatives and certified agro-tourism businesses

Dividend Withholding Tax

Rate: 8%
Detail: Applies when a company distributes profits to shareholders; withheld by the distributing entity and treated as a final tax on that income.

Small Business Zero Rate

Detail: A 0% profit-tax rate applies to businesses (LLCs, sole proprietors, and joint-stock companies alike) with annual gross turnover up to this threshold, in effect through 31 December 2029 under Law No. 29/2023.
Sunset: 31 December 2029
Threshold: ALL 14,000,000
Cliff Edge Warning: This is not a graduated relief: crossing the threshold by even a small margin pushes the entire year's net profit into the 15% bracket, not just the excess amount.

Nonresident Withholding Tax

General Rate: 15%
Detail: Levied on Albanian-source payments to non-residents such as technical, management, installation or supervisory service fees; dividends, interest and royalties have their own scheduled rates, and this can be reduced under an applicable double tax treaty.
Treaty Network: Albania has signed 46 double tax treaties, with 42 currently in force — always check the specific treaty before relying on a reduced rate.

Structure Comparison For Foreigners

Key Practical Takeaway For Foreigners: For a foreigner who is not yet an Albanian resident, forming an Sh.p.k. is usually the only realistic option, since Person Fizik registration is legally restricted to residents. Once a foreigner does hold residency, the ongoing tax treatment of a single-owner Sh.p.k. and a Person Fizik is largely similar below the ALL 14M turnover threshold — both can qualify for 0% profit tax — with the main structural difference being the 8% dividend withholding tax that only arises when an LLC distributes profits to its owner(s).

LLC Shpk

Liability: Limited liability — personal assets are shielded from business debts
Setup Speed: Registration with the National Business Center (QKB/NBC) typically takes 1–2 business days for the tax ID (NUIS/NIPT); full operational setup (bank account, fiscalization) usually takes 1–2 weeks.
Who Its For: The default and most practical structure for non-resident foreign founders, and for anyone planning to scale, hire staff, take on partners, or limit personal risk
Minimum Capital: ALL 100
Foreign Ownership: Foreign investors can own and fully control an Albanian company in most sectors, with equal legal treatment to domestic investors and no general requirement for a local shareholder or director.
Residency Requirement: None — a non-resident foreigner can be the sole owner and sole director, and registration can be completed remotely via a notarized power of attorney to a local representative.

Sole Proprietor Person Fizik

Setup: No minimum capital, registration typically completed within 1–2 business days once eligible, using the e-Albania/NUIS system
Liability: Unlimited personal liability — the owner and the business are legally the same entity, so creditors can pursue personal assets (bank accounts, vehicle, property) for business debts
Who Its For: Freelancers, consultants, and small single-owner service businesses testing the market
Critical Foreigner Restriction: A foreigner must already hold Albanian legal residency to register as a Person Fizik — a non-resident foreigner cannot open a sole proprietorship. This effectively rules out the sole-proprietor route for most nomads who haven't yet secured residency status.

Scope Note

Covers business-level tax rules and the freelancer/sole-proprietor vs. company decision for a foreign-owned operation in Tirana.

Filing Obligations General

Tax Year: Calendar year (1 January–31 December)
Consolidation: Consolidated group returns are not permitted — each registered company, including subsidiaries, must file its own separate annual return
Advance Payments: Advance CIT payments are made quarterly by default, though monthly installments are permitted as an alternative
Ongoing Compliance: Monthly filings typically include VAT returns (if VAT-registered), sales/purchase books, and payroll/social security returns once any staff are employed.
Annual Return Deadline: 31 March of the year following the tax year, filed together with statutory financial statements
Small Entity Minimum Filings: Even a very small sole proprietor with no VAT liability and no employees must still file a quarterly turnover return and an annual balance sheet.

Incorporation Process And Requirements

Ownership And Residency Rules: Foreigners can own 100% of an Albanian company with no requirement for a local partner, local director, or Albanian residency for shareholders or directors. A single person can be the sole shareholder and sole administrator (director) of a company.
Local Partner Or Sponsor Required: No
Most Common Legal Structure For Foreigners: Sh.p.k. (Shoqëri me Përgjegjësi të Kufizuar) — the Albanian Limited Liability Company, roughly equivalent to a US LLC or UK Ltd. Other available forms include joint-stock company (Sh.a.), sole proprietorship / Person Fizik (residents only), general/limited partnerships, and branch or representative offices of foreign companies.

Timeline

Overall Realistic Range: About 1-2 weeks for a straightforward foreign-owned Sh.p.k. with documents ready in advance, to 4-8 weeks if a branch structure or overseas document legalization is involved.
Branch Of Foreign Company: QKB branch registration itself takes about 5-10 business days, but total elapsed time is typically 4-8 weeks once you factor in obtaining apostilled/translated parent-company documents from the home country.
Qkb Company Registration Only: Typically 1-5 business days once complete, correctly apostilled/translated documents are submitted; several service providers cite 1-2 business days for NIPT issuance and 2-3 to 5-7 business days for full LLC registration depending on document complexity.
Bank Account Tax Setup Fiscalization: An additional 1-2 weeks after registration to open a corporate bank account, complete tax/VAT registration, and activate fiscalization.

Typical Costs

Additional Costs To Budget: Certified translation (roughly EUR 15-25 per page), notarization (roughly EUR 20-50 per document), and apostille fees in the founder's home country, which vary by country.
Official Qkb Registration Fee: ALL 0
Registering directly with QKB (in person or via e-Albania) is officially free of charge for the base LLC filing; some third-party trackers cite a nominal EUR 100-150 government fee for certain filings, so confirm current fee schedule directly on qkb.gov.al before filing.
Typical Professional Service Package: ALL 92,700
Approximate cost (converted from a commonly cited ~EUR 990) for using a local law/accounting firm to handle name check, document drafting, notarization, QKB filing, NIPT, and UBO registration for a basic Sh.p.k. Excludes ongoing accounting/compliance fees.

Branch Of Foreign Company Total Setup Cost Range

Amount USD Low: 912
Currency Local: ALL
Amount USD High: 2850
Amount Local Low: 74900
Amount Local High: 234000
Note: Approximate range (converted from a commonly cited EUR 800-2,500) covering government fees, notary, translation, and apostille costs for registering a branch office, which requires additional authenticated parent-company documents compared to a new local LLC.

Required Documents

Passport copies of all shareholders/directors (apostilled and translated if the foreign national is not present in Albania)
Statute / Articles of Association (Memorandum of Association)
Founders' resolution appointing the administrator
Proof of a registered office address in Albania (e.g., a lease agreement)
Notarized, apostilled power of attorney if using a local legal representative instead of appearing in person
For a branch/subsidiary of a foreign parent company: an apostilled/legalized certificate of incorporation of the parent, plus (in some cases) recent parent financial statements

Step By Step Process

1. Check company name availability and reserve it via the QKB registry (can be done online).
2. Prepare founding documents: Statute / Articles of Association, founders' resolution appointing the administrator, and identification documents of all shareholders/directors. If the founder is not physically present, a notarized and apostilled power of attorney authorizing a local legal representative is used instead.
3. Foreign-issued passports/ID and any home-country corporate documents must be apostilled (or legalized) in the home country and translated into Albanian by a certified translator if not already in Albanian/English.
4. Submit the application to QKB, either in person or online via e-Albania, directly or through a legal representative acting on a power of attorney.
5. QKB issues the Registration Certificate, NIPT/NUIS (tax ID) and, for LLCs, this can happen within roughly 1-2 business days of a complete, correct filing.
6. Register for VAT if applicable, obtain a digital signature for e-invoicing, and complete fiscalization (Albania's mandatory real-time electronic invoicing system) via the tax authority.
7. Open a corporate bank account (banks run their own separate KYC/AML process; some require the director's in-person presence).
8. Register the company's Ultimate Beneficial Owner(s) with QKB's public UBO registry, a requirement in force since May 2025.
9. If hiring, register employees with social and health insurance institutions (ISSH).

Registration Authority

Name: QKB — Qendra Kombëtare e Biznesit (National Business Center / NBC)
Role: One-stop shop handling company registration, tax ID (NIPT/NUIS) issuance, and initial enrolment with social/health insurance and the labor inspectorate in a single filing.
Official URL: https://qkb.gov.al
Online Filing Portal: https://e-albania.al

Minimum Capital Requirement

LLC Sh P K: ALL 100
Symbolic minimum paid-up capital, effectively about EUR 1; no meaningful capital barrier to entry.
Joint Stock Company Note: Joint-stock companies (Sh.a.) intending public offerings face a higher statutory minimum capital than the LLC; consult QKB/a local lawyer if using this structure.

Post Incorporation Ongoing Obligations

Keep the QKB corporate register (directors, shareholders, beneficial owners) up to date and report changes promptly.
Maintain accounting/payroll records and file annual financial statements; independent audit is required only if two of three thresholds are exceeded (roughly USD 230,000 annual sales, USD 330,000 total assets, or 30+ employees).
Register any employees for mandatory social and health insurance contributions.
Corporate income tax is a flat 15% on profits (with a 0% rate for companies with annual turnover under ALL 14 million under a temporary regime, reverting to 15% above that threshold); standard VAT is 20%, with VAT registration mandatory above ALL 10 million annual turnover.

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.

1.qkb.gov.al

More About Tirana

Data last updated July 2026 · Verify anything important.