How to register a company in Latvia remotely
Forming a Latvian SIA takes six stages, almost all of them done from wherever you are. Here is what happens at each one, and which parts we can't control.
We never promise a fixed total time. Once everything is in place the paperwork is quick. The bank stage is the one that varies most, so plan around that.
The stages
Message us and share the details
Tell us who the owners and board members will be, and where they live. We confirm in writing what we need from you and what it will cost. This usually takes one to two days, and mostly depends on how quickly the details come back to us.
We run our checks and prepare the documents
We carry out identity and anti-money-laundering checks on the owners and board members, which takes about a day. We then draft the founding documents. We quote up to two working days for this, and it is often quicker.
You sign online
You sign the documents with a qualified electronic signature (QES) and send them back. There is no notary and no trip to Latvia. How long this takes depends on you and on how easily you can get a QES.
You open a temporary bank account
In practice, the share capital is paid into a temporary account opened in the future company's name before we submit anything. We advise on which bank to approach and how to talk to it, but we can't open the account for you. This is the longest and least predictable stage: usually one to two weeks, and up to three weeks in cases we have seen. It is entirely the bank's own process, and we can't speed it up.
You pay in the share capital
Once the account is open, you transfer the share capital and send us the proof of payment.
We submit to the Register of Enterprises
We file the registration. The Register's standard review period is three business days. A one-business-day review is also available: it costs no extra state fee for a company with a single founder, while with more than one founder the state charges three times the base fee and we add the difference at cost. The Register can take longer if it has questions or needs to check something with the tax authority. In one case we handled, the review ran about three weeks past the paid-for window.
Why no notary is needed
The Register of Enterprises accepts a qualified electronic signature (QES) as proof of who signed. That is what replaces the notary, the apostille and the trip. We check identity ourselves as part of our own compliance checks, and that also needs a QES.
The signature has to be qualified. An ordinary electronic signature, or the "advanced" level (AdES) that many national tools offer, is not enough.
For founders from the EEA countries and Switzerland (31 countries), a qualified signature is available through the signing platform we work with, Dokobit. In some countries the national eID also works. In a few, such as Denmark, the Netherlands and Sweden, the national tool is advanced-level only, so we use the platform's video-identification signature instead. Outside those 31 countries it depends on the person, so ask us.
The signing service is provided by a third party, and you pay it directly. We do not pay for it or include it in our fee.
Where the rules come from
The three-business-day decision period is in the Latvian Commercial Law (Komerclikums, on the Commercial Register's decision on an application). The state fee for a one-business-day review, and the rule that a single-founder company pays no extra for it, are in Cabinet Regulation No. 664 (Ministru kabineta noteikumi Nr. 664, notes 1 and 4 to the annex). We checked both texts on 26 September 2026. The law can change, so treat this as a summary.
Cases we have handled
Details are anonymised. They show why we check the signature level and the country first.
A founder from Spain, blocked by the signature level
The founder already had an electronic signature and assumed it would do. It turned out to be advanced-level, not qualified, so it could not be used for registration. Since then we confirm the signature level, not just "do you have an e-signature", before anything else.
A founder from Poland, using their own certificate
The founder already held a qualified certificate issued in their country, so there was nothing extra to buy. They registered with it directly, which was simpler and cheaper than going through a platform.
A founder from France, signing through a different provider
France is on our standard list, but in this case the process ran through a different signing provider because that was what worked for the founder. It is a reminder that the list is a starting point, not a limit.
A registration that took three weeks longer than expected
The Register of Enterprises came back with follow-up questions, and the review ran about three weeks past the window that had been paid for. The paid-for review time is not a cap on how long the Register can take.
Questions about the process
What should I have ready before I message you?
Nothing formal. It helps to know who the owners and board members will be, where each of them lives, and whether any owner is a company. That is enough for us to confirm in writing what we need from you and what it will cost. We ask for identity documents only after that.
What happens after I send my first message?
We reply in writing, in English, with what we need from you and what the total will cost. Nothing starts until you agree. This first stage usually takes one to two days, and it depends mostly on how quickly the details come back to us, not on our side.
Do I ever have to sign in person?
No. You sign the founding documents online with a qualified electronic signature, so there is no notary visit and no trip to Latvia. The only in-person element is on the bank's side, if its own identity checks require it. We tell you what to expect from the bank you choose.
What do you check in the compliance stage?
We check the identity of the owners and board members and run our anti-money-laundering checks, as the law requires of a company formation provider. This takes about a day. If something is unclear we ask you in writing, and we start drafting the documents only once the checks are done.
Who talks to the bank?
You do. The bank opens the account in the future company's name and makes its own decision, so we cannot do it for you. What we do is advise on which bank to approach, prepare you for the questions it will ask, and tell you what to expect, so the stage goes as smoothly as it can.
What do I send you after I pay in the share capital?
The proof of the transfer, meaning a payment confirmation showing the share capital arrived in the temporary account. Once we have it, we submit the registration to the Register of Enterprises. We file it for you, and we follow up with the Register if it has questions, asking you only for what we cannot provide ourselves.
Can I speed the process up?
A little. The Register of Enterprises offers a one-business-day review instead of the standard three, and it costs no extra state fee for a single founder. The rest depends on how quickly you reply and on the bank, which we cannot influence. Replying promptly and choosing your signature route early helps most.
How do we communicate during the process?
Everything is in writing, in English. WhatsApp is the quickest, and email works as a fallback. We do not do phone or video calls, which also means you have a written record of what was agreed at each stage. Write to us whenever you are unsure what the next step is.
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Ready to start?
Tell us who the owners will be and where they live. We reply in writing, in English.