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Formation Cost Calculator
What does forming your company really cost?
Set up your formation: GmbH or UG, standard protocol (Musterprotokoll) or a custom contract. See instantly what to budget for, with current 2025/2026 figures. Planning something different, like a sole proprietorship (Einzelunternehmen) or GbR? Then the Legal Form Finder is the place to go.
Live calculation Current 2025/26 figures No sign-up
Legal form
Share capital
€
Articles of association
Shareholders
- Notary (notarisation, registration, execution · incl. VAT)€365 to €510
- Commercial register (Handelsregister) entry · VAT-exempt · since 1 June 2025€225
- Trade registration (Gewerbeanmeldung) (Bremen)€32
- Transparency register and others€0 to €25
Formation costs approx.€622 to €792
On top comes the share capital: €25,000 (at least €12,500 paid in). Not a sunk cost, but an asset of your company.
Calculated per GNotKG (notary, depending on the transaction value) and HRegGebV (commercial register €225, €360 with a contribution in kind), as of 2025/2026. The notary range reflects that disbursements and execution fees vary by notary's office. For orientation, not legal or tax advice.
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GmbH & UG formation costs 2025/2026 at a glance
The cost of a corporation is made up of several items: the notary fees (notarisation and registration, set by the GNotKG and depending on the share capital), the entry in the commercial register (Handelsregister) (€225 since 1 June 2025), the execution (Vollzug), the trade registration (Gewerbeanmeldung) (currently €32 in Bremen), plus smaller items like the transparency register (Transparenzregister). Optionally, a tax advisor for the opening balance sheet is added.
The share capital (GmbH €25,000, UG from €1) isn't a cost item but your starting balance: it stays as an asset in the company and helps finance your operations.
Beyond formation: the running costs
After formation come recurring costs, above all bookkeeping and the annual financial statements (a GmbH and UG are required to file balance sheets), possibly the IHK membership fee, and ongoing tax advice. I'll help you budget for this realistically from the start, so there are no surprises after launch.
Common questions about formation costs
What does forming a GmbH cost?
For a one-person GmbH using the standard protocol (Musterprotokoll) and €25,000 share capital, formation costs in 2025/2026 come to roughly €600 to €800 (notary per GNotKG, commercial register €225, trade registration, transparency register). On top of that comes the share capital (at least €12,500 paid in). That's not a sunk cost; it's an asset of the company.
What does forming a UG cost?
A one-person UG using the standard protocol (Musterprotokoll) costs roughly €400 to €500 (excluding share capital). The notary is much cheaper than for a GmbH, because the GNotKG fee is based on the share capital, and for a UG that can be as little as €1.
Why did the commercial register fee go up?
On 1 June 2025, commercial register (Handelsregister) fees were raised by 50%. Since then, the initial registration of a GmbH or UG costs €225 (without a contribution in kind) instead of the previous €150.
Does the share capital count as a formation cost?
No. The share capital (GmbH €25,000, UG from €1) is not a sunk cost: it remains an asset of your company and is available to you for running the business. It is not included in the formation costs above.
Do I need a tax advisor for the formation?
It's not mandatory, but it's sensible, for example for the opening balance sheet and ongoing bookkeeping (a GmbH and UG are required to file balance sheets). In the calculator, you can show or hide the optional tax-advisor item.
Reference figures as of 2025/2026, without guarantee. Notary and court fees depend on the specific transaction value (Geschäftswert). Not legal or tax advice.
Company formation without the paperwork stress
Notary, commercial register, account, registrations: I coordinate your formation with the notary, bank, tax advisor and authorities, whether it's a GmbH, UG or another legal form. You save time and have every step ticked off on solid legal ground.
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