A bill that will simplify the procedures for establishing companies with the involvement of “one stop shop” service provider has been on public consultation until the 2nd of May. For private companies the service provider will be the general registry of commerce (GEMI). Offices will operate in chambers of commerce, the General Secretariat of Ministry of Development and the Citizen Service Centers (KEP). The establishment of these services has already been regulated by law 3419/2005 which has not yet been implemented. Especially for SA and LTD companies the ‘one stop shop’ service provider will be the notary who draws the constituent documents of the company.
The aforementioned service providers shall take all necessary actions for the establishing of a company including the issue of TRN for shareholders and partners where required and their registration in the social security institutes. In addition the expenses are united in a single charge from which are excluded tax charges, lawyers and notaries fees’. The bill eliminates the judicial review for SA companies (No. 4 par. 2a L. 2190/20) except for special cases (e.g. sport companies, banks, insurance companies, investment companies, etc.). It also eliminates the compulsory participation of a lawyer in constituent deeds regarding SA and LTD companies when the company’s capital does not exceed 100,000 euros.
The bill explicitly states that companies acquire their legal personality immediately after their registration into the registries of commerce (GEMI). That leads to the assumption that registration in the Court of First Instance or the local Prefectures or publication in the National Gazette (FEK) is no longer necessary but the bill doesn’t clarify this point. If the abovementioned are implemented, there will be a significant reduction of expenses for companies and a decongestion of the public authorities, especially if the same provisions apply in all the company amendments as well, something not specified in the bill.