Business & Corporate Law · Slovakia
Company formation in Slovakia, explained step by step
Slovak company formation sits inside a fully written, code-based legal order led by the Commercial Code, with Slovak as the language of every official file. We match you, free of charge, with a Slovak-registered advokát who handles incorporation, registration and corporate compliance from first draft to filing.
- Commercial Code framework, applied in practice
- Slovak-language documents and filings
- Free matching, no obligation to proceed
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Why this page exists
What company formation in Slovakia really involves
Setting up a business in Slovakia means working with a written, code-based legal order: the Commercial Code (Act No 513/1991 Coll.) sits alongside the Civil Code (Act No 40/1964 Coll.), and the courts apply the statutory text rather than a system of binding precedent. Founders therefore gain from documents that are correct both in form and in Slovak, because Slovak is the language of judicial and administrative proceedings and of the documents served on the parties. Practical questions — how a site or a building is secured through the Land Register, what a commercial dispute costs in court fees, who may act for the company — each have specific answers under Slovak law. This page explains how company formation in Slovakia works on the ground, and how our free matching puts you in contact with a Slovak-registered advokát who handles incorporation and corporate matters.
Slovakia in detail
How the Slovak framework shapes a new company
Slovakia is a continental civil-law jurisdiction in which the main rules for business are written down in codes and applied by a three-tier ordinary judiciary. For a founder, that means the legal form, the founding documents and the registration steps are all measured against statutory text rather than against earlier judgments.
The Commercial Code is the backbone
Business relationships and corporate structures rest on the Commercial Code (Act No 513/1991 Coll.), which forms part of a written legal order alongside the Civil Code (Act No 40/1964 Coll.) and the Constitution (Constitutional Act No 460/1992 Coll.). Because Slovakia does not apply binding precedent, the wording of your founding documents and contracts matters more than an earlier ruling: the Supreme Court unifies interpretation, but it does not create law.
Everything is filed in Slovak
Slovak is the state language under Article 6 of the Constitution and the language used in judicial and administrative proceedings. Documents are served in the state language, and a party who does not command Slovak is entitled to an interpreter. For foreign founders this is a drafting question as much as a procedural one: contracts intended to be relied on before Slovak authorities should be prepared in Slovak from the outset.
Property and security go through the Land Register
The Slovak Land Register (kataster nehnuteľností) follows the constitutive principle: ownership and other rights to real property are acquired only on registration, not on signature of the purchase contract. The cadastre is run by district offices, and entry is what makes a transfer effective against third parties. Registering an ownership right costs a flat EUR 66, or EUR 33 for electronic filing.
No inheritance, gift or property transfer tax
Slovakia abolished inheritance tax and gift tax with effect from 1 January 2004 and repealed real-estate transfer tax from 1 January 2005. There is consequently no inheritance, estate, gift or stamp duty on transferring real property, whatever the value or the relationship between the parties. Succession itself is handled through court-supervised probate proceedings, a point that matters where shares or business premises pass on death.
Who may advise and represent the company
Legal services are reserved to advokáti entered in the register kept by the Slovak Bar Association (SAK) under Act No 586/2003 Coll. on the Legal Profession; in-house lawyers are not Bar members and are not regulated as a profession. In civil proceedings a party may generally act in person at first instance, but representation is mandatory for the extraordinary remedy of dovolanie before the Supreme Court and before the Constitutional Court.
Budgeting for a dispute, not just for incorporation
If a commercial disagreement reaches the courts, court fees under Act No 71/1992 Coll. are generally set at about 6% of the value in dispute, with a minimum of EUR 25 and a cap of EUR 33,000 for ordinary civil claims, rising to EUR 50,000 in certain commercial cases; VAT does not apply. Fees are payable when the action is filed, and lawyers’ fees follow Decree No 655/2004 or a freely agreed contract fee.
Key time limit — Commercial & Corporate Law
General limitation period (contractual and debt claims) — 3 years. Covers most contractual and debt claims, so invoices and shareholder loans need to be tracked against this clock.
All country-specific statements on this page come from official Slovak and European Union sources — Slov-Lex, the Slovak Bar Association and the European e-Justice Portal — consulted for this review in 2025.
- European e-Justice Portal — National justice systems: Slovakia
- European e-Justice Portal — Costs: Slovakia
- European e-Justice Portal — Land registers: Slovakia
- Slovak Bar Association (SAK) — profile
- Slov-Lex — Act No 586/2003 Coll. on the Legal Profession
- Slov-Lex — Constitution of the Slovak Republic (Act No 460/1992 Coll.)
- Slov-Lex — Civil Code (Act No 40/1964 Coll.)
Common sticking points
Where founders usually get stuck in Slovakia
These are the recurring questions clients bring to us before a Slovak project gets off the ground.
Which code governs my company?
Founders arriving from common-law systems look for case law and find statutes instead. The Commercial Code and the Civil Code set the framework, so the drafting of your founding documents carries most of the weight.
Everything has to be in Slovak
Slovak is the language of proceedings and of served documents, and authorities work in it. Contracts and filings prepared only in another language create avoidable friction and delay once a file reaches an office or a court.
Costs appear after incorporation
Incorporation is only the first line of the budget. Court fees of about 6% of the value in dispute, capped at EUR 33,000 for ordinary civil claims, and registration fees for property can change the arithmetic of a project.
How matching helps
What you get from our free matching service
We do not draft documents ourselves and we do not give legal advice. We connect you with a Slovak-registered advokát suited to your project.
A specialist in Slovak corporate law
We match you with an advokát entered in the Slovak Bar Association register who works with the Commercial Code, founding documents and corporate filings every day.
Documents prepared in the right language
Your matched advokát drafts and reviews in Slovak, the language of judicial and administrative proceedings, and can explain what each clause means before you sign.
Clear sight of the real costs
From Land Register fees of EUR 66, or EUR 33 for electronic filing, to court fees and contractual fee arrangements, you get the picture in advance.
One contact across the project
Registration of property, employment questions, a commercial dispute later on: the same professional can follow the file and tell you which time limits apply.
Cross-border founders
Founders we help set up in Slovakia usually come from
Company formation in Slovakia often involves a foreign parent, a non-resident director or property held abroad. These are the European markets our clients most often connect from.
Questions founders ask
Frequently asked questions about Slovak company formation
Do I need to speak Slovak to go through company formation in Slovakia?
Slovak is the state language under Article 6 of the Constitution and the language of judicial and administrative proceedings. Documents are served in Slovak, and a party who does not command the language is entitled to an interpreter. In practice, founding documents and contracts intended to be relied on before Slovak authorities should be prepared in Slovak, which is why founders usually work with a Slovak-registered advokát.
Which Slovak laws apply to setting up and running a company?
The Commercial Code (Act No 513/1991 Coll.) is the principal statute for business and corporate matters, alongside the Civil Code (Act No 40/1964 Coll.) and the Constitution (Constitutional Act No 460/1992 Coll.). Slovakia is a civil-law jurisdiction, so the written text governs and the Supreme Court’s case law unifies interpretation without creating binding precedent. Your documents should therefore be drafted against the statutes themselves.
Can a foreign founder own property through a Slovak company?
Ownership and other rights to real property in Slovakia are acquired only on registration in the Land Register (kataster nehnuteľností), not on signing the purchase contract — the constitutive principle. The cadastre is administered by district offices. Registering an ownership right costs a flat EUR 66, or EUR 33 for electronic filing, and registration is what makes the transfer effective against third parties.
Are there gift, inheritance or property transfer taxes in Slovakia?
No. Slovakia abolished inheritance tax and gift tax with effect from 1 January 2004 and repealed real-estate transfer tax from 1 January 2005. There is therefore no inheritance, estate, gift or stamp duty on transferring real property, regardless of the amount or the relationship between the parties. Succession itself is dealt with in court-supervised probate proceedings under the Civil Code.
What does a commercial court case cost in Slovakia?
Court fees under Act No 71/1992 Coll. are generally calculated at about 6% of the value in dispute, with a minimum of EUR 25 and a cap of EUR 33,000 for ordinary civil claims, rising to EUR 50,000 in certain commercial cases. VAT does not apply, and the fee is payable when the action is filed. Legal fees are agreed under Decree No 655/2004 or as a contract fee.
Must a Slovak advokát represent my company in court?
Not always. In civil proceedings a party may generally act in person before the district and regional courts, but mandatory representation applies to dovolanie before the Supreme Court and to proceedings before the Constitutional Court. In criminal matters the accused has a constitutionally guaranteed right to legal assistance from the start, and defence counsel is compulsory in the cases set by the Criminal Procedure Code.
Next step
Tell us about your Slovak project
Describe what you want to set up — a new company, a branch, a property purchase or a corporate dispute — and we will match you with a Slovak-registered advokát who handles that work. Matching is free, carries no obligation, and your first response usually arrives within 24 to 48 hours.