A complete guide to registering a company in Russia as a foreign investor — LLC registration steps, documents, costs, legal address, bank account…
Registering a company in Russia as a foreign investor is straightforward by international standards. The FTS (Federal Tax Service) registers an LLC in 3–5 working days. The process can be done remotely with a power of attorney. 100% foreign ownership is permitted in most sectors.
The complexity is not in the registration itself — it is in getting the documents right, opening a bank account, and setting up the ongoing compliance infrastructure. This guide covers all of it: the registration process step by step, what documents you need from your home country, how to find a legal address, how to open a bank account, and what corporate compliance obligations arise after registration.
For the vast majority of foreign companies, the answer is an LLC (ООО — Общество с ограниченной ответственностью). It is the most flexible, the most commonly used, and the easiest to manage. The alternatives — a branch or representative office — involve longer registration times, different tax treatment, and either commercial restrictions (representative office) or full parent company liability (branch).
The only situation where an LLC is not the obvious answer is if you specifically want to test the market without commercial activity — in which case a representative office may suffice. For anything involving actual sales, contracts or revenue, use an LLC.
A foreign company or individual can be the sole founder and 100% owner of a Russian LLC. There is no requirement for a Russian co-founder, local partner or Russian director. The minimum share capital is RUB 10,000 — about USD 110. The company can have a single founder and a single General Director who is the same person (subject to work permit requirements for foreign nationals).
This is where most delays occur. Russian law requires that foreign corporate documents be apostilled (or consularised) and accompanied by certified Russian translation. Allow at least 1–2 weeks for this process.
Most countries have joined the Hague Apostille Convention — documents from these countries can be apostilled domestically rather than going through the longer consular legalisation process. China joined in 2023. If your country is not in the Convention, documents must go through Russian consular legalisation in your country, which adds 2–4 weeks. Check your country's status before starting document preparation.
Every Russian LLC must have a registered legal address. This address appears in the EGRUL (state register of legal entities) and is where the FTS sends all official communications — tax demands, inspection notices, requests for documents. Missing these communications because you don't have someone checking the registered address is a common and costly mistake.
Real office space — lease agreement serves as the legal address. The address must match the actual place of operation. Most appropriate for companies with genuine operations in Russia
Serviced office / business centre — many serviced office providers in Moscow offer legal address registration as part of their package. Provides a genuine physical address without committing to a long-term lease
Legal address registration service — a dedicated address for registration purposes. Lower cost but the FTS is increasingly scrutinising "mass registration addresses" (addresses shared by hundreds of companies). Avoid services that register hundreds of companies at the same address — banks will refuse to open accounts and the FTS may treat it as a shell company indicator
The FTS maintains a database of addresses used by large numbers of companies. If your legal address appears on this database as a "mass registration address," you will face difficulties opening a bank account and may receive unwanted FTS attention. Use a genuine serviced office or business centre address — the cost difference is small and the compliance risk difference is significant.
100% foreign ownership is permitted in most sectors. Certain sectors require prior government approval for foreign ownership above specified thresholds:
Registration is the beginning, not the end. A Russian LLC has a set of ongoing compliance obligations that must be maintained from day one. These are the corporate housekeeping tasks — distinct from tax and payroll compliance, which are handled separately.
In the Russian context, "corporate secretarial services" means handling these ongoing compliance tasks — annual meeting minutes, EGRUL updates, director renewals, resolutions for major transactions, maintenance of the corporate records file. This is typically provided as part of a broader legal support package or accounting outsourcing agreement. For a small foreign-owned LLC, the cost is modest — RUB 15,000–40,000 per month depending on activity level — and the alternative (missing an EGRUL deadline or failing to hold the annual meeting) carries fines and complications.
Choose company name — check availability in the FTS name database
Select legal address — avoid mass registration addresses; use serviced office or real premises
Prepare founding company documents — apostille + certified Russian translation (allow 1–2 weeks)
Draft charter and Form P11001 — engage a Russian lawyer
Submit to FTS — 3–5 working days for registration
Elect simplified tax regime (УСН) within 30 days of registration if eligible
Open bank account — start KYC process immediately, budget 2–4 weeks
Appoint General Director — foreign national requires HQS work permit before taking up the role
Set up accounting (1C) and payroll — outsource from day one for most foreign-owned companies
Practical support for international business in Russia.