Portugal and Spain · Lisbon
Iberia: one desk, two jurisdictions, and the door to the EU.
Lisbon serves Portugal and Spain as a single market and connects both to the lusophone world. For African and Brazilian groups it is the European establishment; for European companies it is the base from which the African corridor is managed. The two jurisdictions work very differently, and we run both.
Office
Lisbon
Covers
Portugal and Spain
Registries
RNPC · Registro Mercantil
Also here
Market entry, administration
Services in this market
What we run in Portugal and Spain
Each of these is delivered by our own team here, and each can be taken on its own or as part of the chain.
Company formation in Portugal and Spain
RNPC name certificate and Portuguese incorporation, or the Spanish notarial route and the Registro Mercantil.
Corporate services
Structuring, statutory administration and the registrations that follow incorporation.
Business expansion
Market entry, representation and business development across Iberia.
Global mobility
Residence and work routes for staff relocating into the European Union.
Local context
Two jurisdictions that do not work the same way
Portugal can be fast: a name certificate from the RNPC and incorporation through Empresa na Hora where the standard forms suit the business. Spain is notarial — a negative name certificate from the Registro Mercantil Central, a public deed executed before a notary, and registration with the provincial Registro Mercantil. Foreign shareholders in Spain need an NIE before they can appear on the deed, and that requirement is the one most often discovered too late.
Both jurisdictions then require the tax and social-security registrations that make the company able to invoice and employ, and both sit inside the European Union’s reporting and beneficial-ownership regimes.
Why African and Brazilian groups establish here
For a group operating in Angola, Mozambique or Brazil, an Iberian entity is a European counterparty, a banking relationship and a base for procurement and contracting inside the single market — in a language the group already works in. That is the position the Lisbon desk exists to serve.
Requirements, contribution rates and processing sequences change. Our office confirms the current position for your case before you commit.
From Lisbon
- Portugal and Spain as one desk
- Portuguese-speaking, EU-based
- The bridge between Africa, Brazil and the EU
- Administration after incorporation, not just the filing
Common questions
Operating in Portugal and Spain
Do you cover Spain from Lisbon, or do we need a Spanish firm?
We cover Spain from Lisbon. The Spanish route is notarial and requires an NIE for foreign shareholders and a public deed before a notary; we run it, and we tell you which parts require a physical appearance and which do not.
Is Portugal really faster than Spain?
Structurally it can be, where the standard forms fit the business. But the incorporation is rarely the binding constraint in either country — the tax registration, the beneficial-ownership filing and the bank account are, and those depend on documentation rather than on the registry.
Can an Angolan or Brazilian group establish here?
Yes, and it is one of the most common reasons clients come to the Lisbon desk. The documents from the home jurisdiction need legalisation and certified translation, which our own offices in those markets prepare.
Related
Elsewhere in the network
Begin with what has to be true in Portugal and Spain.
A team working, an entity trading, goods cleared, or all three. Set out the objective and we return the sequence, the institutions involved and the division of responsibility.