GmbH Holding formation in Germany – setting up a German holding structure
The GmbH is a particularly common legal form for holdings. Due to its comparatively high capital contribution of at least €12,500, it enjoys a particularly solid reputation in Germany and is regarded abroad as the German company form. It is therefore usually chosen by entrepreneurs with adequate capital resources and long-term business plans.
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Key points GmbH Holding formation
Table of contents
Process, Info & Packages
Online GmbH Holding Gründung
Andre Kraus, lawyer and founder of the KRAUS GHENDLER RUVINSKIJ law firm, is your contact in matters of company formation, trade mark law, reputation protection and corporate law.
Online GmbH holding formation or in-person appointment
You can form a Gmbh holding directly online, book a free initial consultation online or send us a message.
Free initial consultation
You will receive a comprehensive initial consultation for the formation of your Gmbh holding free of charge. During this meeting, we will clarify any open questions you may have and advise you on the most important basic issues in Gmbh holding formation, such as the right legal form or the costs and procedure involved in forming a Gmbh holding.
Forming your Gmbh holding
We start by forming your Gmbh holding. We will support you, from providing legal advice on forming a Gmbh holding, drafting tailored articles of association, arranging a notary appointment and entering your holding in the commercial register, to registering a trademark, drawing up your application for tax and business registration, and handling your bookkeeping.
Overview GmbH Holding formation in Germany
A GmbH holding limits your liability
Forming a GmbH holding limits the founders’ private liability. As a shareholder, you cannot be held privately liable for your company’s liabilities.
One-person GmbH holding
Only one person is required to form a GmbH. Consequently, the GmbH holding can also be formed by one person. It goes without saying that the GmbH holding can be formed by several people.
Structure of the GmbH holding
- When the GmbH holding is formed, one or more shareholders form the GmbH holding parent company.
- he GmbH holding parent company itself now forms one or more GmbH holding subsidiaries. However, it is also conceivable to form subsidiaries of other legal forms such as a UG or AG.
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What is a GmbH Holding?
The formation of the subsidiaries is based on the parent company’s contribution. It is a widespread misconception that the contribution should be left in a GmbH. The parent company can use its investment to form any number of subsidiaries. For example, with a contribution of €25,000 plus a shareholder loan of €1,000, it can form a GmbH subsidiary with a contribution of the same amount. However, it is also conceivable, for example, to form two GmbHs with a formation contribution of €12,500 each (enough to form the company but not to fully discharge the liability), or a GmbH with a contribution of €25,000 and a UG with a contribution of €500.
Forming a GmbH holding with subsidiaries of other legal forms
It is possible to form a GmbH holding with subsidiaries of other legal forms rather than the GmbH. This depends on the circumstances of your particular case. The following are typical examples:
- UG subsidiaries – A GmbH holding already has a GmbH subsidiary. A further subsidiary in the form of a UG subsidiary is formed because only limited additional capital, which is insufficient to form another GmbH subsidiary, is available.
- AG subsidiaries – A GmbH holding already has a GmbH subsidiary. After a certain amount of successful activity, a further subsidiary is formed in the form of an AG subsidiary because sufficient additional capital in the amount of €50,000, which is sufficient to form an AG subsidiary, is available.
Advantages of the GmbH holding
The GmbH holding is interesting for many entrepreneurs because of its good reputation. It is a recognised company form whose profile is rounded off by the exclusion of liability and the required share capital of €25,000 or €12,500.
Disadvantages of the GmbH holding
In contrast to a UG holding, the formation of a GmbH holding requires a larger amount of initial capital – at least €12,500, but ideally €25,000 – to ensure that liability is fully excluded.
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Aims of forming a GmbH holding
Cheap
Tax advantages
The GmbH holding offers enormous tax advantages. Only 5% of the profits distributed by the holding subsidiary to the parent company are subject to taxation. The same applies in the event of an “exit”, when the holding subsidiary shares are sold. Here too, 95% of the capital gain is not taken into account for tax purposes.
Protection
Transfer of risk
By forming a GmbH holding parent company and subsequently forming one or more holding subsidiaries, you can shift entrepreneurial risk to the GmbH holding subsidiaries. Each holding subsidiary is independently liable for its respective branch of the company, so economically sound subsidiaries do not have to assume the risks of failed branches.
Protection
Security
Exclusion of personal liability
As a founder of a GmbH or UG holding, you benefit from the limitation of personal liability with your private assets. You will receive a company structure that limits your liability. Your subsidiaries will assume liability for business errors or market fluctuations.
Professional
Legally secure formation
Forming a GmbH holding requires in-depth legal knowledge. Advantages can only be realised and obtained in the long term if all the important practical details of commercial and tax law are taken into account and incorporated into the company articles of association. With us, you can form your company in a legally secure manner and with a lawyer’s guarantee.
Professional
Fast
Minimising formalities
By entrusting the formation of your Gmbh holding to us, you transfer your personal effort to our team. This leaves you with more time to focus on day-to-day business.
Forming a GmbH holding in 15 steps – Step-by-step formation process
Overview of the process of forming a Gmbh holding
The formation of a Gmbh holding goes through the following steps:
- Free initial consultation
- Legal advice on formation
- Draft of the holding structure
- Checking the company names
- Preparing the formation documents
- Notarisation of the parent company
- Opening the business account for the holding parent company
- Entry of the holding parent company into the commercial register
- Tax and business registration of the holding parent company
- Notarisation of one or more subsidiaries
- Entry into the transparency register
- Opening the business account for the holding subsidiary or subsidiaries
- Entry of the holding subsidiary or subsidiaries into the commercial register
- Tax and business registration of the holding subsidiary or subsidiaries
- Final legal consultation
Process of forming the GmbH holding
Step 1 - Free initial consultation
If you are interested in forming a GmbH holding and learning about the various available options for your company, you can take advantage of our free initial consultation. We will give you an overview of the legal requirements. We can also advise you on whether the GmbH holding is the right structure for you and on the type of holding that would be of interest to you. The choice of legal form for your GmbH holding structure is also often a point for consultation.
Step 2 - Legal advice on formation
When and if you have decided to form a GmbH holding, become our client. A personal lawyer will be appointed for you. Together with you, they will perform a thorough legal examination of your project. The formation of a GmbH holding must be planned extensively and in detail. We would be happy to develop your GmbH holding model that brings the advantages you are looking for and fits your company. At the same time, we will discuss with you all the important points of the articles of association for the GmbH holding parent company and subsidiary or subsidiaries.
Common consultation topics are:
- choosing the right legal form,
- the right holding construct,
- ongoing legal requirements,
- business advantages,
- liability,
- share capital,
- shareholders,
- succession,
- distribution of profits,
- disposition of company shares,
- exclusion rights and
- management.
Step 2 - Legal advice on formation
Step 3 - Draft of the holding structure
Based on the information from the intensive consultation, we draft the optimal holding structure for your project. You now know how many companies are required and the relationship between them. Using your individual example, we will explain the legal scope of action that must be complied with in the long term in order to maintain the business advantages.
Step 4 - Checking the company names
Forming a gmbh holding means forming at least one parent company and one subsidiary. Often, several subsidiaries are set up at the same time. Since these are mostly GmbHs or UGs, we have the company names checked individually, according to the legal regulations (IHK or HWK examination).
Step 4 - Checking the company names
Step 5 - Preparing the formation documents
We prepare the individual formation documents of the parent company and all necessary subsidiaries and coordinate the articles of association of the companies in order to structure the GmbH holding in line with your wishes.
Your personal lawyer, who is familiar with your specific case following the formation consultation, will assume responsibility for drafting the articles of association.
We also adapt the formation documents so that your personal preferences can be incorporated into the internal structure of the GmbhH holding. If, for example, you are forming the company with several founders who will be involved with their own subsidiaries, the shares can be distributed according to the capital contribution made.
Step 6 - Notarisation of the parent company
We organise the notary appointment for the notarisation of the GmbH holding parent company.
Step 6 - Notarisation of the parent company
Step 7 - Opening the business account for the GmbH holding parent company
After the GmbH parent company formation documents have been notarised, a business account is opened. The corresponding capital contribution must then be made to the GmbH holding parent company. We prepare the formalities for the companies’ bank appointments (bank checklist and power of attorney) and inform you about the appointment in good time.
Step 8 - Entry of the GmbH holding parent company into the commercial register
After the share capital has been paid into the GmbH holding parent company’s business account, it is registered in the commercial register.
Step 8 - Entry of the GmbH holding parent company into the commercial register
Step 9 - Tax and business registration of the GmbH holding parent company
We prepare the tax and business registration of the GmbH holding parent company.
Step 10 - Notarisation of one or more subsidiaries
After the GmbH holding parent company has been entered into the commercial register, we organise the notary appointments for the holding subsidiary or subsidiaries to be notarised.
Step 10 - Notarisation of one or more subsidiaries
Step 11 - Entry into the transparency register
The Geldwäschegesetz (German Money Laundering Act), which was newly created in 2017, requires the economic participants of a company to be entered in the transparency register as of 2019. This register contains their first and last names, dates of birth, places of residence and the type and extent of their economic interest. This registration is required for all companies in the holding structure, and is carried out after the notary appointments.
Companies are exempt from the obligation to be entered into the transparency register where the necessary information can already be obtained from the commercial register or another publicly accessible register.
Step 12 - Opening the business account for the holding subsidiary or subsidiaries
After the subsidiary or subsidiaries’ formation documents have been notarised, a business account is also opened for each of these companies. Accordingly, the corresponding capital contributions of the holding subsidiaries must be made. We prepare the formalities for the companies’ bank appointments (bank checklist and power of attorney) and inform you about the appointment in good time.
Step 12 - Opening the business account for the holding subsidiary or subsidiaries
Step 13 - Entry of the holding subsidiary or subsidiaries into the commercial register
After the share capital has been paid into the business account of the holding subsidiary or subsidiaries, it is entered into the commercial register.
Step 14 - Tax and business registration of the holding subsidiary or subsidiaries
We prepare the tax and business registration of the holding subsidiary or subsidiaries.
Step 14 - Tax and business registration of the holding subsidiary or subsidiaries
Step 15 - Final legal consultation
In order to preserve the advantages of a holding in the long term, you must not exceed the holding’s legally permissible scope of action. Since many questions regarding this only arise during formation, your lawyer will discuss the most important legal issues with you in a final consultation. Such issues often concern:
- achieving the tax advantages,
- the transfer of profits,
- the financial statements and accounting records,
- commercial registration,
- legally admissible advertising,
- legal peculiarities,
- copyright,
- trademark registration and
- the right to reputation.
Costs of the GmbH holding formation
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Gründung Holding Schweiz und GmbH in BRD
22 Jul 2019/1 Kommentar/in HoldingIch habe Investorengelder, die ich in lukrative Vermietungsimmobilien in Deutschland investieren darf. Ich gründe eine Immo-Verw.-GmbH in Deutschland und für jede Immobilie eine eigene GmbH und darüber möchte ich eine Holding schalten. Können Sie mir dabei helfen? Außerdem brauche ich auch ein Konto in der Schweiz.Auch hier benötige ich Hilfe. Muss mein Wohnsitz in die […]
Holding Struktur
18 Jul 2019/1 Kommentar/in HoldingIch habe eine UG gegründet und bin an eine Holdingstruktur interessiert . Würde man bei einer Holdingstruktur mit Gewinnabführungsvertrag auf den gesamten Gewinn nur ca 1,5% Steuern zahlen . Oder werden erstmal die ca 30% Steuern der Tochtergesellschaft abgezogen und dann mit 1,5% versteuert?
Hilfe holding gründen
30 Jun 2019/1 Kommentar/in HoldingIch will holding gründen anonym brauch dafür hilfe
GmbH holding Formation by a lawyer
✔ CHEAP✔ FAST✔ LEGALLY SECURE
Over
checked cases
Open questions? – Just call us:
(Mo. – So. from 9am to 22pm / NATIONWIDE – German landline)
Your formation team
Andre Kraus
Specialist lawyer for insolvency law
Ahaliya Kapilan
Lawyer
Oksana Enns
Business law graduate
Sara Garcia Corraliza
Lawyer
and a team
of legal advisors, business law graduates and other lawyers
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Principles
Free initial legal consultation
Free initial legal consultation on your foundation project.
Quick and easy
We take care of the formalities of your formation – You concentrate solely on your business. There is no waiting period or long processing time.
Legal security
Your incorporation directly from the lawyer. We fulfill the reservation of legal advice by a lawyer (§ 2 II RDG) and assume the full legal guarantee.
Price transparency
We accompany you at a fixed price – without complex fees or indirectly allocated costs from intermediary portals.
Specialization
Due to our concentration on certain core areas we offer you a particularly high level of expertise at a a relatively low fixed price.
Long-term perspective
The consulting for your formation is our investment in a long-term cooperation in the fields of corporate and consumer law.
Start your company now!
Unsere Mandanten vertrauen uns auch in folgenden Fachgebieten
FIRMA
GRÜNDEN
BEWERTUNG
LÖSCHEN
AGB
ERSTELLEN
Schnellnavigation
Insolvenzrecht
Unternehmensrecht
Kontakt
Telefon: 0221 – 6777 00 55
E-Mail: kontakt@anwalt-kg.de
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Hinweis
KRAUS GHENDLER RUVINSKIJ ist eine Kooperation der folgenden unabhängigen und rechtlich selbständigen Rechtsanwaltskanzleien: KRAUS GHENDLER Rechtsanwälte Partnerschaftsgesellschaft mbB, GHENDLER RUVINSKIJ Rechtsanwaltsgesellschaft mbH und KRAUS Anwaltskanzlei (Rechtsanwalt Andre Kraus).