Company Setup in Italy and Business Bank Accounts
Company setup in Italy runs through a notary and a chain of registrations that foreign founders rarely expect. We take you from tax codes to an operating bank account, in the order Italian institutions require.
About Italy as a base for trade and manufacturing
Italy is the European Union’s third-largest economy and one of its biggest manufacturers, known for machinery, fashion, food and luxury goods. Its industrial north, around Milan, Turin and the Veneto, gives access to suppliers and buyers across the single market.
For precious metals, Italy matters more than most investors realize. Arezzo, Vicenza and Valenza together make up one of the world’s main gold jewelry districts, and the UAE is a growing market for their exports. In 2025 Italy was the third-largest jewelry supplier to the UAE.
Control of the gold trade has also changed. Since 2025, professional gold operators are registered and supervised by the OAM, the body that oversees financial agents, rather than the Bank of Italy. Gold dealers also carry full anti-money laundering duties under Legislative Decree 231/2007.
Corporate tax and IRAP
Corporate income tax (IRES) is 24%, plus a regional production tax (IRAP), usually 3.9%, on a wider base.
Italian VAT at 22%
The standard rate, with lower rates for some goods. Companies register at formation and invoice electronically.
SRL capital from €1
An SRL can start with as little as €1. Below €10,000 the capital must be paid in full and in cash.
Euro and single market
Italy uses the euro and trades freely across the European Union, with customs handled at EU level.
Company setup in Italy through an SRL
Most foreign groups choose the SRL, a private limited company. The SpA, a joint stock company, suits larger businesses with outside investors. For either, the deed of incorporation is signed before an Italian notary, who then files it with the Companies Register (Registro delle Imprese).
Tax codes for every person
Each shareholder and director, including foreign individuals and parent companies, needs an Italian tax code (codice fiscale).
Notarial deed and bylaws
The notary checks identities and powers, and documents from abroad must be legalized or apostilled and translated.
A certified email address
Every company must hold a PEC, a certified email address that the authorities use for official notices.
One filing, several numbers
A single online filing registers the company and returns its VAT number and social security positions.
The notary also checks whether a non-EU founder’s home country allows Italians to invest there on equal terms. This reciprocity check rarely blocks a file, but it should be cleared before a signing date is set.
We organize company setup in Italy through Company Formation and Market Entry. If the Italian company will sell or buy for a group held in the UAE or Mauritius, Holding Companies and SPVs covers where ownership and management should sit.
Bank account opening in Italy
Italian banks rarely open a business account before the company is registered, so the account usually comes after formation, not before. They follow Legislative Decree 231/2007 and the Bank of Italy’s due diligence rules, and a new company with foreign owners and no local trading history gets close review.
Gold and jewelry traders face extra questions, because Italian banks treat precious metals as a higher-risk sector. We prepare the ownership file, the trade profile and the gold operator registration evidence together, then approach banks whose appetite matches the business. The bank’s decision is its own. Our part is making sure the file in front of it is complete and consistent.
Corporate Banking and Account Opening Support covers the application itself, and Cross-Border Payments Advisory covers euro and dirham flows between Italy and the Gulf.
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01
Registration extract and PEC
A current extract from the Companies Register (visura camerale), the company’s tax code and its certified email address.
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02
Directors met in person
Banks expect to identify the legal representative directly, often at a branch, with their passport and tax code.
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03
A clear chain of ownership
Group charts down to the individuals who own or control the company, with documents from each parent company.
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04
Expected trade, in writing
Who the company will pay and be paid by, in which countries, and how much, backed by early contracts or invoices.
Company setup in Italy: common questions
Yes. Foreign individuals and companies can own all of an Italian SRL. For founders from outside the EU, the notary checks reciprocity, meaning whether Italians could invest on similar terms in the founder’s country.
An SRL can be formed with capital from €1. Below €10,000 it must be paid in full and in cash. Many foreign groups choose a higher figure, because banks and suppliers read low capital as a sign of a thin business.
Italian banks must identify every beneficial owner and understand the expected business under Legislative Decree 231/2007. A new company with foreign owners has no local history, so the file has to explain the business instead.