Business in Moldova

Moldova has a formal business system with local equivalents for individual businesses, companies, branches, agricultural producers and technology firms. In 2025, the National Bureau of Statistics recorded 74,590 enterprises, including 74,358 small and medium-sized enterprises. Informal work is not a registered business form and does not provide the same legal, tax or liability framework. An Întreprinzător individual (II) is an individual business form with liability closely connected to the owner. An SRL, or Societate cu răspundere limitată, is the common limited-liability company form and can be founded by natural or legal persons from Moldova or abroad. An SA, or Societate pe acțiuni, suits larger structures and capital raising; its minimum capital is listed as MDL 600,000. A gospodărie țărănească is a special agricultural form. A sucursală, or branch, is not a separate legal entity. The term agent economic commonly appears in Moldovan administrative and tax contexts for an economic actor. An individual generally needs to be at least 18 to register an individual business. Foreign citizens and stateless persons follow the residence or residence-status requirements applied by the Agenția Servicii Publice (ASP). A company registration normally requires a reserved name, founding decision, articles of association or act constitutiv, identification documents for founders and the administrator, beneficial-owner information and the application fee. Foreign documents require apostille or legalization and translation into the state language. Online registration of an SRL or SA requires an electronic signature. Registration automatically connects the business with tax, statistical, medical-insurance and social-insurance records. For a legal entity, registration creates legal capacity; activity should not begin before the required registration. The listed ASP service fees are MDL 1,149 for registration of a legal entity within 24 hours and MDL 4,596 under the four-hour expedited procedure. For an II, the listed fees are MDL 364 within 24 hours and MDL 1,456 under the expedited procedure. The time is calculated from the next working day after complete documents are submitted, and the current ASP tariff should be checked before filing. The activity must be classified under CAEM, the Classification of Activities in the Economy of Moldova. Economic activity is generally open, but regulated CAEM sectors require an act permisiv, such as a permit or licence. The licensing catalogue is defined by Law No. 160/2011. Trade, transport and medical activity can require separate approval through SIA GEAP or the responsible authority. A registration certificate alone does not replace an activity-specific permit. The general tax regime for a legal entity or entrepreneur normally applies 12% income tax to taxable profit. Dividends are generally subject to 6% withholding tax under the currently applicable rules. The standard VAT rate is 20%, while special or reduced rates also exist. VAT registration and thresholds depend on the applicable regime and turnover, so a single threshold should not be applied to every business. Local taxes are set and collected separately by the relevant municipality. From 2026, the antreprenor independent regime covers legally defined service activities subject to its status conditions. It applies a single tax of 15% on annual turnover up to MDL 1,200,000 and 35% on the excess. The single tax covers income tax, social insurance, health insurance and local taxes. The regime does not require bookkeeping or tax and statistical reports, but access depends on the activity, status and other statutory conditions. Social-insurance exemptions for II owners, agricultural households and certain independent trading, plant-product or patent groups apply only in defined multiple-status or coverage situations; there is no general exemption. The Serviciul Fiscal de Stat (SFS) handles tax identification, tax regimes, VAT and electronic filing. Businesses usually submit declarations and payments electronically and must keep invoices, accounting records and supporting documents for the required period. They must also keep beneficial-owner data, the registered address, administrator information and statutory details current. Beneficial-owner changes generally need to be reported within 30 days. Hiring staff creates payroll and employment-law duties that are separate from the business-registration form. The Organizația pentru Dezvoltarea Antreprenoriatului (ODA) offers programmes that can include non-repayable grants, loan guarantees, training and support for exports, digitalisation, women-led businesses, start-ups and producers. Access depends on the call, available budget, programme conditions and possible co-financing. The 2026 programme calendar includes Women’s Entrepreneurship, Small Producers, Digital Innovation and Tech Startups, and Competitiveness and Value Chains. Invest Moldova provides investor and market-entry information; foreign participation is generally possible, but sector-specific screening or permits may apply. IT companies and businesses with qualifying activities can apply for resident status in the Moldova Innovation Technology Park (MITP) under Law No. 77/2016. The park uses a single tax of 7% of turnover with a minimum linked to 30% of the forecast average wage per employee. A resident files and pays the monthly IU17 declaration by the 25th of the following month. The regime replaces several company, payroll and local taxes, but the park fee is separate and the status applies only when the business meets the qualifying activity and park conditions. A business can later transfer SRL interests, SA shares or business assets through the applicable civil and company-law transaction. The administrator, beneficial-owner data and other register information must be updated after relevant changes. A permit-linked right does not automatically transfer with shares or assets. In insolvency, a business can be sold as a unified asset complex only under the required creditor approval process, while statutory business-transfer rules can preserve existing employment contracts. Voluntary closure normally requires a decision by the competent body, appointment of a liquidator, publication of a dissolution notice in Monitorul Oficial, settlement of creditors, a liquidation balance sheet, an asset-distribution plan and an application to the ASP for deletion from the Registrul de stat al unităților de drept. Insolvency is governed by Law No. 149/2012 and can involve restructuring or bankruptcy for legal entities and II owners, including patent holders. The court, liquidator or insolvency administrator manages the relevant procedure. Inactivity alone does not replace proper liquidation. Regional differences within Moldova mainly concern local taxes, permits and the authority responsible for enforcement, while the main registration and tax framework is national.