As a general rule, it is possible to incorporate in Italy in one of the following forms:
* A Public Limited Liability Company (with the suffix SPA).
There must be at least 2 shareholders (individuals or bodies).
The company must have a minimum share capital of EUR 120,000.
At least 30% of the capital must be deposited in a bank.
The company may offer shares to the public.
The company must keep a register of shareholders.
The company may issue shares of different classes that confer different rights on the shareholders.
* A Private Limited Liability Company (with the suffix SRL.)
The share capital is presented in quotas.
The company keeps a "shares register" in which the names of the owners appear.
The company may not offer shares to the public.
The minimum registered share capital - EUR 10,000.
One single shareholder suffices.
PARTNERSHIPS
As a general rule, there are three forms of partnership:
An unlimited partnership - The partners are liable for the transactions carried out by the partnership, without any limit in amount. All or some of the partners may serve as managers of the partnership.
A limited partnership - This is made up of general partners, who have unlimited liability and limited partners whose liability is limited to the amount they invested as capital in the partnership. Only a general partner may serve as a manager of the partnership.
Partnerships limited by shares - In principle, this is similar to a limited partnership. The main difference is that the share of partners in a limited partnership is represented by share capital, as distinct from a limited partnership in which the partners hold quotas and not shares.
