Foreign company registration in Venezuela (domiciliación)
Domiciliación means registering a foreign company in Venezuela so it can do business in Venezuela permanently, without creating a new, separate company.
Requesting a quote doesn't commit you to anything
- You tell us about your case. It's free.
- We send you the price in writing, within 1 to 3 hours.
- You decide. If it works for you, we start. If not, you delete it with one click and pay nothing.
No one will pressure you. Your information is used only for your case.
Is it for you?
If any of these sounds like you, this procedure is for you.
- For foreign companies that want to operate here permanently: open an office, invoice, hire staff, import, bid on tenders or receive local payments. Also for international groups that want a formal presence in Venezuela without dissolving or recreating their structure, and for foreign investors who need a legal vehicle to operate here
What's included and what isn't
Everything clear from the start. No fine print.
Includes
- Advice on whether it makes more sense to domicile the parent company or form a local company.
- The exact list of documents your parent company must send and how they must be apostilled.
- Name reservation.
- Clearance of the foreign signers with SAREN.
- Drafting of the local domiciliación documents.
- Preparation and filing of the case at the Commercial Registry.
- Follow-up.
- Visado (a lawyer's sign-off required before filing).
- Handling of the publication.
- Delivery of the recorded company file.
Does not include
- Apostille or legalization of the documents in the home country, which the parent company handles there.
- Translation by an intérprete público if the documents are in another language, although we coordinate it. We can handle it separately:Translation →
- The official Commercial Registry fees, charged at the highest scale plus per-page amounts.
- The cost of publication in a commercial gazette, charged per page. Add it to your procedure ↓
- Registration with SENIAT (Venezuela's tax and customs authority) for the RIF (Venezuelan tax ID), stamping of the company books, or local business licenses and permits for the premises. Add it to your procedure ↓
- Third-party fees or immigration and visa processing for foreigners.
Add to your procedure
Check it and we include it in your quote. You decide at the end.
What you need
Check off what you already have. You don't need everything to request your quote.
You have 0 of 6.
- Parent company (apostilled or legalized, in Spanish): articles of incorporation and bylaws
- Certificate of good standing of the company in its home country
- Minutes of the competent governing body approving the domiciliation in Venezuela, appointing the representative in Venezuela and setting the capital assigned to the Venezuelan operation
- From the signers: passports of the foreign representatives for their clearance with SAREN
- Apostilled power of attorney in favor of the representative in Venezuela if the owners don't travel
- Local: tax address in Venezuela for the branch or agency
How the process works
You do very little. We take care of the rest. The whole process: on average, 20 to 30 business days.
- Step 1
We talk
We confirm whether it makes more sense to register your foreign company or form a local one.
We do this - Step 2
We gather the paperwork
We give you the exact list your parent company must send and how to apostille it, and we coordinate the translation by an intérprete público if needed.
We do this - Step 3
We clear and draft
We clear the foreign signers with SAREN, reserve the name and draft the local domiciliación documents.
We do this - Step 4
We file
We file the case, coordinate signing and official fees, follow up and publish.
We do this - Result
Done
We hand you your company registered and ready to operate.
You receive it
For our work with SAREN (Venezuela's registries and notaries service) and the Registro Mercantil (Commercial Registry), once we have the apostilled and translated documents in hand.
What it costs and how to pay
There are two separate payments, and we want you to see them clearly.
Our fee: we do all the work for you.
The official registry fee. It goes straight to the agency, and we give you the exact amount, with its receipt, before you pay anything.
How you pay: 50% when we start and 50% on delivery. In dollars, in bolívares at the official BCV exchange rate, or with Cashea.
How is your investment calculated?
Your investment has two parts, and we always break them out separately for you. Our professional fee, from $780, which covers all the work on the Venezuelan side, including advice, structuring of the home-country documents, signer clearance with SAREN, drafting of the local documents and full processing at the Commercial Registry
The official registry fees, which aren't ours and are paid to the government; for registering a foreign company they're charged at the highest scale of the commercial registries, well above the scale for a domestic company, plus an amount for each page. Add the commercial gazette publication, which is charged per page, and separately, back in the home country, the apostille or legalization and, if applicable, translation by an intérprete público The lawyer gives you the exact figure before you pay anything, no strings attached.
FAQ
What happens if I operate in Venezuela without registering the company?
You'd be signing contracts, issuing invoices or opening accounts with no legal standing here. Any counterparty can refuse to recognize you, and government agencies won't treat you as a company established in Venezuela.
How much does it cost?
The professional fee, from $780, covers all the work on the Venezuelan side. SAREN's official fees are considerably higher than for a domestic company and are paid separately, as is the apostille in the home country.
What does the timing depend on?
On the Venezuelan side, the timeline is ours and we manage it. What we don't control is getting the apostille and translation abroad; that time runs in the home country and is separate.
Is the registered company a new company?
No. It's your same foreign parent company, acquiring a legal presence in Venezuela through a branch or agency. No separate legal entity is created.
Do I have to travel to Venezuela?
Not necessarily. If you can't travel, we work with an apostilled power of attorney granted to a trusted representative here, and we handle the entire procedure.
What does apostille mean?
It's an international certification that validates a public document so it takes effect in another country that is party to the Hague Convention. If your parent company's country isn't part of the convention, the document is legalized through the consulate. That step is done there.
Should I domicile my company or open a local one?
It depends on your goal. If you need the parent company itself to operate here, you domicile. If an independent Venezuelan company works for you, even with you as the owner from abroad, incorporating is usually faster and cheaper. We advise you without bias.
About this procedure
First, so you don't lose time, let's clear up what this is NOT. Registering a foreign company is not forming a new Venezuelan company: if what you want is a local company, with Venezuelan shareholders and capital, even if the owners live abroad, what you need is Compañía Anónima (C.A.) incorporation, which is faster and cheaper. Nor is it opening a branch of a company already registered here; that's Branch opening. Domiciliación is specifically for a company incorporated outside Venezuela that wants to operate inside the country on a permanent basis. If your situation is different, we'll take you to the right section.
Venezuelan law allows a company incorporated abroad to domicile itself and do business in Venezuela. When it does, no separate company is born: it's the same parent company acquiring a legal presence in Venezuela, through a branch or agency, and it becomes subject to Venezuelan law for everything it does here.
This procedure involves three things a regular incorporation doesn't, which is why it takes more work. The first is the home-country documentation: the articles of incorporation, the bylaws and the resolution of the parent company's governing body authorizing it to domicile in Venezuela must be apostilled, or legalized by the consulate if the country isn't part of the Hague Convention, and translated by an intérprete público (sworn translator authorized in Venezuela) if they aren't in Spanish. The second is signer clearance: the foreign representatives must be entered into SAREN's system before they can sign public documents here, a step a Venezuelan doesn't need. The third is that, since the owners almost never travel, the procedure is done with an apostilled power of attorney granted to a trusted representative in Venezuela.
Once everything is in hand, the procedure starts with the name reservation, followed by signer clearance with SAREN, drafting and filing of the case at the Commercial Registry, payment of the official registry fees, signing and publication in a commercial gazette. From there, your foreign company can invoice, hire and apply for its permits in Venezuela.
We take care of the entire Venezuelan side: we give you the exact list of what your parent company must send and how, clear the signers, draft the local documents, file the case, follow up, handle the publication and hand you the company registered and ready to operate.
Legal framework and important notes
Código de Comercio (Commercial Code), articles 212 and 354 · Ley de Registros y Notarías (Registries and Notaries Law), article 85
- Domiciliación means bringing the same foreign company to operate in Venezuela, not creating a new company
- It takes more work than a regular incorporation because it requires apostilled and translated home-country documents and clearance of the foreign signers with SAREN
- The step that usually takes longest is the apostille in the home country, which doesn't depend on us and can take weeks
- It's best to get started as soon as possible
- We confirm the amount of the official registry fees once the registry district and the assigned capital are defined
We guarantee our service, not what the agency decides. If something depends on them, we tell you clearly and in time.
Is your case different?Ask us, message us on WhatsApp or book a free consultation. A real person answers you.
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