Self employed

[Vegaanders]

I try to find out about self employment in Cyprus. But it seems that there is nowhere to find info about how to start a selfemplyment, demands for bookkeeping etc. I dont want to start a company if its not necessary to run our business. It only cost a lot of time and money

Anyone that can point to a place of info in this subject

Regards

from Frankfurt covered in 20 cm of snow

I have done similar research myself and have had the same reaction how difficult it is to find information, now after having moved here I'm slowly starting to think that the tax-law here can be summarized with "you don't pay taxes, unless you get caught"

The personal income tax has an amazing allowance before you pay a single euro in income-tax, like €20.000 annually (check low-tax.net for exact numbers), however the moment you step over that line the income-tax is pretty normal (20-30%),
Corporate tax however is just a flat 10%,

so to answer your question if starting a company is necessary it probably is (assuming you want to go the legal way) if you make a substantial amount of money, this way you don't have to pay 25% income-tax but can rather enjoy 10% corporate-tax (which you then do creative bookkeeping to get into your pockets, for example give everyone in your family a salary of just under the income-allowance, and if you need more cash take it out as dividence for something like 15% I believe).

but as for the actual process of setting up a self-employed company I haven't looked into much, but I agree that it would be nice to just skip that whole part and just wire your paypal account straight to your personal bank-account

[Veronica]

Beware going down the route of trying to avoid paying tax. The government is cracking down on tax cheats and they do not mess about if you are caught.
A lawyer will be able to help you register a company and it is worth doing it for peace of mind.

Veronica

[Vegaanders]

Originally Posted by NiklasB

I have done similar research myself and have had the same reaction how difficult it is to find information, now after having moved here I'm slowly starting to think that the tax-law here can be summarized with "you don't pay taxes, unless you get caught"

The personal income tax has an amazing allowance before you pay a single euro in income-tax, like €20.000 annually (check low-tax.net for exact numbers), however the moment you step over that line the income-tax is pretty normal (20-30%),
Corporate tax however is just a flat 10%,

so to answer your question if starting a company is necessary it probably is (assuming you want to go the legal way) if you make a substantial amount of money, this way you don't have to pay 25% income-tax but can rather enjoy 10% corporate-tax (which you then do creative bookkeeping to get into your pockets, for example give everyone in your family a salary of just under the income-allowance, and if you need more cash take it out as dividence for something like 15% I believe).

but as for the actual process of setting up a self-employed company I haven't looked into much, but I agree that it would be nice to just skip that whole part and just wire your paypal account straight to your personal bank-account

I cant believe that all this pool-cleaners and gardeners go through the ordeal to start a Ltd or other kind of company. But all of them cant work black so there must be a way in the middle, to pay taxes and social fees without to have a company. But where to find the info. Here in Germany its called Gewerbe, in Sweden Enskild firma or Handelsbolag. They all share the same thing, the owner is fully responsible for the business losses and such. But at the same time its a minimum of administration. This is what I am looking for

Anders

[Veronica]

Originally Posted by Vegaanders

I cant believe that all this pool-cleaners and gardeners go through the ordeal to start a Ltd or other kind of company. But all of them cant work black so there must be a way in the middle, to pay taxes and social fees without to have a company. But where to find the info. Here in Germany its called Gewerbe, in Sweden Enskild firma or Handelsbolag. They all share the same thing, the owner is fully responsible for the business losses and such. But at the same time its a minimum of administration. This is what I am looking for

Anders

Beleive me Anders the vast majority of pool cleaners and property management companies are working on the black. However they are going to be in for a severe shock as the police are starting to knock on doors. It just takes someone who dosnt like you, or a local who feels you are taking work from him to report you to the police and they have to act on information. Companies who are working legally are now starting to report those who are illegal.
I can understand why someone who pays their taxes, social insurance and VAT would get upset about those who are basically stealing work from them.

[Vegaanders]

Originally Posted by Veronica

Beleive me Anders the vast majority of pool cleaners and property management companies are working on the black. However they are going to be in for a severe shock as the police are starting to knock on doors. It just takes someone who dosnt like you, or a local who feels you are taking work from him to report you to the police and they have to act on information. Companies who are working legally are now starting to report those who are illegal.
I can understand why someone who pays their taxes, social insurance and VAT would get upset about those who are basically stealing work from them.

I hope I did not sound like i want to work black. But I want to find a less bureaucratic way. Its possible in all other EU countries, whz not Cyprus

[Veronica]

Originally Posted by Vegaanders

I hope I did not sound like i want to work black. But I want to find a less bureaucratic way. Its possible in all other EU countries, whz not Cyprus

No Anders you didnt sound as though you wanted to work black.
Unofrtunately though there is no easy way if you want to do it properly. The bureaucracy is horrendous
We just leave someone else to do it all for us. Our accountant sorts everything out, all we have to do is dump all the paperwork on his desk and leave him to it.

[Vegaanders]

Originally Posted by Veronica

Beware going down the route of trying to avoid paying tax. The government is cracking down on tax cheats and they do not mess about if you are caught.
A lawyer will be able to help you register a company and it is worth doing it for peace of mind.

Veronica

Ofc we will pay taxes, but at the same time you want to minimize as much as possible within the laws. I am sure that is why you also use taxadvisor.

But it seems I need to find a good advisor on Cyprus that can answer all my questions before we proceed

[theresoon]

Originally Posted by Vegaanders

I try to find out about self employment in Cyprus. But it seems that there is nowhere to find info about how to start a selfemplyment, demands for bookkeeping etc. I dont want to start a company if its not necessary to run our business. It only cost a lot of time and money

Anyone that can point to a place of info in this subject

Regards

from Frankfurt covered in 20 cm of snow

It depends what you want to do. You don't necessarily need to start a business and you have more advantages tax wise if you have a register doing business as rather than a limited liability company. If you look at the major 4's websites for Cyprus you will most likely find this info. Where are you going to be based?

[Vegaanders]

Originally Posted by theresoon

It depends what you want to do. You don't necessarily need to start a business and you have more advantages tax wise if you have a register doing business as rather than a limited liability company. If you look at the major 4's websites for Cyprus you will most likely find this info. Where are you going to be based?

We will be based around Paphos most likely. Our business is 100% webbased and all incomes come from abroad.

Anders