Start a Business in Hungary

Engage a Hungarian attorney

Retain a Hungarian lawyer to prepare the founding document and handle electronic registration with the Court of Registration

Register via Company Gateway

Submit the electronic registration application through ceginformacio.hu to the competent Court of Registration

Engage local legal and tax advisors

Retain Hungarian-licensed lawyers and tax advisors experienced in HIPA negotiations, development tax incentives, and EU compliance

Obtain tax number from NAV

Receive the automatically assigned tax number from the National Tax and Customs Administration during company registration

Register for VAT (AFA)

Elect VAT status with NAV if annual turnover exceeds HUF 12M or if conducting intra-EU trade

Open corporate bank account

Open a business account at a Hungarian bank (OTP, K&H, Erste, Raiffeisen) with registration certificate and tax number

Contact HIPA for investment incentives

If making a significant investment, engage the Hungarian Investment Promotion Agency for custom incentive package negotiations

Apply for development tax incentive

If investing above HUF 3B (or lower threshold in disadvantaged areas), apply for the CIT credit development tax incentive

Set up payroll and social security

Configure payroll to handle 13% employer social contribution and 18.5% employee contributions with monthly NAV reporting

Register employees with NAV

Register all employees with NAV at least one day before their start date using form T1041

Secure commercial premises

Lease office or industrial space in Budapest, Debrecen, Gyor, or Szeged based on your sector and incentive zone strategy

Apply for work permits for non-EU staff

Submit combined work and residence permit applications through OIF for non-EU employees. HIPA can expedite for large projects.