spain is fourth in the world for companies created in estonia by e-⁠residents

Hannah Brown • Nov 23, 2022 • 4 min read

The Estonian Embassy in Madrid is also the busiest collection point for e-⁠resident digital ID documents in the world, according to data from e-⁠Residency

E-Residency Managing Director Lauri Haav speaking at a recent community event in Barcelona to e-residents who are resident in Spain — E-Residency Managing Director Lauri Haav speaking at a recent community event in Barcelona

PRESS RELEASE (también en español): Spain is a country with great entrepreneurial potential and is gradually consolidating its startup ecosystem thanks to initiatives such as e-⁠Residency. This Estonian government program allows Spaniards to create and manage their companies 100% digitally, reducing time and paperwork to a minimum. This situation has led many Spaniards, who previously had doubts, to take the plunge into entrepreneurship, placing Spain as the fourth country in the world with the most companies created through e-⁠Residency. The number of organisations incorporated in Estonia amounts to 1,455 by Spanish citizens as e-⁠residents, or 1,911 companies created by e-⁠residents who are resident in Spain.

Spain: a country of entrepreneurs looking for new opportunities

Spanish entrepreneurs are the fastest growing group of applicants to the program, and Spain is a country from which many e-⁠residents choose to work. According to data collected in September 2022 there were a total of 3,816 e-⁠residents with Spanish nationality and 4,873 e-⁠residents who were resident in Spain. These figures are on the rise, as during the last 6 months around 90 new applications have been received from Spanish citizens per month.

"Spain is undoubtedly one of the most relevant countries in the world for us due to its entrepreneurial potential."

Lauri Haav, Managing Director of e-residency

"Moreover, since the beginning of the pandemic, we observe that this region is looking for new ways to cope with the changes that are taking place in the world as we knew it and we believe that our program is meeting a large part of those new needs by providing the unique possibility to run a business 100% location-free", explains Lauri Haav, Managing Director of e-⁠Residency.

Proof that e-⁠Residency is becoming one of the solutions for many entrepreneurs living in Spain is that the Estonian Embassy in Madrid is the busiest collection point for digital ID documents in the world. In addition, Spanish citizens rank number 8 in the number of e-⁠residents - among 176 countries - behind Russia, Ukraine, Germany, Finland, China, United Kingdom, and France. If we take into account the number of e-⁠residents who are resident in Spain, Spain rises to number 6 in the world ranking behind Germany, Finland, Russia, United Kingdom, and Ukraine.

How to set up a company in 10 minutes and two clicks

Estonia has 99% of its public services online and its entire administration is prepared to carry out official processes through the web. This makes it possible to create a company in 10 minutes and two clicks. This of course works for Estonian citizens, but what can you do if you're Spanish or live in Spain? This is where e-⁠Residency comes in. To become an e-⁠resident, first register online. This process takes up to an hour. If e-⁠Residency is granted, your approval will be sent in 30 days. The approval rate is 85%. If everything is in order, within 2 to 5 weeks, you can pick up your e-⁠Residency card at an Estonian embassy. From this point on, it will only take two clicks and about 10 minutes to set up a company.

Manage the company from anywhere in the world

With e-Residency, Estonia is the first country in the world that allows all non-residents to create and manage an EU company virtually while living in Spain or other countries. Managing an Estonian company through e-Residency does not change your tax residence, but eliminates the obstacles that exist in Spain to open a business.

Read more about these obstacles on the e-Residency blog:

E-Residency of Estonia offers an alternative entrepreneurship solution for Spaniars

Comparing business formation options in Spain and Estonia

A Spanish autónomo or sociedad limitada, or an Estonian OÜ? Finding the best solution for digital business when living in Spain.

Ignacio Nieto Carvajal, e-resident and CEO and co-founder of Companio concludes:

"E-⁠Residency allows you to create and manage a business in a 100% digital way. In addition to the time and bureaucracy you save, this program gives the freedom to take your business with you, wherever you go, and make it grow in an ecosystem born in the digital world and created for new entrepreneurs like us.