At a glance
  • A cheap licence can become expensive when it cannot support operations.
  • Banking and tax should be designed before incorporation.
  • Renewals and compliance begin immediately after licensing.
01

The first five mistakes

Founders often select a jurisdiction on price alone, choose an inaccurate activity, ignore external approvals, underestimate facility needs or assume a licence guarantees a bank account.

  • Buying before scoping
  • Using vague activity wording
  • Missing regulator approval
  • Ignoring workspace rules
  • Treating banking as automatic
02

Five more that surface later

Other common problems are mixing personal and company funds, missing tax registration analysis, failing to keep accounts, overlooking renewals and choosing a structure that cannot support the next market or investor.

  • Weak source-of-funds evidence
  • Late VAT or corporate tax action
  • No bookkeeping process
  • Untracked licence and visa expiries
  • No scale or exit plan
03

A better setup discipline

Use a written requirements brief and a total-cost comparison. Have the licence, tax, immigration and banking workstreams reviewed together before committing funds.

Your next step

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Official sources

This guide is informed by current official guidance. Rules, fees and authority practice can change.

Important: This article is general information, not legal, tax, immigration or financial advice. Eligibility and obligations depend on your facts and the current rules of the relevant authority.