Should consultants incorporate as a limited company in Ireland?

Yes, consultants benefit significantly from incorporation, especially when dealing with larger corporate clients. Limited companies provide professional credibility, 12.5% corporate tax rate, limited liability protection, and ability to claim business expenses for office costs, travel, and professional development.

What are the tax advantages for consulting companies in Ireland?

Irish limited companies pay 12.5% corporate tax on trading income. Consultants can deduct business expenses including office costs, travel, equipment, and professional development. This provides significant tax savings compared to sole trader personal income tax rates.

How much does consultant company incorporation cost in Ireland?

Open Forest offers consultant incorporation from €99 including CRO fees and basic constitution. For growth-oriented consulting businesses, the Future Proof package (€250) includes investor-ready documentation and advanced share structures.

Do consulting companies need a company secretary in Ireland?

Yes, if you're the sole director of your consulting company, you must appoint a separate company secretary by law. Open Forest provides professional company secretary services for €99/year to handle all CRO filings and statutory compliance.

Can consultants use trading names different from their company name?

Yes, consultants can use trading names that differ from their registered company name. For example, 'Smith Consulting Ltd' might trade as 'The Digital Marketing Experts.' Trading names must be registered with the CRO if they differ from your company name.

When should consultants register for VAT in Ireland?

Consultants must register for VAT once turnover exceeds €42,500 for services in a 12-month period. However, you can voluntarily register before reaching this threshold if it benefits your business operations or client requirements.

What are the tax benefits of an Irish holding company?

Irish holding companies benefit from 12.5% corporate tax rate, capital gains tax deferral when selling subsidiary companies, participation exemption for qualifying dividends, extensive double tax treaty network, and foreign tax credit system to prevent double taxation on international income.

Can I set up a holding company in Ireland as a non-resident?

Yes, non-residents can establish Irish holding companies. You need either an EEA-resident director or Section 137 bond (€1,600), registered office address in Ireland, and IPN numbers for non-resident directors. The entire process can be completed remotely through Open Forest.

How does a holding company help with capital gains tax?

When selling your trading company, proceeds can flow tax-free into your Irish holding company instead of directly to you as an individual, effectively deferring capital gains tax. This provides significant tax planning opportunities for business owners.

What ongoing obligations do Irish holding companies have?

Irish holding companies must file annual returns with CRO, register for corporation tax with Revenue, maintain statutory registers, and ensure ongoing compliance. Even inactive holding companies must meet these obligations, though costs can be as low as €20 annually if managed properly.

Can a holding company affect EIIS qualification?

Yes, EIIS qualification requires less than 50% corporate ownership. However, you can manage this by maintaining sufficient personal shareholding during EIIS rounds and transferring shares to your holding company later, or balancing personal and holding company ownership.

How much does it cost to set up a holding company in Ireland?

Open Forest offers holding company incorporation from €99 including CRO fees and basic constitution. For complex international structures requiring advanced share classes, the Future Proof package (€250) provides comprehensive legal frameworks.

Holding Companies | Open Forest

Why do I need a holding company?

Asset Protection

A holding company shields your personal assets from business risks by creating separate legal entities for different activities.

Learn more

Tax Efficiencies

You can optimise your tax position through group relief, dividend exemptions, and strategic income distribution across entities.

Learn more

Centralised Control

You can mange multiple business interests from one strategic headquarters while maintaining operational independence.
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Learn more

Exit Planning

Limit your tax liability if you sell your current business by having the sale proceeds go into your personal holding company which avoids 33% CGT.
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Learn more

Open Forest is built for multi-company management

Maintain full oversight of multiple companies under the one roof. Trading companies and holding companies can be managed together.

Automated compliance tracking across all subsidiaries ensures every entity meets its statutory obligations and filing deadlines.

Tax registrations and filings including corporation tax at super low costs - reflecting the limited transactions in your HoldCo.

Day to day accounting and bookkeeping - keep track of your sales and expenses and run year end reports.

Here's how we do it

Company Registration

We know the legal process inside out and so we deal with all of the tricky parts and just ask you the important questions.

Ongoing Compliance

We built new technology to ensure you never miss an obligation or a deadline - and it's free when you incorporate with us.

Legal Solutions

We give you easy access to hundreds of legal agreements and we have lawyers on hand should you ever need any serious advice.

Tax Compliance

We can ensure that your tax registrations and ongoing tax filings are done cheaply, correctly and right on time.

Accounting

We can take care of your day to day bookkeeping, help you pay staff, prepare your year end financial statements and make sure they are filed on time.

Organisation

Our technology ensures your corporate governance is in great shape - from our (free) legal dataroom to our compliance calendar, you won't miss a thing.

See Pricing

Chat to us

Timeline

And here's what to expect:

Get started

Learn more

Complete our Incorporation Form

We take away the complexities of figuring out how to start a company. Just let our simple interactive form guide you.

Due Diligence Process

Upload your ID, we run some quick checks and send you a (digital) pack to sign online. This just takes a couple of hours.

Incorproaton Process

We make the filing with the Companies Registration Office on your behalf. This usually takes 5 business days.

Approval Process

Once approved, you get full access to the Open Forest platform. You'll find all of your legal documents in your data room and upcoming legal obligations in your compliance calendar. We will introduce you to our banking and accounting partners at this stage if required.

Post-incorporation Filings

Check you upcoming obligations on your free compliance calendar and when the time comes, make the filings through the Open Forest platform. No more guesswork.

Ongoing Support

Incorporation is only the beginning. Open Forest will be there in support for your whole business journey. From legal agreements, to company changes, to tax filings - we do it all at super-low costs.

Don’t just take our word for it

Hear from some of our amazing customers who can now focus on their business,
while we watch their compliance.

PS - these are real reviews, see for yourself.

"OpenForest were so helpful to myself and my co-founder as first time founders. They helped us get setup quickly and ensured we had a constitution and founders agreement in place that was right for the company."

Christopher Lynch

Founder, Rekord

"Thanks to the Open Forest team for helping us navigate Irish company registration so seamlessly - professional, friendly and highly recommend".
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Fi from Fineo

Founder, Fineo

"Super helpful and efficient service that saved us so much time in setting up our business. Would highly recommend Open Forest to any start up that wants to get their business set up perfectly from the start."

Conor Fay

Founder, Abhar Materials

"Open Forest has truly been a game changer for us as founders. Their service has made obtaining vital legal documents at this early stage incredibly seamless."
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Laura Downes

Founder, Everly

"Open Forest set up our business, the entire process was seamless, stress-free and very efficient. The team just gets it, which allowed us to focus on other parts of the business with confidence. Thank you, Open Forest!"

Elaine Kelly

Founder & CEO, Curly Crowns

"Super service. They worked on weekends and after hours to ensure rapid registration. Despite a name change request by the CRO, we had the company registration in a week."

Brian Mahony

CEO, LCA Developments

Frequently asked holding company questions

What is Open Forest?

Open Forest is an alternative legal services provider. We're a team of experienced lawyers and software developers - and importantly, we are founders too.

What's the cost to set up my HoldCo?

It can be as little as €99 depending on your circumstances. Check our Pricing Page out.

What if it doesn't work out?

So long as all of your filings are up to date, which we will ensure, then it usually only costs around €250 to close a company down.

Do I need to register for tax?

You will likely need to register for corporation tax, but we can take care of that for you. You wont need to register for VAT unless you are trading.

How do personal HoldCo's work?

The idea is that when you sell your company, the cash goes into your HoldCo for later use, instead of getting hit with 33% tax right away. Read more here.

How do I get started?

You simply need to click "Incorporate Now" above, fill our our interactive form, follow our instructions and we will take it from there.

We can build all types of HoldCos

Personal

Group

Intellectual Property

Real Estate

Tax blockers

crypto

investments

family structures

Geographic

PArent Companies

subsidiaries

International

Intermediaries

Venture

and more...

Why do I need a holding company?

Asset Protection

Tax Efficiencies

Centralised Control

Exit Planning

Open Forest is built for multi-company management

Here's how we do it

Company Registration

Ongoing Compliance

Legal Solutions

Tax Compliance

Accounting

Organisation

And here's what to expect:

Complete our Incorporation Form

Due Diligence Process

Incorproaton Process

Approval Process

Post-incorporation Filings

Ongoing Support

Don’t just take our word for it

Frequently asked holding company questions

What is Open Forest?

What's the cost to set up my HoldCo?

What if it doesn't work out?

Do I need to register for tax?

How do personal HoldCo's work?

How do I get started?

Contact us