Comparison of German and foreign legal forms
Please note that the company forms may be essentially comparable in their basic arrangements but, due to the different civil law and tax law regulations in each country, there are in fact significant differences which is why this list is only intended as a rough overview.
In the following, we will explain the German company forms and each of their special characteristics with regard to civil law and tax law.
Corporations
German Limited Company (Gesellschaft mit beschränkter Haftung – GmbH)
- United Kingdom – private company limited by shares (Ltd.)
- France – société anonyme de responsabilité limitée (S.A.R.L.)
- Italy – Società a responsabilità limitata (SRL)
- Spain – Sociedad de responsabilidad limitada (SL)
- Czech Republic – Společnost s ručením omezeným (SRO)
German Public Limited Company (Aktiengesellschaft – AG)
- United Kingdom – public company limited by shares (PLC)
- France – société anonyme (S.A.)
- Italy – società per azioni (SPA)
- Spain – Sociedad Anónima (SA)
- Czech Republic – akciová společnost (a.s.)
German Small Limited Company (Unternehmergesellschaft – UG)
The UG is largely comparable to the GmbH. You can find more information on the following page: German Limited Company (GmbH)
Personal companies (Personengesellschaften)
Sole Proprietor (Einzelunternehmen)
- United Kingdom – sole proprietorship
- France – Entreprise unipersonnelle
- Italy – imprenditore individuale
- Spain – empresa individual
Civil law company / General partnership (GbR / OHG)
- United Kingdom – General Partnership
- France – organisme à caractère collectif
- Italy – consigliere delegato
- Spain – la sociedad
German Limited Partnerships (GmbH & Co. KG)
The GmbH & Co. KG is a special form in German (and Austrian) law, which does not exist in most other states and is partially comparable with the USA’s Limited Liability Company (LLC).
