Domiciliation and mail handling in Luxembourg.
Every Luxembourg company needs a registered office. If you don't have your own premises, the law says only a licensed professional may domicile your company. Here is how it works, what it costs and what the law requires, with every rule linked to its source.
- ACDCorporate tax assessmentTax administrationScanned · Mon
- AEDVAT return reminderVAT authorityScanned · Mon
- LBRFiling confirmationBusiness RegisterScanned · Wed
- BankAccount statementYour bankScanned · Thu
Illustration. Senders and dates are examples.
What is domiciliation?
A company's registered office is its official address. It is written in the articles of association, recorded in the RCS and printed on every letter and invoice. The law presumes, until proven otherwise, that the company's central administration is at that address.
Domiciliation means setting up that seat with a third party who also provides services linked to it, such as receiving the mail. Founders choose it when they have no office yet, work from abroad, or run a holding company that doesn't need premises.
Luxembourg regulates it strictly, since 1999: only a short list of supervised professions may act as domiciliation agent, and only under a written agreement.
Sources: Law of 10 August 1915, art. 100-2 · Law of 10 August 1915, art. 710-10 and 462-1 · RCS law of 19 December 2002, art. 6
When a company sets up its seat with a third party who provides any services linked to it, the company and that third party must sign a written domiciliation agreement.
Our translation of: Law of 31 May 1999 on domiciliation, art. 1
Only four professions may domicile a company.
The domiciliation agent must be a registered member of one of these regulated professions, established in Luxembourg.
Banks and financial sector professionals
Including specialised professionals of the financial sector licensed by the CSSF.
Insurance sector professionals
Supervised by the Commissariat aux assurances.
Lawyers
Registered with a Luxembourg Bar. Our partner WvT Luxembourg is a law firm.
Statutory auditors and chartered accountants
Members of their professional bodies in Luxembourg.
That is why we use a partner. Finbros is not on this list, so we don't domicile companies ourselves. Your registered office and mail are provided by WvT Luxembourg S.à r.l., a Luxembourg law firm. We coordinate the onboarding and the KYC documents at no charge, and pass on the partner's fees with no markup.
Sources: Law of 31 May 1999 on domiciliation, art. 1 · Finbros corporate services
Own office, domiciliation or business centre?
Three ways to give your company an address, and what the law and the regulator say about each.
Your own premises
A lease or property in the company's name
- No domiciliation agreement needed
- Can count as a fixed place of business for a business permit
- Rent, a lease term and someone to receive the post
- Your address is public in the RCS
Domiciliation
Registered office with a licensed professional
- Professional address in the RCS
- Mail received, sorted and scanned
- No lease or office to run
- Does not count as an establishment for a business permit
Business centre or coworking
Desk, virtual office or shared space
- A genuine, exclusive and permanent office lease is not domiciliation
- With services such as mail or reception, it is domiciliation
- Then only an authorised professional may provide it
- Virtual offices and open-space desks count as domiciliation
Sources: CSSF, domiciliation in business centres and coworking spaces · Law of 2 September 2011 (business permit), art. 5 · Law of 31 May 1999 on domiciliation, art. 1
The life of a domiciliation, from checks to exit.
Five moments that the law regulates, and what happens at each.
- 1KYC
Checks before signing
Before signing, the domiciliation agent must check that the company complies with the rules on its domicile, know the real identity of its managers and directors, and keep that documentation up to date for at least 5 years after the relationship ends. As a company service provider, it also carries out anti-money laundering checks on the company and its beneficial owners.
Sources: Law of 31 May 1999, art. 2 · Ministry of Justice, TCSP guidelines (AML law of 12 November 2004, art. 1(8))
- 2Contract
A written agreement
Whenever a company sets up its seat with a third party who provides services linked to it, the two must sign a written domiciliation agreement. Without one, the company commits a serious breach of the law.
- 31 month
Articles and the RCS
The registered office goes in the articles of association and in the RCS. Every change must be filed with the RCS within one month.
- 4Daily
Everyday life
The registered office must appear on all the company's letters, invoices and documents, with the RCS number. Official mail from the authorities is sent there.
- 5Notice
Moving or ending
When a domiciliation agreement ends, it keeps its effects until the termination is filed with the RCS. The RCS informs the public prosecutor, and from that filing date the company no longer has a legal domicile if that seat was its domicile.
Sources: Law of 31 May 1999, art. 3 · RCS law of 19 December 2002, art. 13 and 14
Your letters, without the letterbox.
Official letters go to the registered office, and many come with deadlines. Mail management makes sure you see them in time.
How your mail reaches you
- ReceivedYour post arrives at the registered office, where our partner receives and sorts it.
- Scanned weeklyYour letters are scanned every week.
- Forwarded to youYou receive the scans digitally, so nothing waits in a drawer.
- Stored securelyThe originals are sorted and kept in secure storage.
Source: Finbros services and rates
Mail you can't afford to miss
- Tax administration (ACD)Tax assessments and requests for information, which come with deadlines.
- VAT authority (AED)VAT assessments, reminders and registration letters.
- Social security (CCSS)Employer contributions and declarations, if you have staff.
- Business Register (LBR)Filing confirmations and requests about your RCS file.
- Courts and bailiffsFormal notices served at the registered office.
- Banks and suppliersStatements, card letters and invoices.
When the registered office goes wrong.
The penalties the law sets for domiciliation done badly, or not at all.
Fine of €1,250 to €125,000.
Sources: Law of 31 May 1999, art. 4 · coordinated text of the 1999 law, amounts in euros (CSSF)
8 days to 5 years in prison and/or a fine of €1,250 to €125,000. Acting as a domiciliation agent without the right to do so carries the same penalties.
Sources: Law of 31 May 1999, art. 4 · coordinated text of the 1999 law, amounts in euros (CSSF)
A serious breach of the law for the company, which can lead to judicial dissolution at the request of the public prosecutor.
Sources: Law of 31 May 1999 on domiciliation, art. 1 · Law of 10 August 1915, art. 1200-1
From the day the termination is filed with the RCS, the company has no legal domicile, and the public prosecutor is informed.
Source: Law of 31 May 1999, art. 3
A domiciliation is not an establishment. Activities that need a business permit require a fixed place of business with real premises, management and documents on site.
An address is not the whole story.
A company with its statutory seat in Luxembourg is a Luxembourg resident for corporate income tax. Company law also presumes that the central administration is at the registered office, but only until proven otherwise.
In practice, where your managers actually meet and decide matters too. If they all live abroad, talk to us about holding board meetings in Luxembourg and about a resident director, also provided by our licensed partner.
Sources: Income tax law (LIR), art. 159 · Law of 10 August 1915, art. 100-2
Moving your registered office
- Decide. If the articles allow it, the managers of an SARL or the board of an SA can move the seat anywhere in Luxembourg and update the articles. Otherwise the shareholders amend the articles.
- File with the RCS within one month. Each document filed costs €17 in duty and administrative tax.
- Update your letterhead, invoices, website, bank and the authorities.
- End the old domiciliation, if you had one. Its termination is filed with the RCS too.
Sources: Law of 10 August 1915, art. 710-26 and 450-3 · RCS law of 19 December 2002, art. 15 · LBR, RCS fee schedule · Law of 31 May 1999, art. 3
What it costs, in full.
Partner fees are passed on as they are, with no markup. Prices exclude VAT.
Through our licensed partner
Provided by WvT Luxembourg S.à r.l., subject to its acceptance.
- Registered officeAddress registered with the LBRfrom €2,500 a year
- Mail managementSorting, weekly scanning, digital forwardingfrom €1,250 a year
- Resident directorLocal substance and governance€5,000 a year
Source: Finbros services and rates
From Finbros
Fixed prices for the work we do ourselves.
- Onboarding and KYC coordinationWith our partnerFree
- Change of registered officeDocuments and RCS filing support€150
- AccountingStarter planfrom €250 a month
- First callFree
Source: Finbros services and rates
Domiciliation, answered.
What founders ask us most about registered offices and mail.
Book a free first callA written contract between a company and the professional who hosts its registered office and provides services linked to it, such as receiving the mail. Luxembourg law makes it mandatory whenever a company sets up its seat with such a third party.
Only a registered member of a regulated profession established in Luxembourg: banks and other financial sector professionals, insurance sector professionals, lawyers, statutory auditors and chartered accountants. Finbros is not one of them, so domiciliation is provided by our licensed partner, the law firm WvT Luxembourg.
Sources: Law of 31 May 1999 on domiciliation, art. 1 · Finbros corporate services
Through our partner, a registered office starts at €2,500 a year and mail management at €1,250 a year, excluding VAT. We coordinate the onboarding for free and add no markup.
Source: Finbros services and rates
Only if you have a genuine, permanent lease of private offices for your exclusive use. If the centre provides services such as mail or reception, or offers a virtual office or an open-space desk, the CSSF treats it as domiciliation, which only an authorised professional may provide.
Source: CSSF, domiciliation in business centres and coworking spaces
The domiciliation rules don't apply when the company sets up its seat with a shareholder who has significant influence over how it is run. Check your lease or co-ownership rules, and keep in mind that a home may not meet the conditions for a business permit.
Sources: Law of 31 May 1999 on domiciliation, art. 1 · Law of 2 September 2011 (business permit), art. 5
No. The business permit law says that a domiciliation is not an establishment. Activities that need a permit require a fixed place of business in Luxembourg, with suitable premises, effective management and the documents kept accessible there.
The agreement keeps its effects until the termination is filed with the RCS. The RCS then informs the public prosecutor, and from that date the company has no legal domicile if that seat was its domicile. Set up the new registered office before the old one ends.
Source: Law of 31 May 1999, art. 3
Setting up a company's seat with a domiciliation agent without a written agreement is punishable by a fine of €1,250 to €125,000. Breaking the domiciliation rules is also a serious breach that can lead to the company's judicial dissolution.
Sources: Law of 31 May 1999, art. 4 · coordinated text of the 1999 law, amounts in euros (CSSF) · Law of 31 May 1999 on domiciliation, art. 1
If the articles allow it, the managers of an SARL or the board of an SA can move the registered office anywhere in Luxembourg and update the articles. Otherwise the shareholders amend the articles. The change must be filed with the RCS within one month. We prepare the documents for €150.
Sources: Law of 10 August 1915, art. 710-26 and 450-3 · RCS law of 19 December 2002, art. 15 · Finbros services and rates
A company with its statutory seat in Luxembourg is a Luxembourg tax resident. But the law presumes the central administration is at the registered office only until proven otherwise, so where your managers actually decide also matters.
Sources: Income tax law (LIR), art. 159 · Law of 10 August 1915, art. 100-2
Give your company a Luxembourg address.
We coordinate the domiciliation with our licensed partner, and keep your books and filings on time. Book a free first call, Saturdays included.
Rules and prices as they apply in November 2026. General information, not legal advice for your situation. Domiciliation, mail management and resident director services are provided by our licensed partner WvT Luxembourg S.à r.l., not by Finbros. Part of the Finbros Encyclopedia.