Topics/Business laws
Topic · 25 guides · 8 countries

Compliance is a calendar, not a subject.

Who you file with, when it falls due, and what it costs when you miss it: for all eight jurisdictions, before the reading list.

3
Pillars per country
Filings, data, employment
6 to 12
Months to file accounts
Singapore quickest, Germany slowest
£150
Cheapest late penalty
UK, and it escalates

The annual obligations

Click a row to filter the guides
CountryRegistryAnnual filing dueData authorityLate penalty
United Kingdom
Audit exempt below two of three thresholds
Companies HouseAccounts 9 months after year end; confirmation statement annuallyICOFrom £150→
Singapore
Audit exempt if small company
ACRAAnnual return within 7 months of financial year endPDPCFrom S$300→
Estonia
Audit only above statutory thresholds
e-Business RegisterAnnual report within 6 months of financial year endAKIFines, then deletion→
Germany
Audit for medium and large companies
HandelsregisterAccounts published within 12 months via the BundesanzeigerBfDI and state authoritiesFrom €2,500→
United States
No statutory audit for private companies
State: Delaware DOCFranchise tax 1 March for corporations, 1 June for LLCsFTC and state regimesFrom $200 + interest→
Portugal
Audit above statutory thresholds
Registo ComercialIES filed by 15 July following the financial yearCNPDFrom €500→
UAE & Dubai
Audit required in most free zones
Free zone authority or DEDLicence renewal annually; corporate tax return within 9 monthsUAE Data OfficeFrom AED 1,000→
Turkey
Audit above statutory thresholds
Ticaret SiciliGeneral assembly by end of March; e-filings monthlyKVKKEscalating administrative fines→
Filing deadlines run from your financial year end unless a fixed date is given. Penalties are the starting figure for a first late filing: they escalate, and in several jurisdictions directors are personally liable.

All business law guides

Coverage, honestly

Eight countries have full compliance coverage across all three pillars. Three more appear in the country list with nothing written behind them: marked here rather than linked to an empty page.

Turkey3 guides
UAE & Dubai3 guides
Germany3 guides
United Kingdom3 guides
United States3 guides
Singapore4 guides
Estonia3 guides
Portugal3 guides
CanadaNot yet written
AustraliaNot yet written
FranceNot yet written
What changed this year
Companies House identity verification
Mandatory for directors and people with significant control since November 2025, under the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act. Filings can be rejected without it.
BOI reporting narrowed sharply
A FinCEN interim rule in March 2025 exempts companies formed in the United States; only foreign entities registered to do business there still report.
Corporate tax registration is universal
Every UAE company must register with the Federal Tax Authority and file a return, including qualifying free zone persons taxed at 0%.
Video notarisation extended
Remote notarial formation is now available for a GmbH, though the capital deposit and Handelsregister processing still set the timeline.
Register of registrable controllers
Must be maintained within 30 days of incorporation, and ACRA has been enforcing the deadline rather than treating it as guidance.
Stay ahead of it

Most penalties are for lateness, not wrongdoing.

The filings themselves are rarely difficult. Knowing which ones exist, and when, is the whole job: start with the checklist.

Document checklistWhat each registry asks for, in order.Country comparisonCompliance burden side by side.Cost estimatorAccounting and filing costs per year.GlossaryUBO, PSC, DPO and 117 more.

We email when a rule changes

Filing deadlines, identity verification, data protection enforcement. One email, no pitches.