The path to self-employment: choice of legal form
On the way to self-employment, it is necessary to consider at an early stage which legal form is most suitable for the intended business purpose. Before taking the step into self-employment, it is therefore important to obtain comprehensive information in order to know the advantages and disadvantages of the individual legal forms.
updated 14 July 2023
Decision for self-employment
Every year, almost 40,000 people in Switzerland decide to embark on the arduous path of self-employment. Many fail within the first five years. However, those who still persist after five years have a good chance to be successful in the long run.
Self-employment offers many advantages (being your own boss, realizing your life’s dream, building your own work-life balance, etc.), but there are also disadvantages that should not be underestimated (sometimes long working hours, high risk of ceasing to exist as a company after just a few years, etc.).
Choosing the “right” legal form
A young entrepreneur who wants to dare to exist in self-employment must consider in advance what is the most suitable legal form for his company. There is no right or wrong legal form, but it is worthwhile to obtain comprehensive information and advice. Only then is it possible to strictly distinguish between the various possible company forms. Only when this knowledge is available can the individual legal forms be compared with each other and the advantages and disadvantages weighed up against each other.
Sufficient time should be planned for this process right from the start, so that another conversion does not have to be carried out shortly after the foundation. The most important legal forms in Switzerland are the following:
- Sole proprietorship (individual enterprise)
- General partnership
- Limited liability company
- Stock corporation
Today, the limited liability company (LLC) is most frequently chosen. This is probably mainly due to the much lower minimum capital compared to the stock corporation, as well as the limited liability in case of bankruptcy.
The experts at STARTUPS.CH can provide you with comprehensive advice, answer your questions and show you which legal form is the best fit in each individual case.
You can get an overview of the most important legal forms in Switzerland on the STARTUPS.CH homepage, which contains a range of information and greatly simplifies the incorporation process.
