Setting up a company in Germany as a Canadian founder
Forming the company is the same as for any founder. The real advantage for a Canadian is the immigration route — you can move to Germany without arranging a visa first — and there’s none of the tax complication that US founders face.
If you are a Canadian citizen looking at how to set up a company in Germany, the formation steps themselves — notary, capital, Handelsregister — are essentially identical for everyone. What’s specific to you as a Canadian is the route to actually living in Germany to run the business, and there the news is good: Canada is one of a small group of countries whose citizens enjoy a privileged, simpler immigration path. This guide covers that route, with the German formation mechanics in the complete GmbH formation guide.
Can a Canadian citizen open a company in Germany?
Yes — there is no nationality restriction on ownership, and Canadians have a genuine advantage when it comes to moving to Germany to run the business.
On the company side you are treated like any founder: a Canadian citizen (or a Canadian company) can own 100% of a German GmbH. Same notary, same €25,000 share capital for a GmbH (or €1 for a UG), same Handelsregister entry, same tax registration. You can attend the notary in person, or form the company from Canada through a notarized, apostilled power of attorney.
Where being Canadian specifically helps is the next layer — your right to live in Germany and run the company. Here Canada is in a privileged group of nations, and the route is markedly easier than for founders from, say, India or China.
Do I need a visa to move to Germany and run my company?
No visa beforehand. As a Canadian you can enter Germany visa-free and apply for the residence permit from inside Germany — you do not have to apply at a German embassy before you travel.
This is the central advantage, and it is the opposite of how it works for most nationalities. Under § 41 of the German Residence Ordinance (AufenthV), nationals of a specific group of countries — Canada, along with the United States, Australia, Israel, Japan, South Korea, New Zealand, and the UK — may enter Germany visa-free even for a long-term stay, and apply for the required residence permit at the local immigration office (Ausländerbehörde) after arrival. You must file that application within 90 days of entering.
For most non-EU founders (an Indian national, for example) the rule is reversed: they must apply for the residence visa at the German mission in their home country before travelling. As a Canadian, you skip that step — you arrive, register your address (Anmeldung), and apply on the ground.
Two limits, so this is not misread:
- You must not begin the business activity until the permit is approved. Visa-free entry lets you come and apply; it does not let you start operating before you hold the title. (You can use a short visit to prepare a formation — meetings, the notary, setting things up.)
- This is still a residence permit for self-employment. Being privileged on the procedure does not remove the substance of qualifying, which is the § 21 route below.
What is the §21 self-employment permit, and what does it require?
It is the residence permit for running your own business, granted on three conditions — economic interest, positive economic effect, and secured financing — assessed with an opinion from the local Chamber of Commerce (IHK). For a Canadian, the standard route applies in full.
The permit is granted under § 21 AufenthG. Its core conditions, weighed together, are:
- an economic interest or regional need for the business,
- expected positive effects on the economy, and
- financing secured through your own capital or a confirmed loan.
In practice the immigration office consults the IHK for an opinion, and the assessment considers the viability of the business idea, your entrepreneurial experience, the capital involved, the employment effect, and any innovation. The centrepiece is a substantive business plan (concept, revenue forecast, investment and capital-requirement plan). If you are over 45, adequate retirement provision generally comes into play. The permit is granted for up to three years, after which a permanent settlement permit (Niederlassungserlaubnis) becomes possible if the business has succeeded.
One point of honesty worth making, because it is sometimes blurred: Germany has friendship and trade treaties with a particular set of countries (including the USA and Japan) whose nationals may, at the authority’s discretion, have these standard conditions eased. Canada is not on that list. That is not a disadvantage relative to most of the world — Canadians still have the significant visa-free entry advantage above — it simply means the standard § 21 assessment applies to you in full, rather than a discretionary shortcut. A well-prepared business plan and financing case is therefore what your application turns on.
One alternative worth naming: if running your own business is not essential and an employment-based path would suit you, § 19c AufenthG covers residence for qualified employment and can sometimes be more straightforward. Which door fits depends on your situation.
Can my Canadian company open a German subsidiary?
Yes — a Canadian company can wholly own a German GmbH, and that is a clean, standard structure. But the parent being Canadian does not change your personal immigration position; that depends on your own nationality.
A Canadian corporation can be the sole shareholder of a German GmbH. For the notary, the parent provides an apostilled certificate of good standing and a board resolution authorising the German formation. A full GmbH (rather than a UG) usually fits better here, because the narrative of an established company expanding into Germany sits more credibly with it.
Keep the company and the person separate. If you are a Canadian citizen, the § 41 visa-free advantage above is yours regardless of the corporate structure — it attaches to your nationality, not your company. And there is a strategic fork: if your goal is market presence rather than personally relocating, the parent can own the German subsidiary and appoint a local managing director who already has the right to work in Germany, while you stay in Canada and visit. Whether you pursue a residence permit for yourself or appoint a local director depends entirely on whether you intend to live in Germany.
Why set up in Hamburg specifically?
Hamburg is one of the more navigable entry points for an international founder — a major trade hub with a dedicated investment-promotion body — and competing for “[your nationality] + Hamburg” is far less crowded than for Germany as a whole.
Germany is a federation, and where you base the company determines which authorities handle your registration, tax, and IHK opinion. Hamburg is northern Germany’s trade and logistics centre, internationally oriented and used to cross-border business — which helps when your case is assessed for economic substance. Handelskammer Hamburg’s own guidance for foreign founders confirms the route described here, including that privileged-state nationals apply for the permit at the Ausländerbehörde after entry.
Hamburg also has a dedicated investment-promotion organisation whose job is to help international companies establish in the city — real support when you are navigating an unfamiliar system. Eren Consulting holds an official representative mandate covering exactly this region, so local access to the Hamburg ecosystem is something we can provide directly.
In short: a straightforward move
For a Canadian founder, the German company formation is routine, and the immigration route is genuinely favourable: visa-free entry and the ability to apply for the residence permit from inside Germany, rather than at an embassy beforehand. The standard § 21 conditions apply in full, so a well-built business plan and financing case is what matters — and there is none of the cross-border tax complication that some other nationalities face. Get the formation and the § 21 application prepared properly, and the Canada-to-Germany move is one of the more straightforward ones.
Frequently asked questions
Can a Canadian citizen own a company in Germany? Yes. There is no nationality restriction — a Canadian citizen or a Canadian company can own 100% of a German GmbH. The formation process is the same as for any founder.
Do Canadians need a visa to set up or run a company in Germany? Not before travelling. Canadians can enter Germany visa-free and, under § 41 AufenthV, apply for the residence permit from inside Germany within 90 days of entry — unlike most nationalities, who must apply at a German embassy beforehand. The business activity may not begin until the permit is approved.
Do the §21 conditions apply to Canadians in full? Yes. The conditions (economic interest, positive economic effect, secured financing, with an IHK opinion) apply in full. Unlike a few treaty countries such as the USA and Japan, Canada has no discretionary easing of these conditions — but it does have the visa-free entry advantage, so a well-prepared business plan is the key to a Canadian application.
Can my Canadian company open a German subsidiary? Yes — a Canadian company can wholly own a German GmbH, using an apostilled certificate of good standing and a board resolution for the notary. The parent being Canadian does not change your personal immigration position, which depends on your own nationality.
How long does the §21 permit last? Up to three years initially. If the business succeeds, a permanent settlement permit (Niederlassungserlaubnis) can follow.
Setting up in Germany as a Canadian founder is a comparatively straightforward move: a routine German formation, a favourable visa-free immigration route, and no cross-border tax complications. If you want the § 21 route and the Hamburg setup mapped to your situation, book a confidential consultation — and for the formation mechanics, see the complete GmbH formation guide.