"Let's do startups" - Germany edition
But first... some paperwork:
1. Put aside €25,000 for company formation
2. Find a notary to draft articles of incorporation (1-2 weeks)
3. Open bank account (4-6 weeks)
4. Deposit share capital and send to notary
5. Entry into commercial registry
6. Ignore official looking scam letters asking for money
7. Entry into transparency register
8. Register with local trade office
9. Register with tax office
10. Wait for your company's VAT ID
11. You need an official address (don't use your home, can't use PO box), so rent virtual office
12. Buy company insurance
13. Buy accounting software
14. Set up payroll (you have to employ yourself as manager)
15. Pay for on-going accounting costs (€2-3k a year)
16. Prepare monthly, quarterly and yearly taxes
17. Make sure you have a GDPR-compliant privacy policy, and DPAs with all service providers
18. Make sure you have a compliant legal notice on your website and emails, or risk getting a €50,000 fine
19. Make sure your invoices are actually compliant with regulations
20. Don't ever move out of Germany while owning the company, or else go bankrupt due to the exit-tax with no liquidity problem
Now you may invoice your first customer - if you dare ;)
(obviously not legal/tax advice, this is satire)