– a pan-European legal entity designed to significantly simplify the establishment and operation of businesses within the European single market. This is one of the most concrete steps toward strengthening the European startup ecosystem, which could make Europe more competitive in the global race for talent, capital, and innovation.
"The EU Inc. legal framework proposal represents a significant shift – from words and promises to action."
Key innovations: speed, simplicity, and digitalization
The EU Inc. proposal addresses many of the administrative hurdles currently faced by entrepreneurs in Europe. Among the most important innovations are:
• Faster registration: company formation within 48 hours, costing less than 100 euros, and with no minimum capital requirement.
• Simplified procedures: the "once-only" principle, where companies submit data only once via a single EU interface.
• Fully digital operations: all key corporate processes will be digital throughout the entire lifecycle of the company.
• Central EU register: the gradual establishment of a unified European company database.
This represents a significant departure from fragmented national systems and a move toward a truly single market for businesses.
A new entrepreneurial culture: faster experiments, less risk
EU Inc. brings not only administrative simplification but also a shift in mindset:
• Simplified insolvency procedures allow entrepreneurs a faster restart.
• Fully digital liquidation procedures reduce the costs of closing a business.
This approach encourages experimentation and innovation, which are key elements of successful startup ecosystems.
Easier access to capital and talent
The proposal also includes significant improvements in financing and hiring:
• Simplified share transfers without mandatory intermediaries.
• Access to stock exchanges, if permitted by member states.
• Pan-European stock option schemes, taxed only upon profit realization.
This is particularly important for startups, which often rely on flexible ownership structures and attractive employee incentive models to grow.
A single market that finally works in practice
One of the key advantages of EU Inc. is the ability for a company to choose its country of registration while operating across the entire EU without additional administrative hurdles. The proposal also includes safeguards:
• equal treatment to national companies,
• compliance with national labor and social laws, and
• prevention of abuse through a list of prohibited practices.
With this, the Commission aims to balance flexibility with legal certainty.
Reactions: a positive signal, but the work is not yet done
Initial reactions from key European stakeholder organizations are positive. Initiatives such as EU Inc., Allied for Startups, and the European Startup Networkwelcome the direction of the proposal, while pointing out certain open questions that will need to be addressed during the legislative process.
Read more:
• EU Inc.
What comes next?
The proposal will now be reviewed by the European Parliament and the Council of the EU, with the goal of reaching an agreement by the end of 2026. In parallel, the European Commission has also adopted recommendations regarding the definitions of innovative companies, startups, and scaleups, which further contributes to the harmonization of terminology and policies at the EU level.
The full draft document can be found here
STF Perspective
At the Slovenian Technology Forum, we also welcome the presented proposal:
"We believe that the proposed changes are a step in the right direction and that we will finally have a stimulating, attractive, and simplified regulatory environment for founding startups in Europe as well."
EU Inc. represents a significant developmental step for the Slovenian startup ecosystem and the realization of the national startup strategy. Therefore, the STF will actively participate in the subsequent stages of legislative drafting, and we are already planning meetings with Members of the European Parliament from Slovenia in the coming weeks.
Europe has long talked about the need for a single startup market. With EU Inc., it seems that for the first time, we are truly close to making that a reality.
Source: https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_26_614
