Iraq Company Formation & Entity Choice

Entity types and incorporation

Companies are formed under Companies Law No. 21 of 1997 (as amended), with the Limited Liability Company the most common vehicle. Registration runs through the Companies Registry under the Ministry of Trade, with name reservation via the Chamber of Commerce.

• Limited Liability Company (LLC) — Most common entity; maximum 25 shareholders; may be formed by a single shareholder (Companies Law No. 21 of 1997 (https://bridgewest.eu/company-formation-iraq/))
• Joint Stock Company (JSC) — Capital divided into transferable shares; suitable for larger ventures (Companies Law No. 21 of 1997 (https://bridgewest.eu/company-formation-iraq/))
• Sole Owner Enterprise — Single-owner business entity (Companies Law No. 21 of 1997 (https://bridgewest.eu/company-formation-iraq/))
• Branch / representative / agency office — Registration option for foreign companies operating in Iraq (Companies Law No. 21 of 1997 (https://bridgewest.eu/company-formation-iraq/))
• Minimum share capital — LLC — 1,000,000 IQD (must be fully paid and deposited with an authorised Iraqi bank at registration) (Companies Law No. 21 of 1997 (https://bridgewest.eu/company-formation-iraq/))
• Minimum share capital — oil & gas sector LLC — 2,000,000,000 IQD (minimum set by the Ministry of Oil for the oil sector) (Ministry of Oil capital requirements (https://bridgewest.eu/company-formation-iraq/))
• LLC management — Managed by a General Manager (an LLC cannot be run by a board of directors) (Companies Law No. 21 of 1997 (https://bridgewest.eu/company-formation-iraq/))
• Step 1 — name reservation — Reserve the company name (in Arabic) at the Chamber of Commerce (Companies Law No. 21 of 1997 (https://bridgewest.eu/company-formation-iraq/))
• Step — deposit capital — Deposit the initial capital in an authorised Iraqi bank and obtain confirmation; funds are frozen until registration completes (Companies Law No. 21 of 1997 (https://bridgewest.eu/company-formation-iraq/))
• Registration authority — Companies Registry (Ministry of Trade) (Companies Law No. 21 of 1997 (https://bridgewest.eu/company-formation-iraq/))
• Step — tax registration — Obtain tax clearance from the General Commission for Taxes and register with the tax authority (Income Tax Law No. 113 of 1982 (https://bridgewest.eu/company-formation-iraq/))
• Incorporation timeline — Approximately 12 weeks (approx — confirm) (Companies Law No. 21 of 1997 (https://bridgewest.eu/company-formation-iraq/))
• Annual compliance — accounting books — Legalize accounting books at the Accountants Union and maintain records under the Iraqi unified accounting system (Companies Law No. 21 of 1997 (https://bridgewest.eu/company-formation-iraq/))
• Annual compliance — tax return — File the annual corporate income tax return by 31 May and undergo the mandatory tax inspection (Income Tax Law No. 113 of 1982 (https://taxsummaries.pwc.com/iraq/corporate/tax-administration))