It’s not always the case that cash is king: what do you need to consider when forming a company through non-cash contributions?
A capital contribution is due when you form a GmbH or an AG (corporations) (see the articles on each legal form). However, you don’t necessarily have to contribute this capital in a currency such as Swiss francs: you can also make a non-cash contribution.
But be careful: if you now want to use your portfolio of shares or your stamp collection to form a company, you must have it audited by a registered auditing firm. Depending on the nature and complexity of the non-cash contribution, this audit may cost an additional CHF 400 to CHF 3,000.
Typical examples of non-cash contributions:
Certain non-cash contributions are relatively common and are therefore also associated with lower costs for the auditors. Common non-cash contributions include:
- Vehicles (delivery van, driving school car, lorry)
- Tools and machinery (furnaces, lathes, hammer drills)
- IT hardware (laptops, screens, printers, ...)
- Stocks of materials (raw materials, spare parts, ...)
- Software (purchased or developed in-house)
- Furniture
Advantages of formation with non-cash contributions:
- Free capital can be invested on a liquid basis
- If no cash capital at all is used for the share capital, there is no need for the bank to confirm the capital contribution.
- Vehicles can be contributed transparently to the company’s assets.
Drawbacks of formation with non-cash contributions
- Additional costs to pay auditor
- The non-cash contribution may unexpectedly lose value over the years
- The valuation of the non-cash contribution may vary (e.g. for software)
