Heated debates lie ahead among members of the European Parliament's Committee on Legal Affairs (JURI) on the
proposal for a directive on single-member private companies
. “This looks like a great idea at first sight, but there are lots of problems. I would prefer Parliament to fail this proposal,” said shadow rapporteur Evelyn Regner (S&D, Austria) on 2 December.
Members of the S&D group expressed concerns about a number of provisions of the proposal: the minimum capital requirements, the registration…
Background
The proposal for a directive on single-member private limited liability companies - COM(2014)212 -, presented in April 2014 by the Commission, would enable any natural person to create a single-member private company – a Societas Unius Personae – via online registration, within three working days and with a minimum capital of €1. The aim is to get SMEs to do more cross-border trade by easing the creation of subsidiaries in other member states. A similar proposal (a regulation tabled in 2008) was blocked in the Council and withdrawn by the Commission one year ago. The new directive uses a different legal basis, requiring a qualified majority instead of unanimity in Council.
