Types Of Incorporation: Which Form Is Suitable For Your Business?A Guide to types of incorporation Watch my specially selected playlist of many videos on different aspects of incorporation, including on the different types. You can choose the one you want to see, by clicking on the arrows on either side of the screen: Incorporation is a legal process leading to the formation of a corporation. Before incorporating your business an important question which arises in your mind is: 'There are various types of incorporation available, which form will be suitable to my business?' To answer your question we have compiled a comprehensive guide to almost all incorporation types. To find incorporation help click here. A brief introduction and pros and cons of mostly used types of incorporation are given below: • Sole proprietorship: o This is the most famous form of small enterprises worldwide. If you own a small or a part time business, don’t want to expand it, and want to be free from the hassle of filing returns and maintaining records, a sole proprietorship is for you. o The disadvantage of this type of business is worth noting. Sole proprietors are personally liable for all the debts of the business. • Partnership: o One of the most important types of incorporation is partnership. When you want to inject investment in your business and don’t have enough capital, you can add a couple of friends or other willing investors into your partnership business and share your profits and losses accordingly. o A partnership is preferred when there is a family business and all of the family likes to be involved in the decision making process. Alternatively, when close friends bringing different skills to the business want to work together. o A major disadvantage of this form of incorporation is unlimited liability. o There is another disadvantage. There is no perpetual succession. In many cases a partnership is dissolved when any partner leaves or dies and a new partnership needs to be constituted whenever a new partner is needed to be inducted! • Limited Partnership: o This type of partnership is available in some countries but not in others. o A limited partnership has all the characteristics of a normal partnership except that the liability of the partners is limited to the amounts of the capital invested by them; hence there is no personal liability. o This makes limited partnerships attractive and more practical than simple partnerships. However there is a limit to the number of partners that can participate in the company. • Corporation: o A company incorporated under the applicable company laws of a specific jurisdiction is known as a corporation or a company; it can also be referred to as company corp. Main characteristics of a company corp. are as follows: - Limited liability - Perpetual succession - Separate legal entity - Can sue and be sued in its own name - Proper records are required to be kept - Annual, semi-annual and quarterly returns are usually required to be filed with the registrar of companies, in most countries. There are various types of corporations. Each type has its own advantages and limitations, some of these types are listed below: o Private limited companies o Public limited companies o Company limited by guarantee o Unlimited company • Corporation not for business: o Among various types of incorporation, corporations not for business is that type which is often used by non government organizations (NGOs) and other non profit organizations for incorporating their non-profit businesses. o Special privileges are available to non profit corporation in almost every country except some offshore ones. Incorporate a business in the US, with the trusted leader in online incorporation services. You can form a corporation (C corporation, S corporation), form a limited liability company (LLC), get a registered agent and more. Incorporate online in any state and save. Do you want to know, when or even if, you should incorporate your business? Straight talk Do you need help in doing your incorporation? Consult EasyContracts. Or if you want more specific information on any thing about incorporation offshore, please fill in the form below and send it to us. Search this site via the Google designed box for the topic of your choice. We have more than 90,000 words to choose from, in 123 pages of video, text and images.  Custom Search
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about business entities - how to make the right choice. What's involved and what are the benefits? Learn the answers quickly and in easy-to-understand language with this multi-media program designed specifically for entrepreneurs.
