Our services
Business Immigration
Business plan for company founding
If you want to start a business, you will often come across the topic of a business plan. Founders need this not only for investors; often he can also be of help to the founders themselves in building up their company. It may even be mandatory for foreign nationals. You can find out what the business plan should look like below:
The most important facts in a nutshell:
- The business plan is a central building block when founding a company
- There your planned company, its organization, the financing as well as the opportunities and risks are presented in compact form
- The business plan is especially important for banks, investors and the founders themselves
- Foreign nationals usually also have to submit a business plan for a residence permit
What do I need a business plan for?
Creating a business plan when starting your business makes sense for a number of reasons.
Business plan as an objective for the founders
On the one hand, the business plan gives the founders a concrete guideline for the implementation of their planned company. Especially when there are several founders, it offers the advantage of recording the most important steps and goals for realizing the business idea in a document that is accessible to all founders.
Business plan as a basis for financing
In addition, a business plan is necessary to convince banks or other investors of the business idea. They want to know whether it is worth making money available to the company in question. When applying for public funding, a business plan is usually required so that the administration can determine whether your company meets the funding requirements.
Business plan for residence permit
A business plan is also important for foreign nationals who want to set up a company in Germany. For the granting of a residence permit for self-employment, the applicant must submit a business plan to the immigration authorities. It is important to create the business plan in such a way that it meets the requirements of Section 21 of the Residence Act. Foreign nationals from other EU countries do not need a residence permit and can set up a company in Germany without further ado.
What must the business plan include?
Your idea and the purpose of the company
The first thing to do is to present what goals and ideas you have and what kind of company you want to found. What services should your company provide? What makes your company different from others?
Market analysis and presentation of the company's activities
Furthermore, you must describe the activities your company performs in detail. How are the goods produced or the services provided? What is the market situation and who are the competitors? Which strategy should your company use to be successful in the long term? Who is the target group of your services? Who are your suppliers and how do you obtain services from them?
organization of the company
It is also important to show the organization of the planned company. Who are the founders and what qualifications or experience do they have? In what legal form should the company be founded? Which tasks are distributed and how? What should the company be called and what ownership structure should it have? What location will your company have? Are regulatory approvals required? Does the company have employees?
risk analysis
It is particularly important for banks and other investors to analyze the risks that exist for your company: Is the market particularly vulnerable to crises? Are you particularly dependent on individual suppliers? Does your business need highly qualified staff that is difficult to hire? The aim here is to work out and weight the actual risks and, ideally, to offer immediate solutions and measures to minimize the risk.
financial plan
A central part of the business plan is the financial plan. On the one hand, this is where you show which income and expenses your company needs to plan for. Above all, it is about analyzing the financial requirements: How much money does the company need and where should it come from?
Prerequisites for granting a residence permit according to § 21 AufenthG
If you are a foreign national from a non-EU country, you need a business plan to apply for a residence permit for the purpose of self-employment. The business plan should show the immigration authorities that your company meets the following requirements:
- There is an overriding economic interest in the activity of your company or a special need in the region.
- The activity has a positive effect on the economy.
- The financing of the start-up is secured by equity or a loan commitment
These requirements can be proven, among other things, by the fact that your company creates jobs or that your company performs an activity that has hardly or not at all been offered in the region.
Formal business plan requirements
There are no legal requirements about the form of the business plan. Nevertheless, it is advisable to create the business plan in such a way that it is easy to understand and professional. This includes, for example, a cover sheet, a table of contents and a concise summary of the most important statements and analyses. Make sure that the text is free of errors, has a consistent font and is subdivided sensibly. In addition, pictures and graphics are suitable in the appropriate places for a better clarity of the business plan. In addition, the documents that document the content of the business plan are usually attached to the business plan as an appendix. This includes, for example, excerpts from the commercial register, CVs of the founders, approvals and permits or documents for financing.
Short & sweet
The business plan is one of the key elements of starting a business. On the one hand, it explains to the founders their own planning steps. Above all, however, it serves to convince investors and banks of the company. In addition, a business plan is required to obtain a residence permit if foreign nationals want to set up a company in Germany. The business plan itself is a document that contains the most important information about the planned company as well as the opportunities and risks of founding it. First of all, the type of company to be founded and the services to be provided are listed. This includes a precise description of the activities and the market situation as well as the organization of the company. In addition, the financial plan is a core part of the business plan, in which the founders state the expected turnover and the expected financial requirements. In any case, you should seek advice from a competent lawyer when setting up your company. He will also check the requirements for planning and evaluating your activity and work with you to create a business plan that suits your company.