In Montenegro last year, foreigners founded more than 7,000 companies, more than half of which are owned by Russian citizens. The interlocutors of TVCG say that a year is a short period to be able to see the true motives, whether it is a desire to invest or companies opening as one of the easiest ways to get a temporary residence permit.
The war In Ukraine and the economic sanctions imposed on Russia by America and the European Union forced many Western companies to leave Moscow, but also many Russians to move their businesses to other countries. That Montenegro is among them is confirmed by data from the Revenue and Customs Administration. Of the seven thousand companies founded by foreigners last year, Russian citizens are the founders of almost 4,000 of them, which is seven times more than last year.
The growing trend of Russian interest in our country is not a surprise for economic experts.
As Boban Stanić, an economic analyst, said, there are some comparative advantages that they see here that they can use as an environment that is more favorable to them than elsewhere.
– Some legal relief or other. After all, it boils down to a nice story if you have a nice cherry and if you don’t pick it, your neighbor or a passer-by will talk about it – said Stanić.
Foreigners, as well as our citizens, can establish a company in Montenegro for just one euro of capital and up to a maximum of one thousand and a half euros in registration costs, and all this in seven days, after which they receive a temporary residence permit. It is precisely in these conditions that the Union of Employers sees the main reasons why foreigners choose our country for business.
As Filip Lazović from the Union of Employers said, the establishment of a company by a foreign citizen is a way to obtain a permit for temporary residence and work.
– One part is what we in the Union would most like to see done, that is the intention of foreign citizens to establish businesses in Montenegro, which is called foreign investment – said Lazović.
And here, according to our interlocutors, we come to the main question – how much benefit the state budget and citizens can have from the fact that Montenegro is an increasingly attractive destination for foreigners for business.
