If you want to set up an organisation, the first step is to choose its legal form based on the activities you plan to carry out – in other words, decide whether your organisation will be an association, a public institution, or a charity and support fund.
An association is usually set up when you plan to have quite a few members or volunteers, that is, when a group of like‑minded people want to come together under one umbrella and pursue common goals. This legal form is also often chosen when several organisations (legal entities) want to work together towards shared objectives.
Public institutions (Všį) and charity and support funds are usually more closed structures, where those who establish them play the key role – they either make decisions themselves or authorise someone (for example, a board) to decide what activities will be carried out, while the people involved in the organisation (employees or volunteers) are mainly responsible for implementing them. Today, the forms of public institutions and charity and support funds are quite similar, but historically funds were, and often still are, more focused on providing financial or other support, while public institutions provide services and implement projects.
Once you have decided on the legal form, it becomes clear how many people you need to establish the organisation: in the case of an association, there must be at least three founders (adult natural persons or legal entities), while a public institution or a charity and support fund can be established by just one person (a natural or legal person).
You can set up an organisation in two ways – in the usual way, through a notary, or online. The difference is that if you choose the online route, the organisation’s main document – the articles of association – will be generated automatically and you will not have much freedom to edit them, but this option will be significantly cheaper.
When setting up an organisation online, you must also have an electronic signature and use it to log in to the Register Centre’s self‑service system.
