Licences and permits for companies in Latvia
SIA Lex & Finance is a private firm in Riga, not a government body. Latvian authorities decide on licences, permits and registrations; we prepare and submit the documents for you.
Two of the six areas below extend to other EU countries: crypto-asset services, under MiCA's cross-border procedure, and international goods and coach transport, with a Community licence. In all six, we deal with the authority.
Or call: +371 25155167
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- Team at work since2009
- Consultations inEN, LV, RU
- Regulated areas covered6
Six regulated areas where Lex & Finance can help
We prepare licence and registration documents in six regulated areas, grouped below by line of business. Select "Add to my enquiry" to put your choice straight into the form.
Financial services
Crypto-asset licences
Your company plans to provide crypto-asset services from Latvia. Once authorised by Latvijas Banka, it can offer them in other EU countries under MiCA's cross-border procedure. We identify which services under MiCA your model involves, compile the documents for authorisation as a crypto-asset service provider (CASP) and answer the regulator's queries.
Asset-referenced tokens fall under a separate MiCA authorisation regime, with exemptions in some cases.
Financial and credit licences
You will lend to consumers or act as a credit intermediary. Lenders generally need a licence; intermediaries fall under registration, not licensing. The Consumer Rights Protection Centre (CRPC) decides cases filed with it by 31 December 2026; Latvijas Banka decides later ones. We prepare the documents, including AML/KYC procedures where required.
Mortgage intermediaries register now, here or in another EU country's register; every credit intermediary from 20 November 2026.
Trade and hospitality
Alcohol and tobacco trade licences
Your shop, café, restaurant or wholesale business plans to sell alcohol, including beer, or tobacco. We determine which licence you need, wholesale or retail, and prepare the documents for the State Revenue Service (VID), including the place of sale. For online alcohol sales, the licence names the website or app as that place.
Beer retail has its own licence; all these licences come from VID, not the municipality.
Road transport
Transport licence
You plan to run a haulage or passenger transport business from Latvia. We establish whether you need a licence, including a Community licence from the Road Transport Administration (ATD) for international carriage of goods or by bus within the EU, then prepare and submit the vehicle, financial and professional competence documents.
ATD issues most licences; taxi licences come from planning regions or municipalities of state cities such as Riga.
Employment agencies
Employment agency licence
A private employment agency needs a licence from the State Employment Agency (NVA), whether it finds staff for employers or places job seekers in work, in Latvia or abroad. We check the requirements and draft the submission, naming your services and the countries where the agency will place job seekers.
With a partner abroad, NVA may require official proof of the partner's right to provide such services there.
Construction
Construction licences and permits
Your company, Latvian or foreign, intends to take on construction work in Latvia, or design, technical inspection or expert review work on construction projects. We check whether it needs to join the register of construction businesses, prepare the submission through the Building Information System (BIS) and enter details of any construction specialists on its staff.
The register is kept by the State Construction Control Bureau (BVKB), which decides on registration.
Not sure which licence you need?
Describe your activity, where the company is registered and who its clients will be. We work out whether you need a licence or a registration, whether a notification is also required, and which authority decides.
- If you do not yet have a Latvian company, or an existing one needs its documents changed, see company services
- For bookkeeping, payroll and annual reports once the licence is in place, see accounting services
How Lex & Finance handles a licensing matter
Whatever the activity, the work goes through the same stages; what differs is the set of documents each authority expects.
First conversation
After your enquiry, a specialist contacts you, asks about your company's activity and the documents you already have, and arranges a consultation.
Finding the right route
We pin down the licence or registration and the authority that decides, list what we need from you and agree the scope of work before we start.
Preparing the documents
We draft the documents and any internal procedures or service descriptions the authority requires, and explain each one to you in English before you sign.
Submission and follow-up
Where the authority accepts a representative, we submit the documents under your power of attorney, deal with its queries and see the matter through to its decision.
Who makes the decision
Consumer lending and intermediary registration go to the CRPC if filed by 31 December 2026, otherwise to Latvijas Banka, also the crypto-asset regulator. VID decides on alcohol and tobacco, the Road Transport Administration (ATD) on most road transport, NVA on employment agencies and BVKB on construction registration. We cannot promise the outcome.
Send an enquiryLex & Finance in Riga: who we are and where to find us
Lex & Finance is a private legal and accountancy firm in Riga, with an office at Kalpaka bulvāris 10. We consult in English, Latvian and Russian, so you can go through every document with us before anything is submitted.
- Company
- SIA Lex & Finance
- Registration number
- 40203239265
- VAT number
- LV40203239265
- Office
- Kalpaka bulvāris 10, Riga, LV-1050
- Phone
- +371 25155167
Further reading from Lex & Finance
What companies ask Lex & Finance about licensing
Does Lex & Finance issue the licence?
No. SIA Lex & Finance is a private firm, registered in Latvia under number 40203239265. Each licence or registration is granted or refused by the authority responsible for that activity, for example the State Revenue Service (VID) for alcohol and tobacco. We check your documents against its requirements, prepare and submit them; the decision rests with the authority.
Where do I start if I am not sure what my company needs?
Start with the activity, not the licence. Tell us what the company will do, for whom and from which country. Some activities also need a notification, for example to the Health Inspectorate before you start selling e-cigarettes. We map all of that before any documents are prepared.
What should I include in my enquiry?
A few lines are enough: what the business does or will do, whether the company is registered yet and where, and the country you are based in. If you already have letters or decisions from a Latvian authority on the matter, mention them as well.
Can the work be done while I am abroad?
We work by phone and email and, where the authority accepts a representative, submit the documents under your power of attorney. VID takes licence submissions through its Electronic Declaration System (EDS), and the construction register usually through the Building Information System (BIS), signed within the system. Elsewhere, we check how to sign and whether you must attend.
Can I deal with you in English?
Yes, and also in Latvian or Russian. Submissions and documents go to Latvian authorities in Latvian; documents in other languages usually need a certified translation. The decision comes in Latvian too, and we explain it to you in English. This page is for guidance only; where it differs from the official text of a law, the official text prevails.
What if my company is not yet registered in Latvia?
Some licences are available only to businesses entered in the Latvian Commercial Register, VID's alcohol and tobacco licences among them; in other areas we check what your activity requires. If you do not yet have a company here, start with our company services.
Once the licence is granted, can you also keep the company's books?
Yes. We can keep the company's books, run payroll and prepare its annual report, so the licence work and the accounts stay with one firm. The accounting services page sets out what is included.
Ask Lex & Finance which licence your company needs
Mention the activity, whether the company already exists and which country you are writing from.
Or call: +371 25155167
Our privacy policy explains how we handle your data.
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