How to register a business (company) in Rwanda

What you need

• National ID or passport of each owner and director
• The business name you want (and one or two backups)
• Business address and the activities you will do
• For a company: each shareholder's shares

Steps

1. Go to onestopcentre.rdb.rw and create an account.
2. Reserve your business name (check it's available).
3. Choose the type: individual enterprise (sole trader) or domestic company (Ltd).
4. Fill in owners, directors, shares, address and activities, then submit.
5. Watch your email/SMS for questions from RDB and answer quickly.
6. Download your registration certificate. The company code at the top right is your TIN with RRA, so you don't register for tax separately.

Tips

• Registering yourself online is free. Some internet cafés charge to do it for you, so you don't have to pay them.
• Once registered you have tax duties with RRA (income tax, and VAT or PAYE if they apply) plus district fees such as the trading licence.
• Cooperatives register with RCA (cmis.rca.gov.rw), not RDB.

Official sources

• RDB One Stop Centre
• RRA: register your business

Last checked: 2 November 2026 against RRA and RDB help pages. Processing time isn't officially confirmed. If something here is out of date, tell us so we can fix it.