When the Public Services Agency (ASP) rejects a company registration in Moldova, it does so on the grounds listed in art. 13 of Law No. 220/2007, and for a new LLC (SRL) most of them come down to the file itself: a required document is missing or a document does not meet the legal requirements. A refusal does not stop you from filing again once you have fixed the cause. Below are the legal grounds, how ASP tells you about irregularities, the common mistakes document by document, and what to do after a refusal.
1. When ASP refuses registration: art. 13 of Law No. 220/2007
The registrar checks the application and documents against the law and adopts either a registration decision or a reasoned decision rejecting the registration (art. 11(1)). Under art. 13(1), state registration is not allowed, among other cases, where:
1. (a) not all the documents required for registration have been filed;
2. (b) the constitutive documents or other documents filed do not meet the requirements of the law;
3. (c) the legal procedure for incorporation has been breached;
4. (g) it is established that the founder has an unexpunged criminal record for tax evasion.
Other grounds cover a registration ban ordered by a court or a bailiff (letter (e)) and the founder of a company struck off under art. 174¹ of the Tax Code who sets up a new company within 3 years (letter (c¹)). There are also limits: registration cannot be refused on grounds of inexpediency (art. 13(3)), and ASP may neither refuse to accept the application nor ask for documents other than those provided by law (art. 8(6)).
2. Irregularities: how ASP tells you
ASP's instructions for application 3-5 (Cererea privind înregistrarea de stat a persoanei juridice) state that the „E-mail” field must hold a valid address for information about any irregularities found during registration. A mistyped address means you will not learn in time what needs fixing.
ASP's guide to remote registration describes the steps: the registrar finds the shortcomings, ASP sends you a notice to remedy the irregularities, you send back the corrected or completed documents, and only then does the registrar adopt the registration decision or, where applicable, the refusal.
•Timing: the 24 hours run from the working day after the day the required documents were submitted (art. 5(2)). In practice, registration waits for the corrected documents.
•Fee: the application is processed only after the registration fee has been paid (art. 7(5)); according to ASP's guide, without a confirmed payment the application is not examined.
3. Common mistakes in the incorporation documents
•The name. It may not be identical or similar to that of a registered company, nor to a registered or well-known trademark (art. 9(11)). „Moldova” requires a permission granted under Government Decision No. 353/2025, a place name requires a decision of the local council, and the names of public authorities are prohibited. In the application, the name is written in the form shown on the name check and reservation certificate, and identically in every other document.
•Data that differ between application 3-5, the minutes 5-4 (or the decision of the sole founder 5-6) and the statute. A wrong digit in an IDNP, shares of 60/40 in the statute but 50/50 in the application, a different capital figure, a registered address missing the block or flat number in one document, a different director in the minutes (Procesul-verbal al adunării de constituire, form 5-4) than in the application, or the wrong number and date of the minutes on the statute (Statutul, model 4-22). Personal details are taken from a valid identity document.
•Capital and shares. The shares add up to 100% and their values add up to the share capital. Under ASP's model statute, each share is at least 1 leu and must be a whole number of lei.
•CAEM codes. Give the code and the title from CAEM 2, with one main activity; for licensed activities, the activity name exactly as worded in the law. If the sector requires a prior approval, you declare in the application that you hold it (art. 7(1)(a)).
•Signatures and copies. All applicants sign the application, all founding members approve the founding decision and the statute (art. 7(1)(b)), and at the counter both are filed in two copies. Online, each document carries the qualified electronic signature of every signatory; a scanned handwritten signature is not an electronic signature.
4. Mistakes in the declarations, the fee and foreign documents
•The beneficial owner declaration is missing or filled in wrongly. It is a mandatory document (art. 7(1)(f)): BE-1 for a founder who is an individual, BE-2 for a corporate founder, with the right section and the correct holding.
•The declaration of no criminal record for tax evasion is missing for one of the founders. If a founder really does have an unexpunged conviction for tax evasion, it is no longer a paperwork problem but a ground for refusal.
•The fee has not been paid or does not match the term ticked in the application: for 4 hours it is multiplied by 4 (art. 4(6)), so 4,596 lei instead of 1,149 lei (fees shown on asp.gov.md in September 2026).
•Foreign documents are not translated into the state language or not legalised or apostilled, as the case may be, subject to the exceptions in treaties (art. 8(2¹)).
•The power of attorney is not notarised; the alternative provided by law is a representation mandate through MPower (art. 8(2)).
•The foreign director has no IDNP. ASP requires the personal code issued by the General Inspectorate for Migration and a copy of the passport.
•Filing online without a reserved name or with documents not e-signed by every signatory.
5. What to do after a refusal
1. Read the reasons: the decision states the ground the registrar applied.
2. Fix and file again. A refusal does not prevent you from filing again once its causes have been removed (art. 13(4)). If you change the name, redo all the documents, because it appears on every form.
3. Clarify the fee. Do not count on an automatic refund. ASP has rules on refunding money for services not provided, applied only at the applicant's request; ask ASP whether they apply to you and whether you must pay again.
4. Contest it, if the refusal seems unfounded. The decision can be challenged in court and annulled only by a court (art. 13(5)). As a rule, the Administrative Code No. 116/2018 requires a prior procedure (art. 208): the prior complaint (cerere prealabilă) is filed with the issuing authority within 30 days of being notified of the act (art. 165) and decided within 15 calendar days (art. 167), and the administrative court action is, as a rule, brought within 30 days (art. 209). Check the remedies stated in the decision and talk to a lawyer.
Contesting makes sense when the registrar relies on inexpediency or asks for documents the law does not provide for. If the refusal stems from a real mistake, filing again is usually faster.
6. Checklist before filing
•The name has been checked (and reserved, if you file online) and is written identically everywhere;
•Names, IDNPs, shares, capital, registered address and director match in every document;
•The shares add up to 100% and their values to the share capital;
•The CAEM 2 codes include one main activity, and you hold the prior approval if the sector requires one;
•Every signature is in place, and the minutes and the statute are in two copies;
•The BE declarations and the criminal record declarations are completed for each founder;
•Foreign documents are apostilled or legalised and translated, the power of attorney is notarised, the foreign director has an IDNP;
•The fee matches the chosen term, and the e-mail in the application is valid.
Frequently asked questions
Can I file the documents again after a refusal?
Yes. Under art. 13(4) of Law No. 220/2007, a refusal does not prevent a new filing once its causes have been removed.
Do I lose the fee if ASP refuses the registration?
Do not count on an automatic refund: ASP refunds money for services not provided only on request, under its own rules. Clarify your situation before paying again.
How long do I have to contest the refusal?
The prior complaint is filed within 30 days of notification of the decision, and the court action, as a rule, within 30 days of the reply to it (Administrative Code, art. 165 and 209).
Can ASP ask me for a lease for the registered address?
ASP records the registered address stated in the constitutive documents and has no right to ask for other documents to confirm it (art. 10(1)). The company is responsible for the address.
Does ASP refuse registration over any mistake?
Not necessarily. The e-mail in the application is there to tell you about the irregularities found, so that you can correct them; a refusal comes when the documents remain incomplete or non-compliant.
SRLRapid fills in the official ASP forms from a single questionnaire: application 3-5, constituent meeting minutes 5-4 and statute 4-22 (for a sole founder, decision 5-6 and statute 4-23), the beneficial owner declarations and the criminal record declarations for each founder, in DOCX and PDF. Data entered once appear identically in every document, so names, shares and addresses match, and the questionnaire checks, for example, that the shares add up to 100%. The decision still rests with the ASP registrar: you sign the documents and file them at ASP yourself.
Note: this guide is for information only and reflects the legislation and ASP requirements at the time of writing (October 2026). SRLRapid prepares the documents, but it is not a law firm and does not file on the founders' behalf. To contest a refusal, consult a lawyer.
