The canton of St.Gallen is launching the new online portal “Startup-Guide”. The canton is thus simplifying, accelerating and digitizing the path for founders to their own company. Business start-ups and changes to the commercial register are now possible digitally. Entrepreneurs can access practical tools and advice free of charge.
The Startup Guide is aimed at prospective and existing entrepreneurs in the Canton of St.Gallen. The portal www.startupguide.sg.ch provides free, practical tools for developing or reviewing business models and creating business plans. Templates, practical examples and concrete tips support implementation. The offer is supplemented by information on the various phases of setting up a company as well as an overview of the cantonal startup ecosystem and relevant events.
Digital foundation without administrative procedures
The core of the portal is the digital incorporation desk. It makes it possible to set up a company completely online, regardless of time or location. For the first time in Switzerland, the service combines all the key steps involved in founding a company in a single process: the required documents are prepared by specialists in accordance with the law, signatures are obtained digitally during the process and the entry in the commercial register is transmitted directly. There is no need to go to the notary’s office or municipal administration. Changes to the commercial register for existing companies can now also be processed completely online.
Part of the cantonal startup promotion strategy
With the Startup Guide, the canton of St.Gallen is implementing a central component of its startup promotion strategy. The portal was developed on behalf of the canton by the IFJ Institut für Jungunternehmen and is operated by the latter. The digital service is open to all interested parties and complements the existing startup advice centers in Buchs, Rapperswil-Jona and St.Gallen.
Location policy with a digital focus
The digital start-up service is part of an overarching political initiative to strengthen the attractiveness and innovative power of the Canton of St.Gallen as a business location. At the same time, the Office of the Commercial Register and Notaries is working with SECO and the cantons of Lucerne and Zurich to develop another online portal as official digital access to all commercial register services.
The canton’s long-term goal is to position itself as a location for education, industry and innovation. In its current priority planning, the government mentions, among other things, the promotion of innovation for SMEs, the new vocational and further education center in Rapperswil-Jona (vote in 2026), the new Platztor campus for students at the University of St.Gallen and the establishment of a joint professorship between ETH Zurich and Empa in St.Gallen.
