Choosing a Service Provider

Why you need a service provider

Every Estonian OUe needs a local contact person and a registered business address in Estonia -- this is required by law (source: Estonian Commercial Code, as of July 2026). Since you as an e-Resident don't live in Estonia, a service provider fills this role.

But a service provider is far more than just a mailbox address. They are your accounting team, your substitute tax advisor for the Estonian side, and your compliance safety net. Without one, you'd have to understand Estonian accounting law, file monthly tax returns with the tax authority, and prepare the annual report in Estonian.

You could theoretically do this yourself. But if you don't speak Estonian and don't understand local accounting law: don't. The EUR 59-139/month is worth every cent. I don't know a single active e-Resident who handles their own accounting.

The Estonian commercial register (ariregister) requires every company to have a contact person in Estonia. This person is responsible for communicating with authorities and must be able to respond to inquiries within 3 business days. If you can't fill this role yourself (because you're sitting in Barcelona, Bangkok, or Buenos Aires), you need a service provider.

What a service provider actually does

An e-Residency service provider handles all administrative obligations of your Estonian company. Here's what that means in detail -- and why it's more than you think.

Virtual business address

Your company needs a registered address in Estonia. The service provider provides this. Mail is received and forwarded digitally. This is not a shell company -- it's the legally required contact address for authorities and the commercial register.

The address appears in the public commercial register. Customers and business partners can look it up. All three major providers use professional office addresses in Tallinn -- no residential addresses or PO boxes.

Accounting and tax returns

The service provider records your income and expenses, prepares the monthly tax returns (TSD declaration for payroll taxes, KMD declaration for VAT) and files them with the Estonian Tax and Customs Board (emta.ee). You upload invoices and receipts to the dashboard -- the team handles the rest.

In practice, the monthly workflow looks like this: you upload your expense receipts, the accountant categorizes them, prepares the tax returns, and files them on time. You receive a monthly financial report with revenue, expenses, and profit. With Xolo, this process takes 5-10 minutes of your time per month.

VAT returns

If your company has a VAT number, monthly VAT returns are filed. Even at EUR 0 revenue. The service provider knows the reverse-charge rules for EU transactions and ensures the returns are correct. Mistakes with VAT can be expensive -- fines start at EUR 100 per late return. More on this in the guide Taxes Explained.

Annual report

The annual report (majandusaasta aruanne) must be filed by June 30. The service provider prepares the balance sheet, income statement, and notes. You review and sign digitally with your e-Residency card. In my case, this takes 20 minutes per year. Without a service provider, you'd need to know Estonian accounting standards and prepare the report in the correct format -- practically impossible for non-Estonians.

Invoicing

All three major providers have integrated invoicing. You create invoices directly in the dashboard, which are automatically recorded in the accounting. PDF export, recurring invoices, customer management -- all included. The invoices automatically contain the correct tax notes (reverse charge, VAT number, company details).

Banking integration

The service provider connects to your business account (Wise, LHV, or Revolut). Transactions are automatically imported and categorized. This saves hours of manual data entry. The integration works both ways: incoming payments are automatically matched to the right invoices, outgoing payments to the corresponding expense categories.

Company formation

All three providers also offer company formation as a service. They prepare the founding documents, file them with the commercial register, and guide you through the entire process. Setup pricing differs sharply: Xolo charges no setup fee (you pay only the state fees through their platform), 1Office bundles formation into a EUR 315 one-time package that includes the state fee, and Companio charges EUR 390. More on this in the guide Company Registration.

What the market looks like

As of July 2026, three providers dominate the market for e-Residency services — Xolo, Companio and 1Office — and together they serve an estimated 80% of all e-Resident companies (source: e-Residency Marketplace, as of July 2026). Below them sit six smaller providers and a long tail of local accounting firms.

This guide is about how to choose, not about which one wins. The full side-by-side — nine providers, verified pricing, feature matrix, and a year-one total cost table — is in all e-Residency service providers compared. Each provider also has its own profile with current terms: Xolo, Companio, 1Office.

What you need before applying the decision framework below is just the shape of the market:

• Xolo — the market leader and my own setup since 2017. No setup fee, monthly from EUR 59. Best dashboard, English only. My long-form verdict after eight years is on the Xolo profile.
• Companio — flat-price positioning, monthly from EUR 89 plus a EUR 390 setup fee. Spanish-language support. Head-to-head in Xolo vs Companio.
• 1Office — full service including legal and physical office. EUR 315 formation, then modular from EUR 90/month. Head-to-head in Xolo vs 1Office.

All prices as of July 2026, excluding VAT.

Here is what the cheapest realistic path actually adds up to in year one:

From year two, only the monthly provider fee remains: EUR 708/year on Starter. Companio's equivalent path costs roughly EUR 390 more in setup and EUR 360 more per year. A provider-by-provider breakdown of these numbers is in all providers compared.

How to decide

The provider choice depends on five factors. Cost is only one of them -- and usually not the most important.

Rather than read all five and weigh them yourself, answer six questions and get a ranked shortlist for your situation:

The five factors behind that ranking, in case you want to override it:

1. Monthly revenue

• Under EUR 2,000/month: Xolo Leap Starter (EUR 59/month) -- since Xolo's restructuring, the cheapest full package is also the best one
• EUR 2,000-5,000/month: Xolo Leap Standard (EUR 99/month) -- the sweet spot of price and performance
• Over EUR 5,000/month: Xolo Leap Pro (EUR 139/month) or Premium (from EUR 259/month) -- more service is worth it at this level

The monthly fee should not exceed 3-5% of your revenue. At EUR 1,000 monthly revenue, even EUR 59 for Leap Starter is 5.9% -- borderline. Below EUR 1,000 monthly revenue, you should fundamentally consider whether an Estonian company makes economic sense.

2. Banking

If you use Wise (and you should -- see Banking Setup): Xolo or Companio. Wise integration saves you 2-3 hours of administrative work per month. 1Office only has LHV integration -- and getting an LHV account as a non-resident is difficult. Many LHV applications are rejected, and the process takes 2-4 weeks.

3. Response time

Xolo's higher Leap tiers offer priority support; on Starter, expect standard response times of 1-2 business days. Companio: 1-3 business days. 1Office: 2-5 business days (per community feedback, as of July 2026). If you have time-sensitive questions (e.g., before a tax deadline or during a government inquiry), fast support is invaluable. For day-to-day needs, 1-2 business days is sufficient.

4. Language support

All three offer English support. Companio additionally has Spanish. No provider currently offers German-language support. Your English needs to be good enough to discuss accounting questions via chat. The dashboards are all in English -- even Companio's Spanish interface doesn't cover all technical terms.

5. Warning signs when choosing a provider

Switching providers

Switching providers is possible but involved. The process takes 1-3 months and includes migrating all accounting data, changing the contact person in the commercial register, and handing over open tax returns. It's not a disaster, but it's not something you start lightly either.

What happens during a switch:

1. Engage new provider -- the new provider initiates the handover process and contacts the old provider
2. Transfer accounting data -- all receipts, invoices, bank statements, and historical bookings are migrated
3. Change contact person -- the entry in the Estonian commercial register is updated (processing time: 3-5 business days)
4. Change business address -- the registered address switches to the new provider
5. Complete open returns -- the old provider files any outstanding tax returns and then formally hands over

The costs for a switch are EUR 200-500 (one-time, with the new provider). Some providers cover migration costs as a welcome offer. The regular setup fee at the new provider also applies -- ask if it's reduced for switches.

The most common reason for switching: the provider doesn't grow with the business. What works at EUR 2,000 monthly revenue isn't enough at EUR 10,000. More complex transactions, multiple revenue streams, international clients -- at some point you need a dedicated accountant instead of just a dashboard.

My recommendation

For most freelancers and solo founders: Xolo Leap -- Starter (EUR 59/month) if you're starting out, Standard (EUR 99/month) once you're established. Since Xolo dropped its setup fee and introduced the EUR 59 Starter tier, the recommendation got simple: the most reliable provider is now also the cheapest. The Wise integration alone saves you 2-3 hours of accounting work per month. The dashboard is the best on the market. And with 8+ years of experience, Xolo has seen every tax scenario.

The old logic -- "Companio if you're on a budget, Xolo if you can afford it" -- is dead. Companio's entry plan costs EUR 89/month plus a EUR 390 setup fee. Xolo Leap Starter costs EUR 59/month with no setup fee. Companio still makes sense if you specifically want Spanish-language support; otherwise the math no longer favors it.

Above EUR 5,000+/month revenue: Xolo Leap Pro (EUR 139/month) or Premium (from EUR 259/month). More hands-on service is worth it at this revenue level -- the premium over Standard is a fraction of a percent of your revenue, irrelevant compared to the time saved and errors avoided. My accountant has brought me more than EUR 1,000 in tax optimization in one year -- through better expense categorization alone.

If you need more than an accounting solution -- legal advice, physical office, license applications: 1Office. But for 95% of e-Residents, that's overkill.

The next step after choosing your provider is Company Registration. Your chosen provider guides you through the entire registration process. You should have understood your Estonian company's taxes beforehand -- your service provider handles the execution, but the decisions are yours.

Frequently asked questions

Can I switch service providers?

Yes, a provider switch is possible at any time. The process takes 1-3 months and costs EUR 200-500 with the new provider. The new provider handles the migration of accounting data, the change of the contact person in the commercial register, and the new business address. Still, choose carefully the first time -- the switch is doable, but it costs time and double monthly fees during the transition month.

What happens if my provider goes bankrupt?

Your company exists independently of the service provider. It's registered in the Estonian commercial register and continues to exist regardless of what happens to the provider. You'd need to engage a new provider to take over the contact person and business address roles. You should regularly export and back up your accounting data -- all three major providers offer this in the dashboard. The deadline for changing the contact person is 30 days after the previous contact person ceases (source: Estonian Commercial Code, as of July 2026).

Do I need a separate tax advisor?

For the Estonian side: no. Your service provider handles all Estonian tax returns, the annual report, and communication with the tax authority. For your personal tax situation in your country of residence: yes, absolutely. The interaction between Estonian corporate tax and your personal income tax is complex. A tax advisor with cross-border experience costs EUR 200-500 for an initial consultation. The investment pays off -- mistakes in your personal tax filing can be expensive. More on this in the guide Taxes Explained.

Is Xolo really better than Companio?

"Better" depends on your priorities -- but the price argument for Companio is gone. Xolo has the longer track record (since 2016 vs. 2018), more banking integrations (Wise, LHV, Revolut vs. only Wise and LHV), and since the pricing restructuring also the lower entry price: Leap Starter at EUR 59/month with no setup fee vs. Companio PRO at EUR 89/month plus EUR 390 setup. Companio has a modern dashboard and Spanish-language support -- if that's important to you, it's still a solid choice. For everyone else: Xolo. My personal recommendation after 8+ years: Xolo -- because of the dashboard, the Wise integration, and the experience with complex tax questions.

What is the difference between Xolo Go and Xolo Leap?

They're different products since Xolo's restructuring. Xolo Leap is for running your own Estonian company -- four tiers: Starter (EUR 59/month), Standard (EUR 99/month), Pro (EUR 139/month), and Premium (from EUR 259/month), all excluding VAT and with no setup fee. Xolo Go is freelancing without your own company: EUR 0/month, pay-as-you-go -- you invoice clients through Xolo's own entity instead of incorporating. Go is a way to test freelancing; Leap is what you need for an actual e-Resident company (as of July 2026, source: xolo.io).

Continue reading

• Company Registration -- The next step after choosing your provider
• Banking Setup -- Business account and payment processing for your company
• Taxes Explained -- What your provider handles for you and what it doesn't