Survey on Company Formation: Kabushiki Kaisha and LLC-Style Godo Kaisha Account for Over 80%, with Social Credibility the Top Deciding Factor

Venture Support Tax Accountant Corporation, a firm specializing in entrepreneur support and based in Shibuya, Tokyo, led by Shinichiro Nakamura, conducted a survey of company representatives who have experienced company formation. The survey examined the realities of choosing a company structure and the costs involved in establishing a company. According to the survey, 70.0% of respondents established a kabushiki kaisha, while 14.0% chose a godo kaisha. Together, these two structures accounted for more than 80% of all responses. Other entities, including general incorporated associations and NPOs, accounted for 11.0%, while general partnerships represented 3.0% and limited partnerships 2.0%. The results show that kabushiki kaisha remains the mainstream choice, while other structures are also selected depending on business scale, operational policy, and organizational characteristics. The most common deciding factor in choosing a company structure was the belief that it would improve social credibility and provide advantages in business transactions and recruitment, cited by 49.0% of respondents. This was followed by an emphasis on management flexibility and faster decision-making at 14.0%, and the expectation of reducing company formation costs at 10.0%. Overall, the choice of company structure appears to be driven not only by legal classification but also by the need to secure external trust. Regarding benefits after starting business operations, the most common response was that new transactions with major companies proceeded smoothly, cited by 35.0%. This was followed by easier access to investment from external parties such as investors at 26.0%, gaining trust from job applicants during recruitment at 21.0%, and faster decision-making due to the absence of shareholder meetings and similar procedures at 21.0%. Only 18.0% said they did not feel any particular benefit, meaning more than 80% experienced some form of advantage. As for disadvantages, the most common issue was that business partners expressed concern due to the company structure, cited by 25.0%. This was followed by difficulty raising funds from external parties such as investors at 21.0%, and the burden of maintenance procedures and costs such as financial notices and officer changes at 16.0%. While 44.0% said they did not feel any particular disadvantage, more than half experienced some kind of drawback. Kabushiki kaisha respondents tended to cite internal operational burdens, while godo kaisha respondents more often pointed to external evaluation issues such as business transaction concerns and fundraising difficulty. The time required from the start of preparation to completion of registration was one month or longer for 28.0% of respondents, the largest group. Combined with the 19.0% who took between three weeks and one month, 47.0% spent three weeks or more. The findings indicate that company formation often requires a certain preparation period rather than being completed quickly. Kabushiki kaisha respondents more often reported taking one month or longer, while godo kaisha respondents were more concentrated in the one-to-two-week range. For the formation process, 28.0% handled everything themselves without relying on tools or specialists, the most common answer. Another 24.0% handled the process themselves while outsourcing difficult steps such as articles of incorporation certification and registration filing to specialists. A further 22.0% fully outsourced the process to specialists, while 18.0% completed it themselves using cloud-based company formation tools. The results suggest that many founders take the lead in procedures themselves, while using experts or tools depending on process complexity. Regarding capital at incorporation, 33.0% set capital at 5 million yen or more, the largest share. Those setting capital at 1 million to under 3 million yen and 3 million to under 5 million yen each accounted for 19.0%, meaning about 70% set capital at 1 million yen or more. Kabushiki kaisha respondents tended to set higher capital levels with external credibility in mind, while some godo kaisha respondents chose lower capital levels to reduce initial burden. Initial company formation costs were 500,000 yen or more for 26.0%, the largest single group. However, those spending less than 300,000 yen accounted for 63.0% in total. Kabushiki kaisha costs tended to cluster at 200,000 yen or higher due to articles of incorporation certification and a higher minimum registration license tax. Godo kaisha costs tended to cluster in the 100,000 to 200,000 yen range because articles certification is unnecessary and the minimum registration license tax is lower. The most time-consuming procedures were preparing the articles of incorporation and certification at a notary office, cited by 24.0%, and deciding the company name and business purpose, cited by 23.0%. Together, these accounted for 47.0%. Preparing registration documents for submission to the Legal Affairs Bureau accounted for 19.0%, while another 19.0% said no particular process took much time. The results suggest that the choice of company structure affects credibility, costs, and fundraising, while document preparation and defining business purposes can also become major time costs. The survey was conducted online using the self-research tool Sakurisa. Respondents were executives and officers aged 20 to 60 who had established a kabushiki kaisha, godo kaisha, general partnership, limited partnership, or other corporation and who currently retain representative authority over that entity. The survey collected 100 valid responses and was conducted from March 27 to March 31, 2026.