According to data provided to the Bankar portal by the Tax Administration, 36,407 companies have only one employee. In most cases, these are companies in which the owner is also the only employee.
There are 88,239 registered businesses in Montenegro, and more than a third of them do not have a single employee, according to data from the Tax Administration submitted to the Bankar portal.
According to this data, as many as 31,207 companies operate without a single employee, while an additional 36,407 companies have only one employee. This means that almost three-quarters of all registered companies in the country employ no more than one person, which clearly shows that the Montenegrin economy is dominated by micro-enterprises and independent businesses.
Part of it is waiting for a business opportunity, part of it is never shut down
The figure of as many as 31,207 companies that do not have a single employee may indicate a large number of inactive or so-called "dormant" companies that formally exist but do not carry out actual business activities. In practice, it is often the case that companies are registered in advance, before the start of actual business activities, so owners wait for a business opportunity or the first major job to arise before they start hiring workers.
Also, some of these companies are opened for the implementation of a specific project or business that has yet to begin, so at the time of registration or in the initial phase of business they do not have employees. Only when the business starts, companies begin to hire workers or associates. Also, statistics on companies without employees often include newly established companies that are only in the start-up phase of business, as well as companies that are registered for a specific business that has yet to be implemented.
At the same time, companies for which the owners have not initiated the liquidation process remain in the register, either due to administrative procedures and liquidation costs, or due to the possibility of reactivating the company if a new business opportunity arises.
Most companies in Montenegro have only one employee
The largest number of companies in Montenegro have only one employee. According to data from the Tax Administration submitted to the Bankar portal, 36,407 business entities operate in this way. In most cases, these are companies in which the owner is also the only employee, which is a common business model for micro and small businesses. Such companies most often operate in the service, consulting, IT, marketing or construction sectors, while additional workers are often hired occasionally or on a project basis, through service contracts, subcontractors or cooperation with other companies, without formal employment.
When looking at the structure of companies that employ more workers, the number of companies decreases significantly. Thus, 8,326 companies have two employees, while 6,711 companies employ between three and five workers.
In the small business category, 2,690 companies have between six and ten employees, while 1,419 companies employ between 11 and 20 workers.
The number of companies that employ a larger number of people is even smaller. 875 businesses have between 21 and 50 employees, while 297 companies employ between 51 and 100 workers.
In the category of medium and larger companies, the number is significantly smaller. 274 companies employ between 101 and 500 workers, while 22 companies have between 501 and 1,000 employees.
There are only 11 of the largest companies in Montenegro, with more than 1,000 employees.
Data from the Tax Administration show that the structure of the Montenegrin economy is heavily reliant on micro-businesses and self-employment. Although more than 88 thousand businesses are registered on paper, as many as three-quarters of them have no employees or only one worker. This shows that the majority of employment in the country is carried by a relatively small number of companies with a large number of employees, while the majority of the business scene is made up of small and micro firms.
