Estonia makes the paperwork quick: you register an OÜ (€265 online) or a FIE (€20) in the e-Business Register with your ID card, Smart-ID or Mobile-ID, and no gym licence is needed. The question to settle early is VAT: whether hourly gym access is a service at 24% or exempt letting of premises. Customers pay by card, Apple Pay or Google Pay. Sparekey costs €990 for setup and €26 a month for Operations.
OÜ or FIE
An OÜ can be founded with €0.01 of capital and is a separate legal person. A FIE is liable with all of the owner’s assets. An unstaffed gym carries a real risk of injury and damage, so many founders choose an OÜ. Pick the main activity from the EMTAK classification when you register.
VAT: service or letting?
You register for VAT once taxable turnover passes €40,000 in a year. The standard rate has been 24% since July 2025, and no reduced rate covers sport.
The trap is the letting exemption. Letting premises is generally exempt, but letting installed equipment and machines is not. The sports exemption only applies to non-profits. A gym booked by the hour sells the use of a fitted room with equipment, which points to a taxable service, but it depends on the facts. Ask EMTA or your accountant before you set prices, because it changes what private customers pay.
Payments
In Estonia we set up Stripe with cards, Apple Pay and Google Pay, with payouts in euros. The Stripe account is in your name, and setup is included.
Invoices and receipts
Estonia has no fiscal cash register. Sparekey issues an invoice for every paid booking, in Estonian or English, with the VAT amount in euros, and exports a CSV file for your accountant. Keep invoices for seven years. A company registered as an e-invoice recipient can require an e-invoice from you. Private customers are not affected.
Cameras (videovalve)
The Data Protection Inspectorate (AKI) asks you to consider an alarm, better lighting or an extra door first. If you use cameras, put a sign before the camera area with the purpose, legal basis and your contact, record no sound and keep recordings for about 72 hours. Point cameras at the entrance by default, and never at changing rooms or toilets. See cameras in an unstaffed gym.
Door access and house rules
We recommend a 2N keypad with a maglock, installed by a professional door installer. Nuki is the cheaper option on the existing lock, but customers can tamper with it more easily. Both cost the same in Sparekey. Each booking gets a time-limited PIN by SMS under your gym’s name right after booking, and the stored backup code covers internet outages. See 2N keypad and maglock.
Customers accept the house rules (sisekorra eeskirjad) when booking: who may enter, leaving on time, reporting damage, 112 and the first-aid kit. Add Russian or English versions if your customers need them. Start from our house rules template.
What Sparekey costs in Estonia
| Item | Price |
|---|---|
| Setup (one-off) | €990 |
| Operations (hosting, maintenance and SMS sender name) | €26 / month |
| Door-code SMS | €0.08 per message |
No VAT is added, because Sparekey is not VAT-registered. You pay in euros by bank transfer. See pricing.
FAQ
Is gym access VAT-exempt in Estonia?
Usually not for a commercial gym. Letting installed equipment is excluded from the letting exemption, and the sports exemption covers only non-profits.