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El Salvador: Starting a business (quickly)
Starting a business, often the first contact between an entrepreneur and the government, was intimidating in El Salvador before its recent reforms. As a result, 38% of entrepreneurs simply started their businesses informally, never registering or paying taxes. Something had to be done.
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Serbia: How to double business entry in two years
For decades, starting a business in Serbia was time consuming and burdened with unnecessary bureaucratic hurdles, as rules inherited from Serbia’s communist past were not business-friendly. Some of the biggest problems: the $5,000 minimum capital requirement, cumbersome inspections, and the commercial courts checking every document.
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Portugal: One-stop shopping
In 2005 it took 11 procedures and 78 days to start a business in Portugal—slower than in the Democratic Republic of Congo. An entrepreneur needed 20 forms and documents, more than in any other European Union country, and the cost came to almost €2,000. The planning for reform began as soon as new Prime Minister Jose Socrates took office in March 2005.
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Azerbaijan: How to reform in 3 months
Before 2008 entrepreneurs looking to start a business in Azerbaijan had to register at 5 different agencies, complete 15 procedures, and file 33 documents. It took more than 2 months. But in 2008 Azerbaijan launched a new company registration system—and the reform went through in just 3 months.
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Saudi Arabia: Competitiveness from innovation, not inheritance
Starting a business in Saudi Arabia used to be limited to those who could afford one of the highest minimum capital requirements in the world—$125,000 for limited liability companies. The need to transform the Saudi economy was clear—from one based on inherited wealth to one based on innovation.
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Singapore: Harnessing the Internet to streamline procedures
Before 2003, the process to start a business in Singapore was long, tedious, and too dependent on clerical staff entering data by hand. The result was dissatisfaction and delays. Now Singapore’s Internet-based system for registration, filing, and information retrieval—known as Bizfile—is making business startups easier, more efficient, and less expensive.
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Yemen gets serious about starting businesses
Yemen, a low-income country, sought to reach middle-income prosperity levels. In its “Strategic Vision for 2025,” the government put private-sector development at the top of its agenda. It started off by reforming business registrations—and that made Yemen one of the top reformers in the Doing Business “starting a business” category in 2009.
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Portugal: One-stop shopping
This lesson is part of the Doing Business series, written by “star reformers.” In 2005, entrepreneurs were required to complete 11 procedures that took an average of 78 days to start a business in Portugal, making it a slower process than in the Democratic Republic of Congo. As soon as new Prime Minister Jose Socrates took office in March of 2005, the planning for reform began.
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