17. Belgium: 94.49 — While Belgium ranks highly for starting a business, the country suffers when it comes to registering property, where it ranks 131st. The process is time-consuming, taking an average of 56 days.
16. United Kingdom: 94.58 — The UK's tax regime for businesses comes in at number 10, while the country also has the sixth best protections for minority investors, according to the World Bank.
15. Sweden: 94.64 — Sweden got a boost when it made it easier to transfer a property and introduced a mechanism for reporting errors on maps.
14. Estonia: 95.13 — Estonia is an efficient place to set up shop. It takes just three and a half days on average to start a business in the country.
next slide will load in 15 secondsSkip AdSkip Ad13. Kosovo: 95.54 — Kosovo made paying taxes easier by introducing an online system for filing and paying VAT and social security contributions. It also allowed more expenses to be deducted for the calculation of corporate income tax.
12. Jamaica: 95.61 — Only two procedures are needed to start a business in Jamaica, taking an average of 10 days.
11. South Korea: 95.83 — Famously quick internet and good access to technology helps boost South Korea's rankings.
10. Ireland: 95.91 – Ireland's corporate-friendly tax regime, the fifth best for business in the world, earns the country a high place in the World Bank's rankings.
9. Armenia: 96.07 — Armenia strengthened access to credit by adopting a new law on secured transactions that establishes a modern and centralised collateral registry.
next slide will load in 15 secondsSkip AdSkip Ad8. Georgia: 96.13 — Georgia strengthened minority investor protections, increasing
shareholder rights and clarifying ownership and control structures.
7. Australia: 96.47 — Australia is one of the best places in the world for getting construction permits, coming in second in that category.
6. Singapore: 96.49 — Singapore made dealing with construction permits easier, streamlining procedures and improving the online one-stop shop.
5. Azerbaijan: 97.74 — Azerbaijan streamlined the process of obtaining a new electricity connection by introducing an electronic capacity/ availability of connection map, which reduced the time needed to determine new customer connection points.
4. Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia: 98.14 — The country made resolving insolvency easier by changing voting procedures for re-organisation plans and allowing creditors greater participation.
next slide will load in 15 secondsSkip AdSkip Ad3. Hong Kong, China: 98.20 — Hong Kong made starting a business less costly by reducing the business registration fee.
2. Canada: 98.23 — Canada is a great place to start a business, with the process taking only 36 hours and involving just two procedures.
1. New Zealand: 99.96 — The country made paying taxes easier by abolishing the cheque levy. New Zealand also lowered the rates of accident compensation levies paid by employers.