45706 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank COMPARING REGULATION IN 178ECONOMIES A copublication of the World Bank and the International Finance Corporation (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank © 2007 The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 1818 H Street NW Washington, D.C. 20433 Telephone 202-473-1000 Internet www.worldbank.org E-mail feedback@worldbank.org All rights reserved. 1 2 3 4 5 09 08 07 06 A copublication of the World Bank and the International Finance Corporation. This volume is a product of the staff of the World Bank Group. The findings, interpretations and conclusions expressed in this volume do not necessarily reflect the views of the Executive Directors of The World Bank or the governments they represent. 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Additional copies of Doing Business 2008, Doing Business 2007: How to Reform, Doing Business in 2006: Creating Jobs, Doing Business in 2005: Removing Obstacles to Growth and Doing Business in 2004: Understanding Regulation may be purchased at www.doingbusiness.org. ISBN: 978-0-8213-7231-9 E-ISBN: 978-0-8213-7232-6 DOI: 10.1596/978-0-8213-7231-9 ISSN: 1729-2638 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication data has been applied for. (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank Contents Doing Business 2008 is the fifth in a series of annual Overview 1 reports investigating the regulations that enhance busi- ness activity and those that constrain it. Doing Business Starting a business 9 presents quantitative indicators on business regula- tions and the protection of property rights that can be Dealing with licenses 14 compared across 178 economies--from Afghanistan to Employing workers 19 Zimbabwe--and over time. Registering property 24 Regulations affecting 10 stages of a business's life are measured: starting a business, dealing with licenses, Getting credit 29 employing workers, registering property, getting credit, Protecting investors 34 protecting investors, paying taxes, trading across bor- Paying taxes 39 ders, enforcing contracts and closing a business. Data in Trading across borders 44 Doing Business 2008 are current as of June 1, 2007. The indicators are used to analyze economic outcomes and Enforcing contracts 49 identify what reforms have worked, where, and why. Closing a business 54 The Doing Business methodology has limitations. What to expect 59 Other areas important to business--such as a country's proximity to large markets, the quality of its infra- References 63 structure services (other than those related to trading across borders), the security of property from theft and Data notes 67 looting, the transparency of government procurement, Ease of doing business 82 macroeconomic conditions or the underlying strength Doing Business indicators 87 of institutions--are not studied directly by Doing Busi- ness. To make the data comparable across countries, the Country tables 103 indicators refer to a specific type of business--generally a limited liability company operating in the largest Acknowledgments 163 business city. The methodology for 3 of the Doing Business topics changed for Doing Business 2008: dealing with licenses, employing workers and enforcing contracts. See Data notes for details. Three new topics--not paying bribes, opportunities for women and infrastructure--are under development. The analysis is described in What to expect. (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 1 Overview This year Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union dominate the list of top reformers in 2006/07, with Croa- surpassed East Asia in the ease of doing business (figure tia, FYR Macedonia, Georgia and Bulgaria reforming 1.1). Several of the region's countries have gone even the most. Croatia is a top reformer for the second year further, surpassing many Western European economies. running, Georgia for the third. Estonia, the most business friendly of the former social- Manyothersarereformingtoo.Twohundredreforms ist bloc, ranks 17 on the ease of doing business. Georgia --in 98 economies--were introduced between April and Latvia are also in the top 25. 2006 and June 2007. Reformers simplified business regu- The result is a boom in new businesses. Georgia lations, strengthened property rights, eased tax burdens, now has 15 registered businesses per 100 people (same increased access to credit and reduced the cost of export- as Malaysia). The Czech Republic and Slovakia have 13 ing and importing. (same as Singapore). Estonia and Poland have 12 (same Across regions, Eastern Europe and Central Asia as Hong Kong, China). Some of these new businesses reformed the most, followed by South Asia and rich have become global leaders in their field--for example, countries (figure 1.2). Latin America reformed the least. the Estonian-born software company Skype and the The pickup in South Asia was led by India, which rose Czech carmaker Skoda. 12 ranks on the ease of doing business. The slowdown in As in previous years, Eastern European countries Latin America could be a result of a busy election year: FIGURE 1.1 FIGURE 1.2 Which region is the most business friendly in 2007? Most reform in Eastern Europe & Central Asia--again Ranking on the ease of doing business (1­178) EACH LINE SHOWS Countries that made at least one positive reform in 2006/07 (%) AVERAGE THE RANK OF ONE RANK COUNTRY IN THE REGION Eastern Europe OECD & Central Asia 79 high income 22 Eastern Europe South Asia 63 & Central Asia 76 OECD East Asia high income 63 & Paci c 77 Middle East Latin America & North Africa 59 & Caribbean 87 Sub-Saharan Middle East Africa 52 & North Africa 96 East Asia 46 South Asia 107 & Paci c Latin America Sub-Saharan & Caribbean 36 Africa 136 Source: Doing Business database. Source: Doing Business database. (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 2 Doing Business 2008 Table 1.1 The top 10 reformers in 2006/07 Starting Dealing with Employing Registering Getting Protecting Paying Trading across Enforcing Closing a Economy a business licenses workers property credit investors taxes borders contracts business Egypt 3 3 3 3 3 Croatia 3 3 3 3 Ghana 3 3 3 3 3 Macedonia, FYR 3 3 3 Georgia 3 3 3 3 3 3 Colombia 3 3 3 Saudi Arabia 3 3 3 Kenya 3 3 3 3 China 3 3 3 Bulgaria 3 3 3 Note: economies are ranked on the number and impact of reforms. First, Doing Business selects the economies that reformed in 3 or more of the Doing Business topics. second, it ranks these economies on the increase in rank on the ease of doing business from the previous year. The larger the improvement, the higher the ranking as a reformer. Source: Doing Business database. 13 countries saw new governments sworn in. Earlier Croatia is the runner-up, with reforms in 4 of the analysis suggests that the region might experience a Doing Business areas. Two years ago registering a prop- reform boom next year, as nearly 85% of reforms take erty in Croatia took 956 days. Now it takes 174. Croatia place in the first 15 months of a new government.1 also sped company start-up, consolidating procedures Egypt is the top reformer for 2006/07, improving at the one-stop shop and allowing pension and health in 5 of the 10 areas studied by Doing Business (table services registration online. Two procedures and 5 days 1.1). Egypt's reforms went deep. They made starting a were cut from the process. Credit became easier to access: business easier, slashing the minimum capital require- a new credit bureau got off the ground, and a unified reg- ment from 50,000 Egyptian pounds to 1,000 and halving istry now records all charges against movable property start-up time and cost. Fees for registering property were in one place. In the first 2 months 1.4 billion of credit reduced from 3% of the property value to a low fixed was registered. Finally, amendments to the Croatian fee. With more properties registered and less evasion, insolvency law introduced professional requirements for revenue from title registrations jumped by 39% in the bankruptcy trustees and shortened timelines. 6 months after the reform. New one-stop shops were launched for traders at the ports, cutting the time to Large emerging economies--fast reformers import by 7 days and the time to export by 5. The first China, Egypt, India, Indonesia, Turkey and Vietnam all private credit bureau was established. And builders now improved in the ease of doing business. face less bureaucracy in getting construction permits. In China a new property law put private property rights on equal footing with state property rights. The FIGURE 1.3 Making trade easier in India law also expanded the range of assets that can be used as Time to export (days) collateral to include inventory and accounts receivable. 28 2006 China also passed a new bankruptcy law. The law gives secured creditors priority to the proceeds from their collateral. And construction became easier, with elec- 21 Time reduced from 27 days to 18 tronic processing of building permits reducing delays 2007 by 2 weeks. 14 India rivaled this pace of reform. Traders can now submit customs declarations and pay customs 7 Customs and inspection fees online before the cargo arrives in port. It takes reduced from 4 days to 2 Document preparation 18 days to meet all the administrative requirements reduced from 11 days to 9 to export--in 2006 it took 27 (figure 1.3). The credit 0 1 Procedures 7 bureau expanded to include payment histories on businesses as well as individuals. And reformers in- Source: Doing Business database. troduced an electronic collateral registry for security (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank oVeRVieW 3 rights granted by companies. Easing business entry--the most popular reform Other big emerging markets also made large re- Reforms to ease the entry of new firms were the most forms. Russia established a new credit bureau. Indonesia popular in 2006/07 (figure 1.6). Thirty-nine countries strengthened investor protections and expanded credit made start-up simpler, faster or cheaper. The second information by removing the minimum size cutoff for most popular were reforms to cut taxes and simplify loans covered by the public credit registry. their administration. Some reforms are harder, requiring Vietnam also strengthened investor protections, new legislation and the political tradeoffs that come with with a new enterprise law and securities act. A secured it. Only 10 countries revised their bankruptcy laws. And transactions decree allows businesses to use a wider the fewest positive reforms took place in the area of em- range of assets as collateral, easing access to credit. Ni- ploying workers. Eight countries increased the flexibility geria introduced electronic procedures at the company of labor regulations; 4 made them more rigid. registry and sped start-up time by 9 days. And reforms The 3 boldest reforms, driving the biggest improve- reduced the time to obtain building permits from 90 ments in the Doing Business indicators: days to 30. Turkey cut its corporate income tax from 30% · SaudiArabia'seasingofbusinessstart-up. to 20% and introduced electronic customs procedures, · Georgia'sincreaseininvestorprotections. reducing the time to export by 6 days and the time to · Russia'sopeningofitsnewcreditbureau. import by 10. Investors are taking note. They look for upside po- Saudi Arabia eliminated layers of bureaucracy that tential, and they find it in economies that are reforming-- had previously made it one of the toughest places in the regardless of the starting point. Indeed, equity returns are world to start a business. The reforms cut 6 procedures highest in countries that are reforming the most (figure for forming a new company--speeding processes at the 1.4). With emerging markets aggressively improving Ministry of Commerce, merging publication require- their business regulations, there has hardly been a better ments and allowing social security registration online. time to invest. The time for start-up dropped from 39 days to 15. Reform in Africa--uneven But most dramatic was Saudi Arabia's elimination of the minimum capital requirement. Saudi entrepre- Some African countries have reformed, led by Ghana neurs once had to set aside $124,464--the fifth largest and Kenya--both top 10 reformers. In southern Africa minimum capital requirement in the world. No more. several have reformed, with Madagascar, Mauritius and New business owners can now put that capital to work Mozambique taking the lead (figure 1.5). Mauritius immediately--hiring staff, renting office space and mar- now ranks 27 on the ease of doing business, the highest keting new products. among African countries. In West and Central Africa, Georgia made investing safer. Amendments to its however, little reform took place outside Burkina Faso securities law eliminated loopholes that allowed corpo- and Ghana. rate insiders to expropriate minority investors. Reform- FIGURE 1.4 FIGURE 1.5 Shareholders bene t from reform Who reformed the most in Africa in 2006/07? 3-year shareholder return (%) Ranking on ease of doing business (2007 to 2008) 80 75 Negative reforms Positive reforms Kenya (82 to 72) 60 100 Ghana (109 to 87) 40 125 20 Mozambique (140 to 134) 150 Madagascar (160 to 149) 0 Burkina Faso (165 to 161) ­4 ­2 0 2 4 6 8 10 Number of reforms, 2003­06 178 (lowest) Source: Doing Business database, Morgan Stanley Capital International data. Source: Doing Business database. (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 4 Doing Business 2008 FIGURE 1.6 200 reforms made business easier--27 made it more di cult Positive 39 reforms Australia Azerbaijan Belarus Belgium Bhutan Burkina Faso Croatia Czech Republic Dominican Republic Egypt Estonia 27 Finland Georgia Afghanistan Germany Benin Ghana Bhutan Guatemala Burkina Faso Honduras Burundi 22 Hungary Croatia Armenia Jordan Djibouti China Kenya Dominican Republic Croatia Lao PDR Egypt Egypt Macedonia, FYR France France Madagascar Georgia Georgia Malaysia 15 Ghana Ghana Mali Bulgaria Guatemala Honduras Mauritania China Guinea-Bissau India Mauritius Czech Republic Haiti Indonesia Moldova Egypt Honduras Kenya Mozambique Georgia Hungary Kuwait Niger Guatemala 8 Kenya Micronesia Nigeria Honduras Lesotho Pakistan Paraguay Indonesia Bhutan Mali Romania Portugal Kenya Czech Republic Mauritius Russia Saudi Arabia Kuwait Latvia Mexico Saudi Arabia Sri Lanka Macedonia, FYR Netherlands Niger South Africa Tajikistan Mauritius Pakistan Poland Trinidad and Tobago Tanzania Morocco Spain Portugal Tunisia Timor-Leste Nigeria Switzerland Tunisia Vietnam Uzbekistan Rwanda Uganda Uzbekistan West Bank and Gaza Starting a business Dealing with licenses Employing workers Registering property Getting credit Negative Bangladesh Russia Moldova Germany Slovenia reforms Indonesia Zimbabwe Slovenia Kyrgyz Republic Sri Lanka Romania Togo Morocco Syria Venezuela Paraguay Vanuatu Zimbabwe Source: Doing Business database. ers increased disclosure requirements for directors' con- than in landlocked Burundi. But slow clerks need not flicts of interest, detailed stricter duties to the firm for worry about losing their job: Venezuela also expanded directors and heightened penalties for self-dealing. its ban on firing workers to cover anyone who earns less Russia's first credit bureau started up in 2006 and than 3 times the minimum wage. by July 2007 had extended its coverage to more than 6 million people. Before, banks had no central database to Singapore--number 1, again tap when judging a client's creditworthiness. Now they For the second year running, Singapore tops the rank- can turn to the new bureau for data on both individuals ings on the ease of doing business (table 1.2). New and firms--and for positive as well as negative informa- Zealand, the United States and Hong Kong (China) fol- tion (for example, on payment history and number and low close behind. Denmark is next, demonstrating that frequency of late payments). countries can be business friendly and provide strong Some countries slipped backward. Venezuela had social protections. the largest negative reforms. Doing business there was Georgia and Saudi Arabia entered the top 25. Many already hard. In 2006/07 it got harder. Exporters now countries with the most business-friendly regulations need a separate license for each transaction. To get the li- continued to reform, such as Australia, Denmark, the cense, they must submit proof of identity and solvency-- Netherlands, Norway and Switzerland. Some stopped-- documents that themselves must be frequently renewed. and slipped in the rankings. The message: if you are not The time to export stretched to 45 days, barely faster reforming, another country will overtake you. (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank oVeRVieW 5 31 Albania Azerbaijan Bulgaria Colombia Côte d'Ivoire Greece 24 Israel Kazakhstan Armenia Kyrgyz Republic Austria Lesotho Bosnia and Herzegovina Macedonia, FYR Brazil Malaysia Colombia Mauritius Costa Rica Mexico Djibouti Moldova Dominican Republic Mongolia Egypt Netherlands El Salvador 14 Portugal Gambia Brazil Romania Ghana Bulgaria 10 Seychelles Guatemala Burkina Faso 10 Sierra Leone India Congo, Dem. Rep. Belarus Slovenia Lao PDR Fiji Armenia Colombia South Africa Madagascar Ghana China Georgia Spain Mauritius Guatemala Croatia Iceland Syria Morocco Malawi Denmark Indonesia Trinidad and Tobago Rwanda Mauritania Georgia Mozambique Tunisia Saudi Arabia Moldova Hungary Norway Turkey Sri Lanka Mozambique Italy Portugal Uruguay Thailand Poland Mauritius Slovenia Uzbekistan Turkey Portugal Portugal Vietnam West Bank and Gaza Uganda Tonga Uzbekistan Protecting investors Paying taxes Trading across borders Enforcing contracts Closing a business Bangladesh Algeria Argentina Dominican Republic Venezuela Botswana Hungary Venezuela Zimbabwe Rankings on the ease of doing business do not tell the time to establish a business from 58 days to 27. A re- the whole story. The indicator is limited in scope: it cov- cent study reports the payoffs: the number of registered ers only business regulations. It does not account for a businesses rose by nearly 6%, employment increased by country's proximity to large markets, the quality of its in- 2.6%, and prices fell by 1% because of the competition frastructure services (other than those related to trading from new entrants.3 across borders), the security of property from theft and The benefits are especially large for women. Coun- looting, the transparency of government procurement, tries with higher scores on the ease of doing business macroeconomic conditions or the underlying strength have larger shares of women in the ranks of both en- of institutions. trepreneurs and workers (figure 1.7). Consider Uganda. Still, a high ranking on the ease of doing business Complex start-up regulations there allowed more con- does mean that the government has created a regulatory tact between entrepreneurs and public officials--and environment conducive to operating a business. more chances for bribery. Women were seen as easy Opportunities for women targets: 43% of female entrepreneurs reported harass- ment from government officials, while only 25% of all Payoffs from reform can be large. Higher rankings on entrepreneurs did. When reformers simplified business the ease of doing business are associated with more start-up, business registrations shot up. The increase in growth, more jobs and a smaller share of the economy first-time business owners was 33% higher for women in the informal sector.2 Take Mexico, where reforms cut than men. (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 6 Doing Business 2008 Table 1.2 Rankings on the ease of doing business 2008 2008 2008 rank Economy rank Economy rank Economy 1 Singapore 61 Samoa 121 Honduras 2 New Zealand 62 Vanuatu 122 Brazil 3 United States 63 Jamaica 123 Indonesia 4 Hong Kong, China 64 St. Kitts and Nevis 124 Lesotho 5 Denmark 65 Panama 125 Algeria 6 United Kingdom 66 Colombia 126 Egypt 7 Canada 67 Trinidad and Tobago 127 Malawi 8 Ireland 68 United Arab Emirates 128 Ecuador 9 Australia 69 El Salvador 129 Morocco 10 Iceland 70 Grenada 130 Tanzania 11 Norway 71 Kazakhstan 131 Gambia 12 Japan 72 Kenya 132 Cape Verde 13 Finland 73 Kiribati 133 Philippines 14 Sweden 74 Poland 134 Mozambique 15 Thailand 75 Macedonia, FYR 135 Iran 16 Switzerland 76 Pakistan 136 Albania 17 Estonia 77 Dominica 137 Syria 18 Georgia 78 Brunei 138 Uzbekistan 19 Belgium 79 Solomon Islands 139 Ukraine 20 Germany 80 Jordan 140 Bolivia 21 Netherlands 81 Montenegro 141 Iraq 22 Latvia 82 Palau 142 Suriname 23 Saudi Arabia 83 China 143 Sudan 24 Malaysia 84 Papua New Guinea 144 Gabon 25 Austria 85 Lebanon 145 Cambodia 26 Lithuania 86 Serbia 146 Djibouti 27 Mauritius 87 Ghana 147 Comoros 28 Puerto Rico 88 Tunisia 148 Haiti 29 Israel 89 Marshall Islands 149 Madagascar 30 Korea 90 Seychelles 150 Rwanda 31 France 91 Vietnam 151 Benin 32 Slovakia 92 Moldova 152 Zimbabwe 33 Chile 93 Nicaragua 153 Tajikistan 34 St. Lucia 94 Kyrgyz Republic 154 Cameroon 35 South Africa 95 Swaziland 155 Côte d'Ivoire 36 Fiji 96 Azerbaijan 156 Togo 37 Portugal 97 Croatia 157 Mauritania 38 Spain 98 Uruguay 158 Mali 39 Armenia 99 Dominican Republic 159 Afghanistan 40 Kuwait 100 Greece 160 Sierra Leone 41 Antigua and Barbuda 101 Sri Lanka 161 Burkina Faso 42 Luxembourg 102 Ethiopia 162 Senegal 43 Namibia 103 Paraguay 163 São Tomé and Principe 44 Mexico 104 Guyana 164 Lao PDR 45 Hungary 105 Bosnia and Herzegovina 165 Equatorial Guinea 46 Bulgaria 106 Russia 166 Guinea 47 Tonga 107 Bangladesh 167 Angola 48 Romania 108 Nigeria 168 Timor-Leste 49 Oman 109 Argentina 169 Niger 50 Taiwan, China 110 Belarus 170 Liberia 51 Botswana 111 Nepal 171 Eritrea 52 Mongolia 112 Micronesia 172 Venezuela 53 Italy 113 Yemen 173 Chad 54 St. Vincent and the Grenadines 114 Guatemala 174 Burundi 55 Slovenia 115 Costa Rica 175 Congo, Rep. 56 Czech Republic 116 Zambia 176 Guinea-Bissau 57 Turkey 117 West Bank and Gaza 177 Central African Republic 58 Peru 118 Uganda 178 Congo, Dem. Rep. 59 Belize 119 Bhutan 60 Maldives 120 India Note: The rankings for all economies are benchmarked to June 2007 and reported in the Country tables. Rankings on the ease of doing business are the average of the country rankings on the 10 topics covered in Doing Business 2008. see ease of doing business for details. Source: Doing Business database. (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank oVeRVieW 7 FIGURE 1.7 Greater ease of doing business, more women entrepreneurs and workers Female entrepreneurship (% of entrepreneurs who are women) Female unemployment (% of male unemployment) More Greater women unemployment Least di cult Most di cult Least di cult Most di cult Countries ranked by ease of doing business, quintiles Countries ranked by ease of doing business, quintiles Note: Relationships are signi cant at the 1% level and remain signi cant when controlling for income per capita. Source: Doing Business database; World Bank Enterprise Surveys; World Bank, World Development Indicators database. In some countries explicit discrimination in laws has set an even more ambitious goal. Saudi Arabia and compounds the effects of complex regulations. Women Mauritius have targeted the top 10. Both have made in the United Arab Emirates and Yemen are forbidden to tremendous progress: Saudi Arabia now ranks 23, and work at night. And now so are women in Kuwait, thanks Mauritius 27. to a new law passed in June 2007. In Zimbabwe married Mozambique is reforming several aspects of its busi- women need permission from their husband to register ness environment, with the goal of reaching the top rank land. In the Democratic Republic of Congo they need on the ease of doing business in southern Africa. The their husband's consent to start a business. Women run result: it rose by 6 places in the rankings. only 18% of the small businesses there. In neighboring Comparisons among cities within a country are even Rwanda, which has no such regulations, women run stronger drivers of reform. The time to obtain a business more than 41% of small businesses.4 license in India ranges from 159 days in Bhubaneshwar The idea behind some of these regulations may be to 522 in Ranchi. The time to register property, from 35 to protect women. But they backfire, taking work away days in Hyderabad to 155 in Calcutta. A hypothetical from willing workers and business opportunities away Indian city with the country's top performance in each from entrepreneurs. Women end up in the informal of the Doing Business indicators would rank 55 places economy: they are 3 times as likely as men to be hired higher on the ease of doing business than Mumbai. The informally in most developing countries. In these jobs Indian government is taking action. This year India is they receive no social benefits. And if they are abused by the top reformer in trading across borders (table 1.3). their employer, they have limited legal recourse. Some countries are taking action. Lesotho passed a Table 1.3 law in November 2006 allowing married women to own Top reformers in 2006/07 by indicator set and transfer property and engage in legal acts without Starting a business Saudi Arabia their husband's signature. Before the reform the law clas- Dealing with licenses Georgia sified women as legal minors. Employing workers Czech Republic What gets measured gets done Registering property Ghana Getting credit Croatia Publishing comparative data on the ease of doing busi- Protecting investors Georgia ness inspires governments to reform. Since its start in Paying taxes Bulgaria October 2003 the Doing Business project has inspired Trading across borders India or informed 113 reforms around the world. In 2006 Enforcing contracts Tonga Georgia targeted the top 25 list and used Doing Business Closing a business China indicators as benchmarks of its progress. It now ranks 18 on the ease of doing business, and the government Source: Doing Business database. (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 8 Doing Business 2008 Reforms go beyond the fixes that improve the Doing Notes Business rankings. When the Philippines issued a de- cree to lower administrative fees, it covered all types of 1. World Bank (2006b, p. 5). licenses and permits, not just those measured in Doing 2. Djankov, McLiesh and Ramalho (2006) and World Bank Business. In Malawi and Rwanda reformers are using the (2005a). indicators to encourage simplification across all govern- 3. Bruhn (2007). ment agencies. Kenya is reforming all business licenses. 4. The percentages of businesses run by women are from To help reformers, this year the Doing Business the 2006 World Bank Enterprise Surveys, available at project published a book of 11 case studies of success- http://www.enterprisesurveys.org. ful reforms.5 These span the globe--from El Salvador to 5. World Bank (2007a). Serbia, from Egypt to Nigeria--and show what it takes 6. For more on those recognized as leading reformers, go to to succeed. In cooperation with the U.S. Agency for In- http://www.reformersclub.org. ternational Development, Doing Business also created a prize to recognize leading reformers. The first one went to Zurab Nogaideli, the prime minister of Georgia.6 Since then, several reformist governments--such as those in Azerbaijan, Guatemala and Mozambique--have studied the Georgian reform experience for ideas on how to reform. (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 9 Starting a business Starting a business in the Democratic Republic of and Georgia entered the top 10 on the ease of starting a Congo is not easy. It takes 13 procedures and 155 business (table 2.1). days--and costs 5 times the annual income per capita. Reform pays off. In 2005 Mexico was among the top It's worse for women: they need the consent of their reformers in simplifying business entry. It cut the time husband. If you are a single woman, or if your husband needed to establish a business from 58 days to 27. A re- refuses consent or suffers from mental illness, a judge cent study reports the results: the number of registered decides whether you can become a businesswoman. The businesses rose by nearly 6%, employment increased by result: only 18% of small businesses are run by women. 2.6%, and prices fell by 1% because of the competition In neighboring Rwanda, which has no such regulations, from new entrants.2 Another study estimates that the more than 41% are.1 size of the informal sector in Peru would drop from Thirty-nine countries made it easier for entrepre- 60% of the economy to 37% if entry regulations were neurs to start a new business in 2006/07. Eighteen of as simple as those in the United States.3 Much remains them reformed for the second year in a row, including to be done: starting a business takes less than a week in Burkina Faso, Egypt, Guatemala and Madagascar. East- New York, 72 days in Lima. ern Europe and Central Asia had 11 reforms. So did Cumbersome start-up procedures prevent people Africa, keeping up its growing pace of reform. Mauritius from getting out of poverty. Some entrepreneurs still FIGURE 2.1 Saudi More entry after reform Arabia Table 2.1 Where is it easy to start a business--and where not? 81 Increase in annual business entry after reform (%) Easiest Rank Most difficult Rank Australia 1 Syria 169 Canada 2 Haiti 170 Mauritius New Zealand 3 Guinea 171 52 United States 4 Equatorial Guinea 172 Ireland 5 Angola 173 United Kingdom 6 Eritrea 174 Madagascar Puerto Rico 7 Yemen 175 After GuatemalaJordan reform Estonia Finland 26 Mauritius 8 Togo 176 23 24 19 22 Singapore 9 Chad 177 Georgia 10 Guinea-Bissau 178 Before Note: Rankings are the average of the country rankings on the procedures, time, cost and paid-in reform minimum capital for starting a business. see Data notes for details. Source: Doing Business database. Source: Doing Business database. (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 10 Doing Business 2008 start businesses, but only informal ones. Without access And once a large number of informal businesses to courts and credit, and in constant fear of inspections, legalize their operations, staying informal is no longer informal businesses remain small. A survey in Guinea- profitable.5 Most clients require receipts--because oth- Bissau found that, controlling for industry, formal busi- erwise they'll lose value added tax rebates and other tax nesses hire 4 times as many workers and produce 4 times benefits. In a short time informality ceases to be an issue. as much output as informal ones.4 That's why many In Slovakia less than 2% of businesses now see informal informal businesses are first in the queue when reform competition as an issue. In 1999 a third did. Since then makes it easier to legalize operations, resulting in big Slovakia has slashed the days to start a business from jumps in registrations (figure 2.1). 103 to 25. Who is reforming? gary created standard documents. Croatia streamlined Saudi Arabia was the top reformer in business start-up processes at the one-stop shop. Tajikistan simplified in 2006/07 (figure 2.2). Last year it had the fifth larg- licensing requirements, saving entrepreneurs more than est paid-in minimum capital requirement in the world, 2 weeks. Since the start of Doing Business in 2003, 24 of at $124,464. In June 2007 the country scrapped that the region's 28 countries have simplified start-up. After requirement. It also merged publication requirements, 5 years of reform the average time to start a business is combined several procedures at the Ministry of Com- now 26 days, approaching that in OECD high-income merce and launched online social security registration. countries (figure 2.3). That reduced the number of procedures from 13 to 7, But catching up with rich countries is increasingly the time from 39 days to 15, and the cost from 59% of tough--they are reforming too. In 2006/07 Portugal income per capita to 32%. eliminated outdated start-up formalities such as reg- Four of the top 10 reformers were in Eastern Europe istering company books. Belgium--another repeat top and Central Asia. FYR Macedonia, a repeat top reformer, 10 reformer--and Germany made registration and abolished the paid-in minimum capital requirement. So publication electronic. Finland reduced its minimum did Georgia. Belarus launched a one-stop shop that cut capital requirement by almost 70%. Australia cut reg- 6 procedures and 3 weeks from the start-up process. Es- istration fees in half. Its start-up process is the least tonia cut start-up time from 35 days to 7 by introducing burdensome (table 2.2). standard articles of association, available on the registry's Most African countries focused on improving tech- website. Notaries are now optional, and registration fees nology at the business registry. Mauritius launched a are a fixed amount rather than a percentage of capital. virtual one-stop shop linking the commercial registry These changes cut start-up costs in half. and tax and local authorities through a central electronic Another 7 countries in Eastern Europe and Central database. Requiring 6 procedures and 7 days, business Asia introduced substantial reforms. Among these, Hun- entry in Mauritius is as easy as in the United Kingdom. FIGURE 2.2 FIGURE 2.3 Top 10 reformers in business start-up Biggest improvement in Eastern Europe & Central Asia Average improvement Time to start a business (days) Latin America & 2006 Top Sub- Caribbean reformers 75 Saharan Saudi Arabia Africa Middle 30% Eastern Egypt 60 East & East Asia 2007 Europe 37% & Paci c Georgia & Central North 45% South Africa Madagascar Asia 45 OECD Asia 56% Paraguay high Estonia income Belarus 30 2003 Macedonia, FYR Belgium 15 2007 Mauritius Procedures Time Cost Paid-in minimum Source: Doing Business database. capital Source: Doing Business database. (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank sTARTing A Business 11 Table 2.2 Table 2.3 Who regulates business start-up the least--and who the most? One-stop shops--the most popular reform in 2006/07 Procedures (number) Created or improved one-stop shop Fewest Most Belarus, Burkina Faso, Croatia, Egypt, Guatemala, Jordan, Madagascar, Mauritius, Paraguay, Uzbekistan Australia 2 Bolivia 15 Sped registration through administrative reforms Canada 2 Montenegro 15 Bhutan, Dominican Republic, Malaysia, Mali, Moldova, Mozambique, New Zealand 2 Philippines 15 Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, Sri Lanka, Timor-Leste Belgium 3 Venezuela 16 Streamlined or abolished licensing procedures Finland 3 Guinea-Bissau 17 Bhutan, Ghana, Honduras, Kenya, Lao PDR, Mauritius, Tajikistan, Tanzania Sweden 3 Brazil 18 Simplified and standardized document requirements at registry Afghanistan 4 Brunei 18 Burkina Faso, Estonia, Finland, Hungary, Portugal, Uzbekistan Denmark 4 Uganda 18 Abolished or reduced paid-in minimum capital requirement Ireland 4 Chad 19 Egypt, Finland, Georgia, FYR Macedonia, Saudi Arabia Tonga 4 Equatorial Guinea 20 Introduced online procedures Time (days) Belgium, Estonia, Germany, Hungary, Mauritius Least Most Cut or simplified publication Egypt, Germany, Mozambique, Portugal, Saudi Arabia Australia 2 Brunei 116 Reduced costs or taxes Canada 3 Angola 119 Australia, Mauritania, Mozambique, Niger Belgium 4 Equatorial Guinea 136 Iceland 5 Venezuela 141 Reformed company seal requirement Azerbaijan, Sri Lanka, Tanzania Singapore 5 São Tomé and Principe 144 Denmark 6 Brazil 152 Introduced statutory time limits on registration Turkey 6 Congo, Dem. Rep. 155 Czech Republic, Uzbekistan United States 6 Haiti 202 Source: Doing Business database. France 7 Guinea-Bissau 233 Madagascar 7 Suriname 694 Nigeria used computerization to further speed company Cost (% of income per capita) name verification and registration. Ghana's computer- Least Most ization of its registry is expediting name searches and Denmark 0.0 Djibouti 206.6 application processes. Thanks to this as well as licensing New Zealand 0.1 Togo 245.7 reforms, delays fell by 39 days. Tanzania is computerizing Ireland 0.3 Burundi 251.0 its registry too. It also reduced start-up fees from 92% of Sweden 0.6 Guinea-Bissau 255.5 annual income to 47%. Kenya improved processes at the United States 0.7 Gambia 279.0 company registry, saving entrepreneurs 10 days. Puerto Rico 0.8 West Bank and Gaza 280.4 United Kingdom 0.8 Angola 343.7 Other African countries cut unnecessary procedures Singapore 0.8 Congo, Dem. Rep. 487.2 (table 2.3). Burkina Faso simplified documentation re- Australia 0.8 Liberia 493.3 quirements. Madagascar, again a top reformer, changed Canada 0.9 Sierra Leone 1,075.2 publication formalities and dropped the validation of Paid-in minimum capital signatures at the mayor's office. It cut 10 procedures to 5, and the time from 3 weeks to 1. Mozambique revised its % of income Most per capita US$ 1888 commercial code and reformed the business regis- Central African Republic 531 1,912 try. Entrepreneurs no longer have to wait for 3 months to Oman 542 51,947 publish their articles of association in the official gazette; Togo 546 1,912 the registry publishes extracts online. And the use of Timor-Leste 595 5,000 notaries is now optional. Start-up cost dropped by two- Niger 736 1,912 Jordan 795 21,157 thirds, and the time from 113 days to 29. Not all news is Ethiopia 960 1,728 good for businesses in Mozambique: the minimum capi- Guinea-Bissau 1,007 1,912 tal requirement was raised tenfold and is now equivalent Yemen 2,003 15,225 to the average yearly income. Syria 3,673 57,670 In Latin America and the Caribbean, the Domini- Note: sixty-five countries have no paid-in minimum capital requirement. can Republic, Guatemala and Honduras reformed for Source: Doing Business database. the second year running, joined by Paraguay. More is (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 12 Doing Business 2008 needed. Latin American entrepreneurs starting a busi- reduce the minimum capital requirement. At 8 times the ness face 10 procedures on average, compared with 6 annual income, few Jordanians can afford it. in OECD high-income countries. More than half the Sri Lanka made the most progress in South Asia. A procedures come after the business is registered, includ- new companies act eliminated burdensome approvals ing municipal licenses and inspections. In 2006/07 Hon- and introduced a flat registration fee. Company seals and duras reformed municipal licenses and reduced start-up notaries were made optional. Procedures were reduced time by 3 weeks. Paraguay took a different approach: it from 8 to 5, and the time for start-up from 50 days to launched a one-stop shop, merging procedures and cut- 39. Bhutan abolished 2 procedures and sped registration. ting the time in half--to 35 days. Pakistan simplified tax registration. India is implement- Egypt was the second biggest reformer in the world. ing electronic filing. It slashed its minimum capital requirement from 50,000 East Asia made the fewest reforms in 2006/07. Egyptian pounds to 1,000. The one-stop shop now Malaysia sped name checking and registration, reduc- processes the tax registration, the publication and the ing delays by a week. Timor-Leste eliminated approvals chamber of commerce membership. The reforms cut by the Ministry of Land. Indonesia slipped backward, start-up cost and time by more than half, and reduced adding a week of delays with additional approvals at the 10 procedures to 7. Elsewhere in the Middle East, Jordan regional level. It now has the longest time for business improved the operation of its one-stop shop but failed to start-up among Asian economies. What to reform? tal equivalent to 37 times the annual income per capita Since 2003, 93 countries have simplified business start-up (see table 2.2). Yemen comes next, requiring 20 times through 146 reforms. Here are the 5 most successful re- the average annual income. Few Yemenis can afford to forms: operate a business legally. The result is widespread infor- · Cuttheminimumcapitalrequirement. mality, the highest in the region. · Introduceaone-stopshop. Here's a question for the governments of Syria, · Standardizeincorporationdocuments. Yemen, Guinea-Bissau, Ethiopia, Jordan, Niger, Timor- · Cutantiquatedformalities. Leste, Togo, Oman, the Central African Republic, Dji- · Allowonlinestart-up. bouti, Mauritania, Eritrea, Guinea, Mali, Burkina Faso, Chad, Benin, Madagascar and the United Arab Emirates: Cut the minimum capital requirement if a high minimum capital requirement is beneficial, why doesn't a single rich country have one? The easiest reform of business entry--one that can be done with the stroke of a pen--is to cut the capital Introduce a one-stop shop requirement. Some countries justify the capital require- One-stop shops have been the most common reform in ment as protecting creditors, as protecting the company business start-up--24 countries have created one since against insolvency and as protecting consumers against 2003. On average this has cut 5 procedures from the bad products. But this makes little sense. Lenders base start-up process and more than halved delays. One-stop their decisions on commercial risk, not whether a busi- shops can show results quickly. Morocco created one in ness meets a government-imposed capital requirement. 6 months; Cairo and Alexandria, in Egypt, did so in less And in many countries minimum capital can be paid than a year. with in-kind contributions or withdrawn immediately Reformers have chosen different ways to merge after registration--hardly of value in insolvency. Recov- procedures. In Eastern Europe and Central Asia most ery rates in bankruptcy are no higher in countries with countries--including Belarus, Georgia, Hungary, capital requirements than in those without. Kazakhstan, Lithuania, FYR Macedonia and Russia-- In about 20 economies the capital requirement is have delegated formalities such as tax and statistical still a major obstacle to starting a business. In these, an registrations to the company registrar. In Latin America entrepreneur needs to put up at least 3 times the average one-stop shops bring officials from different agen- annual income to register--and often much more. Aside cies together in one location--such as in El Salvador, from Timor-Leste, all are in Africa and the Middle East. Guatemala, Nicaragua and Paraguay. This arrangement Syria has the highest requirement, with minimum capi- works when these officials have decision power. That's (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank sTARTing A Business 13 FIGURE 2.4 Big gains from standard documents try of Public Security issues a permit to the entrepreneur Reduction in time to start a business (days) to carve and register it. In earlier centuries a seal symbolized the legal iden- Before reform tity of a business and authenticated all its contracts. Now most documents are sent electronically. More than 100 23 Put Introduced registration countries have regulations allowing electronic signatures. standard Introduced online documents 35 one-stop These cost nothing and are more difficult to forge. shop 46 7 Allow online start-up Belgium In Denmark an entrepreneur can start a business with- After Mauritius 30 days out leaving the house. Using the Internet, the entrepre- reform 35 days neur can obtain a digital signature, register with the Portugal Eliminated registration 47 days of company books commercial registry and tax authority and submit the Source: Doing Business database. incorporation documents. All data are automatically validated--no public officials are involved. The entrepre- neur receives a business identification number online, not always the case: in Nicaragua the one-stop shop has and the company notice is published on the web. to forward applications to other agencies and await their Making registration electronic is one of the most approval. Delays have hardly budged. effective ways to speed start-up. Since 2003, 13 coun- Reformers may use one-stop shops to create mo- tries have introduced electronic registration, including mentum for bigger reforms. Portugal created its first Belgium, Ireland, Mauritius and Norway. This cut the one-stop shop in 1998--but its biggest drop in time average time to start a business in those countries from came only in 2005, when it introduced standard in- 40 days to 17. And with no contact between the entrepre- corporation documents (figure 2.4). Before, processing neur and the public official, no bribes can change hands. start-up applications took 3 weeks. Online start-up works best in countries with high Standardize incorporation documents Internet penetration and laws allowing electronic sig- natures. As a start, countries can introduce online In El Salvador 70% of new business applications name search and publication or computerize registra- are rejected for flawed or insufficient paperwork. In tion records. Since 2005 Germany, FYR Macedonia, Kazakhstan, 65%. By contrast, the rejection rate is only Mozambique and Serbia have made the company es- 3% in Canada, 8% in the United Kingdom and 10% in tablishment notice electronic, saving up to 3 months in Mauritius. waiting time. Online name checking is now available in Why the difference? Standard incorporation docu- Croatia, Moldova, Nigeria and Vietnam. Such reforms ments. With these, entrepreneurs ensure legality without can be cheap. When Guatemala made registry records visiting notaries and lawyers. And the workload eases at electronic, it took 5 months to scan nearly 2 million the registry, preventing errors and speeding processing. files, all at a cost of $100,000. After Estonia introduced standard documents, process- ing time at the registry fell from 15 days to 1. Entre- Notes preneurs saved another 2 weeks by avoiding the use of notaries. Another 64 countries have standard forms-- 1. The percentages of businesses run by women are from including China, Egypt, Malaysia, Oman, Slovakia and the 2006 World Bank Enterprise Surveys (http://www South Africa. .enterprisesurveys.org). 2. Bruhn (2007). Cut antiquated formalities 3. Antunes and Cavalcanti (2007). Some requirements are leftovers from a bygone era. 4. These numbers are calculated based on data from the These should be cut. One example is the requirement 2006 World Bank Enterprise Surveys for Africa (http:// for a company seal or stamp--still on the books in 81 www.enterprisesurveys.org). countries. In 7 of these, entrepreneurs have to get official 5. Masatlioglu and Rigolini (2006). approval to make a seal. In Lao PDR the Ministry of In- dustry and Commerce designs the seal, while the Minis- (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 14 Dealing with licenses Sextus Julius Frontinus, water commissioner of Rome in takes 952 days and $38,347 to obtain all construction AD 97, wrote the first regulation for the maintenance of approvals. The official construction sector has shrunk to the city water system. It starts with this: "Anyone who 2% of GDP, and the government periodically bulldozes wishes to draw water for private use must make an of- illegally built houses to show resolve. Zimbabwe ranks ficial application and deliver in person to the commis- 172 on the ease of dealing with licenses (table 3.1). sioner a written authorization from the emperor."1 The Georgia used to be like Zimbabwe. Just 3 years ago regulation was prompted by widespread "puncturing" of getting a construction permit for a commercial ware- the aqueducts--illegal water connections. Sadly, it could house in Tbilisi required 29 different procedures. Before not be enforced. With more than a million citizens living even applying for the permit a builder needed permis- in ancient Rome, the emperor would have spent most of sion from agencies as diverse as the Center of Archae- his time reviewing water applications. ology at the Academy of Science and the Inspector of The new inspection rules for construction in Ha- Sanitary Observation. Illegal construction activity was rare would have made Frontinus proud. In an effort to widespread. In 2004 less than 45% of ongoing construc- prevent illegal construction, the chief building inspector tion projects in Tbilisi had permits. or his deputy now conducts all building inspections. The Things have changed. Georgia was one of the top downside is a mounting backlog, in a city where it already reformers in business licensing in each of the past 3 FIGURE 3.1 Table 3.1 Where is it easy to deal with licenses--and where not? More construction permits issued in Georgia since reform Easiest Number of construction permits (thousands) Rank Most difficult Rank 2,175 St. Vincent and the Grenadines 1 Burkina Faso 169 New Zealand 2 Tanzania 170 Belize 3 Burundi 171 Marshall Islands 4 Zimbabwe 172 +151% Singapore 5 Kazakhstan 173 Denmark 6 Ukraine 174 867 St. Kitts and Nevis 7 China 175 Maldives 8 Liberia 176 463 +87% Kenya 9 Russia 177 Micronesia 10 Eritrea 178 Note: Rankings are the average of the country rankings on the procedures, time and cost to 2004 2005 2006 comply with formalities to build a warehouse. see Data notes for details. Source: Doing Business database. Source: Bagaudinova, Omran and Shavurov (2007). (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank DeALing WiTH LiCenses 15 years, reducing the types of activities subject to licens- than in 2004 (figure 3.1). Construction grew from 6.4% of ing from 909 to 159. In the construction industry (which the Georgian economy in 2003 to more than 9% in 2006. Doing Business studies as an example of licensing) Georgia The transition to legal construction is not without eliminated many of the approvals required to obtain a pain. On July 20, 2007, the residents of downtown Tbilisi construction permit and introduced a one-stop shop for woke to the sound of sirens. Fire brigades had begun licensing, a "silence is consent" rule and statutory time demolishing a 13-story building that had gone up before limits--while maintaining procedures necessary for regu- the reform and was now in danger of collapsing because lating in the public interest. The number of procedures of faulty engineering. The building had no project or needed to build a warehouse dropped to 12. The time operating license--and didn't even show up in the city required fell by nearly 3 months. The approval process plan. Yet it towered over the surrounding houses, kept for building a warehouse in Georgia is now more efficient from falling over by steel beams. To avoid the many ap- than in all EU countries except Denmark. The result: proval procedures, the building company had simply paid in 2006 the number of construction permits issued in off the mayor. Who loses out? The people who bought Georgia was 151% higher than in 2005 and 370% higher apartments and now must find a new place to live.2 Who is reforming? others. The government plans to cut another 314 licenses Fifteen countries made it easier to comply with building and simplify 599 more. requirements in 2006/07. Eastern Europe had the biggest "I recently received a call from the city council to reforms--in Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Georgia and follow up on plans I had submitted--completely un- FYR Macedonia. Africa followed, with reforms in Kenya, heard of before," comments a Kenyan architect. Such Mauritius, Nigeria and Rwanda. The Middle East and services have become more common since the minister North Africa was next, with reforms in Egypt, Kuwait of housing and lands launched a rapid response initiative and Morocco. Three countries--Georgia, Guatemala in November 2006. Getting a building permit used to and Kenya--reformed for the second year in a row. take 80 days. It required clearances from 6 agencies and Some countries reviewed all business licenses re- review by a ministerial committee. The new initiative quired and eliminated unnecessary ones. Kazakhstan removed the committee review, shortening the time to cut the number of licensed activities from 426 to 100. obtain a permit by 30 days (figure 3.2). Uzbekistan extended the minimum term for a business Simplifying procedures was the most popular re- license from 1 year to 5. And it now allows 13 business form in construction licensing in 2006/07 (table 3.2). activities--including tourism, auditing, brokerage ser- Mauritius combined its development and building per- vices and securities market operations--to be licensed for life. Kenya eliminated 110 licenses and simplified 8 Table 3.2 Simplifying licensing--the most popular reform in 2006/07 FIGURE 3.2 Cutting time to obtain licenses Simplified licensing and inspection procedures Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Georgia, Guatemala, Indonesia, Kenya, Reduction in time to build a warehouse (days) Mauritius, Rwanda Established statutory time limits for issuing licenses Before Kenya Georgia Rwanda reform FYR Macedonia, Mauritius, Nigeria 3 Consolidated legal rules 8 Added Introduced electronic processing of applications permitting 15 locations China, Honduras, Kuwait, Morocco Eliminated Adopted new building code committee Czech Republic, Nigeria review 30 Introduced fast-track procedures Czech Republic, Georgia Introduced private inspections Czech Republic After reform Lowered fees Egypt Source: Doing Business database. Source: Doing Business database. (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 16 Doing Business 2008 Table 3.3 Who regulates licensing the least--and who the most? quired to begin construction (which was separate from the construction permit), saving entrepreneurs 20 days. Procedures (number) But more needs to be done in a country where the per- Fewest Most mitting process still takes almost 2 years. Denmark 6 Brunei 32 Other countries focused on cutting delays. The New Zealand 7 Burkina Faso 32 Vanuatu 7 Guinea 32 Czech Republic streamlined provisions of its new build- Sweden 8 Tajikistan 32 ing code, speeding construction approvals by 50 days. Chad 9 El Salvador 34 Builders can now apply for 2 permits at the same time, Grenada 9 Czech Republic 36 and a simple notification has replaced the occupancy Maldives 9 China 37 permit. Indonesia introduced a simplified process and St. Lucia 9 Kazakhstan 38 Jamaica 10 Sierra Leone 47 new temporary permits that allow construction to begin Kenya 10 Russia 54 while the full permit is being approved, cutting the time to obtain a building permit from 49 days to 21. In FYR Time (days) Macedonia it now takes only 1 day to obtain proof of Least Most landownership--59 days less than in 2006. Rwanda sped Korea 34 Ukraine 429 the issuance of building and occupancy permits by 24 Finland 38 Suriname 431 days after transferring authorities from the prefecture United States 40 Bosnia and Herzegovina 467 Vanuatu 51 Lesotho 601 to the municipality. Nigeria shifted approval to local Marshall Islands 55 Côte d'Ivoire 628 authorities and equipped their staff with computers and Solomon Islands 62 Iran 670 training, shortening the time for building authorizations New Zealand 65 Russia 704 from 90 days to 42. Belize 66 Cambodia 709 Another popular reform was to make processes Denmark 69 Zimbabwe 952 St. Kitts and Nevis 72 Haiti 1,179 electronic. Honduras launched electronic processing of applications for fixed telephone lines, cutting the time Cost (% of income per capita) for approval from 2 weeks to 1. Kuwait installed a new Least Most automated system in all agencies responsible for issuing United Arab Emirates 1.5 Kazakhstan 2,130 technical approvals. The time to obtain an approval for Brunei 5.2 Tanzania 2,366 a phone line dropped from 30 days to 20, for electricity Trinidad and Tobago 5.9 Guinea-Bissau 2,607 Palau 6.1 Serbia 2,713 from 2 weeks to 1, and for a water plan from 14 days to St. Vincent and the Grenadines 9.2 Niger 2,824 5. In China, Beijing and Shanghai now process applica- Malaysia 10.0 Russia 3,788 tions for construction permits electronically and allow Hungary 10.4 Burundi 9,939 construction companies to apply for safety certificates Thailand 10.7 Zimbabwe 11,799 online, reducing delays by 2 weeks. But more remains to Australia 13.2 Afghanistan 21,231 United States 13.4 Liberia 61,049 be done: to complete construction permitting in China still takes 37 procedures and 336 days (table 3.3). Source: Doing Business database. Morocco set up an electronic one-stop shop for construction permits at the end of 2006, reducing the mits into one. The dual permit is now issued in 2 weeks, time to obtain a building permit from 30 days to 20. reducing the time to complete formalities by 55 days. In More can be done. The commission that issues approv- Guatemala the Ministry of Environment eliminated du- als reviews projects by neighborhood. Two weeks can plications in procedures by placing its staff in municipal pass waiting for your neighborhood's turn in the com- offices and the Ministry of Healthcare, cutting the time mission's schedule. by 60 days. Russia abolished the notification permit re- (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank DeALing WiTH LiCenses 17 What to reform? Make information easily available In the past 3 years 42 countries have reformed their construction licensing regulations. Here are the 5 most In China public utilities are now required to publish successful reforms: online their service fees, time limits for issuing approv- · Reducelicensingrequirements. als and ways to launch complaints. Another way to save · Makeinformationeasilyavailable. entrepreneurs time: help them navigate the process for · Introduceonlinelicenseapplications. a building permit by making all the forms and require- · Curbinspections. ments--including step-by-step charts on procedures-- · Consolidateprojectclearances. available at municipal offices. When Latvia did this, it cut processing time by 2 months. FYR Macedonia, Reduce licensing requirements as part of its recent reforms, distributed an electronic construction permitting package with documents and Reducing business licensing requirements demands ac- manuals to all 84 of its municipalities, along with posters tion by many ministries. Here are 2 ways to make it and flyers explaining each step for applicants. happen. First, make the ministry of finance or the prime minister's office responsible for implementation, Introduce online license applications since other ministries respond best when their budgets In Singapore builders submit all permit applications depend on it. Second, commit to a target reduction in electronically. Developers in Austria, Denmark, Iceland, the administrative costs of issuing and regulating li- Malaysia, Norway and the United States also complete censes and set up a measuring system to ensure that it is their applications online. Some developing countries achieved. This holds regulators accountable. with adequate Internet penetration--such as El Salvador, The Netherlands, with the best such reform yet, has Honduras and Mexico--are introducing online systems done both. The government set a target of reducing the too. This reform saves time for both entrepreneurs and administrative burden by 25% by 2007. The minister government officials. It also removes the contact be- of finance was responsible for achieving the target, re- tween them--and the chance for bribe payments along porting to parliament every 6 months. Uncooperative with it. ministries could see their budget cut. An independent agency, the Advisory Board on Administrative Burden, Curb inspections was established to monitor progress and publicize its In Burkina Faso inspectors visit construction sites every findings. The program aims to save 4 billion. Its savings 2 weeks and charge $240 in fees. In Denmark and Sin- from streamlining tax requirements alone are estimated gapore there is only one inspection and it's free. But no at 600 million. And Dutch entrepreneurs have saved one would argue that buildings in Copenhagen and Sin- 11.3 million from simplifications in construction li- gapore are less safe than those in Ouagadougou. censing.3 The advisory board also vets new regulatory Inspections are needed to ensure construction qual- proposals before they reach parliament--to stop creep- ity. But in many countries inspection fees and fines are ing reregulation, a common problem. viewed as an important source of government revenue. Other European countries are starting to benefit That needs to change. Recent studies show that eliminat- from this experience, as Dutch reformers are lobbying ing unnecessary and redundant procedures can increase the European Union to adopt similar targets. Several revenue. Kenya reported a revenue increase of up to 33% governments--in the Czech Republic, Denmark and the after replacing dozens of local permits with a single busi- United Kingdom--have already done so. The European ness permit.5 Commission recently announced a target of reducing One way to make inspections more efficient is to administrative burdens by 25%--similar to the Dutch privatize them. The Czech Republic just did so, by creat- approach. Since EU regulations account for about 40% ing a new independent profession--authorized inspec- of all business regulations in the 27 member countries, tors. By hiring an authorized inspector, an entrepreneur there is a lot to gain.4 Comprehensive reforms like these can speed the process of getting a building permit by up are not just for rich countries. With its plan to cut 424 to 5 weeks. The inspector issues a certificate confirming unnecessary licenses well under way, Kenya is the first that the project documentation is in compliance with the African country to show how poor ones can gain too. building code and that the building can be constructed. (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 18 Doing Business 2008 FIGURE 3.3 FIGURE 3.4 Construction licensing in India--fastest in Bhubaneshwar Slow license approvals, high warehouse rents Time for licensing (days) Ranking on ease of dealing with licenses Bhubaneshwar Total 6 16 Kiev Moscow Bangalore time 17 14 14 Hyderabad 37 Chandigarh 46 Time to obtain Amsterdam New Delhi approval of building plans or building permit 10 Chennai Madrid Lucknow Copenhagen 84 Berlin Paris Brussels 8 Jaipur 7 Mumbai 6 6 6 Patna Cost to rent a warehouse Calcutta (US$ per square meter) Ranchi 174 0 100 200 300 400 500 177 Note: Cost is the average monthly rent, excluding value added tax. Source: Doing Business database. Source: DOEL Partners, Doing Business database. Finland introduced private inspections in 2004. In the Such reforms encourage investment in property de- United States 25% of inspectors work for private ar- velopment. That lowers costs for end users. In Kiev, where chitectural and engineering services firms, conducting construction approvals take 429 days, the monthly cost inspections for a fee or on a contract basis. One in 10 to rent a warehouse averages $14 a square meter. That's construction and building inspectors is self-employed. twice what an entrepreneur pays in Copenhagen, where Consolidate project clearances licensing takes only 69 days, or Paris, where it takes 137 (figure 3.4). Reforms pay off for governments too. A In Mauritania applicants for a building permit have to recent study in the United States showed that a 3-month follow up at least twice with each of 7 different depart- acceleration in permit approvals on a 22-month project ments in the municipality to make sure their application cycle could increase property tax revenue by 16.5% and gets processed and approved. Why not centralize all construction spending for local governments by 5.7%.6 project clearances in a single office at the municipality? That's what Italy did, and the process is much faster now Notes that developers no longer have to make separate trips to the fire, worker safety, water, sanitation, health, project 1. Sextus Julius Frontinus, "On the Water Management design and tax departments. Another 34 countries-- of the City of Rome," translated by R. H. Rodgers, from Armenia to Canada to Panama--have consolidated University of Vermont, Burlington, 2003 (http://www approvals to simplify the licensing process. .uvm.edu/~rrodgers/Frontinus.html). Consolidating project clearances requires reform at 2. The municipality of Tbilisi has offered the residents com- the municipal level of government. In India, for example, pensation so they can buy apartments elsewhere. approving a construction permit takes about 5 months for 3. Advisory Board on Administrative Burden (2007). the municipality of Mumbai--but only 1 month for the 4. Ladegaard, Djankov and McLiesh (2007). municipalities of Hyderabad and Jaipur (figure 3.3). To 5. Devas and Kelly (2001). reduce the delays in Mumbai, the Maharashtra state gov- 6. PricewaterhouseCoopers (2005). ernment is introducing a single window for clearances. (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 19 Employing workers In the 1970s symphony orchestras in the United States lished a set of fundamental principles and rights at work started using "blind" auditions--where the performer covering the right to collective bargaining, the elimina- plays behind a screen so the evaluator can hear the music tion of forced labor, the abolition of child labor and but not see the person. The result: the share of women the elimination of discrimination in hiring and work among new hires shot up by 75%.1 practices.2 Bias against the hiring and promotion of women Beyond these regulations and principles, govern- still exists in some countries. In a few, it is explicit in the ments struggle to strike the right balance between labor regulations. In the Democratic Republic of Congo, the market flexibility and job stability. Many countries err United Arab Emirates and Yemen women are forbid- on the side of excessive rigidity, to the detriment of busi- den to work at night. In Lao PDR women are prohibited nesses and workers alike. In Sierra Leone, for example, it from performing certain types of manual work. In oth- costs an employer 189 weeks in severance pay to dismiss ers, bias is simply the prevailing practice. The example a worker. Venezuelan laws ban firing any low-paid work- of symphony orchestra hiring is telling--nothing in the ers. These are among the countries with the most rigid rules discriminated against female musicians. employment regulations (table 4.1). To protect workers from discrimination and other In these and other countries laws created to protect unfair employment practices, countries turn to regula- workers often hurt them--especially women, youth and tion. The International Labour Organization has estab- unskilled workers. Their employment opportunities van- ish (figure 4.1). They end up in the informal economy. Table 4.1 Where is it easy to employ workers--and where not? Women are 3 times as likely as men to be hired infor- mally. In these jobs they receive no social benefits. And Easiest Rank Most difficult Rank if they are abused by their employer, they have fewer United States 1 Sierra Leone 169 Singapore 2 Panama 170 protections. Marshall Islands 3 Congo, Dem. Rep. 171 More flexible labor regulations boost job creation. Georgia 4 Angola 172 And they don't mean giving up protections. Georgia has Brunei 5 Paraguay 173 some of the most flexible labor regulations in the world Tonga 6 Guinea-Bissau 174 and it has ratified all the core labor standards of the Inter- Maldives 7 Equatorial Guinea 175 national Labour Organization. Few can argue that work- Australia 8 São Tomé and Principe 176 Palau 9 Bolivia 177 ers are exploited in Denmark, another of the top 10 on Denmark 10 Venezuela 178 the ease of employing workers. Workers in these coun- Note: Rankings are the average of the country rankings on the difficulty of hiring, rigidity of hours, tries have the best protection--flexible labor regulations difficulty of firing and cost of firing indices. see Data notes for details. that give them the opportunity for a job in the formal Source: Doing Business database. sector and easy transitions from one job to another. (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 20 Doing Business 2008 FIGURE 4.1 Women and youth lose out from rigid employment laws Women's share of private sector employment Youth unemployment Greater Higher share rate Lesser Lower share rate Least rigid Most rigid Easiest Most di cult Countries ranked by rigidity of employment index, quintiles Countries ranked by di culty of hiring index, quintiles Note: Relationships are signi cant at the 5% level and remain signi cant when controlling for income per capita. Source: Doing Business database; WEF (2006); World Bank, World Development Indicators database. The collection of data on the flexibility of labor labor regulations. A study of 90 developing countries regulations has spurred significant new research: 112 finds that exporting businesses grew faster where labor studies have used these Doing Business data. One set of regulations were flexible.4 Another study shows that this studies finds that rigid labor regulation reduces jobs. In growth is due in part to the ability of these exporters to the Indian state of Maharashtra, for example, a study operate in industries with high volatility in demand. For finds that rigid labor laws have resulted in 15% fewer example, textile exporters, whose business is driven by jobs being created in the retail sector. Instead, store own- changes in fashion, thrive in countries with flexible regu- ers buy expensive computer equipment so they can run lation.5 A third study estimates that in an open economy, their operations with fewer workers.3 flexible labor regulation can increase annual growth by A second set of studies analyzes the effects of trade up to 1.5%.6 openness on the economy in the presence of flexible Who is reforming? Labor laws in rich countries, already among the Twelve countries made significant changes to their labor most flexible, continued to evolve (table 4.3). Both regulations in 2006/07. Eight increased flexibility; 4 Switzerland and the Netherlands made working hours made regulations more rigid. Eastern Europe and Cen- more flexible. Switzerland eased restrictions on week- tral Asia had the greatest number of positive reforms, end work. And a new law in the Netherlands increases followed by Western Europe and Africa (table 4.2). allowable overtime hours and extends the period for The Czech Republic was the top reformer, adopting averaging them. a new labor code that replaced its 1965 code. The new Reforms in Spain made it easier for employers to law provides for more flexible working hours. It also convert workers' contracts from fixed term to open eases restrictions on dismissals. Before the reform an employer could dismiss an employee for economic rea- Table 4.2 sons only if the employee could not be reassigned to an- More flexible working hours--a popular reform in 2006/07 other position or retrained. The new law eliminates this Made working hours more flexible requirement. It also reduces notice periods for dismissals Czech Republic, Netherlands, Pakistan, Switzerland, Uganda from 3 months to 2. Firing costs remain the same, how- Extended limits on temporary work Bhutan, Latvia, Togo ever, because severance pay rose by a month. Offered incentives to make temporary workers permanent Latvia extended the maximum duration of fixed- Spain term contracts from 2 years to 3, making it easier to hire Made firing more difficult new workers when demand is high without imposing Bhutan, Czech Republic, Latvia, Moldova, Venezuela high costs for dismissal if demand declines. Increased restrictions on fixed-term employment Slovenia, Togo Source: Doing Business database. (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank eMPLoYing WoRKeRs 21 Table 4.3 Who regulates employment the least--and who the most? ended. The reforms lowered nonwage labor costs and some types of severance payments and offered incen- Rigidity of employment index (0­100) tives to make temporary workers permanent. Businesses Least Most and workers welcomed the more flexible arrangements: Hong Kong, China 0 Equatorial Guinea 66 126,901 conversions took place in July and August 2006, United States 0 Guinea-Bissau 66 Singapore 0 Romania 66 a 204% increase over the same period the previous year. Maldives 0 Angola 69 In Africa, Uganda and Togo adopted new labor Marshall Islands 0 Congo, Rep. 69 laws. Uganda's employment act removed restrictions on Australia 3 Panama 69 weekend work. Employers and employees are free to set Uganda 3 Niger 70 the legally required rest day anytime they choose. And Canada 4 Congo, Dem. Rep. 74 Jamaica 4 Bolivia 79 there is no required premium for working on a rest day, Palau 4 Venezuela 79 except for overtime. But the law also requires employers to notify unions and the labor commissioner before dis- Firing cost (weeks of salary) missing 10 or more redundant workers. Togo's new law Least Most extends the maximum duration of fixed-term contracts Denmark 0 Ecuador 135 New Zealand 0 Argentina 139 from 24 months to 48. But it limits fixed-term contracts United States 0 Mozambique 143 to temporary tasks, reducing the ease of hiring overall. Puerto Rico 0 Sri Lanka 169 In South Asia, Pakistan extended overtime limits for Afghanistan 0 Ghana 178 retail workers from 150 hours a year to 624 and made Iraq 0 Zambia 178 working hours more flexible. Bhutan went much further, Marshall Islands 0 Sierra Leone 189 Micronesia 0 Zimbabwe 446 implementing its first labor code. The law removes the Palau 0 Bolivia not possible 12-month limit on fixed-term contracts, eases restric- Tonga 0 Venezuela not possible tions on night work and does away with mandatory pay Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) premiums for daytime overtime. Least Most Bhutan's law also prohibits forced labor, discrimina- tion, sexual harassment and child labor. And it replaces 13, including: Hungary 34 Bangladesh 0 Czech Republic 35 protections that hurt workers with ones that make sense. Botswana 0 Slovakia 35 For example, before the reform it was illegal for a preg- Cambodia 0 Brazil 37 nant woman to work past 9:00 p.m.--even a woman just Comoros 0 Italy 37 1 month into her pregnancy. Now a pregnant employee Eritrea 0 Ukraine 38 can work past 9:00 p.m. if she chooses. More important, Ethiopia 0 Belarus 39 Lesotho 0 China 44 the new law prohibits firing a woman on the grounds of Maldives 0 France 47 pregnancy. West Bank and Gaza 0 Belgium 55 Some countries made their employment regula- Note: "not possible" indicates a full ban on firing low-paid workers for economic reasons. tions more rigid. Venezuela extended its prohibition on Source: Doing Business database. redundancy dismissals to workers earning up to 3 times the minimum wage. Moldova increased its severance pay requirements from 20 weeks to 28.7. And Slovenia reduced the maximum duration of fixed-term contracts to 24 months. (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 22 Doing Business 2008 What to reform? Seventy-five countries permit flexible night work Since 2004, 35 countries have made their labor laws more and allow employees to work up to 50 hours a week for flexible (figure 4.2). Another 15 have made them more 2 months a year to respond to a seasonal increase in rigid. Here are 4 reforms that create job opportunities demand--for example, to serve as a lifeguard at the --especially for women, youth and the unskilled--by beach in the summer or to sell Christmas trees in the making it easier for businesses to operate: winter. · Allowflexibleworkinghours. · Introduceapprenticewages. Introduce apprentice wages · Lowerdismissalcosts. Apprentice contracts exist in nearly all rich countries · Raiseandequalizemandatoryretirementages. along with about 25 others, including Burkina Faso, Chile, Madagascar, Thailand and Tunisia. These allow Allow flexible working hours businesses to hire first-time employees for a portion-- typically 75%--of the mandatory wage for a short period. In Ukraine overtime is allowed only under exceptional The workers can get training and the opportunity for circumstances--such as to respond to natural disasters a job, and the businesses have an incentive to keep the or avoid the destruction of property. In Côte d'Ivoire workers once they have invested in their training. This employees cannot work more than 75 hours of overtime is an easy reform to introduce: beneficiaries are easy to a year--even if they want to. In Panama only specially target and political opposition is unlikely, especially in designated businesses can operate on Sundays. In Alge- countries with high youth unemployment. ria a woman can work at night only if she has a special exception granted by a labor inspector. These laws were Lower dismissal costs created to protect employees. But they usually backfire-- In the Republic of Congo an employer who wishes to and take work away from willing workers. dismiss redundant workers must first write to the work- Businesses sometimes need longer workweeks to ers' representatives, seeking their guidance. Then the respond to seasonal increases in demand. Reformers in employer must obtain the authorization of a commis- the Czech Republic and Serbia have responded by allow- sion headed by the labor inspector. If the dismissal is ing businesses to shift their work schedules with rising approved, the employer must choose whom to lay off demand. Hours worked can be averaged over a 6-month according to the order set out in the law, taking into ac- period--a year in the Czech Republic, if established by count seniority and other factors. And the workers can collective agreement. Bhutan's new Labor and Employ- choose to appeal the decision to the minister of labor. ment Act provides for more flexible night work sched- Zambia has no third-party notification require- ules by removing the previous 7-hour cap on night shifts ments. But a worker with 20 years of service is entitled and replacing it with extra pay for overtime at night. to 40 months' severance pay. In Sri Lanka the law man- FIGURE 4.2 dates 39 months' severance pay when the layoff is due More labor law reforms in Eastern Europe & Central Asia to economic downturn. These rules hit businesses at the worst possible time--when layoffs are needed because of Number of positive reforms in 2004­07 falling demand for their products. Eastern Europe Some of these requirements were created with good & Central Asia 15 OECD intentions. But high firing costs scare employers away high income 10 from creating jobs. Women and youth are affected most. Sub-Saharan Africa 4 One study shows that tougher regulation of dismissals Latin America in Chile increased relative employment for middle-aged & Caribbean 2 men at the expense of women, youth and unskilled East Asia & Paci c 2 workers.7 In Peru reductions in dismissal costs in the South Asia 2 1990s brought more women into the formal sector. And Middle East wages for women rose relative to those for men.8 & North Africa 0 Another way to ease dismissal costs is to offer un- employment insurance rather than severance pay. This Source: Doing Business database. is a viable reform in middle-income and rich countries. (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank eMPLoYing WoRKeRs 23 In Austria employers contribute to a fund from which FIGURE 4.3 Equality in retirement age--lowest in Eastern Europe they may withdraw if a worker is made redundant after 3 years of employment. In St. Kitts and Nevis severance Countries with equal retirement ages for men and women (%) payments are made from a government-administered Eastern Europe & Central Asia EQUAL LOWER FOR WOMEN fund that employers pay into over time. In Italy em- Middle East ployers deposit a portion of each employee's salary into & North Africa a designated fund over the course of the employment Latin America & Caribbean relationship. In these countries employers do not have South Asia to pay additional severance when dismissing workers OECD because of redundancy. high income Sub-Saharan Africa Raise and equalize mandatory retirement ages East Asia & Paci c Every country with an aging population faces a choice: raise the mandatory retirement age or face the collapse 0 20 40 60 80 100 of the pension system. Pension systems have not kept Source: Doing Business database. pace with changing demographics. Most Western Eu- ropean countries introduced their 65-year retirement The European Union has obliged members to adopt age before World War II. Life expectancies have risen identical retirement ages. Germany just revised its labor by a decade, but the retirement age stands unchanged. law: starting in 2029, both men and women will retire Requiring more years at work would reduce the burden at 67. Other countries should follow. Women will see on social security and make it easier for governments to higher retirement pay. And businesses will be able to reduce taxes on business. keep their productive workers longer. When raising retirement ages, reformers can take the opportunity to equalize them. In Russia women live Notes 12 years longer than men on average. But they must re- tire at age 55, while men retire at 60. Worldwide, women 1. Goldin and Rouse (2000). live 4 years longer than men on average. But half of 2. ILO (1998). countries force women to retire earlier than men. The 3. Amin (2007). retirement age gap is largest in Eastern Europe and Cen- 4. López-Córdova (2007). tral Asia (figure 4.3). The idea may be to benefit women. 5. Cunat and Melitz (2007). Instead, earlier retirement reduces their pension pay and 6. Freund and Bolaky (2007). career opportunities. 7. Montenegro and Pagés (2003). 8. Saavedra (1998). (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 24 Registering property "The process is slow for everyone, but especially for The 10 countries that make property registration women. I wanted to sell our store last year, but since my easiest are the same as in last year's report--with New husband was abroad, I had to wait 2 months for him Zealand again at the top (table 5.1). But some at the bot- to return and sign. When he signed the papers for me, tom of the rankings have changed. Uzbekistan moved up the deal went through--after 3 more months of bureau- 53 places after it cut fees. Guinea-Bissau moved out of cracy," says Catherine in Lesotho. This just changed. A the bottom 10 by reducing the property transfer tax by 8 law passed in November 2006 allows married women percentage points. in Lesotho to transfer property without their husband's Countries that make property registration simple, signature. fast and cheap have more properties registered formally. Making it easier to transfer property is good for That leads to greater access to finance and greater op- entrepreneurs. Land and buildings account for between portunities to invest.5 Country experience shows the half and three-quarters of the wealth in most econo- benefits of formalizing title and keeping it that way. mies.1 And with formal property titles, entrepreneurs Thailand's land reform program has issued more than can obtain mortgages on their land or homes and start 8.5 million property titles and created one of the most ef- businesses. Banks prefer land and buildings as collateral ficient registration systems in the world. For people who because they are impossible to move or hide. In Zambia received formal titles, land values and investment almost 95% of commercial bank loans to businesses are secured doubled, and access to credit increased threefold.6 by land, in Indonesia 80%, and in Uganda 75%.2 But a large share of the property in developing Table 5.1 countries is not formally registered. In 2000 Peruvian Where is registering property easy--and where not? economist Hernando de Soto estimated the value at Easiest Rank Most difficult Rank $9.3 trillion, calling it "dead capital."3 Unregistered New Zealand 1 Afghanistan 169 property limits financing opportunities for new busi- Armenia 2 Burkina Faso 170 nesses and expansion opportunities for existing ones. In Saudi Arabia 3 Bangladesh 171 Lithuania 4 Sierra Leone 172 Ethiopia 57% of firms cite access to land as their main Slovakia 5 Nigeria 173 obstacle, as do 35% in Bangladesh and 25% in Kenya Norway 6 Brunei 174 and Tanzania.4 Recognizing these bottlenecks, some Sweden 7 Maldives 175 governments have started extensive property titling Iceland 8 Marshall Islands 176 programs. Others have focused on making property United Arab Emirates 9 Micronesia 177 United States 10 Timor-Leste 178 transfers cheaper and faster. Note: Rankings are the average of the country rankings on the procedures, time and cost to register property. see Data notes for details. Source: Doing Business database. (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank RegisTeRing PRoPeRTY 25 Peru's experience is just as striking. Since the late women are especially great. Studies in India, Honduras 1990s the time required to formalize property has fallen and Nicaragua show that poor women's access to prop- from 6 years to 33 days. More than 1.3 million titles have erty is associated with more investment in the house- been issued, and two-thirds of those issued to individu- hold, especially in children's health and education.7 als have gone to women. The benefits of secure title for Who is reforming? even with the reforms, costs remain steep. With all costs Twenty-seven countries made property registration eas- added in, registration in Burkina Faso still costs 12.2% ier in 2006/07. Most made the process faster through of the property value. In Burundi the cost is 11.5%--and administrative reform. A few simplified it. Some of the in Niger, 9%. biggest gains were in lowering registration costs. On Eastern Europe and Central Asia saw 5 reforms. average the top 10 reformers cut the time and cost by a Uzbekistan reduced the notarization fee from 10% of third (figure 5.1). the property value to a fee based on surface area. The Ghana made the most progress. A ministerial direc- cost to register property fell from 10.5% of the property tive cut the requirement to register deeds of sale with value to 1.4%. Poland converted registration fees from a the land commission. Before, entrepreneurs would have percentage to a fixed fee, lowering the cost to only 0.5%. to wait 135 days for the commission to issue a registra- In Hungary a second registry operating in Budapest tion number. And then they would have to register yet reduced the backlog and cut the time from 78 days to again with the land title registry. With the stroke of a 63. Croatia's computerization of the land registry cut the pen the bottleneck is now gone, and the delays with it time from 399 days to 174. Georgia cut the requirement (figure 5.2). to use notaries in property registration. For the second year running, Africa had the most In Latin America and the Caribbean reforms reforms. Kenya liberalized the profession of land valuers. targeted delays. The Dominican Republic made the With more people able to practice, the wait for valua- region's biggest reform--passing 6 laws in the past year tions fell from 34 days to 7. Mali cut delays with quicker alone to restructure the registration process--and cut services for property registration at the tax authority. But the time from 107 days to 60. Guatemala now allows the biggest trend was to slash costs (table 5.2). Burundi registrars to sign documents electronically, speeding abolished its 7% property registration tax. Benin cut the process at the registry by a week. Honduras cut registration taxes from 12% of the property value to 8%, delays by imposing time limits and publishing more in- Burkina Faso from 15% to 10%, Guinea-Bissau from formation online. And Haiti's tax administration hired 10% to 2%, Mauritius and Niger from 10% to 5%. 60 university interns to reduce the backlog of registra- More is needed. Africa accounts for 9 of the 10 most tions. The time dropped from 683 days to 405--still a expensive countries in which to register property. And long wait. FIGURE 5.1 FIGURE 5.2 Top 10 reformers in registering property Making it easier to register property in Ghana Average improvement Time to register property (days) Top 180 2006 2006 reformers 2007 3% Ghana 150 Uzbekistan Niger 120 Egypt Time reduced from 169 days to 34 Portugal 90 Procedure eliminated: Dominican Registration of deed Republic 60 at land commission Honduras 2007 33% Burundi 30 34% Bhutan Procedures Time Cost Georgia 0 1 Procedures 6 Source: Doing Business database. Source: Doing Business database. (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 26 Doing Business 2008 Table 5.2 Table 5.3 Lower cost to register--a popular reform in 2006/07 Who regulates property registration the least--and who the most? Reduced taxes or fees Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Egypt, Guinea-Bissau, Mauritius, Mexico, Procedures (number) Niger, Poland, Uzbekistan Fewest Most Sped procedures in the registry Croatia, Djibouti, Dominican Republic, Haiti, Honduras, Hungary, Norway 1 Swaziland 11 Lesotho, Mali, Niger, Tunisia Sweden 1 Eritrea 12 Computerized procedures, put procedures online Netherlands 2 Greece 12 France, Guatemala, Portugal New Zealand 2 Uzbekistan 12 Combined and reduced procedures Oman 2 Ethiopia 13 Afghanistan, Georgia, Ghana Thailand 2 Liberia 13 Sped procedures in the court United Kingdom 2 Uganda 13 Bhutan Vanuatu 2 Algeria 14 Armenia 3 Brazil 14 Allowed private valuers to complete valuations Kenya Lithuania 3 Nigeria 14 Source: Doing Business database. Time (days) Least Most Egypt was the top reformer in the Middle East and New Zealand 2 Togo 295 North Africa. Fees were cut from 3% of the property Sweden 2 Solomon Islands 297 value to a low fixed fee of 2,000 Egyptian pounds ($350). Thailand 2 Bosnia and Herzegovina 331 The total cost to register dropped from 5.9% to 1%. Lithuania 3 Angola 334 Norway 3 Gambia 371 Djibouti reorganized procedures in the registry to cut Armenia 4 Rwanda 371 the time from 49 days to 40. Tunisia digitized property Iceland 4 Slovenia 391 records, allowing notaries to check files more efficiently. Kyrgyz Republic 4 Haiti 405 In South Asia, Afghanistan eased registration by Saudi Arabia 4 Bangladesh 425 eliminating 2 government approvals and simplifying Netherlands 5 Kiribati 513 forms. In Bhutan, where registration takes place in the Cost (% of property value) courts, 2 new judges were assigned to deal with cases Least Most more promptly. One month was cut from the process. Saudi Arabia 0.0 Côte d'Ivoire 16.9 Rich countries continue to use new technologies to Bhutan 0.0 Cameroon 17.8 speed property registration. Portugal digitized its regis- Belarus 0.1 Senegal 19.5 try records, cutting the time from 81 days to 42. France Kiribati 0.1 Comoros 20.8 now allows notaries to work online, checking encum- Slovakia 0.1 Chad 21.2 brances, sending property contracts to the registry and New Zealand 0.1 Mali 21.2 Georgia 0.1 Nigeria 22.2 receiving confirmation numbers--all electronically. Azerbaijan 0.2 Zimbabwe 25.0 The countries of East Asia and Pacific distinguished Russia 0.3 Congo, Rep. 27.3 themselves by making no improvements--for the sec- Switzerland 0.4 Syria 28.1 ond year running. It was not for lack of need. The region Source: Doing Business database. ranks fourth on the ease of registering property, after the OECD high-income countries, Eastern Europe and Cen- tral Asia, and the Middle East and North Africa. Several public more than doubled after notary fees rose. With Pacific countries have no functioning property registra- less than half of rural properties registered, the change tion. And the only country in the region that reformed will increase informality. Morocco now requires entre- in 2006/07 slipped backward. Vanuatu increased the cost preneurs to visit 3 tax agencies to obtain tax clearance. of registration from 7% of the property value to 11%. Germany, Paraguay and Zimbabwe increased registra- Another 5 countries made registering property tion fees. Registering property in Zimbabwe costs 25% more difficult. The cost to register in the Kyrgyz Re- of the property's value (table 5.3). (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank RegisTeRing PRoPeRTY 27 What to reform? transfer tax. In Egypt revenue from title registrations in- Since 2004 Doing Business has recorded 87 reforms in creased by 40% between the 6 months before the reform 64 countries that made it easier to register property. and the 6 months after (figure 5.3). More affordability Some countries reformed in successive years--Australia, usually means more registrations and less evasion. Prop- Croatia, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, El erty registries then have better information on property Salvador, Georgia, Ghana, Honduras, Mali, Poland and values and who owns what. And that supports the col- Tanzania. The 5 most effective reforms: lection of capital gains and property taxes. · Simplifyandlowerfees. Introduce fast-track procedures · Introducefast-trackprocedures. · Maketheregistryelectronic. To register property in Lithuania, entrepreneurs must obtain a certificate of execution and a land and build- · Takeregistrationoutofthecourts. ing reappraisal. This takes 9 days. Then they apply for · Maketheuseofnotariesoptional. transfer of title at the registry, which takes another 20 days. But if they don't want to wait, they can pay a higher Simplify and lower fees official fee and cut delays from 29 days to 3. "I need the title now for collateral to expand my business. If I wait, I Lowering fees is the simplest way to ease property regis- lose customers," says one property owner. tration. A more significant reform is to introduce a fixed Fast-track procedures help prioritize the work of the fee. Seventeen countries have fixed fees, including Ar- registry and allow entrepreneurs to focus on their busi- menia, Estonia, Italy and New Zealand as well as reform- ness. Such procedures can save 2 months in Ukraine, 21 ers such as Egypt, Poland and Uzbekistan. Charging fees days in Argentina, 20 in Russia, 15 in Kazakhstan and on a percentage basis encourages fraudulent declarations Slovakia and 10 in Mongolia. of property values. To counter evasion, many govern- Another 56 countries try to expedite registration ments increase regulation, making the process more by setting time limits at the registry. This works best complex with physical inspections or record checking when registrars are evaluated on whether they meet the at the cadastre. Delays and bribes increase. A fixed fee targets. One example is Botswana. The days to register avoids all this. property in Gaborone fell by 25% in 2005 after time Less radical reformers can simply lower percentage limits were imposed and compliance monitored in an- fees. Forty-four countries have done so since 2004. This nual staff performance evaluations. Spain went one step doesn't mean reducing revenues. When India cut its further: if the registrars miss their 15-day deadline, they stamp duties from 10% of the property value to 5%, rev- must cut their fees by 30%. enue jumped by 20%. In Burkina Faso registrations rose by 27% in the 5 months after this year's reduction in the Make the registry electronic "It is almost impossible to find records of past land FIGURE 5.3 Cutting fees increased revenue in Egypt transactions. All records are paper, and the filing system Cost to register property Six months'revenue broke down long ago. If there is a fire, we have no records (% of property value) from property registration at all," says a public official in Rwanda. It takes 371 days 5.9 (£E millions) 201 to register property in Kigali. Countries that transfer records from paper to elec- Registration tronic form always benefit from shorter processing fee 3.0 145 times. Going electronic also makes it easier to identify errors and overlapping titles, improving title security. Croatia digitized land records as part of its far-reaching Other land reform--and reduced the time for registration by fees 2.9 1.0 more than 70%. Guatemala has seen the time to register fall from 69 days to 30 since completing its electronic Before After Before After reform reform reform reform system in 2005. El Salvador, Georgia, Honduras, Poland, Portugal and Tunisia have recorded similar gains. Source: Doing Business database, Egyptian Ministry of State for Administrative Development. (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 28 Doing Business 2008 The next step is to put procedures online. This works Make the use of notaries optional when people using the registration services (notaries, In Senegal entrepreneurs pay a notary fee of 4.5% of lawyers, the public) have Internet access. The Nether- the property value to authenticate a sale deed. Then lands and New Zealand are leaders in online property they pay another 15% when the registry reviews and registration and, with Internet penetration above 70%, authenticates it again. In Honduras the notary charges use is brisk. 4% to verify the contract, and the registry costs another Other countries can benefit from putting individual 1.6%. Burundi, Costa Rica, Mali and more than 40 other procedures rather than the entire system online. Costa countries require this double verification. Rica allows transfer taxes to be paid online. Brazil has Here are 2 ways to reduce cost and delay. First, pro- made judicial certificates available over the Internet. Bos- vide standard deeds and registration documents. These nia and Herzegovina recently allowed property records to reduce delays by ensuring fewer mistakes and eliminat- be checked online. Latvia has done so since 2004. ing the need to scrutinize documents before registration. Take registration out of the courts Registration is just 2 steps in Thailand--pick up stan- dard documents from the Ministry of Commerce, then In 2004 the Dominican Republic took some property proceed to the land office to register the transfer. The registration procedures out of the courts and made them registration is done in 2 days. Second, in countries where administrative. The time to register property fell by 44%. laws require deeds to be notarized, such as Rwanda, re- El Salvador took registration out of the courts in 1999, formers can give notary powers to the registrars. When cutting several months from the time. Honduras and Portugal did this, notary fees fell by between 28% and Serbia are following suit. 60% in less than a year. In countries where courts are involved in register- Notaries have useful purposes. But their func- ing property, the process takes 70% longer on average. tions in property registration are irrelevant in countries And judges who deal with property registration have less where registry officials perform the same tasks. And in time for their main work--resolving disputes. Taking countries where notaries are responsible for registration, registration out of the courts means that it can be more costs are 33% higher than average. Three of 4 countries easily linked with the agency responsible for the cadas- manage property registration without mandating the tre, as Norway has done. That makes it easier to detect use of notaries. Property rights are no less secure, and overlapping and duplicate titles, improving the security efficiency is greater. Some property owners still use no- of property rights. taries, but they do so by choice. Notes 1. Fleisig, Safavian and de la Peña (2006). 2. Data are from World Bank Enterprise Surveys conducted in 2006/07 (http://www.enterprisesurveys.org). 3. De Soto (2000). 4. Data are from World Bank Enterprise Surveys conducted in 2006/07 (http://www.enterprisesurveys.org). 5. Field (2006). 6. Feder (2002). 7. Beegle and Strauss (1996) and Katz and Chamorro (2003). (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 29 Getting credit Credit is now more accessible in Panama, thanks to an money if a borrower defaults. The main way to recover ambitious reform of the credit bureau law in early 2006. bad debt is by taking collateral. By giving creditors the Before the reform many of Panama's 300,000 small and right to an asset on default, collateral also reduces a medium-size businesses--employing 68% of the coun- lender's costs of screening loan applicants. try's workers--were cut off from access to formal credit. Where credit registries and effective collateral laws So were more than 40% of Panamanian adults, mostly are lacking--as they are in most poor countries--banks the poorest. They were forced to rely instead on pawn- make fewer loans.3 Credit to the private sector averages shops and street lenders. 8% of GDP in the 10 economies ranking at the bottom This was despite advanced financial markets. With on how well credit registries and collateral laws facilitate more than 80 national and foreign banks, Panama has credit markets (table 6.1). In the top 10 economies it one of the highest ratios of domestic credit to GDP in exceeds 130% of GDP. Latin America. But the 2002 credit bureau law prohib- ited collecting payment information from utility firms. Table 6.1 Where is getting credit easy--and where not? That made it harder for poor people and small firms without bank loans or credit cards to build a credit his- Easiest Rank Most difficult Rank tory. And the system was opaque for borrowers: they United Kingdom 1 Uganda 169 Hong Kong, China 2 Burundi 170 could see the information stored in the credit bureau Australia 3 Lao PDR 171 only by requesting a report in person at its main offices Germany 4 Marshall Islands 172 in Panama City or the city of David. "We were seen as Malaysia 5 Palau 173 New Zealand 6 Timor-Leste 174 the `bad guy' who was denying credit to people," recalls Canada 7 Uzbekistan 175 German Espinosa, an officer at the Panamanian Credit Israel 8 Madagascar 176 Association.1 Singapore 9 Afghanistan 177 Lenders look at a borrower's credit history in decid- United States 10 Cambodia 178 Note: Rankings are based on the sum of the strength of legal rights index and the depth of ing whether to extend credit and what interest to charge.2 credit information index. see Data notes for details. They also want to know whether they can recover their Source: Doing Business database. (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 30 Doing Business 2008 Who is reforming? mitting credit information to the public registry. And Croatia was the top reformer in 2006/07, improving Honduras tripled its coverage of borrowers by adding both its collateral regulations and the availability of new suppliers of information and persuading existing credit information. In September 2006 a new collateral ones to provide all their data. registry started operations--and creditors leapt at the Some countries revised their credit information opportunity to use this new resource in deciding on regulations. Kenya's central bank issued new regulations loans. In May 2007 a new private credit bureau started requiring banks to report information on defaults to the distributing information. Coverage of borrowers in private credit bureau. In Honduras the National Com- credit information systems shot up from 0 to 72%. At mission of Banks and Insurance certified the private that rate it won't be long before Croatia ranks among the credit bureau, guaranteeing that borrowers can access economies with the most coverage (table 6.2). their data once a year for free. Serbia now requires lend- Another 15 economies improved their credit infor- ers to request a credit report before giving a loan. South mation systems in 2006/07. Armenia and Russia saw new Africa requires lenders to check their customers' overall private credit bureaus get off the ground, both providing debt levels and guarantees borrowers the right to access online access to credit data. The credit bureaus in India and challenge their credit records. The public registry in and Saudi Arabia now cover information on businesses, Belarus issued regulations guaranteeing that borrowers not just individuals. Egypt's first private credit bureau can inspect their data. will soon start distributing information to clients. The biggest pickup in reform was in the Middle East The most popular reform to credit information and North Africa (figure 6.1). Tunisia's credit registries was to expand the range of data available on borrowers now record all loans, expanding coverage of borrow- (table 6.3). Georgia added payment information from ers by 25%. West Bank and Gaza tripled coverage with electricity and telecommunications companies. Kenya a similar reform. In Saudi Arabia the public registry incorporated data from retailers and telecommunica- closed as the private bureau expanded coverage by 60- tions companies. Kuwait's credit bureau now includes fold. Morocco now has legislation in place for a bidding information from furniture sellers--and those in Saudi process to establish one or more private bureaus. Egypt's Arabia and Trinidad and Tobago information from new private bureau will use the data feed between com- mobile phone companies. Bosnia and Herzegovina ex- mercial banks and the central bank, avoiding duplicate panded the number of trade creditors providing infor- investments in data transmission technology. mation on firms, tripling coverage. Colombia's bureau Elsewhere, public registries expanded coverage by membership jumped from 1,450 to 2,100 in a year after lowering or removing the threshold at which loans are more trade creditors started contributing data. In Brazil included. Indonesia's public registry eliminated its mini- credit unions and microfinance institutions started sub- mum loan cutoff of 50 million rupiah ($5,460), increasing Table 6.2 Table 6.3 Who has the most credit information--and who the least? More credit information--the most popular reform in 2006/07 Borrowers covered as a share of adults Most % Least % Expanded set of information collected in credit registry Georgia, Honduras, India, Indonesia, Kenya, Kuwait, Pakistan, Saudi Argentina 100 Algeria 0.19 Arabia, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, West Bank and Gaza Australia 100 Mauritania 0.18 Established new credit registry or bureau Canada 100 Rwanda 0.17 Armenia, Croatia, Egypt, Russia Iceland 100 Djibouti 0.16 Revised credit information regulations Ireland 100 Chad 0.15 Honduras, Kenya, South Africa Israel 100 Ethiopia 0.15 Allowed out-of-court enforcement of collateral New Zealand 100 Madagascar 0.08 Ghana, Honduras, Romania, Vietnam Norway 100 Yemen 0.07 Established unified collateral registry Sweden 100 Nigeria 0.04 Croatia, France, India, Micronesia United States 100 Guinea 0.02 Expanded range of assets that can be used as collateral Note: The rankings reflected in the table include only economies with public or private credit China, Croatia, Vietnam registries (122 in total). Another 56 economies have no credit registry and therefore no coverage. Source: Doing Business database. Source: Doing Business database. (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank geT Ting CReDiT 31 FIGURE 6.1 Credit information reform--faster in the Middle East Table 6.4 Who has the most legal rights for borrowers and lenders Number of positive reforms --and who the least? 2005/06 2006/07 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) Middle East Most Least & North Africa 2 5 Eastern Europe Hong Kong, China 10 Timor-Leste 2 & Central Asia 5 4 United Kingdom 10 Tunisia 2 Latin America Albania 9 Bolivia 1 & Caribbean 6 2 Australia 9 Burundi 1 Sub-Saharan Africa 1 2 New Zealand 9 Ecuador 1 Singapore 9 Egypt 1 South Asia 2 Slovakia 9 Madagascar 1 East Asia Denmark 8 Rwanda 1 & Paci c 2 1 Ireland 8 Afghanistan 0 OECD Malaysia 8 Cambodia 0 high income 1 Note: see Data notes for details on the index. Source: Doing Business database. Source: Doing Business database. coverage of loans by 150%. Pakistan eliminated its loan can be used for loans to expand businesses. threshold of 500,000 Pakistan rupees ($8,350), boosting Two other countries expanded the range of assets coverage by 20 times. Central Africa's monetary union that can be used as collateral. Vietnam now allows busi- computerized its registry, allowing information to be nesses to use all types of assets and debt. Croatia's new distributed on all loans above 10,000 CFA francs ($20) law permits inventory to be used as collateral as long as rather than 5,000,000 ($10,400) as before. the location of the goods is specified. Sri Lanka slipped backward. It raised its minimum A big trend in collateral reforms was to set up collat- loan cutoff from 100,000 Sri Lanka rupees ($900) to eral registries. France, the top reformer in getting credit 500,000 ($4,500) and restricted the availability of infor- in 2005/06, launched a nationwide online registry of mation on repaid defaults to 1 year. movable collateral. India introduced an electronic regis- Reforms also strengthened legal rights for borrow- try for security rights granted by companies. Micronesia ers and lenders. Nine countries made it easier to create implemented its first secured transactions law and also and enforce collateral. China made the most progress, launched an online collateral registry. The registry ap- exiting the bottom 10 list on the strength of legal rights plies to all assets and all types of creditors and debtors. for borrowers and lenders (table 6.4). A new bankruptcy Making out-of-court enforcement possible was an- law gives secured creditors priority in receiving proceeds other popular reform to collateral laws. Ghana's new from their collateral if the borrower becomes insolvent. insolvency act allows secured creditors to enforce their And a new property law expands the range of assets that security directly rather than waiting for a judge to re- can be used as collateral to include inventory and ac- view their claims and order enforcement. Honduras counts receivable. Before the reform Chinese businesses now permits borrowers to agree with lenders on direct held more than $2 trillion in "dead capital"--assets that enforcement by notaries. Going through the courts used could not be used as collateral because of restrictions in to take years. laws. With the new property law, some of these assets (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 32 Doing Business 2008 What to reform? Eliminate legal obstacles to sharing credit information Since 2004 Doing Business has recorded 79 reforms to Credit registries store sensitive information, making credit information in 56 countries--and 42 reforms to credit reporting an easy target for critics. The best way collateral laws in 32 countries (figure 6.2). The experi- to counter their concerns is to introduce laws that safe- ence of these countries points to 5 reforms that help guard borrowers' privacy and create incentives for regis- entrepreneurs get loans: tries to maintain high-quality data. Legislation can guar- · Expandtherangeofinformationavailableincredit antee borrowers the right to inspect their data, obliging registries. the credit bureau to send them the data for review once · Eliminatelegalobstaclestosharingcredit a year free of charge. Such legislation is under review in information. 13 countries. · Allowalltypesofassetstobeusedascollateral. Many countries--including Bolivia, the Dominican · Establishregistriesforallcollateral. Republic, El Salvador and Honduras--have such regula- · Permitout-of-courtenforcementofcollateral. tions in place for private bureaus but not public credit registries. Costa Rica and Malaysia allow borrowers to Expand the range of information available in check their files in public registries but not private bu- credit registries reaus. There is no reason for the different treatment. Include information on telephone and electricity pay- Allow all types of assets to be used as collateral ments in the credit reporting. That way, people who've never had a bank loan or a credit card can still build a Alejandro, an Internet service provider in Guatemala, credit history. And avoid limits on this coverage. Panama describes getting a loan: "I was able to use my business allows utility information to be included, but only after equipment and frequencies as collateral. But they required the consumers give their written permission--making detailed descriptions in the contract of each of our 6,000- data on such payments expensive to collect. odd units of equipment, including their serial number, Credit reporting also is more valuable when it in- brand and model. We hired a technician to help. The cludes both data on defaults over the past 5 years and contract was 127 pages long! And when we update our data on on-time payments. That allows lenders to evalu- equipment in a year, we'll need to renegotiate the loan." ate the borrowing capacity of clients. And it lets good Countries that require specific descriptions of assets borrowers benefit from more and cheaper lending. For in collateral agreements make it impossible for a bor- banks, past payment behavior is the best indicator of rower to use changing pools of assets (such as inventory future payment behavior. or receivables), future assets (such as crops) or the entire business as collateral. This is especially costly for small firms, which are less likely to own real property and in- FIGURE 6.2 stead need to rely on receivables and movable property Collateral reform--Eastern Europe & Central Asia shows the way as collateral. A better way is to permit general descriptions in Number of positive reforms in 2003­07 loan agreements, allowing the use of all types of assets as Eastern Europe collateral--present and future, tangible and intangible. & Central Asia 18 OECD Bosnia and Herzegovina, Denmark, France, Peru, Serbia, high income 9 Ukraine and Vietnam have done so since 2004. When East Asia & Paci c 5 Slovakia allowed general descriptions, credit to the pri- South Asia 4 vate sector jumped by 10%. More than 70% of the new Latin America credit was secured by movables and receivables. Even & Caribbean 3 without such radical change, reformers can ease access Sub-Saharan Africa 2 to credit by broadening the range of assets that can be Middle East used as collateral to include such asset classes as accounts & North Africa 1 receivable (as China did in 2007), inventory (as Croatia did in 2006) and future assets (as Japan did in 2005). Source: Doing Business database. (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank geT Ting CReDiT 33 FIGURE 6.3 FIGURE 6.4 Big range in the time and cost to register collateral Easier to recover collateral in India Time to register collateral Cost to register collateral Time to recover collateral (years) in Mexican states in Mexican states 2004 (days) (% of loan value) 50 Quintana Roo 8 Nayarit 8 Time reduced 40 from 3,328 days to 201 6 6 30 Chihuahua Morelos 4 Chiapas 4 20 Guerrero Baja California Hidalgo 2 Tlaxcala San Luis Potosí 10 Veracruz 2 2007 Procedures reduced from 16 to 4 Michoacán Coahuila Oaxaca Colima 0 1 0 0 Procedures 16 Source: Doing Business database. Source: Doing Business database. Establish registries for all collateral Permit out-of-court enforcement of collateral In Syria charges over movable property are possible only Allowing creditors to enforce collateral out of court is if there is a corresponding registry--now the case only one of the toughest reforms, opposed by both borrowers for vehicles, vessels and intellectual property. Turkey has and the judiciary. But the benefits can be great. Peru's re- a similar system. The solution: allow all types of assets cent reform to allow out-of-court enforcement reduced to be used as collateral and create a unified registry en- enforcement time from more than 2 years (longer than abling creditors to notify others of their claim. Eastern the economic life of many assets) to 3 months. Other Europe has led the way in such reforms: in the past reformers--such as Armenia, the Kyrgyz Republic and decade 12 of the region's 15 countries have created uni- Slovakia--saw similar gains. Borrowers benefit the most. fied registries of charges over movable collateral. Other When creditors know they can enforce their collateral if countries--from Nepal to Vietnam--are in the process a borrower defaults, they are more likely to lend in the of doing so. With the costs of technology falling, estab- first place. lishing a unified registry has never been easier. Summary proceedings are an important backstop Once established, the most efficient registries re- to out-of-court enforcement, which could wind up in quire only an administrative review for completeness of the courts if debtors appeal. Only 2 pieces of evidence the application rather than a legal authentication, which need to be presented to a court in a summary proceed- stalls the registration process. The time and cost of reg- ing: a valid security agreement and proof of default. In istering can also be an obstacle. In Mexico, for example, the 56 countries with summary proceedings, enforcing it takes 8 days to register collateral in Michoacán but collateral takes half as long as in the countries that rely 51 days in Quintana Roo. And it costs 0.8% of the loan on other judicial measures. When India introduced value in Colima but 8.1% in Nayarit (figure 6.3). summary proceedings in 2004, the time to enforce col- lateral fell from more than 9 years to as little as 6 months (figure 6.4). Notes 1. Bustelo (2007). 2. Djankov, McLiesh and Shleifer (2007). 3. Sorge and Zhang (2007). (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 34 Protecting investors Mexican investors had a good year in 2006. A new se- protections from a 2002 securities law reform stopped a curities law came into effect, replacing outdated regula- growing flow of delistings from the stock exchange and tions with greater investor protections.1The stock market led to higher equity values.5 soared--equity prices rose by 55% for the year. The good NewZealandprovidesthegreatestprotectionagainst fortune continued into 2007. In June the courts upheld self-dealing (table 7.1). Singapore comes in second. Self- the new law against an appeal by its fiercest opponent, dealing is just one corporate governance failure, but it is one of the country's richest businessmen. The ruling the most important. Other investor protections--such as preserved the law's protections for small shareholders.2 election of directors, disclosure of remuneration or rules Stock prices rose even further. on takeover bids--are relevant mostly for richer coun- Mexico's reforms helped small investors--by provid- tries in a position to develop large share markets. ing for broad disclosure of related-party transactions,3 Several developing countries protect investors well. clear obligations for company directors and managers South Africa ranks among the top 10, and Mauritius and easy access to the courts when investors are harmed. comes in at 11. But across 178 economies, it is the rich Economies that regulate self-dealing--the use of corpo- ones that regulate self-dealing the most (figure 7.1). They rate assets for personal gain--see greater equity invest- require greater disclosure for companies, impose stron- ment and lower concentration of ownership.4 A recent ger duties on directors and make it easier for investors to study of Bulgaria found exactly that: tougher investor FIGURE 7.1 Fewest investor protections in Africa Table 7.1 Where are investors protected--and where not? Index Extent of disclosure (0­10) Extent of director liability (0­10) Most protected Rank Least protected Rank OECD Ease of shareholder suits (0­10) New Zealand 1 Guinea 169 high income Latin Singapore 2 Micronesia 170 East Asia Eastern Middle East & Paci c America & South Europe & & North Sub- Hong Kong, China 3 Palau 171 Caribbean Asia Central Asia Africa Saharan 6.4 Africa Malaysia 4 Venezuela 172 5.1 4.2 4.4 Canada 5 Djibouti 173 4.9 5.9 4.4 Israel 6 Suriname 174 5.1 4.5 5.1 4.3 United States 7 Swaziland 175 3.8 4.2 Ireland 8 Lao PDR 176 4.8 South Africa 9 Tajikistan 177 6.5 6.2 6.0 6.4 6.3 5.2 United Kingdom 10 Afghanistan 178 3.6 Note: Rankings are on the strength of investor protection index. see Data notes for details. Source: Doing Business database. Source: Doing Business database. (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank PRoTeCTing inVesToRs 35 FIGURE 7.2 Better investor protection--higher market capitalization and more listed rms Market capitalization to GDP Number of listed rms Higher Higher Lower Lower Lowest Highest Lowest Highest Countries ranked by strength of investor protection index, quintiles Countries ranked by strength of investor protection index, quintiles Note: Relationships are signi cant at the 5% level and remain signi cant when controlling for income per capita. Higher values on the strength of investor protection index indicate greater protection. See Data notes for details. Source: Doing Business database, World Bank (2005c). confront negligent or fraudulent directors in court. and private rights of action for minority shareholders are Across regions, Latin America requires the least dis- important for developing strong equity markets. Coun- closure of related-party transactions. Countries in East- tries that provide both protections have larger and more ern Europe and Central Asia regulate directors' duties active stock markets, smaller block premiums and higher only minimally, imposing vague obligations that cannot rates of new listings (figure 7.2).6 One example: 2 months easily be challenged. And court rules in the Middle East after Georgia adopted new securities rules, the country's and North Africa make it difficult for small investors to largest winemaker listed on the Tbilisi stock exchange, and gather evidence. Investors in Syria, for example, have no 4 other companies have since started the listing process. access to internal company documents when bringing In addition, reforms aimed at countering self-dealing are suit. That makes it easy for insiders to hide misconduct. associated with higher equity returns. Investors look for Both disclosure and extensive approval requirements upside potential, and they find it in reforming markets. Who is reforming? notice of the deal, its terms and the conflict of inter- Ten economies strengthened their investor protections est on their own website or that of the Georgian stock in 2006/07 (table 7.2). Georgia was the top reformer. exchange. Firms must also include such information in A revised securities law limits the possibility of self- their annual report. dealing in several ways. The law defines "interested par- The Georgian reforms also allow investors to appeal ties" in a transaction and requires supervisory board or harmful actions of directors to the court and demand shareholder approval for related-party transactions. It compensation--including a refund of the benefiting di- requires companies to immediately notify the securities rector's personal profit. To receive these damages, inves- commission of a related-party transaction and post a tors need only prove that the transaction could have had better terms and conditions. "Now directors will think twice before entering into transactions with related par- Table 7.2 Greater disclosure--the most popular reform in 2006/07 ties," says a corporate lawyer in Georgia. All this comes Increased disclosure requirements with a clear goal: "We have reformed; we are offering you Belarus, Colombia, Georgia, Iceland, Indonesia, Vietnam protections. Now it is your turn to invest in Georgia," Defined duties for directors and controlling shareholders says a government official. Georgia, Mozambique, Portugal Mozambique was the runner-up in reforms, adopt- Regulated approval of related-party transactions ing a new commercial code that replaced legislation Norway, Slovenia dating to 1888. The new code makes it easier to hold Passed a new securities law directors and controlling shareholders liable for miscon- Vietnam duct in 4 ways. First, it permits derivative suits--suits Source: Doing Business database. by minority investors against company directors in the (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 36 Doing Business 2008 Table 7.3 Where are investor protections strong--and where not? says, "More information, more chances to win in court." Vietnam adopted new securities and enterprise Extent of disclosure index (0­10) laws. The securities law sets up a new securities ex- Most Least change and trading center. The enterprise law mandates Bulgaria 10 Afghanistan 0 China 10 Albania 0 investor involvement in major company actions--for France 10 Lao PDR 0 example, transactions exceeding 35% of the assets of the Hong Kong, China 10 Maldives 0 company. The law also increases disclosure for related- Ireland 10 Micronesia 0 party transactions. And it introduces fiduciary duties Malaysia 10 Palau 0 New Zealand 10 Sudan 0 for directors--but fails to provide a way to enforce those Singapore 10 Swaziland 0 duties. No commercial tribunals in Vietnam have juris- Thailand 10 Switzerland 0 diction over investor suits against directors. United Kingdom 10 Tajikistan 0 Last year Belarus ranked among the countries with Extent of director liability index (0­10) the least disclosure of corporate dealings. This year it Most Least jumped 22 places in the strength of investor protection Cambodia 9 Bulgaria 1 rankings. A new law requires greater annual disclosure Canada 9 China 1 Israel 9 Afghanistan 0 to shareholders and approval of related-party transac- Malaysia 9 Dominican Republic 0 tions by disinterested shareholders (those without a New Zealand 9 Marshall Islands 0 personal stake in the deal). But shareholder involvement Singapore 9 Micronesia 0 in major decisions comes at a price: directors cannot be Trinidad and Tobago 9 Palau 0 United States 9 Suriname 0 held liable for damages if shareholders approve. So if a Hong Kong, China 8 Tajikistan 0 director persuades the majority of shareholders to sup- South Africa 8 Vietnam 0 port a deal and the deal goes bad, the opposing minority Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) cannot challenge it in court. Easiest Most difficult Other countries also increased disclosure. Iceland Kenya 10 Afghanistan 2 extended requirements for immediate and annual dis- New Zealand 10 Cambodia 2 closure to all nonlisted public corporations and leapt 17 Colombia 9 Syria 2 places in the strength of investor protection rankings. In- Hong Kong, China 9 Venezuela 2 Ireland 9 Yemen 2 donesia now requires more detailed information on com- Israel 9 Guinea 1 panies' activities in their annual report. And Colombia, Mauritius 9 Morocco 1 under its new Decree 3139, requires listed companies to Mozambique 9 Rwanda 1 report more information to investors. Before the reform, Singapore 9 Djibouti 0 United States 9 Iran 0 listed companies had to report any "relevant" or "extra- ordinary" event--a subjective standard that was open to Source: Doing Business database. abuse. The new decree maintains the broad "relevant" re- quirement but lists specific events that must be disclosed company's name. Second, it provides a detailed list of to the financial authorities. It also requires a company to directors' duties to the company. The previous code as- report extensive information before going public. signed directors a vague responsibility to "act in good European countries continued to strengthen protec- faith." Third, the code introduced special liability for tions. Slovenia now requires boards to obtain the prior controlling shareholders, including board approval for approval of shareholders in transactions affecting 25% decisions that may be harmful to the company. These or more of the company's assets. Norway expanded the guidelines for controlling shareholders are demanding-- definition of related-party transactions that shareholders and unique in the world. Finally, the new code gives must approve. Portugal made it easier for sharehold- investors the right to review company documents. If ers to sue by lowering the threshold for derivative suits company officials refuse, investors can turn to govern- from 5% of the share capital to 2%. Finland and Ireland ment inspectors to investigate. implemented a European Union directive to make The reform raised Mozambique's score on the extent capital markets more transparent.7 And the European of director liability index from 2 to 4--and its score on Commission opened consultations on creating one-stop the ease of shareholder suits index from 6 to 9, among shops for company information (such as the prospectus, the highest in the world (table 7.3). As a local lawyer annual report and ownership levels) in member states. (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank PRoTeCTing inVesToRs 37 With these, potential investors in Copenhagen, for Exchange Commission issued more than 50 rules or example, can access information about a company in amendments in the past 3 years. And Hong Kong (China), Greece. Disagreements about harmonizing disclosure now a top destination for new listings, has increased forms have delayed implementation. disclosure requirements each of the past 3 years. A note The most active financial markets reform continu- to market regulators: if your country's laws on investor ally. Japan and the United Kingdom both have company protection haven't changed in the past 5 years, they're out acts that are less than 2 years old. The U.S. Securities and of date. What to reform? Table 7.4 First, get the basics right. Investor protections are not the Simple solutions and where they have worked first point of reform for many countries. Poor countries Increased disclosure of related-party transactions would do better to ease business start-up, simplify prop- Belarus, Canada, Colombia, Georgia, Iceland, Indonesia, Israel, Italy, Mexico, Pakistan, Peru, Poland, Romania, Spain, Sweden, Thailand, erty registration and strengthen collateral laws first. Too Turkey, United Kingdom, Vietnam many countries get the order wrong. Take Mozambique. Defined duties for directors and controlling shareholders The Maputo stock exchange was established in 1999, Georgia, Jamaica, Mozambique, Namibia, Portugal, Spain before the country had reformed its commercial, invest- Regulated approval of related-party transactions ment and trade laws. It lists only 1 domestic company (a Israel, Jamaica, New Zealand, Norway, Thailand brewery, Cervejas de Moçambique), 1 international cor- Made it easier to sue directors Germany, Korea, Mexico, Tanzania poration and 5 government bonds. But a recent overhaul of basic corporate laws will likely attract other listings to Strengthened audit committees Costa Rica, India, Indonesia, Thailand the exchange.8 Gave shareholders access to company documents Once a country has the basics, it can help protect China, Hong Kong (China), Mozambique investors against self-dealing. Since 2005, 43 reforms Increased penalties for self-dealing aimed at this have taken place in 34 economies (table Malaysia, Pakistan 7.4). Hong Kong (China) is the star reformer, appearing Source: Doing Business database. each year among the top 10. Here are the 3 most effec- tive reforms: low board members, detailing both the nature and the · Opencompanyactivitiestoinvestorscrutiny. extent of that interest. If the transaction is approved, the · Requiredisinterestedshareholderapproval. company's annual report must fully describe the terms of · Wherecourtsarestrong,helpinvestorsbringsuit. the deal and the director's conflict of interest. In Switzer- land, in contrast, no public disclosure is required--not Open company activities to investor scrutiny even in the annual report. Investor protections start with transparency of corporate Require disinterested shareholder approval dealings. Require public reports for large transactions In Colombia and 2 dozen other countries related-party involving directors, as in Poland. Involve sharehold- transactions automatically trigger a vote by the com- ers more in corporate decisions, as in South Africa. pany's disinterested shareholders. In 9 of these countries And open company books for inspection, as in Egypt. an external auditor does a thorough review of the trans- Investors need to know what stakes directors have in action and reports to the shareholders before the vote proposed deals so they can stop harmful activities--or takes place. Compare that with Ecuador, where large sue for damages. deals involving company insiders need sign-off by only More disclosure is possible in rich and poor coun- one person--a manager, director, president or whoever tries alike. The Internet makes distributing financial and is named in the bylaws. This invites abuse. ownership information cheap. Malaysia and Thailand, Shareholder approval is easily undermined by loop- with among the most stringent disclosure rules, require holes, however. Investors in Cameroon vote on related- extensive online disclosure on related-party transactions party transactions months after they have taken place. before they go to a vote by the company's disinterested By then it's too late to undo a bad deal. Lebanese share- shareholders. Ghana requires directors to disclose any holders vote at the annual meeting for all related-party personal interest in a proposed transaction to their fel- transactions arising during the coming year--turning (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 38 Doing Business 2008 FIGURE 7.3 shareholder involvement into a meaningless rubber E cient courts help protect minority shareholders stamp. Still other countries, such as Slovakia, exempt related-party transactions from shareholder scrutiny Perceived protection of minority shareholders when they occur in the "ordinary course of business." The problem is, Slovak law doesn't say what falls outside Higher the "ordinary course of business." Companies easily by- pass shareholder approval. Where courts are strong, help investors bring suit Many countries restrict private lawsuits by investors, rely- ing instead on government inspectors to police corporate Lower activities. This has 2 weaknesses. First, no government Fewest Most can investigate every possible crime, especially in poor Countries ranked by days to enforce a contract, quintiles countries. Second, criminal penalties paid to the state do Note: Relationships are signi cant at the 1% level and remain signi cant when controlling for income per capita. nothing to repay investors for the loss of their investment. Source: Doing Business database, WEF (2006). When investors can sue, the damage awards go directly to compensate investors or the company harmed. court rules block plaintiffs from gathering the evidence Hong Kong (China) does it right. Strict disclosure needed to prove their case.9 The result? No cases are rules expose company decisions to investors, regulators brought because proving them is nearly impossible. and the press almost immediately. Unhappy investors Even the best of rules are useless if courts are weak. can sue directors for multiple misdeeds--including Papua New Guinea, Maldives and Slovenia have strong improper personal gains, oppression of minority share- protections on the books allowing investors to bring holder interests and negligence in running the company. suit and gather evidence. But even simple commercial Once in court, plaintiff investors have full access to disputes take a long time to resolve--591, 665 and 1,350 company documents to find evidence for proving their days, respectively. Less abuse of investors is seen where case. Cambodia goes only halfway--it permits investors courts perform well (figure 7.3). to sue company insiders for a variety of offenses, but Notes 1. See Johns and Lobet (2007). 2. Jesus Aranda, "Niega la Corte a Tv Azteca amparo contra artículos de la ley del mercado de valores," La Jornada, June 28, 2007, http://www.jornada.unam.mx/2007/06/28/ index.php?section=economia&article=025n1eco. 3. Transactions between a director or controlling share- holder and the company, such as the example considered by Doing Business. 4. Djankov and others (forthcoming). 5. Atanasov, Ciccotello and Gyoshev (2006). 6. See Djankov and others (forthcoming). 7. European Union Directive 2004/109/EC. 8. Moss (2006). 9. Cigna and Enriques (2005). (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 39 Paying taxes "In Sweden we pay taxes online. The corporate income single online form in Sweden to making 124 payments a tax, value added tax, labor contributions and property year in Belarus. Investors make their choices accordingly. tax are filed on a single form. Doesn't everyone do it that Countries with more payments have fewer formal busi- way?" asks Astrid, a Swedish business owner. nesses per capita and lower rates of business entry (figure Not yet. In Papua New Guinea, Syria and Zimbabwe 8.1).2 In Brazil, for example, the Simples program, which tax forms are brought in person to the tax office and eases tax requirements for small businesses, increased "discussed" with a tax officer to make sure calculations business registrations in the retail sector by 13 percent are correct. To comply with regulations on taxes and compared with the year before the program started.3 contributions1 in the Republic of Congo, a company Countries that make it easier to pay taxes and contri- must make 89 payments a year, spend 106 days and pay butions also have higher rates of workforce participation, 65.4% of its profits. Meanwhile, the company has to fill and lower rates of unemployment, among women.4 The out 50 pages of forms for corporate income taxes, 50 for reason is simple: a burdensome tax system disproportion- labor taxes and contributions and 36 for consumption ately hurts smaller businesses, especially in the services taxes. Only Belarus and Ukraine have a more burden- sector, and this is where most women work. In Colombia, some tax system. where women outnumber men almost 2 to 1 among the The ease of paying taxes can range from filing a unemployed, small businesses have to pay 82.4% of their FIGURE 8.1 More burdensome taxes and contributions, fewer formal businesses Business density Business entry Higher Higher rate Lower Lower rate Fewest Most Easiest Most di cult Countries ranked by number of tax payments, quintiles Countries ranked by ease of paying taxes, quintiles Note: Relationships are signi cant at the 1% level and remain signi cant when controlling for income per capita. Business density is the number of formally registered rms per capita. Business entry is the number of rms created in a year as a percentage of all registered rms. Source: Doing Business database, Djankov and others (2007). (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 40 Doing Business 2008 Table 8.1 commercial profits, make 69 tax payments a year and Where is it easy to pay taxes--and where not? spend 47 days to comply with all tax requirements. This is Easiest Rank Most difficult Rank changing, thanks to a new tax law enacted by the congress Maldives 1 Panama 169 in late 2006. Singapore 2 Jamaica 170 There is good news: paying taxes is now easier, espe- Hong Kong, China 3 Mauritania 171 cially in Eastern Europe and Central Asia, which had the United Arab Emirates 4 Bolivia 172 Oman 5 Gambia 173 most reforms in 2006/07. Revenues are growing as well. Ireland 6 Venezuela 174 For example, the Czech Republic saw its tax revenue rise Saudi Arabia 7 Central African Republic 175 by 2% after reducing the corporate income tax between Kuwait 8 Congo, Rep. 176 2004 and 2005.5 This is part of a longer global trend--the New Zealand 9 Ukraine 177 Kiribati 10 Belarus 178 tax burden on businesses has decreased every year since Note: Rankings are the average of the country rankings on the number of payments, time and 1985.6 A few places--much of Africa, some countries total tax rate. see Data notes for details. of the former Soviet Union and several Latin American Source: Doing Business database. countries--have yet to catch on (table 8.1). Who is reforming? Turkey was the runner-up in reforms. It reduced the Thirty-one economies made it easier to pay taxes in top rate for corporate income tax from 30% in 2005 to 2006/07. Reducing the corporate income tax rate was 20% in 2006 and introduced a new corporate tax code. the most popular reform, done in 27 economies (table Turkey also reduced the tax on interest from 18% to 15% 8.2). Moldova, Mongolia, Sierra Leone, Syria, Turkey in 2006 and simplified other taxes, such as the property and Uruguay made major revisions in their tax codes. tax and the tax on check transactions. And it improved Colombia, Israel, the Kyrgyz Republic, South Africa, e-filing, reducing the time businesses need to comply Uruguay and Uzbekistan reduced the number of taxes with tax regulations by 31 hours. paid by businesses by consolidating or eliminating taxes. Eastern Europe and Central Asia accounted for Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Colombia, Lesotho, Malaysia, the about a third of the reforms in 2006/07. Besides Bul- Netherlands, Turkey and Uzbekistan simplified the pro- garia, 8 countries reduced the corporate income tax cess of paying taxes by introducing or expanding elec- and 6 reduced social contributions paid by employers. tronic filing and reducing the frequency of payments. Uzbekistan reduced the corporate tax from 15% in 2005 Bangladesh, the Dominican Republic, Hungary, to 12% in 2006 and 10% in 2007. It gradually reduced Venezuela and Zimbabwe increased the tax burden on labor contributions from 33% in 2004 to 24% in 2007. businesses. Bangladesh raised its corporate income tax And it expanded the single tax payment regime for small from 37.5% of profits to 40%. Only Comoros and São Tomé and Principe have higher corporate income tax. Table 8.2 The Dominican Republic passed a law requiring com- Reducing tax rates--the most common reform in 2006/07 panies to submit paper receipts every month. Hungary Reduced profit tax introduced a temporary 4% tax on profits (the solidarity Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Colombia, Côte d'Ivoire, Greece, Israel, Kazakhstan, tax) and increased employers' labor contributions by Kyrgyz Republic, Lesotho, FYR Macedonia, Malaysia, Mauritius, Mexico, Moldova, Mongolia, Netherlands, Portugal, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, 3.5 percentage points--both with the aim of reducing Syria, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Turkey, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, the budget deficit. Venezuela introduced 3 new taxes. West Bank and Gaza Zimbabwe increased the road tax and the tax on check Reduced labor taxes or contributions transactions. It also introduced a new corporate tax form Albania, Bulgaria, Israel, Kyrgyz Republic, Mexico, Moldova, Netherlands, Romania, Seychelles, Slovenia, South Africa, Uzbekistan to accompany each quarterly payment. That increased Simplified process of paying taxes the time for tax compliance by 40 hours a year. Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Colombia, Lesotho, Malaysia, Netherlands, Turkey, Bulgaria was the top reformer in 2006/07: it reduced Uzbekistan the corporate tax from 15% to 10% and employers' labor Revised tax code taxes by 7 percentage points (table 8.3). And online filing Moldova, Mongolia, Sierra Leone, Syria, Turkey, Uruguay is now widely used for corporate income tax and social Eliminated taxes Colombia, Israel, Kyrgyz Republic, South Africa, Uruguay, Uzbekistan security contributions. Source: Doing Business database. (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank PAYing TAXes 41 Table 8.3 Table 8.4 Major cuts in corporate income taxes in 2006/07 Who makes paying taxes easy--and who does not? Region Changes in corporate income tax rate (%) Payments (number per year) Eastern Europe Azerbaijan 24 to 22 Fewest Most & Central Asia Bulgaria 15 to 10 Maldives 1 Venezuela 70 Kyrgyz Republic 20 to 10 Sweden 2 Jamaica 72 FYR Macedonia 15 to 12 Hong Kong, China 4 Dominican Republic 74 Moldova 18 to 15 Norway 4 Kyrgyz Republic 75 Slovenia 25 to 23 Singapore 5 Montenegro 88 Turkey 30 to 20 Afghanistan 6 Congo, Rep. 89 Uzbekistan 15 to 12 Kiribati 7 Romania 96 Sub-Saharan Africa Côte d'Ivoire 35 to 27 Latvia 7 Ukraine 99 Lesotho 35 to 25 Mauritius 7 Uzbekistan 118 Mauritius 25 to 22.5 New Zealand 8 Belarus 124 South Africa 12.5 to 10a Latin America & Caribbean Colombia 35 to 34 Time (hours per year) Mexico 29 to 28 Least Most Trinidad and Tobago 30 to 25 Maldives 0 Czech Republic 930 Uruguay 30 to 25 United Arab Emirates 12 Azerbaijan 952 OECD high income Greece 29 to 25 Singapore 49 Vietnam 1,050 Netherlands 29.6 to 25.5 Luxembourg 58 Bolivia 1,080 Portugal 27.5 to 26.5 Oman 62 Armenia 1,120 Spain 35 to 32.5 Switzerland 63 Nigeria 1,120 Middle East & North Africa Israel 31 to 29 New Zealand 70 Belarus 1,188 Syria 35 to 28 St. Lucia 71 Cameroon 1,400 Tunisia 35 to 30 Ireland 76 Ukraine 2,085 West Bank and Gaza 16 to 15 Seychelles 76 Brazil 2,600 East Asia & Pacific Malaysia 28 to 27 Mongolia 30 to 25 Total tax rate (% of profit) a. Data are for the secondary company tax, paid on top of the corporate income tax. Lowest Highest Source: Doing Business database. Vanuatu 8.4 Eritrea 84.5 Maldives 9.1 Uzbekistan 96.3 businesses. Moldova is taking the most ambitious step: United Arab Emirates 14.4 Mauritania 107.5 reducing the corporate income tax from 15% to 0% in Kuwait 14.4 Argentina 112.9 Saudi Arabia 14.5 Belarus 144.4 2008 after already lowering it from 18% in 2006. FYR Zambia 16.1 Central African Republic 203.8 Macedonia committed to reducing the corporate income West Bank and Gaza 17.1 Congo, Dem. Rep. 229.8 tax from 15% in 2006 to 12% in 2007 and 10% in 2008. Botswana 17.2 Sierra Leone 233.5 In Eastern Europe the main motivation for simplify- Samoa 19.8 Burundi 278.7 ing taxes is joining and being competitive in the Euro- Lesotho 20.8 Gambia 286.7 pean Union. That creates pressure on Western European Source: Doing Business database. countries to simplify taxes too. The Netherlands reduced the top rate for corporate income tax from 31.5% in 2005 the Central African Republic, the Democratic Repub- to 29.6% in 2006 and 25.5% in 2007. It also reduced 3 lic of Congo, Sierra Leone, Burundi and Gambia each of the labor contributions. And it introduced e-filing requiring businesses to pay more than 200% of their for social security contributions, greatly simplifying the profits (table 8.4). process of paying taxes. In Latin America and the Caribbean, Trinidad and Six countries reformed in Africa. Sierra Leone re- Tobago made the biggest reduction in the total tax rate duced a cascading sales tax--a sales tax that must be by cutting the profit tax by 5 percentage points. Uruguay paid on raw materials and cannot be deducted upon sale passed a new tax law that eliminates 15 taxes, simplifies of the final product--from 15% to 10%. Next year it is the social contributions and reduces the profit, personal likely to complete the process of replacing this tax with income and value added taxes. Colombia eliminated a value added tax. Four other African countries lowered the system of adjustment for inflation, simplifying tax their profit tax, and 2 reduced labor contributions. But computation. Africa is still the region with the highest tax rates--with (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 42 Doing Business 2008 FIGURE 8.2 Four economies in the Middle East and North Africa Business taxes lowest in Middle East & North Africa made their tax law more business friendly. While the main focus of reforms was reducing the profit tax, some Total tax rate Other taxes (% of pro t) Labor taxes and contributions Sub-Saharan countries went beyond that. Israel eliminated the stamp Africa Pro t taxes Eastern duty. Syria developed a large-taxpayer unit to make it 60 Latin Europe & OECD Central easier for large businesses to pay taxes. America high & Caribbean Asia Only 2 countries reformed in East Asia and Pacific, Middle East East Asia South income 40 & North & Paci c Asia the region with the second lowest tax rate (figure 8.2). Africa Mongolia put in place new laws for the corporate in- come, value added and personal income taxes, including 20 a new flat tax for individual income. Malaysia reduced the profit tax by 1 percentage point (with another 1 per- centage point reduction planned by 2008) and simplified 0 online tax filing. Source: Doing Business database. What to reform? Combine taxes Tax reforms are usually controversial, attracting intense Almost 50% of countries have more than one labor tax political debate. The choice is often perceived as being or contribution, 27% more than one tax on profits and between lower taxes with more votes but potentially 41% more than one tax on property. If the base is the less government revenue--and higher rates with dis- same (salaries, profits or property value), why not just contented voters but potentially smaller fiscal deficits. combine these? Having multiple taxes increases the In reality there is often no tradeoff between revenues bureaucratic burden for both the taxpayer and the tax and votes. Since 2005, 90 reforms in 65 economies have administration. Poland has the highest administrative pointed to the 4 most successful reforms: costs of tax collection among OECD countries, at 2.62% · Introduceonlinefiling. of revenue.7 The reason? A business has to make 41 tax · Combinetaxes. payments a year, including 4 different labor taxes. Many · Simplifytaxadministration. countries in Eastern Europe and Central Asia have a · Reducetaxratesandbroadenthebase. similar burden (figure 8.3). In contrast, tax administra- tion in Sweden costs only 0.59% of revenue, since all Of those 65 economies, 4 improved their tax system business taxes can be paid online. every year: Albania, Bulgaria, Mexico and Moldova. Several countries have joint tax payments. Bosnia Eighteen others reformed twice: the Czech Republic, and Herzegovina combines 3 labor contributions--and Estonia, Ghana, Greece, Hungary, India, Israel, Latvia, FIGURE 8.3 Lesotho, Lithuania, Morocco, the Netherlands, Pakistan, Compliance most burdensome in Eastern Europe & Central Asia Senegal, Sierra Leone, Spain, Turkey and Uzbekistan. # Number of tax payments Introduce online filing A quarter of the world's countries have electronic filing OECD high income 15 183 Time (hours per year) and payment of business taxes. That means no need for Middle East & North Africa 25 237 paper documents--and no need for personal interaction East Asia with tax officers. A third of the world's countries now & Paci c 27 272 use electronic payment such as bank transfer--and half South Asia 31 306 use payment by check. In Mozambique the tax author- Sub-Saharan Africa 39 316 ity favors check payments by clearing them faster than Latin America 39 407 bank transfers. But this choice has not been incident & Caribbean Eastern Europe free: some checks were deposited in accounts belonging & Central Asia 46 451 to tax officers. Source: Doing Business database. (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank PAYing TAXes 43 FIGURE 8.5 Uruguay 4--in one monthly payment. In Portugal com- Higher tax rate, greater obstacle to business panies can pay 2 taxes on profits together. Tax rate as perceived obstacle to business Simplify tax administration Major More than half of countries require special account- obstacle ing books for tax purposes. Two-fifths have more than one law per type of tax. So businesses spend a lot of time complying with tax regulations (figure 8.4). Mak- ing the tax rules for businesses complex is unlikely to No bring more revenue--quite the opposite. Countries that obstacle don't require special books have 10% more revenue (as a percentage of GDP) on average than countries that do. Easiest Most di cult Countries ranked by ease of paying taxes, quintiles And having a clear tax law increases tax revenue by 6% Note: Relationships are signi cant at the 1% level and remain signi cant when controlling on average.8 for income per capita. Source: Doing Business database, World Bank Enterprise Surveys. Clarity on audit rules can make a big difference. While the vast majority of countries have a system of self-assessment for calculating taxes, only about 16% use Reduce tax rates and broaden the base risk analysis as the basis for their tax audits. Yet tax audits High tax rates can force companies into the informal are a big opportunity for bribes. Using clear rules (and sector (figure 8.5). In the Democratic Republic of even statistical analysis) to determine who and how to Congo, with taxes as high as twice the commercial profit audit can reduce this opportunity and increase tax reve- for a company with a profit margin of 20%, businesses nue. Indeed, countries with audits based on risk analysis have a strong incentive to evade taxes. Indeed, half have higher tax revenue as a percentage of GDP--18% the country's manufacturing activity is in the informal higher on average--despite having lower tax rates. sector.10 Such countries can increase tax revenue by low- The reason is that businesses have fewer incentives ering rates and persuading more businesses to comply to hide revenues. One example: a 2007 study of transi- with the new tax system. Even countries with a smaller tion economies finds that businesses that report frequent informal sector can gain from this strategy. Greece saw tax audits are also 17% less likely to borrow from banks. its corporate tax revenue grow from 4% of GDP to 5% Instead, they resort to informal lenders. That way the after reducing the corporate tax rate in 2005. borrowed money stays out of the tax records.9 Notes 1. Doing Business measures taxes and contributions paid by a standardized business. The indicator includes taxes as defined by the system of national accounts (compulsory FIGURE 8.4 unrequited payments to general government) as well as More complexity, more time paying taxes government-mandated contributions such as compul- Time to comply with tax regulations (hours per year) sory payments to the employee social security where the statutory incidence is on the employer. See Data notes for Law is Many laws ambiguous 397 per tax396 Mandatory details. forms for 385 record keeping 2. Djankov and others (2007). Law is 1 tax, 328 clear 309 1 law Discretionary 3. Monteiro and Assunção (2006). forms for 282 record keeping 4. Alesina and Ichino (2007) and Azmat, Guell and Man- ning (2006). 5. World Bank, World Development Indicators database. 6. Slemrod (2004). 7. OECD (2007). 8. World Bank, World Development Indicators database. Ambiguity Redundancy Rigidity 9. Safavian and Wimpey (2007). Source: Doing Business database. 10. Schneider (2005). (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 44 Trading across borders Tarik, a fish exporter from Yemen, knows the benefits of of the reforms. Globally, the time needed to comply with reform: "If I export fresh tuna to Germany, I get $5.20 a export requirements fell by nearly 1 day (figure 9.1). kilo. If I export frozen tuna to Pakistan, I get $1.10 a kilo. Still, in many countries trading across borders is I would like everything to go to Germany. But it takes so more difficult than it need be. It takes a trader in the long to comply with all the exporting procedures that the Central African Republic 57 days to complete all export fresh tuna frequently goes bad. So only 15% of the fish is formalities. The trader has to submit 8 documents to a sent to Germany. My factory exports 2,000 tons of tuna range of government agencies, and spend $4,581, before a year. You make the calculation." Here it is: Tarik loses the container leaves the port in Yaoundé, in neighboring $7 million a year because exporting from Yemen takes Cameroon. That puts the Central African Republic at 33 days on average. 172 in the rankings on the ease of trading across borders Twenty-four countries made it easier to trade in (table 9.1). In Angola a vessel arriving at the port of 2006/07. Yemen wasn't one of them. Most countries sped Luanda has to wait 8 days before berthing. In the rainy the approvals to import and export. Reforms took place season delays go up to 14 days. in rich countries like Austria, large emerging markets Much is lost from delays in trading. The longest are like Brazil, India and Thailand, and poor countries like in Africa (figure 9.2). Each additional day that an export Djibouti and Uganda. Africa led, accounting for a third product is delayed reduces exports by more than 1%. For FIGURE 9.1 Speeding trade--especially in South Asia Table 9.1 Reduction in time to export (days) Where is trading easy--and where not? Eastern Middle Easiest Rank Most difficult Rank Sub- Europe & Latin East & OECD South Saharan East Asia Central America & North high Singapore 1 Zimbabwe 169 Asia Africa & Paci c Asia Caribbean Africa income Denmark 2 Burkina Faso 170 2006 0 0 Hong Kong, China 3 Congo, Rep. 171 0.4 Norway 4 Central African Republic 172 Finland 5 Azerbaijan 173 0.9 Sweden 6 Afghanistan 174 1.2 Estonia 7 Iraq 175 1.5 Israel 8 Tajikistan 176 1.7 Panama 9 Kyrgyz Republic 177 2007 Germany 10 Kazakhstan 178 Note: Rankings are the average of the country rankings on the documents, time and cost required to import and export. see Data notes for details. Source: Doing Business database. Source: Doing Business database. (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank TRADing ACRoss BoRDeRs 45 FIGURE 9.2 Longest export delays in Africa and South Asia time-sensitive agricultural products, reducing delays by Time to export (days) 10% increases exports by more than 30%.1 Often, just a Sub-Saharan Eastern South Africa few days less in exporting formalities can bring you into Europe & Asia Central 35 the market. Just ask Tarik. Middle East Asia 33 There are other benefits of reform. In a survey of Latin East Asia & North America & Paci c Africa 29 large multinationals, 65% indicated that they would & Caribbean 24 25 add new investments in Africa and the Middle East if it 22 were easier to trade.2 Instead, many prefer to locate in OECD Eastern Europe, closer to home. One example: in 2005 high income Tunisia lost a bid for a new factory for a German car 10 manufacturer--and the 1,700 jobs it would have created. Romania was chosen instead.3 Easier trade across borders can diversify exports and boost employment.4 In developing countries women Source: Doing Business database. benefit the most, because female workers dominate many export-oriented industries. In Kenya, for example, women make up 75% of workers in the cut-flower indus- try, the country's most successful exporter.5 Who is reforming? tially privatized the customs bonded warehouse, making India was the top reformer in trading across borders in it cheaper for traders to store goods there. Because of 2006/07. It introduced online customs declarations for greater competition from newly built warehouses, prices imports and exports. Arriving ships now submit their for storage dropped by 40%. cargo manifests electronically, allowing the clearance Countries in Eastern Europe and Central Asia con- process to begin even before the ship docks. These tinued to reform. Armenia introduced electronic trans- reforms helped cut delays for exporters and importers mission of trading documents, reducing the time to pre- by 7 days. On average the top 10 reformers each cut the pare and submit documents to customs by 3 days. FYR time to export by 5 days. Macedonia eliminated duplicate customs procedures at In Bosnia and Herzegovina customs clearance sped its borders. Waiting time fell by 75%. up sharply, thanks to a new online system. Traders sub- Some of the reduction in delays for the region's ex- mit their customs declarations electronically and get a porters comes from an unusual source: the entry of for- response within 30 minutes. Before, this was done face- eign banks. "Banking services are improving every day. to-face with customs officials, a long process and a great opportunity to extract bribes. Another 13 reformers set up or improved electronic exchange of information be- Table 9.2 Electronic data interchange--the most popular reform in tween traders and customs (table 9.2). 2006/07 Several African countries reformed. Uganda ex- Introduced or improved electronic data interchange system tended online declarations for traders to more border Armenia, Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Costa Rica, Djibouti, crossings across the country and is linking its new sys- Ghana, Guatemala, India, Madagascar, Rwanda, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Turkey, Uganda tems with Kenya's. That will speed transit trade through the port of Mombasa to Uganda. In Ghana delays at the Improved customs administration Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Egypt, El Salvador, Guatemala, Tema port were cut by 2 days with the construction of India, Mauritius, Morocco, Turkey a new terminal and the creation of a system that allows Introduced risk-based inspections into the port area only trucks ready to load or unload Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Egypt, Guatemala, India, Uganda cargo. The changes also cut trading time for Burkina Improved procedures at ports Faso, a landlocked neighbor. Colombia, Djibouti, Egypt, Gambia, Ghana, Madagascar, Saudi Arabia Mauritius introduced a computerized risk manage- Implemented border cooperation agreements Bosnia and Herzegovina, Lao PDR, Thailand, Turkey, Uganda ment system for customs clearance. Now less than 30% of cargo undergoes physical inspection. Rwanda par- Source: Doing Business database. (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 46 Doing Business 2008 FIGURE 9.3 Colombia speeds exports duced a one-stop shop for importers, bringing together Time to export (days) different government ministries and agencies involved 40 in issuing clearances. 2006 The Dominican Republic abolished the requirement for a consular invoice. Before, all trading documents had 30 Time reduced from 34 days to 24 to be validated at consulates overseas. Brazil upgraded 2007 its online declaration system, reducing data require- 20 ments by 50%. Colombia expanded operating hours at Terminal handling the ports, improved roads to the ports and introduced cut from 3 days to 1 10 Document preparation selective customs inspections of cargo. All these helped cut from 20 days to 15 cut the time to export by 10 days (figure 9.3). In the Middle East and North Africa, Saudi Arabia 0 1 Procedures 7 abolished the requirement for a consular certificate. Much of the information required for customs clearance Source: Doing Business database. can now be submitted electronically, reducing trading Banks from Germany and Greece are opening branches time by 2 days. Djibouti's customs extended its work- in Albania, and the time to obtain a letter of credit has ing hours to weekends and national holidays. And the dropped from 14 days to 7," says Murati, an Albanian container terminal, now under new ownership, was re- exporter. Similar improvements took place in Bulgaria furbished. Morocco applied risk management to customs and Croatia. clearance, halving clearance time. Algeria hastened the Customs reforms sped up in Central America, in- approval of licenses for customs brokers. The number of spired by the recently signed free trade agreements with brokers increased, and customs fees dropped by 40%. the United States. Costa Rica cut trading time by more In South Asia, Sri Lanka introduced electronic than a week by allowing traders to submit declarations submission of customs declarations, cutting the time for electronically. Guatemala made it easier to pay customs trading by 7 days. Pakistan continued to expand its on- duties by setting up online payment. El Salvador intro- line declaration system to other parts of the country. What to reform? forwarder in Nigeria. It used to be like that in Pakistan. In the past 3 years 55 countries have undertaken 68 No more. reforms to speed trading. Pakistan reformed every Pakistan made risk assessment a priority in its trade year. Austria, China, Egypt, Ghana, Guatemala, India, reform. "Our studies indicate that up to 80% of trade is Jamaica, Mauritius, Pakistan, Rwanda and Yemen re- by responsible and legitimate businesses and does not formed twice. Five reforms are most successful in reduc- pose a threat to the country or its exchequer," writes the ing delays and improving export opportunities: customs office.6 So Pakistan limited physical inspections · Limitphysicalinspections. to the riskiest consignments. These inspections dropped · Goonline. from 100% of cargo before reform to less than 5% today. Now 70% of cargo is cleared in 1 hour, compared with an · ShorteninlanddelaysinAfrica. average of 10 days in 2004. Fewer inspections don't mean · Measuredelaysattheborder. less revenue--customs revenue is up by 20%. · Shiftfromcuttingtariffstocuttingdelays. Reform wasn't easy. Pakistan had failed earlier.7 This time customs reforms started with simple administra- Limit physical inspections tive improvements. Success in these brought support for Imports and exports need to undergo several types further reforms. of inspections--for tax, security, environmental, border Border agencies can combine their teams to reduce control and health and safety reasons. There is no reason the burden on traders. One study estimated that in these cannot be done at the same time. "At the port there 2003 exporting from the Kyrgyz Republic to Russia by are 5 government agencies that stop your cargo--quality land took 208 hours and that 60% of this was waiting control, port security, police, state security and bomb time at the borders--thanks to multiple inspections by squad. All of them demand bribes," says Tunde, a freight customs, phytosanitary officers, immigration officers (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank TRADing ACRoss BoRDeRs 47 and the border police.8 It used to be like that in Bosnia Measure delays at the border and Herzegovina. Now there is a single inspection. "The In Tanzania the tax authority carries out an annual ex- clearance process is very smooth--no delays at all unless ercise of random checks across border points. In August you fill in your forms incorrectly," says Sarko, a freight 2005 the average time to process documents for imports, forwarder. Similar reforms have taken place in El Salva- from arrival to entry into the country, was 8 days, 23 dor and Georgia. hours across seaports; 6 days, 15 hours across airports; Go online and 3 days, 9 hours across land crossings. In August 2006 the exercise was repeated to monitor the pace of In 2005 Kenya set up an electronic system for process- improvements. In a year, thanks to this and other efforts, ing customs declarations. In 2 years clearance times delays for importers had been reduced by a quarter on dropped by half. "We have not even started exploiting average. the potential of our information technology systems," Georgia's customs office is going even further. With says Buyonge, a Kenyan revenue authority official. the help of the U.S. Agency for International Develop- The reforms did not start smoothly. Many traders ment, evaluators were posted at random times at the 2 did not have the Internet access needed to use the new main border crossings (Sarphi and Red Bridge) and the system. At first port congestion worsened. The Interna- 4 customs terminals (Adlia, Opiza, Lasare and Barvil). tional Freight and Warehousing Association initiated a Their task was to clock the speed at which inbound cargo court action against the Kenyan revenue authority and is processed. Interesting differences emerged: while pro- won. The court ruled that the old paper-based system cessing trucks takes 28 minutes on average at the Red had to be restored. The deadlock was broken when the Bridge crossing, it takes 52 minutes at Sarphi. Similar reformers invited the main freight forwarders for con- differences were recorded at customs terminals.9 Cus- sultation. Discussions led to more operational support toms is now setting up a bonus system to reward teams to make it easier to use the new system. Now nearly all of customs officials that process goods faster than their large cross-border trades are submitted online. colleagues. The bonus is substantial: 2 months' salary for Shorten inland delays in Africa each customs official on a winning team. Often goods get delayed because of numerous checks Shift from cutting tariffs to cutting delays on the roads. Traveling from Lagos to Abidjan (992 ki- Trade reformers still focus too much on cutting tariffs lometers), a trucker faces 69 checkpoints. From Abidjan and not enough on cutting delays for exporters and im- to Ouagadougou (1,122 kilometers) there are "only" 37. porters. This attention is misplaced: a recent study finds The situation is similar in the Central African Republic that the cost of import delays exceeds tariff costs in every and Chad, adding to the already high cost of trading region, while the cost of export delays exceeds tariff costs (table 9.3). in every region but East Asia and Western Europe.10 Reforms often involve cross-border cooperation-- According to the same study, in Africa the cost of important, because transit regulations often impose delays is 4 times the tariff payments African exporters restrictions, such as quotas on the number of trucks al- face. This is corroborated by a striking number: despite lowed from neighboring countries. Accords with neigh- the many U.S. trade preferences for African exporters bors can speed the release of transit goods. under the African Growth and Opportunity Act, Africa accounts for only 0.23% of U.S. imports.11 Similarly, only 8.6% of the European Union's imports come from countries in Africa, the Pacific and the Caribbean--all beneficiaries of tariff preferences under the Cotonou agreement. (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 48 Doing Business 2008 Table 9.3 Who makes exporting easy--and who does not? Who makes importing easy--and who does not? Documents (number) Documents (number) Fewest Most Fewest Most Canada 3 Burkina Faso 11 Denmark 3 Tajikistan 11 Estonia 3 Congo, Rep. 11 Sweden 3 Congo, Rep. 12 Micronesia 3 Mauritania 11 Canada 4 Eritrea 13 Panama 3 Namibia 11 Estonia 4 Fiji 13 Denmark 4 Afghanistan 12 Hong Kong, China 4 Kyrgyz Republic 13 Finland 4 Angola 12 Ireland 4 Russia 13 France 4 Kazakhstan 12 Israel 4 Zimbabwe 13 Hong Kong, China 4 Malawi 12 Norway 4 Azerbaijan 14 Norway 4 Fiji 13 Panama 4 Kazakhstan 14 Singapore 4 Kyrgyz Republic 13 Singapore 4 Central African Republic 18 Time (days) Time (days) Least Most Least Most Denmark 5 Eritrea 59 Singapore 3 Eritrea 69 Estonia 5 Niger 59 Denmark 5 Rwanda 69 Singapore 5 Angola 64 Estonia 5 Afghanistan 71 Hong Kong, China 6 Kyrgyz Republic 64 Hong Kong, China 5 Burundi 71 Luxembourg 6 Afghanistan 67 United States 5 Kyrgyz Republic 75 Netherlands 6 Chad 78 Luxembourg 6 Kazakhstan 76 United States 6 Uzbekistan 80 Netherlands 6 Tajikistan 83 Canada 7 Tajikistan 82 Sweden 6 Iraq 101 Germany 7 Kazakhstan 89 Germany 7 Chad 102 Ireland 7 Iraq 102 Norway 7 Uzbekistan 104 Cost (US$ per container) Cost (US$ per container) Least Most Least Most China 390 Uzbekistan 2,550 Singapore 367 Uganda 2,990 Singapore 416 Azerbaijan 2,715 Malaysia 385 Mongolia 3,197 Finland 420 Kazakhstan 2,730 Finland 420 Iraq 3,400 Malaysia 432 Uganda 2,940 China 430 Burkina Faso 3,522 United Arab Emirates 462 Niger 2,945 Iceland 443 Burundi 3,705 Iceland 469 Rwanda 2,975 United Arab Emirates 462 Uzbekistan 4,050 Brunei 515 Tajikistan 3,000 Norway 468 Tajikistan 4,500 Pakistan 515 Iraq 3,400 Hong Kong, China 525 Central African Republic 4,534 Norway 518 Central African Republic 4,581 Denmark 540 Rwanda 4,970 Hong Kong, China 525 Chad 4,867 El Salvador 540 Chad 5,520 Source: Doing Business database. Notes 1. Djankov, Freund and Pham (2007). 7. Dennis (2007). 2. ERT (2005). 8. ESCAP (2003). 3. Muller-Jentsch (2005). 9. USAID (2006). 4. Dennis and Shepherd (2007). 10. Hummels (2007). 5. World Bank (2005b). 11. Bureau, Chakir and Gallezot (2006). 6. Pakistan Customs Office, "PACCS Salient Features," http://www.paccs.gov.pk/DesktopDefault aspx ?tabindex=0&tabid=8 (accessed May 17, 2007). (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 49 Enforcing contracts Why do many Italians live with their parents? A recent utility companies bring truckloads of claims for unpaid study finds that renting an apartment is difficult in bills to the courthouse. These represented 70% of the countries where the courts are slow.1 In Italy resolving court backlog in 2006/07. In India the government is disputes in the courts takes 1,210 days on average, so the biggest litigator--mostly on tax matters. That coun- landlords hesitate to rent to young people. try has one of the least efficient judiciaries in the world Running efficient courts is a challenge for many (table 10.1). governments, even in rich countries such as Italy and The primary role of the judiciary is to enhance Slovenia. In 2006 Slovenia adopted a law obliging the justice, fairness and equity. But efficient courts do much government to pay plaintiffs up to 5,000 per case as a more--they help the economy grow. A recent study fine for delayed justice. This came after the European finds that in countries with expedient courts, such as Court of Human Rights ruled that the Slovenian gov- Lithuania, adopting a creditor protection law increases ernment had failed to deliver justice within a reason- bank lending by 27% on average. But such a law makes able time. Slovenian courts outdo those in Djibouti and little difference in countries with slow courts, such as Guinea-Bissau in trying the patience of plaintiffs, taking Serbia, increasing bank lending by only 7%.2 1,350 days on average to resolve a dispute. In many countries only the rich can afford to re- Sometimes governments are to blame for the heavy solve disputes through the courts. For the rest, justice caseloads in the courts. In Bosnia and Herzegovina state is out of reach. In Indonesia recovering an overdue debt of $2,840 (twice the annual income per capita) Table 10.1 Where is enforcing contracts easy--and where not? would often cost more in court and attorney fees than the amount claimed. In Papua New Guinea a creditor Easiest Rank Most difficult Rank might pay as much as $1,700 to recover a debt of $1,540 Hong Kong, China 1 Central African Republic 169 (again twice the average income). In Mozambique the Luxembourg 2 Belize 170 Latvia 3 Syria 171 fees for collecting a debt of $680 can be more than the Iceland 4 Cameroon 172 amount claimed. Businesses have little incentive to use Singapore 5 Congo, Dem. Rep. 173 the courts. Austria 6 Suriname 174 Finland 7 Bangladesh 175 United States 8 Angola 176 Norway 9 India 177 Korea 10 Timor-Leste 178 Note: Rankings are the average of the country rankings on the procedures, time and cost to resolve a commercial dispute through the courts. see Data notes for details. Source: Doing Business database. (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 50 Doing Business 2008 Who is reforming? Bobo-Dioulasso and Ouagadougou. Getting there wasn't In 2006/07, 14 countries reformed contract enforcement. easy--the reform had been in the works since 1990. The Almost half the reforms were in Africa--in Burkina Democratic Republic of Congo did it faster. Four years Faso, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ghana, Ma- after being created on paper, commercial courts in Kin- lawi, Mauritania and Mozambique. Eastern Europe fol- shasa started operating in November 2006. New rules for lowed, with reforms in Bulgaria, Moldova and Poland. these courts set strict deadlines, such as 8 days to appeal For the third straight year no major reforms took place judgments. Still, the cost of going to court is among the in South Asia, the region with the longest court delays highest in the world (table 10.2). (figure 10.1). Ghana's commercial courts, now fully operational, Tonga was the top reformer, cutting the time to en- have reduced the time to enforce a contract from 552 force contracts from 510 days to 350. A newly appointed days to 487. In Mauritania separate commercial courts chief justice introduced case management, transferring 90% of all cases--criminal, commercial and land--from Table 10.2 paper to computer. Cases are now monitored daily. If Where is enforcing contracts the most efficient--and where the least? they remain inactive for 3 months, the judge summons Procedures (number) the parties and asks whether they plan to pursue the dispute. In this way 472 cases that had been dormant for Fewest Most years were uncovered and dropped. Others were put on Ireland 20 Guinea 50 Singapore 22 Kuwait 50 a strict timetable. Hong Kong, China 24 United Arab Emirates 50 The reforms also raised the threshold for the magis- Rwanda 24 Belize 51 trates courts fivefold, to 10,000 pa'anga ($5,230), allowing Netherlands 25 Iraq 51 more cases to use a simpler procedure. And new rules of Austria 26 Oman 51 procedure for the supreme court provide for court refer- Iceland 26 Timor-Leste 51 Luxembourg 26 Sudan 53 ral to mediation in civil cases for the first time. Court Belgium 27 Syria 55 staff are undergoing training in Australia. Czech Republic 27 Brunei 58 Elsewhere in the Pacific, Fiji reformed. Judges now Time (days) focus exclusively on deciding legal disputes. A magis- trate was appointed to deal with other matters, such as Fastest Slowest assessing damages after liability has been established. Singapore 120 Sri Lanka 1,318 Kyrgyz Republic 177 Trinidad and Tobago 1,340 The big trend in Africa was to introduce special- Uzbekistan 195 Colombia 1,346 ized commercial courts. All 6 African reformers did Lithuania 210 Slovenia 1,350 so. Since October 2006, 4 judges in Burkina Faso Hong Kong, China 211 India 1,420 have been dealing exclusively with commercial cases in New Zealand 216 Bangladesh 1,442 Belarus 225 Guatemala 1,459 FIGURE 10.1 Kazakhstan 230 Afghanistan 1,642 Longest court delays in South Asia Korea 230 Suriname 1,715 Time to enforce a contract (days) South Finland 235 Timor-Leste 1,800 Asia Cost (% of claim) 1,047 Middle Least Most East & Latin Sub- North America & Bhutan 0.1 Comoros 89.4 Saharan Africa Caribbean Eastern Iceland 6.1 Cambodia 102.7 East Asia Africa Europe OECD & Paci c 699 700 China 8.8 Burkina Faso 107.4 & Central high 643 Asia income 549 Luxembourg 8.8 Papua New Guinea 110.3 United States 9.4 Indonesia 122.7 443 443 Norway 9.9 Malawi 142.4 Poland 10.0 Mozambique 142.5 Korea 10.3 Sierra Leone 149.5 Finland 10.4 Congo, Dem. Rep. 151.8 Germany 11.8 Timor-Leste 163.2 Source: Doing Business database. Source: Doing Business database. (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank enFoRCing ConTRACTs 51 have replaced the commercial chambers in the general Table 10.3 courts. And in March 2007, 2 commercial judges were Specialized commercial courts--still a popular reform in 2006/07 added to the 3 judges who had been dealing with all civil Introduced specialized commercial courts matters in Maputo, Mozambique's capital. Burkina Faso, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ghana, Malawi, Mauritania, More recently, in May 2007, the commercial divi- Mozambique sion of the Blantyre high court in Malawi started hearing Made enforcement of judgments more efficient or cheaper cases above 50,000 kwacha ($350). The court had been Brazil, Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, Poland scheduled to start earlier, but the procurement rules of a Expanded scope of small claims courts or introduced simplified rules for small claims major donor delayed the disbursement of money needed Guatemala, Portugal, Tonga to equip the courthouse. Established case management Also in May 2007 Rwanda adopted a law to replace Fiji, Tonga the 12 commercial chambers in the general courts with 3 Made efforts to reduce judicial corruption separate specialized courts, 1 of them in Kigali. The new Bulgaria, Moldova courts have a separate budget and court rules tailored Streamlined appeal Brazil to resolving commercial disputes. This followed earlier Source: Doing Business database. reforms that abolished the requirement for 2 lay judges to assist each professional judge in hearing commercial To fight corruption, Bulgaria and Moldova intro- cases. No one had volunteered to work as a lay judge, as duced random allocation of court cases to judges and this implied no pay, so no commercial cases were heard doubled judges' salaries. Bulgaria also made the selec- between March 2004 and March 2006. tion and appointment of judges more transparent. In Eastern Europe reformers in Bulgaria, Moldova In Latin America, Brazil continued its efforts to and Poland focused on making the enforcement of judg- make enforcement easier by allowing assets to be sold ments more efficient and reducing judicial corruption. through private rather than public sales only. Creditors Bulgaria introduced private bailiffs in 2006/07, can often get a higher price that way. Brazil now also shortening the time to enforce a judgment from 150 days obliges debtors to tell their creditors where their goods to 125. In Poland judgments are now immediately en- are. If debtors do not cooperate, they risk a penalty of forceable, with no need for a separate enforcement pro- 20% of the claim. Guatemala focused on expanding cedure. For debt collection, creditors will soon be able its small claims courts; they can now hear cases up to to choose the most effective bailiff in each district court, $7,850, rather than $2,000 as before. because the restriction of one bailiff per district court Portugal was the only rich country to reform (table was abolished. Poland also changed its procedural code. 10.3). Since 2006 it has experimented with 4 pilot Now new evidence can be presented for only 2 weeks courts--2 near Lisbon and 2 near Porto. The 4 pilot after the trial starts, and judges can impose fines on par- courts apply simplified rules to debt collection cases ties and their attorneys for adjourning cases by relying below 15,000. If successful by 2008, the reform will be on false facts. Another common delaying tactic--filing extended to the rest of the country. This reform is based counterclaims--has been restricted. The average time to on the model used in the United Kingdom, a country obtain a judgment fell from 730 days to 580. that continues to inspire court reform worldwide. (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 52 Doing Business 2008 What to reform? Streamline appeals Doing Business has documented 65 reforms in con- A number of countries have reformed their appeals tract enforcement since 2004. Some countries--Brazil, processes, respecting the right to appeal while limiting Burundi, Germany, the Philippines, Poland, Portugal, abuses. A balance can be achieved by excluding only the Rwanda and Serbia--have reformed more than once. smallest cases from appeals and by allowing the higher Five reforms made the biggest difference: courts to accept only cases that are new and fundamen- · Introducespecializedcommercialcourts. tally important to the country. In Sweden commercial · Streamlineappeals. cases can be appealed, but the appeals court now decides · Maketheenforcementofjudgmentsfasterand which cases to consider. cheaper. In Brazil and Denmark the supreme court now de- · Introducecasemanagement. termines which cases it will decide. Still, judges are over- · Introducee-courts. whelmed. The supreme court in Brazil issues opinions in 700 times as many cases as that in the United States. Introduce specialized commercial courts Make the enforcement of judgments faster and Six of the reformers in 2006/07 introduced specialized cheaper courts. Other countries, such as Azerbaijan and Egypt, On average 30% of the total time to resolve a commercial will do so in the coming months. Countries with special- dispute--the number of days from the time a case is filed ized courts resolve commercial disputes about 30% faster until payment is made to the winning party--is spent on average than those without them (figure 10.2). And enforcing the judgment. Sometimes enforcement actions if reforms in the specialized courts yield satisfied users, take years. In Côte d'Ivoire, for example, enforcing the they embolden governments to try broader reforms. judgment takes more than half the total time spent to Success with specialized courts also can bring un- resolve a dispute. Obtaining a written copy of the judg- reasonable demand. One example is Peru. The Lima ment and resolving disputes over enforcement are the commercial courts, in operation since April 2005, made biggest bottlenecks (figure 10.3). headlines in 2006 for deciding cases in less than a year. Several countries--Brazil, the Czech Republic, Fin- In February 2007 the judiciary ordered the transfer to land, FYR Macedonia, Poland and Romania--have re- them of 11,000 enforcement cases--about 11 times their cently reformed enforcement laws. In Poland creditors caseload--flooding the commercial courts and increas- can attach debtors' goods while the case is being ap- ing average delays. pealed. If debtors want to keep possession of their goods during appeal, they must give a financial guarantee instead. Since last year courts in the Czech Republic can order all financial institutions in the country to check FIGURE 10.2 FIGURE 10.3 Specialized courts reduce delays Big delays in enforcing judgments in Côte d'Ivoire Time to enforce a contract (days) Trial ends with 11 months to obtain 131/2 months to enforce 766 oral judgment an oral judgment the judgment 730 Before Obtaining specialized written judgment courts 552 With Request for specialized 487 voluntary compliance courts 457 434 Valuation of attached goods Disputes over enforcement Order for public auction Ghana Nigeria Gambia 0 6 12 18 24 Time (months) Source: Doing Business database. Source: Doing Business database. (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank enFoRCing ConTRACTs 53 whether the debtor holds an account with them and, if Introduce e-courts so, to automatically pay a judgment from that account. Litigants in New York have been able to access case Before, creditors themselves had to identify the banks data and documents through the Internet since 2006. where debtors held an account. In Romania a new law Lawyers in Milan can upload case information in a bar allows creditors to attach credit balances and accounts code that court staff scan and transfer to a case manage- receivable. In FYR Macedonia private bailiffs have started ment database. In 2006 Singapore introduced 3G mobile operating, shortening the average time to enforce a judg- phones to conduct virtual court hearings and a pilot ment from 90 days to 60. project allowing pretrial conferences by e-mail. Austria, In some countries creditors pay a registration tax Finland, Germany, Ireland and the United Kingdom set to obtain an original copy of the judgment. Without up online systems with simplified procedures for dealing it, they cannot start enforcement proceedings. In the with small claims. These claims previously took up most Central African Republic and the Democratic Republic of the courts' time. of Congo creditors pay 6% of the judgment amount as a In rich countries such as Australia, Denmark, Fin- registration tax. Cameroon, Guinea and Niger impose a land, Norway, the Netherlands and Portugal businesses 5% tax. In 2006/07 Burkina Faso reduced its registration can file court cases electronically. Some middle-income tax from 4% to 2%. Côte d'Ivoire reduced its tax from countries, such as Brazil, the Czech Republic, Slovakia 5% to 2.5%. and Turkey, made it possible to submit claims by e-mail Introduce case management using electronic signatures. Courts in some poor countries are going high-tech Case management involves monitoring and managing too. In India, for example, the supreme court, many high cases in the court docket from the moment the action courts and even some district courts have their own is filed until the moment it is finally decided. Analyz- website where businesses can download forms, look at ing court workloads can help predict trends and plan the court's schedule for the day, check the status of a case strategically. or read the judge's orders. The supreme court even allows Case management is successful if court data are electronic filing of cases. That saves lawyers time and simultaneously being computerized and if support func- money, because they no longer need to go to the court- tions such as case tracking, document management, house to pick up forms or receive the judge's order. deadline reminders and scheduling of hearings are done automatically. In 2006/07 the Philippines introduced Notes such procedures for 60% of all lower courts in Manila. Case management also makes it possible to measure 1. Casas-Arce and Saiz (2006). the performance of judges. And measuring performance 2. Safavian and Sharma (forthcoming). enhances performance--even for judges. If lazy judges are not disciplined and hard-working ones not compen- sated or promoted, performance suffers. In countries such as Nicaragua judges continue to oppose case management and performance measurement by arguing that they would interfere with their indepen- dence. The rationale for this opposition lies elsewhere. Randomly assigning cases to judges, by using case man- agement software, can prevent shopping for the judge most willing to accept bribes. In 2006 FYR Macedonia introduced such software in its effort to fight judicial cor- ruption. By July 2007 the country's judicial council had brought charges of corruption against 10 judges. (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 54 Closing a business Ahmed, the former owner of a clothing shop in Abu tated, sold as a going concern or liquidated--whichever Dhabi, made some bad business decisions that forced generates the greatest total value. The second is to reha- him to close shop last year. Hesitant to strike out on bilitate viable businesses and liquidate unviable ones. In his own again, he has been looking for a job--to no other words, bankruptcy law should be neither hard on avail. "No one wants to hire me," he complains. "There's good businesses nor soft on bad ones. The third is to pro- a stigma to having a business that went bankrupt." It vide for a smooth, predictable transition in the priority was worse in past centuries. The penalty for declaring of claims as the company moves from a good financial bankruptcy in ancient Rome was slavery or being cut to state to a bad one--and thus reduce investors' risk. That pieces. The choice was left to the creditor. By the Middle goal is achieved by maintaining the absolute priority of Ages the treatment of insolvent debtors had softened. In claims in bankruptcy. Northern Italy bankrupt debtors hit their naked back- Why reform bankruptcy? Bankruptcy reform is less side against a rock 3 times before a jeering crowd and glamorous and takes longer than setting up a one-stop cried out, "I declare bankruptcy." In England bankrupt business registry. But having laws that deal effectively with debtors were often pilloried or thrown into prison and troubled businesses helps get entrepreneurs to the one- occasionally had an ear cut off. stop shop in the first place. Easier exit means easier entry. Attitudes toward bankruptcy are one major obstacle One study shows that reforms to encourage a fresh start for reformers drafting bankruptcy laws. But there are other good reasons why few bankruptcy reforms take place. First, bankruptcy reforms are complex: they typi- Table 11.1 Where is it easy to close a business--and where not? cally involve making changes not only in the bankruptcy Recovery Recovery code but also in the code of civil procedure and the Easiest rate Most difficult rate administration of the judiciary. That may take years. Sec- Japan 92.6 Liberia 7.8 ond, in developing countries a large share of businesses Singapore 91.3 Mauritania 7.8 are in the informal sector, and bankruptcy is not a pri- Norway 90.7 Suriname 7.4 Canada 88.8 Venezuela 6.6 ority reform. Only 10 economies undertook significant Finland 88.2 Philippines 4.2 bankruptcy reforms in 2006/07. Ireland 87.1 Haiti 3.1 It's not that reforms are not needed--in many Denmark 87.0 Micronesia 3.1 countries creditors recover almost nothing (table 11.1). Netherlands 86.7 Congo, Dem. Rep. 2.9 And everyone agrees on the goals of a good bankruptcy Belgium 85.5 Zimbabwe 0.1 United Kingdom 84.6 Central African Republic 0.0 regime. The first goal is to maximize the total value of Note: Rankings are based on the recovery rate: how many cents on the dollar claimants (credi- proceeds received by creditors, shareholders, employees tors, tax authorities and employees) recover from the insolvent firm. see Data notes for details. and other stakeholders. Businesses should be rehabili- Source: Doing Business database. (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank CLosing A Business 55 have raised rates of new business creation by 8­9%.1 The reassures creditors that if things go wrong, they stand freedom to fail, and to do so through an efficient process, a good chance of getting their money back. So they are puts people and capital to their most effective use. The more likely to lend, and to require less collateral than result is more productive businesses and more jobs. they would otherwise. That's not all. A functioning bankruptcy system Who is reforming? limits into the reorganization procedure. Secured credi- China was the top reformer in bankruptcy in 2006/07. tors no longer vote on a reorganization plan unless the Its Enterprise Bankruptcy Law, 12 years in the making, plan involves their pledged property. But the law explic- took effect on June 1, 2007. The law, China's first regu- itly prohibits the debtor's owners from voting as well, lating the bankruptcy of private enterprises since 1949, so creditors will have a greater say. Hungary passed a significantly strengthens creditors' powers. Secured law that in most cases grants secured creditors absolute creditors with claims created after the law was passed priority to the proceeds from the sale of their collat- now rank first in payment priority, even over tax and eral. Croatia introduced educational and professional new wage claims. Another first for China: a reorganiza- requirements for bankruptcy trustees and shortened tion procedure for restructuring insolvent companies. timelines. The introduction of creditors' meetings and committees In April 2007 Uzbekistan issued a decree on vol- gives creditors more say. Finally, the new law introduces untary winding-up of companies outside regular bank- bankruptcy administrators to operate insolvent compa- ruptcy. The decree simplifies procedures and provides nies during bankruptcy proceedings. that if the tax authority does not conduct a tax inspec- Five countries in Eastern Europe and Central Asia tion in time, the company pays only its self-assessed join China as top reformers this year (figure 11.1). taxes. The decree also exempts financial assistance by the Georgia, the number 2 reformer, passed a new law that company's owners from income taxes and sets out the maximizes the value of debtors' assets, sets shorter time limits, regulates bankruptcy trustees and strengthens Table 11.2 Where is bankruptcy the most efficient--and where the least? creditors' rights. In place of a liquidation process that Time (years) takes 3.5 years on average, the law establishes bank- ruptcy procedures that should take less than 1 year in the Least Most event of reorganization and just 6 months if the business Ireland 0.4 Ecuador 5.3 Japan 0.6 Indonesia 5.5 is slated for liquidation. That would allow Georgia to Canada 0.8 Haiti 5.7 enter the top 10 list on the speed of resolving bankruptcy Singapore 0.8 Philippines 5.7 (table 11.2). Belgium 0.9 Belarus 5.8 Armenia passed a new law that incorporates time Finland 0.9 Angola 6.2 Norway 0.9 Czech Republic 6.5 FIGURE 11.1 Belize 1.0 Maldives 6.7 Top 10 reformers in bankruptcy Iceland 1.0 Mauritania 8.0 Spain 1.0 India 10.0 Average improvement 2007 8% Top Cost (% of estate) reformers Least Most China Georgia Colombia 1.0 Dominican Republic 38.0 Armenia Kuwait 1.0 Marshall Islands 38.0 Hungary Norway 1.0 Micronesia 38.0 Croatia Singapore 1.0 Philippines 38.0 Time Italy Brunei 3.5 Solomon Islands 38.0 2006 Denmark Recovery Finland 3.5 Venezuela 38.0 rate Mauritius Georgia 3.5 Sierra Leone 42.0 Portugal Japan 3.5 Ukraine 42.0 Uzbekistan Korea 3.5 Liberia 42.5 2007 4% Oman 3.5 Central African Republic 76.0 Source: Doing Business database. Source: Doing Business database. (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 56 Doing Business 2008 procedure for notifying the company's creditors. Table 11.3 Three rich economies improved their bankruptcy Increasing creditors' rights--a popular reform in 2006/07 systems. Italy reformed for the second year in a row. Granted priority to secured creditors China, Hungary, Uzbekistan Italian trustees now have broader discretion to maximize recovery for creditors in asset sales. This is expected to Introduced or shortened time limits on bankruptcy procedures Armenia, Georgia result in more sales of companies as going concerns. Established reorganization procedure Denmark granted the courts more power to oversee China, Georgia trustees and make sure they act efficiently; this has Set up one-stop shop for voluntary liquidation already shortened bankruptcy proceedings. Portugal Portugal, Uzbekistan created fast-track procedures for the voluntary liquida- Introduced professional requirements for trustees tion of businesses. Now an entrepreneur can wind up a Croatia, Georgia company at the registry office. The changes, similar to Strengthened trustees' role Denmark, Italy the recently adopted fast-track provisions for starting a Allowed sale at private auction business, are intended to reduce the administrative bur- Mauritius den of voluntary closings. Source: Doing Business database. Mauritius made debt enforcement easier by passing the Borrower Protection Act 2007. Before, asset sales tors. This could dampen creditors' interest in extending took place through a long "sale by levy" process that credit. Meanwhile, Argentina stripped bankruptcy judges failed to realize the assets' market value. The new law of jurisdiction over labor lawsuits and exempted such allows land and buildings to be sold at private auction claims from the automatic stay applicable to claims. Now (table 11.3). Mauritius was Africa's only reformer. Three labor suits are to be concluded at the labor courts before regions--Latin America, the Middle East and North presentation to the bankruptcy court for verification. Africa and South Asia--saw no reforms. Argentina also enhanced employees' right to demand Two countries made bankruptcy more difficult in payment of wage claims out of a distressed company's as- 2006/07. Botswana amended its Insolvency Act to give sets. A company must set aside 1% of its gross revenue to wage claims preference over the claims of secured credi- satisfy labor claims--even if it failed to turn a profit. What to reform? Minimize dependence on the courts Forty countries have implemented bankruptcy reforms In many countries, improving bankruptcy means im- since 2003 (figure 11.2). Many of these reforms were proving the courts. The reason is that winding up or long overdue. That's especially so for poor and middle- reorganizing a company often depends on the judicial income countries, where bankruptcy laws are 40 years system, with courts and court-appointed trustees direct- old on average. In contrast, rich countries have laws ing proceedings. Thirteen of the top 25 economies on the that average 5 years in age. By now the largest emerg- ease of closing a business also rank among the top 25 on ing economies--such as Brazil, China, India, Indonesia, the ease of enforcing contracts. Thailand and Vietnam--have all introduced significant Onesolutionistominimizetheinvolvementofjudges. bankruptcy reforms. Eight types of reform were most In some economies with efficient bankruptcy, courts play effective: only a limited role, if any. In Australia, Hong Kong (China), · Minimizedependenceonthecourts. Singapore and the United Kingdom secured creditors can · Establishspecializedcourts. appoint a receiver to take control of a distressed company. · Shiftpowertocreditors. This happens without any court involvement. The receiver · Limitappeals. then manages the company in preparation for selling its · Introducetimelimits. assets. More often than not the business is sold as a whole · UsetheInternettopostdecisionsandpublicize unit. The recent reforms in Georgia and Mauritius are auctions. based on the same idea. Other countries--such as Portugal · Introducefloatingcharges. and Uzbekistan in 2006/07--have made voluntary liquida- · Developthetrusteeprofession. tion an administrative process. (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank CLosing A Business 57 FIGURE 11.2 Few reforms in South Asia, none in the Middle East Several economies have given priority in bank- Number of positive reforms in 2003­07 ruptcy claims to creditors. Bosnia and Herzegovina, China, Finland, FYR Macedonia and Vietnam granted a Eastern Europe higher priority ranking to secured creditors. France gave & Central Asia 14 OECD a "super secured" position to creditors that lend money high income 11 to distressed companies, making it easier for such com- East Asia & Paci c 6 panies to obtain new loans and continue operating. Latin America & Caribbean 4 Limit appeals Sub-Saharan Africa 3 Another solution is to limit procedural appeals. In El South Asia 2 Salvador the wait for a first-instance court to hand down Middle East its decision in a debt enforcement case can last up to 3 & North Africa 0 years. Appeals may drag the litigation out for another Source: Doing Business database. year or more. In both El Salvador and Slovenia, where the initial decision can be appealed to 2 higher levels of courts, restricting appeals to just 1 would speed bank- Establish specialized courts ruptcy proceedings. In Spain appeals no longer suspend debt recovery. Other economies--including the Dominican Republic, Restricting the number of appeals, or allowing debt Georgia, Moldova, Tanzania, Thailand and Uganda-- recovery to proceed even when there is an appeal, is a have made it easier to process bankruptcy cases by simple way to make bankruptcy more efficient.3 When creating specialized commercial or even bankruptcy used as a delay tactic, appeals reduce recovery rates, courts. Specialization increases efficiency.2 Judges can which depend on how quickly the business or its assets more easily gain expertise in bankruptcy and will be bet- are sold. ter equipped to deal with issues of insolvent businesses. Bosnia and Herzegovina and Ghana have created bank- Introduce time limits ruptcy sections within commercial courts, with specially FYR Macedonia, Poland, Portugal, Serbia, Slovakia, trained judges and innovative management systems to Spain and the United States have all either introduced deal with court backlogs. or shortened statutory deadlines for bankruptcy pro- Shift power to creditors ceedings. Imposing time limits also makes bankruptcy cheaper: reforms in Bulgaria, Estonia and the United Many economies have altered the roles and respon- Kingdom have halved bankruptcy costs. But some coun- sibilities of stakeholders in bankruptcy proceedings. tries have bucked the trend. Thailand abolished a 1999 Those that have strengthened the power of creditors regulation limiting appeals, making it easier for debtors include China, France, Indonesia, Korea, FYR Mace- to abuse the appeals process and prolong bankruptcy. donia, Poland, Puerto Rico, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, the United States and Vietnam. In Poland the creditors' Use the Internet to post decisions and publicize committee now decides whether a business should be auctions reorganized or liquidated. In France, Korea and Slova- Where court reform is difficult, reformers can take ad- kia the creditors' committee votes on reorganization vantage of the Internet. Croatia has launched a website, plans. Before, the court made the final decision. called "Judges Web," where the court posts information Strengthening creditors' rights--for example, by on decisions in bankruptcy cases and announcements of establishing creditors' committees--increases their asset sales. Assets are more likely to fetch a higher price, confidence in the bankruptcy process. A bankruptcy because detailed descriptions and even pictures can be case is likely to result in the continuation of the un- posted for long periods. Before, sales would typically derlying business in countries that allow creditors to draw few buyers because they were advertised only on a appoint or replace an administrator and have access certain day and in a certain newspaper. FYR Macedonia to the administrator's report. In contrast, such an out- and Serbia plan to introduce similar websites. come occurs in only 34% of countries that do not grant creditors such rights. (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 58 Doing Business 2008 Introduce floating charges FIGURE 11.3 Floating charges improve results in bankruptcy Reformers need not focus on bankruptcy law alone. Denmark and several Eastern European countries Can an entire business be used as security for a loan? have introduced floating charges (or similar enterprise 51.3 53 charges) over the past decade. These are instruments through which companies grant a general security-- 38.7 covering even future assets--over their entire business. 29 With them, viable businesses are more likely to be sold YES NO as a going concern in liquidation and foreclosure pro- YES NO ceedings, since the charge prevents creditors from laying claim to different assets of the company. Creditors gain maximum flexibility in enforcing their security. They also recover more: countries that allow floating charges Recovery rate Probability of saving (cents on the dollar) a viable rm have higher recovery rates than countries that don't (%) allow them (figure 11.3). Source: Doing Business database. Develop the trustee profession supervise the profession and introduced ethical stan- Finally, several middle-income countries have taken dards that all administrators must abide by.4 Chile steps to develop the profession and role of bankruptcy stopped paying trustees a fixed monthly salary and trustees, who play an important part in reorganization. linked their pay to the proceeds realized from asset sales. Argentina, Chile, Serbia and Slovakia require trustees to That encourages trustees to maximize returns by selling have certain educational or business qualifications and distressed assets quickly and removes any incentive to to pass an exam. Serbia established a special agency to drag out the bankruptcy process. Notes 1. Armour and Cumming (2006). 2. World Bank (2005a). 3. Djankov and others (2006). 4. Yap (2007). (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 59 What to expect Doing Business 2009 will bring updates to the 10 sets of most benefit working women. Expanding job and busi- indicators reported in this year's edition. It may also in- ness opportunities for women is likely to have a large corporate some further improvements in methodology. impact on economic growth. Precisely how large can be Beyond this, Doing Business 2009 will reflect re- measured if new data are collected and analyzed. That's search on 3 new topics: not paying bribes, opportunities what the Doing Business team is set to do. for women and infrastructure (starting with electricity). This chapter describes the analysis so far and the It will present the findings either as new analysis on work that will take place in the coming year. The re- the benefits of reforms or as new or developing sets of search on not paying bribes is most advanced, followed indicators. Whether the analysis and indicators become by the analysis on opportunities for women and the a standard part of Doing Business depends on the quality preliminary work on infrastructure. of the research and the ability to sustain the new indica- tors. Quality will be judged by academic peers, through the journal refereeing process. Sustainability will be FIGURE 12.1 Top obstacles to enterprises in Africa judged on the basis of the cost of producing these indica- tors every year. Firms ranking each factor as the main obstacle to rm growth and performance in 2006 (%) The choice of these research topics is natural. The research to construct indicators on not paying bribes Electricity 37.2 and on infrastructure is motivated by evidence from the Access to 14.5 World Bank Enterprise Surveys on the main obstacles nance businesses face.1 Corruption and poor access to infra- Informality 8.3 structure appear among the top constraints to business Crime and disorder 5.0 growth in most African countries, in many Middle Eastern and South Asian countries and in some Central Corruption 3.9 American countries (figure 12.1). Access to land 3.6 Earlier editions of Doing Business have shown that burdensome business regulations hurt women the most. 0 10 20 30 40 But more analysis is needed on what types of reforms Source: World Bank Enterprise Surveys. (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 60 Doing Business 2008 Not paying bribes Even where public officials are required to make In June 2005 the U.S. media reported that the previous such disclosures, there are differences. In Austria, New year a defense contractor had bought the house of a Zealand, Switzerland and the United Kingdom legisla- U.S. congressman, Randy Cunningham, for $1,675,000. tors are required to disclose the names of all companies A month later the contractor put the property back on in which they have a business interest. In other countries the market, where it eventually sold for $975,000. At the legislators must report only the value of equity holdings time Cunningham was a member of the defense appro- and other investments, without naming the companies priations committee. Soon after purchasing the house, in which assets are held. the contractor began to receive tens of millions of dollars Many countries prohibit legislators from serving on in defense and intelligence contracts. company boards or as company officers. These include Cunningham resigned in late 2005 after pleading the Czech Republic, Georgia, Israel, Russia and Vietnam. guiltytoacceptingatleast$2.4millioninbribesandunder- Others, such as Lithuania and Slovenia, go even further, reporting his income the previous year. In March 2006 he prohibiting any employment outside parliament. received a prison sentence of 8 years and 4 months. Across the current research sample, 79% of coun- This case would have taken longer to resolve had tries require disclosure of interests. Among these, more Cunningham not underreported his income in the dis- than half mandate that these disclosures be available for closure forms that all members of the U.S. Congress file public scrutiny. Half a dozen countries, mostly in Latin annually. The ability of the media and prosecutors to America and the Caribbean, allow disclosure to the pub- access these disclosures and point out inconsistencies lic only when certain conditions are met. made all the difference. Physical access to disclosures also varies. In the That is the focus of ongoing research by the Doing United Kingdom disclosures are available on the House Business team: the ability of citizens, the media and of Commons website. In Pakistan they are published in prosecutors to monitor whether the actions of govern- the official gazette each year. In Moldova the registrar ment officials are dictated by their private interests.2 In will e-mail you disclosures upon request. In more than every country the texts of relevant laws and regulations a dozen countries you would have to pay the registrar are collected. As for existing Doing Business topics, local a visit to access disclosures. In some, you would need partners are identified as contributors, in this case part- to submit a request to the chairing committee of the ners knowledgeable about the rules on public procure- parliament, which decides whether to grant access to ment and disclosure. Two global partnerships, one with disclosures. PricewaterhouseCoopers Legal Services and one with In every country where public disclosure is man- Lex Mundi law firms, are also helping verify data. dated by law, the research team has requested the files In 80% of countries that require members of the leg- of the first 5 members of parliament in alphabetical islature to disclose their financial or business interests, order. The process of obtaining these disclosures is docu- disclosure requirements also apply to the executive. In mented in a time-and-motion study like those done for countries where there are separate regulations for each existing Doing Business indicators. The disclosure forms branch, both sets are compiled. received are then studied to assess the extensiveness and Some examples: OECD high-income countries re- completeness of the information filed. quire extensive disclosure on the business interests of What remains to be done? The analysis of collected public officials. All but one require annual public disclo- data has started, with a first research paper expected in sure on such things as sources of income other than the November 2007. The findings will then be subjected to official's salary, all equity stakes held and all positions peer review. held on company boards of directors--as well as disclo- A second area of work is to compare these newly sure of interests when deciding on laws or contracts that constructed indicators with existing ones. Three previ- may affect their income (for example, a contract that ous initiatives have informed the discussion on transpar- may be awarded to a business in which a public official ency. The first, conducted by Transparency International, has a stake). In South Asia only a third of countries re- is based on a number of perception surveys. The second, quire such disclosure. by the World Bank Institute, has similar sources of data but uses a more rigorous methodology for aggregation. (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank WHAT To eXPeCT 61 The third is the most recent, conducted by Global Integ- Business research, its main source of information is local rity.3 Like the ongoing Doing Business research in this experts on disclosure requirements, not an analysis of area, it also covers public disclosure. Unlike the Doing the text of the law. Opportunities for women --as captured in existing Doing Business indicators-- The Doing Business project commits to a 2-year research that have the biggest benefits for women. Reforms that program on reforms that improve the job and business reduce informality disproportionately benefit women, opportunities for women. The analysis will be developed because they make up a large share of the informal econ- in 3 directions. omy. This year's report documents the link between the First, it will identify laws and regulations that dis- ease of doing business and the shares of women among criminate against women. For example, until 2006 Leso- workers and among entrepreneurs (see figure 1.7, page tho's law hindered women from becoming landowners 7). In the next 2 years research will focus on reforms that and engaging in legal acts such as entering into a contract. do the most to increase these shares. This work will use Similarly, 2 dozen countries have labor laws that prevent the World Bank Enterprise Surveys, which have data on women from having the same freedom to work as men. women entrepreneurs and the share of women in total One example is Kuwait, which in June 2007 passed a law employment since 2005. prohibiting women from working between 8 p.m. and Third, the Doing Business team will prepare case 7 a.m., even if they want to. A few countries consider studies on women entrepreneurs and describe the rea- women legal minors and do not allow them standing sons for their success as well as the main obstacles they in court. Instead, a woman must be represented by her face in expanding their business. These case studies may husband, father or brother. And several countries do not identify additional reforms that the study of laws and allow married women to start a business on their own, regulations might have missed. In particular, even after a requiring their husband's consent. government reforms, the prevailing practice takes some Several other areas of regulation, now beyond the time to change. scope of Doing Business, also reduce opportunities for In areas such as these, the case studies can lead to women to find a job or start a business. One is inheritance communication campaigns to promote the benefits of re- law. In some regions, such as East Africa, women have form. In Uganda, for example, women's groups formed a fewer inheritance rights than men. That makes it harder coalition to lobby for reforms in business law that would to show collateral to the bank when starting a business. especially benefit women. The result: more awareness of More important, it sometimes makes it impossible for the need for reform and new bills drafted by the Min- women to provide for their children if their husband istry of Finance, now awaiting approval by the attorney leaves or dies. Other regulatory requirements--such as general. These include the Companies Bill, the Chattels the need to obtain a husband's consent before getting a Transfer Act and personal property and securities laws. passport, or to locate a business in licensed commercial Findings in these 3 areas of research will be re- premises--may also indirectly affect women's ability to ported in a stand-alone publication on opportunities for participate fully in business. The research will study the women. Just as for existing Doing Business indicators, legal restrictions that women face in such areas. all research will be subjected to peer review at academic Second, analyses will identify the traditional reforms journals. Infrastructure poor countries don't. Second, if a reformist government A variety of indicators on infrastructure services are avail- wants to make its mark by improving infrastructure ser- able. But these typically measure outcomes: kilometers of vices, it can do little to change these indicators in a short paved roads, number of telephone lines, percentage of time. Heavy investment is needed. households connected to running water. Indicators like What a reformer can do is adopt regulation that fa- these have 2 limits. First, since building infrastructure is cilitates expansion in infrastructure services. A reformer expensive, the cross-country comparisons show an obvi- can also simplify the process of hooking up to these ous pattern: rich countries have good infrastructure, and services for new businesses. These are the 2 aspects of (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 62 Doing Business 2008 infrastructure services on which the Doing Business team The second set looks at the process of obtaining a is constructing new indicators. power connection, a water connection and a telephone The first set of indicators builds on a specific case: line for a newly constructed building. The number of an unexpected rise in electricity demand in the country procedures for getting these services, and the associated has created opportunities for expansion. The case study time and cost, are recorded. The study does not compare documents the process that a private or public utility prices of these services after the building is connected. goes through to procure the components needed to ex- That would involve detailed knowledge of subsidy poli- tend the electricity distribution grid. cies, which is beyond the scope of Doing Business. Notes 1. The World Bank Enterprise Surveys collect information on the main constraints that businesses perceive as well as some hard data on the time and cost of complying with particular regulations. The surveys in Latin Amer- ica are done in cooperation with the Inter-American Development Bank. Those in Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union are done in cooperation with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. Each year more than 30 surveys are conducted. Data for more than 100 countries are available at http://www .enterprisesurveys.org. 2. 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"Are Corporate Tax Rates, or Countries, Group and U.S. Agency for International Development. Converging?" Journal of Public Economics 88 (6): 1169­86. (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 67 Data notes The indicators presented and analyzed in Doing Business looting by company directors or the range of assets that can measure business regulation and the protection of property be used as collateral according to secured transactions laws. rights--and their effect on businesses, especially small and Fourth, they measure the flexibility of employment regula- medium-size domestic firms. First, the indicators document tion. Finally, a set of indicators documents the tax burden on the degree of regulation, such as the number of procedures businesses. For details on how the rankings on these indica- to start a business or register commercial property. Second, tors are constructed, see Ease of doing business, page 82. they gauge regulatory outcomes, such as the time and cost The data for all sets of indicators in Doing Business 2008 to enforce a contract, go through bankruptcy or trade across are for June 2007. Three new countries--Brunei, Liberia and borders. Third, they measure the extent of legal protections Luxembourg--were added to the sample, now comprising 178 of property, for example, the protections of investors against economies. Methodology not an issue, as the texts of the relevant laws and regulations The Doing Business data are collected in a standardized way. are collected and answers checked for accuracy. The meth- To start, the Doing Business team, with academic advisers, odology is inexpensive and easily replicable, so data can be designs a survey. The survey uses a simple business case to collected in a large sample of economies. Because standard ensure comparability across countries and over time--with assumptions are used in the data collection, comparisons and assumptions about the legal form of the business, its size, benchmarks are valid across countries. And the data not only its location and the nature of its operations. Surveys are ad- highlight the extent of obstacles to doing business; they also ministered through more than 5,000 local experts, including identify their source and point to the needed reform. lawyers, business consultants, accountants, freight forward- ers, government officials and other professionals routinely Table 13.1 administering or advising on legal and regulatory require- How many experts does Doing Business consult? ments (table 13.1). These experts have several (typically 4) Number of rounds of interaction with the Doing Business team, through Indicator set contributors conference calls, written correspondence and country visits. Starting a business 970 Dealing with licenses 495 For Doing Business 2008 team members visited 71 countries Employing workers 661 to verify data and recruit respondents. The data from surveys Registering property 753 are subjected to numerous tests for robustness, which lead to Getting credit 695 revisions or expansions of the information collected. Protecting investors 484 The Doing Business methodology offers several advan- Paying taxes 701 tages. It is transparent, using factual information about what Trading across borders 912 laws and regulations say and allowing multiple interactions Enforcing contracts 676 Closing a business 659 with local respondents to clarify potential misinterpretations of questions. Having representative samples of respondents is Source: Doing Business database. (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 68 Doing Business 2008 FIGURE 13.1 Speed of reform di ers across Mexican states to builders that are fully licensed and insured at the start of the project. As a result, procedures that involve insur- Reforms in 2005/06 in areas measured ing or licensing the construction business are no longer 3 reforms 2 reforms 1 reform No counted. Second, inspections are now assumed to take 1 each each each reform day to complete even where there is a delay between the request for an inspection and its occurrence. This change was made to eliminate discretion in interpreting the time that respondents report for inspections. Third, preconstruc- Aguascalientes Guanajuato Chihuahua Jalisco tion inspections were added to the list of procedures; these Querétaro Nuevo León Coahuila State of México affect mainly countries in the former Soviet Union. The first Yucatán San Luis Potosí Mexico City Veracruz 2 changes reduce the number of procedures and delays asso- Puebla ciated with the case study; the third increases them. Source: World Bank (2006a). For employing workers, improvements were made to align Limits to what is measured the Doing Business methodology with International Labour Organization (ILO) conventions. It is now possible for an The Doing Business methodology has 5 limitations that economy to receive the highest score on the ease of employ- should be considered when interpreting the data. First, the ing workers--indicating the most flexible labor regulations-- collected data refer to businesses in the country's most popu- and comply with all 187 ILO conventions. Two main changes lous city and may not be representative of regulation in other were made. First, the calculation of firing costs was modified parts of the country. To address this limitation, subnational so that 8 or fewer weeks of salary now receives a score of 0 Doing Business indicators were created for 5 economies in for purposes of calculating the rankings on the ease of em- 2006/07: Bangladesh, Brazil, India, Mexico and Pakistan. ploying workers. Second, restrictions on night work such as Eight other subnational studies are under way--for China, higher overtime premiums or limitations on scheduling work Colombia, Egypt, Morocco, Nigeria, the Philippines, Russia hours are no longer coded as rigidities. Both changes result and Ukraine. Some of the existing studies are updated annu- in more flexibility in employment regulations as coded in ally, such as those in Mexico and the South Asian economies. Doing Business. These subnational studies point to significant differences in For enforcing contracts, the list of procedures was revised the speed of reform and the ease of doing business across cit- to accommodate procedural differences between civil and ies in the same country (figure 13.1). common law. For example, in civil law countries the judge Second, the data often focus on a specific business form--a appoints an independent expert, while in common law coun- limited liability company of a specified size--and may not be tries parties send the court a list of their expert witnesses. representative of the regulation on other businesses, for ex- Two assumptions were added, on attaching the defendant's ample, sole proprietorships. Third, transactions described in goods prior to judgment and on providing expert opinions. a standardized case study refer to a specific set of issues and To indicate the overall efficiency of court procedures, 1 pro- may not represent the full set of issues a business encounters. cedure is now subtracted for countries that have specialized Fourth, the measures of time involve an element of judgment commercial courts and 1 procedure for countries that allow by the expert respondents. When sources indicate different electronic filing of court cases. Finally, the cost indicator now estimates, the time indicators reported in Doing Business rep- includes all fees for enforcing judgments. resent the median value of several responses given under the assumptions of the standardized case. Data corrections Finally, the methodology assumes that a business has full The laws and regulations underlying the Doing Business data information on what is required and does not waste time are available on the Doing Business website at http://www when completing procedures. In practice, completing a pro- .doingbusiness.org. All the sample surveys and the details cedure may take longer if the business lacks information or is underlying the indicators are also published on the website. unable to follow up promptly. Alternatively, the business may Questions on the methodology and challenges to data can be choose to disregard some burdensome procedures. For both submitted through the site's "Ask a Question" function. reasons the time delays reported in Doing Business 2008 would Doing Business publishes 8,900 indicators each year. To differ from the perceptions of entrepreneurs reported in the create these indicators, the team measures more than 52,000 World Bank Enterprise Surveys or other perception surveys. data points, each of which is made available on the Doing Changes in what is measured Business website. Since the publication of Doing Business 2007, 20 economies have challenged last year's data. In several The methodology for 3 of the Doing Business topics-- cases the government reviewed every data point measured. dealing with licenses, employing workers and enforcing These reviews resulted in corrections to 47 data points. These contracts--improved this year. For dealing with licenses, changes are reflected in the ease of doing business index. 3 changes were made. First, the case study now applies They are also reflected in the database on the website. (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank Data notes 69 Economy characteristics Gross national income (GNI) per capita Region and income group Doing Business 2008 reports 2006 income per capita as Doing Business uses the World Bank regional and income published in the World Bank's World Development Indica- group classifications, available at http://www.worldbank tors 2007. Income is calculated using the Atlas method .org/data/countryclass. Throughout the report the term (current US$). For cost indicators expressed as a percent- rich economies refers to the high-income group, middle- age of income per capita, 2006 GNI in local currency units income economies to the upper-middle-income group is used as the denominator. GNI data were not available and poor economies to the lower-middle-income and low- from the World Bank for the Republic of Congo, Iraq, income groups. Oman, Puerto Rico, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emir- ates, West Bank and Gaza or Zimbabwe. In these cases Population GDPorGNPpercapitadataandgrowthratesfromthe Doing Business 2008 reports midyear 2006 population sta- Economist Intelligence Unit 2006 country profiles and the tistics as published in World Development Indicators 2007. U.S.StateDepartment2007countryprofileswereused. Starting a business · Performsgeneralindustrialorcommercialactivities, such as the production or sale of products or services Doing Business records all procedures that are officially re- to the public. The business does not perform foreign quired for an entrepreneur to start up and formally operate trade activities and does not handle products subject to a an industrial or commercial business. These include obtain- special tax regime, for example, liquor or tobacco. It is not using heavily polluting production processes. ing all necessary licenses and permits and completing any required notifications, verifications or inscriptions for the · Leasesthecommercialplantandofficesandisnota proprietor of real estate. company and employees with relevant authorities. After a study of laws, regulations and publicly available · Doesnotqualifyforinvestmentincentivesoranyspecial benefits. information on business entry, a detailed list of procedures is developed, along with the time and cost of complying · Hasatleast10andupto50employees1monthafterthe commencement of operations, all of them nationals. with each procedure under normal circumstances and the paid-in minimum capital requirements. Subsequently, · Hasaturnoverofatleast100timesincomepercapita. local incorporation lawyers and government officials com- · Hasacompanydeed10pageslong. plete and verify the data. Procedures Information is also collected on the sequence in which procedures are to be completed and whether procedures A procedure is defined as any interaction of the company may be carried out simultaneously. It is assumed that any founder with external parties (for example, government required information is readily available and that all agen- agencies, lawyers, auditors or notaries). Interactions between cies involved in the start-up process function without cor- company founders or company officers and employees are not ruption. If answers by local experts differ, inquiries continue counted as procedures. Procedures that must be completed until the data are reconciled. in the same building but in different offices are counted as To make the data comparable across countries, several as- separate procedures. If founders have to visit the same of- sumptions about the business and the procedures are used. fice several times for different sequential procedures, each is counted separately. The founders are assumed to complete Assumptions about the business all procedures themselves, without middlemen, facilitators, The business: accountants or lawyers, unless the use of such a third party is · Isalimitedliabilitycompany.Ifthereismorethanone mandated by law. If the services of professionals are required, type of limited liability company in the country, the limited procedures conducted by such professionals on behalf of the liability form most popular among domestic firms is company are counted separately. chosen. Information on the most popular form is obtained Both pre- and postincorporation procedures that are of- from incorporation lawyers or the statistical office. ficially required for an entrepreneur to formally operate a · Operatesinthecountry'smostpopulouscity. business are recorded (table 13.2). · Is100%domesticallyownedandhas5owners,noneof Procedures required for official correspondence or trans- whom is a legal entity. actions with public agencies are also included. For example, · Hasstart-upcapitalof10timesincomepercapitaatthe if a company seal or stamp is required on official documents, end of 2006, paid in cash. such as tax declarations, obtaining the seal or stamp is counted. Similarly, if a company must open a bank account (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 70 Doing Business 2008 Table 13.2 What does starting a business measure? that the entrepreneur does not waste time and commits to completing each remaining procedure without delay. The Procedures to legally start and operate a company time that the entrepreneur spends on gathering information · Preregistration (name verification, notarization) · Registration in the economy's most populous city is ignored. It is assumed that the entrepreneur is aware of · Postregistration (social security registration, company seal) all entry regulations and their sequence from the beginning Time required to complete each procedure but has had no prior contact with any of the officials. · Does not include time spent gathering information · Each procedure starts on a separate day Cost · Procedure completed once final document is received · No prior contact with officials Cost is recorded as a percentage of the country's income per Cost required to complete each procedure capita. It includes all official fees and fees for legal or profes- · Official costs only, no bribes sional services if such services are required by law. Fees for · No professional fees unless services required by law purchasing and legalizing company books are included if Paid-in minimum capital these transactions are required by law. The company law, the · Deposited in a bank or with a notary before registration begins commercial code and specific regulations and fee schedules Source: Doing Business database. are used as sources for calculating costs. In the absence of fee schedules, a government officer's estimate is taken as an offi- before registering for sales tax or value added tax, this trans- cial source. In the absence of a government officer's estimate, action is included as a procedure. Shortcuts are counted only estimates of incorporation lawyers are used. If several incor- if they fulfill 4 criteria: they are legal, they are available to the poration lawyers provide different estimates, the median re- general public, they are used by the majority of companies, ported value is applied. In all cases the cost excludes bribes. and avoiding them causes substantial delays. Only procedures required of all businesses are covered. Paid-in minimum capital Industry-specific procedures are excluded. For example, Thepaid-inminimumcapitalrequirementreflectstheamount procedures to comply with environmental regulations are that the entrepreneur needs to deposit in a bank or with a included only when they apply to all businesses conducting notary before registration and up to 3 months following in- general commercial or industrial activities. Procedures that corporation and is recorded as a percentage of the country's the company undergoes to connect to electricity, water, gas income per capita. The amount is typically specified in the and waste disposal services are not included. commercial code or the company law. Many countries have Time a minimum capital requirement but allow businesses to pay only a part of it before registration, with the rest to be paid Time is recorded in calendar days. The measure captures the after the first year of operation. In Germany in June 2007 the median duration that incorporation lawyers indicate is nec- minimum capital requirement for limited liability companies essary to complete a procedure with minimum follow-up was 25,000, of which at least 12,500 was payable before with government agencies and no extra payments. It is as- registration. The paid-in minimum capital recorded for Ger- sumed that the minimum time required for each procedure manyistherefore12,500,or42.8%ofincomepercapita.In is 1 day. Although procedures may take place simultane- Serbia the minimum capital requirement was 500, of which ously, they cannot start on the same day (that is, simultane- only half needed to be paid before registration. The paid-in ous procedures start on consecutive days). A procedure is minimumcapitalrecordedforSerbiaistherefore250,or8% considered completed once the company has received the of income per capita. final document, such as the company registration certificate or tax number. If a procedure can be accelerated for an ad- This methodology was developed in Djankov and others (2002) ditional cost, the fastest procedure is chosen. It is assumed and is adopted here with minor changes. Dealing with licenses as collateral or transferred are also counted. The survey divides the process of building a warehouse into distinct procedures Doing Business records all procedures required for a business in and calculates the time and cost of completing each procedure the construction industry to build a standardized warehouse. in practice under normal circumstances. These procedures include submitting all relevant project- Information is collected from experts in construction specific documents (for example, building plans and site maps) licensing, including architects, construction lawyers, con- to the authorities; obtaining all necessary clearances, licenses, struction firms, utility service providers and public officials permits and certificates; completing all required notifications; who deal with building regulations, including approvals and and receiving all necessary inspections. Doing Business also inspections. To make the data comparable across countries, records procedures for obtaining all utility connections. Proce- several assumptions about the business, the warehouse proj- dures necessary to register the property so that it can be used ect and the procedures are used. (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank Data notes 71 Assumptions about the construction company Procedures The business (BuildCo): A procedure is any interaction of the company's employees · Isalimitedliabilitycompany. or managers with external parties, including government · Operatesinthecountry'smostpopulouscity. agencies, notaries, the land registry, the cadastre, utility com- · Is100%domesticallyandprivatelyowned. panies, public and private inspectors and technical experts · Has5owners,noneofwhomisalegalentity. apart from in-house architects and engineers. Interactions · Isfullylicensedandinsuredtocarryoutconstruction between company employees, such as development of the projects, such as building warehouses. warehouse plans and inspections conducted by employees, · Has20buildersandotheremployees,allofthem are not counted as procedures. Procedures that the company nationals with the technical expertise and professional undergoes to connect to electricity, water, sewerage and experience necessary to obtain construction permits and phone services are included. All procedures that are legally approvals. or in practice required for building a warehouse are counted, · Hasatleast1employeewhoisalicensedarchitectand even if they may be avoided in exceptional cases. registered with the local association of architects. Time · Haspaidalltaxesandtakenoutallnecessaryinsurance applicable to its general business activity (for example, Time is recorded in calendar days. The measure captures accidental insurance for construction workers and third- the median duration that local experts indicate is necessary person liability insurance). to complete a procedure in practice. It is assumed that the · Ownsthelandonwhichthewarehouseisbuilt. minimum time required for each procedure is 1 day. If a pro- cedure can be accelerated legally for an additional cost, the Assumptions about the warehouse project fastest procedure is chosen. It is assumed that BuildCo does The warehouse: not waste time and commits to completing each remaining · Has2stories,bothaboveground,withatotalsurfaceof procedure without delay. The time that BuildCo spends on approximately 14,000 square feet (1,300.6 square meters). gathering information is ignored. It is assumed that BuildCo Each floor is 9 feet, 10 inches (3 meters) high. is aware of all building requirements and their sequence from · Hasroadaccessandislocatedintheperiurbanareaofthe the beginning. country's most populous city (that is, is on the fringes of the city but still within its official limits). It is not located Cost in a special economic or industrial zone. Cost is recorded as a percentage of the country's income per · Islocatedonalandplotof10,000squarefeet(929square capita. Only official costs are recorded. All the fees associated meters)thatis100%ownedbyBuildCoandisregistered in the cadastre and land registry. with completing the procedures to legally build a warehouse are recorded, including those associated with obtaining · Isanewconstruction(therewasnopreviousconstruction on the land). land use approvals and preconstruction design clearances; receiving inspections before, during and after construction; · Hascompletearchitecturalandtechnicalplansprepared by a licensed architect. getting utility connections; and registering the warehouse property. Nonrecurring taxes required for the completion of · Willbeconnectedtothefollowingutilities--electricity, water, sewerage (sewage system, septic tank or their the warehouse project also are recorded. The building code, equivalent) and one land phone line. The connection to information from local experts and specific regulations and each utility network will be 32 feet, 10 inches (10 meters) fee schedules are used as sources for costs. If several local long. partners provide different estimates, the median reported · Willrequirea10-amperepowerconnectionand140 value is used. kilowatts of electricity. · Willrequireupto100cubicmetersofwaterdaily. · Willbeusedforgeneralstorageactivities,suchasstorage of books or stationery. The warehouse will not be used for any goods requiring special conditions, such as food, chemicals or pharmaceuticals. · Willincludealltechnicalequipmentrequiredtomakethe warehouse fully operational. · Willtake30weekstoconstruct(excludingalldelaysdue to administrative and regulatory requirements). (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 72 Doing Business 2008 Employing workers tracts can last 5 years or more. Finally, a score of 1 is assigned if the ratio of the minimum wage to the average value added Doing Business measures the regulation of employment, spe- per worker is 0.75 or more; 0.67 for a ratio of 0.50 or more cifically as it affects the hiring and firing of workers and the but less than 0.75; 0.33 for a ratio of 0.25 or more but less than rigidity of working hours. The data on employing workers are 0.50; and 0 for a ratio of less than 0.25. In the Central African based on a detailed survey of employment regulations that Republic, for example, fixed-term contracts are prohibited is completed by local lawyers and public officials. Employ- for permanent tasks (a score of 1), and they can be used for ment laws and regulations as well as secondary sources are a maximum of 4 years (a score of 0.5). The ratio of the man- reviewed to ensure accuracy. dated minimum wage to the value added per worker is 0.64 (a To make the data comparable across countries, several as- score of 0.67). Averaging the 3 values and scaling the index to sumptions about the worker and the business are used. 100 gives the Central African Republic a score of 72. The rigidity of hours index has 5 components: (i) whether Assumptions about the worker night work is unrestricted; (ii) whether weekend work is un- The worker: restricted; (iii) whether the workweek can consist of 5.5 days; · Isa42-year-old,nonexecutive,full-time,maleemployee. (iv) whether the workweek can extend to 50 hours or more (in- · Hasworkedatthesamecompanyfor20years. cluding overtime) for 2 months a year to respond to a seasonal · Earnsasalaryplusbenefitsequaltothecountry'saverage increase in production; and (v) whether paid annual vacation wage during the entire period of his employment. is 21 working days or fewer. For each of these questions, if the · Isalawfulcitizenwhobelongstothesameraceand answer is no, the country is assigned a score of 1; otherwise a religion as the majority of the country's population. score of 0 is assigned. For example, Serbia imposes restrictions · Residesinthecountry'smostpopulouscity. on night work (a score of 1) and weekend work (a score of 1), · Isnotamemberofalaborunion,unlessmembershipis allows 6-day workweeks (a score of 0), permits 50-hour work- mandatory. weeks for 2 months (a score of 0) and requires paid vacation of 20 working days (a score of 0). Averaging the scores and scal- Assumptions about the business ing the result to 100 gives a final index of 40 for Serbia. The business: The difficulty of firing index has 8 components: (i) whether · Isalimitedliabilitycompany. redundancy is disallowed as a basis for terminating workers; (ii) whether the employer needs to notify a third party (such · Operatesinthecountry'smostpopulouscity. as a government agency) to terminate 1 redundant worker; · Is100%domesticallyowned. (iii) whether the employer needs to notify a third party to · Operatesinthemanufacturingsector. terminate a group of 25 redundant workers; (iv) whether · Has201employees. the employer needs approval from a third party to terminate · Issubjecttocollectivebargainingagreementsincountries 1 redundant worker; (v) whether the employer needs ap- where such agreements cover more than half the manufac- proval from a third party to terminate a group of 25 redun- turing sector and apply even to firms not party to them. dant workers; (vi) whether the law requires the employer to · Abidesbyeverylawandregulationbutdoesnotgrant consider reassignment or retraining options before redun- workers more benefits than mandated by law, regulation dancy termination; (vii) whether priority rules apply for re- or (if applicable) collective bargaining agreement. dundancies; and (viii) whether priority rules apply for reem- Rigidity of employment index ployment. For the first question an answer of yes for workers of any income level gives a score of 10 and means that the rest The rigidity of employment index is the average of 3 subindi- of the questions do not apply. An answer of yes to question ces: a difficulty of hiring index, a rigidity of hours index and (iv) gives a score of 2. For every other question, if the answer a difficulty of firing index. All the subindices have several is yes, a score of 1 is assigned; otherwise a score of 0 is given. components. And all take values between 0 and 100, with Questions (i) and (iv), as the most restrictive regulations, higher values indicating more rigid regulation. have greater weight in the construction of the index. The difficulty of hiring index measures (i) whether fixed- In Tunisia, for example, redundancy is allowed as grounds term contracts are prohibited for permanent tasks; (ii) the for termination (a score of 0). An employer has to both notify maximum cumulative duration of fixed-term contracts; and a third party (a score of 1) and obtain its approval (a score of (iii) the ratio of the minimum wage for a trainee or first-time 2) to terminate a single redundant worker, and has to both employee to the average value added per worker. A country notify a third party (a score of 1) and obtain its approval (a is assigned a score of 1 if fixed-term contracts are prohibited score of 1) to terminate a group of 25 redundant workers. The for permanent tasks and a score of 0 if they can be used for law mandates consideration of retraining or alternative place- any task. A score of 1 is assigned if the maximum cumulative ment before termination (a score of 1). There are priority rules duration of fixed-term contracts is less than 3 years; 0.5 if it is for termination (a score of 1) and reemployment (a score of 1). 3 years or more but less than 5 years; and 0 if fixed-term con- Adding the scores and scaling to 100 gives a final index of 80. (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank Data notes 73 Nonwage labor cost Firing cost The nonwage labor cost indicator measures all social security The firing cost indicator measures the cost of advance notice payments (including retirement fund; sickness, maternity and requirements, severance payments and penalties due when health insurance; workplace injury; family allowance; and terminating a redundant worker, expressed in weekly wages. other obligatory contributions) and payroll taxes associated If the firing cost adds up to 8 or fewer weeks of salary, a score with hiring an employee in fiscal 2006. The cost is expressed as of 0 is assigned for the purposes of calculating the aggregate a percentage of the worker's salary. In Honduras, for example, ease of doing business ranking. If the cost adds up to more thetaxespaidbytheemployeramountto9.5%oftheworker's than 8 weeks of salary, the score is the number of weeks. wagesandinclude7%forsocialsecurity,1%forprofessional One month is recorded as 4 and 1/3 weeks. In Mozambique, trainingand1.5%forthepensioncontribution. for example, an employer is required to give 90 days' notice before a redundancy termination, and the severance pay for a worker with 20 years of service equals 30 months of wages. No penalty is levied. Altogether, the employer pays the equiv- alent of 143 weeks of salary to dismiss the worker. This methodology was developed in Botero and others (2004) and is adopted here with minor changes. Registering property Doing Business records the full sequence of procedures · Islocatedinaperiurbancommercialzone,andno necessary when a business purchases land and a building to rezoning is required. transfer the property title from another business so that the · Consistsoflandandabuilding.Thelandareais6,000 buyer can use the property for expanding its business, as col- square feet (557.4 square meters). A 2-story warehouse of lateral in taking new loans or, if necessary, to sell to another 10,000 square feet (929 square meters) is located on the land. The warehouse is 10 years old, is in good condition business. Every procedure required by law or necessary in and complies with all safety standards, building codes practice is included, whether it is the responsibility of the and other legal requirements. The property of land and seller or the buyer or must be completed by a third party on building will be transferred in its entirety. their behalf. Local property lawyers, notaries and property · Willnotbesubjecttorenovationsoradditionalbuilding registries provide information on procedures as well as the following the purchase. time and cost to complete each of them. · Hasnotrees,naturalwatersources,naturalreservesor To make the data comparable across countries, several as- historical monuments of any kind. sumptions about the parties to the transaction, the property · Willnotbeusedforspecialpurposes,andnospecial and the procedures are used. permits, such as for residential use, industrial plants, waste storage or certain types of agricultural activities, are Assumptions about the parties required. The parties (buyer and seller): · Hasnooccupants(legalorillegal),andnootherparty · Arelimitedliabilitycompanies. holds a legal interest in it. · Arelocatedintheperiurbanareaofthecountry'smost Procedures populous city. · Are100%domesticallyandprivatelyowned. A procedure is defined as any interaction of the buyer or the seller, their agents (if an agent is legally or in practice · Have50employeeseach,allofwhomarenationals. required) or the property with external parties, including · Performgeneralcommercialactivities. government agencies, inspectors, notaries and lawyers. In- Assumptions about the property teractions between company officers and employees are not considered. All procedures that are legally or in practice The property: required for registering property are recorded, even if they · Hasavalueof50timesincomepercapita.Thesaleprice may be avoided in exceptional cases. It is assumed that the equals the value. buyer follows the fastest legal option available and used by · Isfullyownedbytheseller. the majority of property owners. Although the buyer may · Hasnomortgagesattachedandhasbeenunderthesame use lawyers or other professionals where necessary in the ownership for the past 10 years. registration process, it is assumed that it does not employ an · Isregisteredinthelandregistryorcadastre,orboth,and outside facilitator in the registration process unless legally or is free of title disputes. in practice required to do so (table 13.3). (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 74 Doing Business 2008 Table 13.3 they cannot start on the same day. It is assumed that the buyer What does registering property measure? does not waste time and commits to completing each remain- Procedures to legally transfer title on real property ing procedure without delay. If a procedure can be acceler- · Preregistration (checking for liens, notarizing sales agreement) ated for an additional cost, the fastest legal procedure avail- · Registration in the economy's most populous city able and used by the majority of property owners is chosen. If · Postregistration (paying taxes, filing title with municipality) procedures can be undertaken simultaneously, it is assumed Time required to complete each procedure that they are. It is assumed that the parties involved are aware · Does not include time spent gathering information · Each procedure starts on a separate day of all regulations and their sequence from the beginning. · Procedure completed once final document is received Time spent on gathering information is not considered. · No prior contact with officials Cost required to complete each procedure Cost · Official costs only, no bribes · No value added or capital gains taxes included Cost is recorded as a percentage of the property value, as- sumed to be equivalent to 50 times income per capita. Only Source: Doing Business database. official costs required by law are recorded, including fees, Time transfer taxes, stamp duties and any other payment to the property registry, notaries, public agencies or lawyers. Other Time is recorded in calendar days. The measure captures the taxes, such as capital gains tax or value added tax, are ex- median duration that property lawyers, notaries or registry cluded from the cost measure. Both costs borne by the buyer officials indicate is necessary to complete a procedure. It is and those borne by the seller are included. If cost estimates assumed that the minimum time required for each procedure differ among sources, the median reported value is used. is 1 day. Although procedures may take place simultaneously, Getting credit · Generalratherthanspecificdescriptionofdebtis Doing Business constructs measures of the legal rights of permitted in collateral agreements. borrowers and lenders and the sharing of credit information. · Anylegalornaturalpersonmaygrantortakesecurityin the property. The first set of indicators describes how well collateral and bankruptcy laws facilitate lending. The second set measures · Aunifiedregistryoperatesthatincludeschargesover movable property. the coverage, scope, quality and accessibility of credit infor- mation available through public and private credit registries. · Securedcreditorshavepriorityoutsideofbankruptcy. The data on the legal rights of borrowers and lenders are · Securedcreditors,ratherthanotherpartiessuchas gathered through a survey of financial lawyers and verified government or workers, are paid first out of the proceeds from liquidating a bankrupt firm. through analysis of laws and regulations as well as public sources of information on collateral and bankruptcy laws. · Securedcreditorsareabletoseizetheircollateralwhena debtor enters reorganization; there is no "automatic stay" The data on credit information sharing are built in 2 stages. or "asset freeze" imposed by the court. First, banking supervision authorities and public information · Managementdoesnotstayduringreorganization.An sources are surveyed to confirm the presence of public credit administrator is responsible for managing the business registries and private credit information bureaus. Second, during reorganization. when applicable, a detailed survey on the public or private · Partiesmayagreeonout-of-courtenforcementby credit registry's structure, law and associated rules is admin- contract. istered to the credit registry. Survey responses are verified · Bylaw,andwithouttheneedforacontract,creditors through several rounds of follow-up communication with re- may both seize and sell collateral out of court without spondents as well as by contacting third parties and consult- restriction. ing public sources. The survey data are confirmed through The index ranges from 0 to 10, with higher scores indicating teleconference calls or on-site visits in all countries. that collateral and bankruptcy laws are better designed to Strength of legal rights index expand access to credit. The strength of legal rights index measures the degree to Depth of credit information index which collateral and bankruptcy laws protect the rights of The depth of credit information index measures rules affect- borrowers and lenders and thus facilitate lending. The index ing the scope, accessibility and quality of credit information includes 7 aspects related to legal rights in collateral law and available through either public or private credit registries. A 3 aspects in bankruptcy law. A score of 1 is assigned for each score of 1 is assigned for each of the following 6 features of of the following features of the laws: the public registry or the private credit bureau (or both): · Generalratherthanspecificdescriptionofassetsis · Bothpositivecreditinformation(forexample,loan permitted in collateral agreements. amounts and pattern of on-time repayments) and negative (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank Data notes 75 information (for example, late payments, number and Public credit registry coverage amount of defaults and bankruptcies) are distributed. · Dataonbothfirmsandindividualsaredistributed. The public credit registry coverage indicator reports the number of individuals and firms listed in a public credit reg- · Datafromretailers,tradecreditorsorutilitycompaniesas well as financial institutions are distributed. istry with current information on repayment history, unpaid debts or credit outstanding. The number is expressed as a · Morethan2yearsofhistoricaldataaredistributed. Registries that erase data on defaults as soon as they are percentage of the adult population. A public credit registry is repaid obtain a score of 0 for this indicator. defined as a database managed by the public sector, usually by · Dataonloansbelow1%ofincomepercapitaare the central bank or the superintendent of banks, that collects distributed. A registry must have a minimum coverage of information on the creditworthiness of borrowers (persons 1%oftheadultpopulationtoscorea1forthisindicator. or businesses) in the financial system and makes it available · Bylaw,borrowershavetherighttoaccesstheirdatainthe to financial institutions. If no public registry operates, the largest registry in the country. coverage value is 0. The index ranges from 0 to 6, with higher values indicating Private credit bureau coverage the availability of more credit information, from either a public registry or a private bureau, to facilitate lending deci- The private credit bureau coverage indicator reports the sions. If the registry is not operational or has coverage of less number of individuals and firms listed by a private credit bu- than0.1%oftheadultpopulation,thescoreonthedepthof reau with current information on repayment history, unpaid credit index is 0. debts or credit outstanding. The number is expressed as a In Turkey, for example, both a public and a private registry percentage of the adult population. A private credit bureau is operate. Both distribute positive and negative information defined as a private firm or nonprofit organization that main- (a score of 1). The private bureau distributes data only on tains a database on the creditworthiness of borrowers (per- individuals, but the public registry covers firms as well as in- sons or businesses) in the financial system and facilitates the dividuals (a score of 1). The public and private registries share exchange of credit information among banks and financial data among financial institutions only; no data are collected institutions. Credit investigative bureaus and credit report- from retailers or utilities (a score of 0). The private bureau ing firms that do not directly facilitate information exchange distributes more than 2 years of historical data (a score of 1). among banks and other financial institutions are not consid- Thepublicregistrycollectsdataonlyonloansof$3,493(64% ered. If no private bureau operates, the coverage value is 0. of income per capita) or more, but the private bureau collects information on loans of any value (a score of 1). Borrowers This methodology was developed in Djankov, McLiesh and have the right to access their data in both the private and the Shleifer (2007) and is adopted here with minor changes. public registry (a score of 1). Summing across the indicators gives Turkey a total score of 5. Protecting investors is assumed that Buyer is a large private company with Doing Business measures the strength of minority shareholder multiple shareholders. protections against directors' misuse of corporate assets for · Hasaboardofdirectorsandachiefexecutiveofficer personal gain. The indicators distinguish 3 dimensions of in- (CEO) who may legally act on behalf of Buyer where permitted, even if this is not specifically required by law. vestor protection: transparency of related-party transactions (extent of disclosure index), liability for self-dealing (extent · Isafoodmanufacturer. of director liability index) and shareholders' ability to sue of- · Hasitsowndistributionnetwork. ficers and directors for misconduct (ease of shareholder suits Assumptions about the transaction index). The data come from a survey of corporate lawyers and are based on securities regulations, company laws and court · Mr.JamesisBuyer'scontrollingshareholderanda rules of evidence. memberofBuyer'sboardofdirectors.Heowns60%of To make the data comparable across countries, several as- Buyer and elected 2 directors to Buyer's 5-member board. sumptions about the business and the transaction are used. · Mr.Jamesalsoowns90%ofSeller,acompanythat operates a chain of retail hardware stores. Seller recently Assumptions about the business closed a large number of its stores. The business (Buyer): · Mr.JamesproposestoBuyerthatitpurchaseSeller's unused fleet of trucks to expand Buyer's distribution of its · Isapubliclytradedcorporationlistedonthecountry's foodproducts.Buyeragrees.Thepriceisequalto10%of most important stock exchange. If the number of publicly Buyer's assets and is higher than the market value. traded companies listed on that exchange is less than 10, or if there is no stock exchange in the country, it (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 76 Doing Business 2008 · Theproposedtransactionispartofthecompany's Extent of director liability index ordinary course of business and is not outside the authority of the company. The extent of director liability index has 7 components: · Buyerentersintothetransaction.Allrequiredapprovals · WhetherashareholderplaintiffisabletoholdMr. are obtained, and all required disclosures made (that is, James liable for damage the Buyer-Seller transaction the transaction is not fraudulent). causes to the company. A score of 0 is assigned if Mr. · ThetransactionisunfairtoBuyer.ShareholderssueMr. James cannot be held liable or can be held liable only James and the other parties that approved the transaction. for fraud or bad faith; 1 if Mr. James can be held liable only if he influenced the approval of the transaction or Extent of disclosure index was negligent; 2 if Mr. James can be held liable when the transaction is unfair or prejudicial to the other The extent of disclosure index has 5 components: shareholders. · Whatcorporatebodycanprovidelegallysufficient · Whetherashareholderplaintiffisabletoholdthe approval for the transaction. A score of 0 is assigned if it approving body (the CEO or board of directors) liable for is the CEO or the managing director alone; 1 if the board damage the transaction causes to the company. A score of of directors or shareholders must vote and Mr. James is 0 is assigned if the approving body cannot be held liable permitted to vote; 2 if the board of directors must vote or can be held liable only for fraud or bad faith; 1 if the and Mr. James is not permitted to vote; 3 if shareholders approving body can be held liable for negligence; 2 if the must vote and Mr. James is not permitted to vote. approving body can be held liable when the transaction is · Whetherimmediatedisclosureofthetransactiontothe unfair or prejudicial to the other shareholders. public, the regulator or the shareholders is required. A · Whetheracourtcanvoidthetransactionupona score of 0 is assigned if no disclosure is required; 1 if successful claim by a shareholder plaintiff. A score of 0 disclosure on the terms of the transaction but not Mr. is assigned if rescission is unavailable or is available only James's conflict of interest is required; 2 if disclosure in case of fraud or bad faith; 1 if rescission is available on both the terms and Mr. James's conflict of interest is when the transaction is oppressive or prejudicial to the required. other shareholders; 2 if rescission is available when the · Whetherdisclosureintheannualreportisrequired.A transaction is unfair or entails a conflict of interest. score of 0 is assigned if no disclosure on the transaction · WhetherMr.Jamespaysdamagesfortheharmcausedto is required; 1 if disclosure on the terms of the transaction the company upon a successful claim by the shareholder but not Mr. James's conflict of interest is required; 2 if plaintiff. A score of 0 is assigned if no; 1 if yes. disclosure on both the terms and Mr. James's conflict of · WhetherMr.Jamesrepaysprofitsmadefromthe interest is required. transaction upon a successful claim by the shareholder · WhetherdisclosurebyMr.Jamestotheboardofdirectors plaintiff. A score of 0 is assigned if no; 1 if yes. is required. A score of 0 is assigned if no disclosure is · Whetherfinesandimprisonmentcanbeappliedagainst required; 1 if a general disclosure of the existence of a Mr. James. A score of 0 is assigned if no; 1 if yes. conflict of interest is required without any specifics; 2 if full disclosure of all material facts relating to Mr. James's · Whethershareholderplaintiffsareabletosuedirectly interest in the Buyer-Seller transaction is required. or derivatively for damage the transaction causes to the company. A score of 0 is assigned if suits are unavailable · Whetheritisrequiredthatanexternalbody,forexample, or are available only for shareholders holding more an external auditor, review the transaction before it takes than10%ofthecompany'ssharecapital;1ifdirector place. A score of 0 is assigned if no; 1 if yes. derivativesuitsareavailableforshareholdersholding10% The index ranges from 0 to 10, with higher values indicat- or less of share capital. ing greater disclosure. In Poland, for example, the board of The index ranges from 0 to 10, with higher values indicat- directors must approve the transaction and Mr. James is not ing greater liability of directors. To hold Mr. James liable in allowed to vote (a score of 2). Buyer is required to disclose Panama, for example, a plaintiff must prove that Mr. James immediately all information affecting the stock price, includ- influenced the approving body or acted negligently (a score ing the conflict of interest (a score of 2). In its annual report of 1). To hold the other directors liable, a plaintiff must prove Buyer must also disclose the terms of the transaction and Mr. that they acted negligently (a score of 1). The unfair transac- James's ownership in Buyer and Seller (a score of 2). Before tion cannot be voided (a score of 0). If Mr. James is found li- the transaction Mr. James must disclose his conflict of inter- able, he must pay damages (a score of 1) but he is not required est to the other directors, but he is not required to provide to disgorge his profits (a score of 0). Mr. James cannot be specific information about it (a score of 1). Poland does not finedorimprisoned(ascoreof0).Directsuitsareavailable require an external body to review the transaction (a score forshareholdersholding10%orlessofsharecapital(ascore of 0). Adding these numbers gives Poland a score of 7 on the of 1). Adding these numbers gives Panama a score of 4 on the extent of disclosure index. extent of director liability index. (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank Data notes 77 Ease of shareholder suits index The index ranges from 0 to 10, with higher values indicating The ease of shareholder suits index has 6 components. greater powers of shareholders to challenge the transaction. · Whatrangeofdocumentsisavailabletotheshareholder In Greece, for example, the plaintiff can access documents plaintiff from the defendant and witnesses during trial. that the defendant intends to rely on for his defense and that A score of 1 is assigned for each of the following types directly prove facts in the plaintiff's claim (a score of 2). The of documents available: information that the defendant plaintiff can examine the defendant and witnesses during has indicated he intends to rely on for his defense; trial, though only with prior approval of the questions by the information that directly proves specific facts in the court (a score of 1). The plaintiff must specifically identify plaintiff's claim; any information relevant to the subject matter of the claim; and any information that may lead to the documents being sought (for example, the Buyer-Seller the discovery of relevant information. purchase agreement of July 15, 2006) and cannot just request · Whethertheplaintiffcandirectlyexaminethedefendant categories (for example, all documents related to the trans- and witnesses during trial. A score of 0 is assigned if no; 1 action)(ascoreof0).Ashareholderholding5%ofBuyer's if yes, with prior approval of the questions by the judge; 2 shares can request that a government inspector review sus- if yes, without prior approval. pected mismanagement by Mr. James and the CEO without · Whethertheplaintiffcanobtaincategoriesofrelevant filing suit in court (a score of 1). And any shareholder can documents from the defendant without identifying each inspect the transaction documents before deciding whether document specifically. A score of 0 is assigned if no; 1 if to sue (a score of 1). The standard of proof for civil suits is the yes. same as that for a criminal case (a score of 0). Adding these · Whethershareholdersowning10%orlessofthe numbers gives Greece a score of 5 on the ease of shareholder company's share capital can request that a government suits index. inspector investigate the Buyer-Seller transaction without filing suit in court. A score of 0 is assigned if no; 1 if yes. Strength of investor protection index · Whethershareholdersowning10%orlessofthe The strength of investor protection index is the average of company's share capital have the right to inspect the transaction documents before filing suit. A score of 0 is the extent of disclosure index, the extent of director liability assigned if no; 1 if yes. index and the ease of shareholder suits index. The index · Whetherthestandardofproofforcivilsuitsislowerthan ranges from 0 to 10, with higher values indicating more in- that for a criminal case. A score of 0 is assigned if no; 1 if vestor protection. yes. This methodology was developed in Djankov and others (forth- coming) and is adopted here with minor changes. Paying taxes and value added tax. The Doing Business measure includes Doing Business records the taxes and mandatory contribu- government-mandated contributions paid by the employer to tions that a medium-size company must pay or withhold in a a requited private pension fund or workers' insurance fund. given year, as well as measures of the administrative burden The indicator includes, for example, Australia's compulsory in paying taxes and contributions. Taxes and contributions superannuation guarantee and workers' compensation insur- measured include the profit or corporate income tax, social ance. It excludes value added taxes because they do not affect contributions and labor taxes paid by the employer, property the accounting profits of the business--that is, they are not taxes, property transfer taxes, the dividend tax, the capital reflected in the income statement. gains tax, the financial transactions tax, waste collection taxes To measure the taxes and contributions paid by a standard- and vehicle and road taxes. ized business and the complexity of a country's tax system, a Doing Business measures all taxes and contributions that case study is prepared with a set of financial statements and are government mandated (at any level--federal, state or assumptions about transactions made over the year. Experts local), apply to the standardized business and have an impact in each country compute the taxes and contributions owed in its income statements. In doing so, Doing Business goes in their jurisdiction based on the standardized case facts. In- beyond the traditional definition of a tax: as defined for the formation is also compiled on the frequency of filing, audits purposes of government national accounts, taxes include only and other costs of compliance. The project was developed and compulsory, unrequited payments to general government. implemented in cooperation with PricewaterhouseCoopers. Doing Business differs from this definition because it mea- To make the data comparable across countries, several sures imposts that affect business accounts, not government assumptions about the business and the taxes and contribu- accounts. The main differences are in labor contributions tions are used. (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 78 Doing Business 2008 Assumptions about the business Table 13.4 The business: What does paying taxes measure? · Isalimitedliability,taxablecompany.Ifthereismore Tax payments for a manufacturing company in 2006 than one type of limited liability company in the country, · Total number of taxes and contributions paid, including consumption the limited liability form most popular among domestic taxes (value added tax) firms is chosen. The most popular form is reported by · Method and frequency of payment incorporation lawyers or the statistical office. Time required to comply with 3 major taxes · StartedoperationsonJanuary1,2005.Atthattimethe · Collecting information to compute tax payable · Completing tax forms, filing with proper agencies company purchased all the assets shown in its balance · Arranging payment or withholding sheet and hired all its workers. · Preparing separate tax accounting books · Operatesinthecountry'smostpopulouscity. Total tax rate · Is100%domesticallyownedandhas5owners,allof · Profit or corporate income tax whom are natural persons. · Social contributions and labor taxes paid by the employer · Property and property transfer taxes · Hasastart-upcapitalof102timesincomepercapitaat · Dividend, capital gains and financial transactions taxes the end of 2005. · Waste collection, vehicle, road and other taxes · Performsgeneralindustrialorcommercialactivities. Source: Doing Business database. Specifically, it produces ceramic flowerpots and sells them at retail. It does not participate in foreign trade (no Tax payments import or export) and does not handle products subject to a special tax regime, for example, liquor or tobacco. The tax payments indicator reflects the total number of taxes and contributions paid, the method of payment, the fre- · Owns2plotsofland,1building,machinery,office equipment, computers and 1 truck and leases 1 truck. quency of payment and the number of agencies involved for this standardized case during the second year of operation. · Doesnotqualifyforinvestmentincentivesoranybenefits apart from those related to the age or size of the company. It includes payments made by the company on consumption taxes, such as sales tax or value added tax. These taxes are · Has60employees--4managers,8assistantsand48 workers. All are nationals, and 1 manager is also an owner. traditionally withheld on behalf of the consumer. Although they do not affect the income statements of the company, they · Hasaturnoverof1,050timesincomepercapita. add to the administrative burden of complying with the tax · Makesalossinthefirstyearofoperation. system and so are included in the tax payments measure. · Hasagrossmargin(pretax)of20%(thatis,salesare120% The number of payments takes into account electronic of the cost of goods sold). filing. Where full electronic filing is allowed and it is used by · Distributes50%ofitsprofitsasdividendstotheownersat the majority of medium-size businesses, the tax is counted as the end of the 2nd year. paid once a year even if the payment is more frequent. For · Sellsoneofitsplotsoflandataprofitduringthe2ndyear. taxes paid through third parties, such as tax on interest paid · Hasannualfuelcostsforitstrucksequaltotwiceincome by a financial institution or fuel tax paid by the fuel distribu- per capita. tor, only one payment is included even if payments are more · Issubjecttoaseriesofdetailedassumptionsonexpenses frequent. These are taxes withheld at source where no filing and transactions to further standardize the case. All is made by the company. financial statement variables are proportional to 2005 Where 2 or more taxes or contributions are paid jointly income per capita. For example, the owner who is also a managerspends10%ofincomepercapitaontravelingfor using the same form, each of these joint payments is counted thecompany(20%oftheexpensesarepurelyprivate,20% once. For example, if mandatory health insurance contribu- forentertainingcustomersand60%forbusinesstravel). tions and mandatory pension contributions are filed and paid together, only one of these contributions would be included Assumptions about the taxes and contributions in the number of payments. · Allthetaxesandcontributionspaidorwithheldinthe second year of operation (fiscal 2006) are recorded. Time A tax or contribution is considered distinct if it has a Time is recorded in hours per year. The indicator measures different name or is collected by a different agency. Taxes the time to prepare, file and pay (or withhold) 3 major types and contributions with the same name and agency, but of taxes and contributions: the corporate income tax, value charged at different rates depending on the business, are added or sales tax and labor taxes, including payroll taxes and counted as the same tax or contribution (table 13.4). social contributions. Preparation time includes the time to · Thenumberoftimesthecompanypaysorwithholdstaxes collect all information necessary to compute the tax payable. If and contributions in a year is the number of different taxes or contributions multiplied by the frequency of separate accounting books must be kept for tax purposes--or payment (or withholding) for each one. The frequency of separate calculations made--the time associated with these payment includes advance payments (or withholding) as processes is included. This extra time is included only if the well as regular payments (or withholding). regular accounting work is not enough to fulfill the tax ac- (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank Data notes 79 counting requirements. Filing time includes the time to com- penses, minus other expenses, minus provisions, plus capital plete all necessary tax forms and make all necessary calcula- gains (from the property sale) minus interest expense, plus tions. Payment time is the hours needed to make the payment interest income and minus commercial depreciation. To online or at the tax office. Where taxes and contributions are compute the commercial depreciation, a straight-line depre- paid in person, the time includes delays while waiting. ciationmethodisappliedwiththefollowingrates:0%forthe Total tax rate land,5%forthebuilding,10%forthemachinery,33%forthe computers,20%fortheofficeequipment,20%forthetruck The total tax rate measures the amount of taxes and manda- and10%forbusinessdevelopmentexpenses.Theassumption tory contributions payable by the business in the second on the interest expense was changed this year, reducing the year of operation, expressed as a share of commercial profits. value of this expense. Commercial profits therefore changed Doing Business 2008 reports the total tax rate for fiscal 2006. from 57.8 times income per capita to 59.4 times. The total amount of taxes is the sum of all the different taxes The methodology is consistent with the calculation of total and contributions payable after accounting for deductions tax contribution by PricewaterhouseCoopers. The total tax and exemptions. The taxes withheld (such as sales or value contribution measures the taxes that are borne by companies added tax or personal income tax) but not paid by the com- and affect their income statements, as in Doing Business. pany are excluded. The taxes included can be divided into 5 However, PricewaterhouseCoopers bases its calculation on categories: profit or corporate income tax, social contribu- data from the largest companies in the country, while Doing tions and labor taxes paid by the employer (for which all Business focuses on a standardized medium-size company. mandatory contributions are included, even if paid to a pri- vate entity such as a requited pension fund), property taxes, This methodology was developed in Djankov and others turnover taxes and other small taxes (such as municipal fees (2007). and vehicle and fuel taxes). Commercial profits are defined as sales minus cost of goods sold, minus gross salaries, minus administrative ex- Trading across borders Assumptions about the traded goods Doing Business compiles procedural requirements for export- The traded product travels in a dry-cargo, 20-foot, full con- ing and importing a standardized cargo of goods by ocean tainer load. The product: transport. Every official procedure for exporting and import- ing the goods is recorded--from the contractual agreement · Isnothazardousnordoesitincludemilitaryitems. between the 2 parties to the delivery of goods--along with · Doesnotrequirerefrigerationoranyotherspecial the time and cost necessary for completion. All documents environment. required for clearance of the goods across the border are · Doesnotrequireanyspecialphytosanitaryor also recorded. For exporting goods, procedures range from environmental safety standards other than accepted international standards. packing the goods at the factory to their departure from the port of exit. For importing goods, procedures range from the Documents vessel's arrival at the port of entry to the cargo's delivery at the All documents required to export and import the goods are factory warehouse. Payment is made by letter of credit. recorded. It is assumed that the contract has already been Local freight forwarders, shipping lines, customs brokers agreeduponandsignedbybothparties.Documentsinclude and port officials provide information on required documents bank documents, customs declaration and clearance docu- and cost as well as the time to complete each procedure. To ments, port filing documents, import licenses and other of- make the data comparable across countries, several assump- ficial documents exchanged between the concerned parties. tions about the business and the traded goods are used. Documents filed simultaneously are considered different Assumptions about the business documents but with the same time frame for completion. The business: Time · Has100ormoreemployees. Time is recorded in calendar days. The time calculation for a · Islocatedinthecountry'smostpopulouscity. procedure starts from the moment it is initiated and runs until · Isaprivate,limitedliabilitycompany.Itdoesnotoperate it is completed. If a procedure can be accelerated for an addi- within an export processing zone or an industrial estate tional cost, the fastest legal procedure is chosen. It is assumed with special export or import privileges. that neither the exporter nor the importer wastes time and · Isdomesticallyownedwithnoforeignownership. that each commits to completing each remaining procedure · Exportsmorethan10%ofitssales. without delay. Procedures that can be completed in paral- (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 80 Doing Business 2008 lel are measured as simultaneous. The waiting time between Table 13.5 What does trading across borders measure? procedures--for example, during unloading of the cargo--is Documents necessary to import or export included in the measure (table 13.5). · Bank documents · Customs clearance documents Cost · Port and terminal handling documents · Transport documents Cost measures the fees levied on a 20-foot container in U.S. dollars. All the fees associated with completing the proce- Time required to import or export · Obtaining all the documents dures to export or import the goods are included. These · Inland transport include costs for documents, administrative fees for customs · Customs clearance and inspections clearance and technical control, terminal handling charges · Port and terminal handling · Does not include ocean transport time and inland transport. The cost measure does not include tar- iffs or trade taxes. Only official costs are recorded. Cost required to import or export · Obtaining all the documents · Inland transport This methodology was developed by Djankov, Freund and · Customs clearance and inspections Pham (2007) and is adopted here with minor changes. · Port and terminal handling · Official costs only, no bribes Source: Doing Business database. Enforcing contracts on the quality of the goods, the judge does so. In this case Indicators on enforcing contracts measure the efficiency of the judge does not allow opposing expert testimony. the judicial system in resolving a commercial dispute. The · Thejudgmentis100%infavorofSeller:thejudgedecides data are built by following the step-by-step evolution of a that the goods are of adequate quality and that Buyer commercial sale dispute before local courts. The data are must pay the agreed price. collected through study of the codes of civil procedure and · Buyerdoesnotappealthejudgment.Thejudgment other court regulations as well as surveys completed by local becomes final. litigation lawyers (and, in a quarter of the countries, by judges · Sellertakesallrequiredstepsforpromptenforcementof as well). the judgment. The money is successfully collected through a public sale of Buyer's movable assets (for example, office Assumptions about the case equipment). · Thevalueoftheclaimequals200%ofthecountry's Procedures income per capita. A procedure is defined as any interaction between the parties, · Thedisputeconcernsalawfultransactionbetween2 or between them and the judge or court officer. This includes businesses (Seller and Buyer), located in the country's mostpopulouscity.Sellersellsgoodsworth200%ofthe steps to file the case, steps for trial and judgment and steps country's income per capita to Buyer. After Seller delivers necessary to enforce the judgment. This year the survey al- the goods to Buyer, Buyer does not pay for the goods on lowed respondents to record procedures that exist in civil the grounds that the delivered goods were not of adequate law but not common law jurisdictions, and vice versa. For quality. example, the judge can appoint an independent expert in civil · Seller(theplaintiff)suesBuyer(thedefendant)torecover law countries whereas both parties in common law countries theamountunderthesalesagreement(thatis,200%of send a list of their expert witnesses to the court. To indicate the country's income per capita). Buyer opposes Seller's the overall efficiency of court procedures, 1 procedure is now claim, saying that the quality of the goods is not adequate. subtracted for countries that have specialized commercial The claim is disputed on the merits. courts and 1 procedure for countries that allow electronic · Acourtinthecountry'smostpopulouscitywith filing of court cases. jurisdictionovercommercialcasesworth200%ofincome per capita decides the dispute. Time · SellerattachesBuyer'sgoodspriortoobtaininga judgment because Seller fears that Buyer may become Time is recorded in calendar days, counted from the moment insolvent during the lawsuit. the plaintiff files the lawsuit in court until payment. This in- · Expertopinionsaregivenonthequalityofthedelivered cludes both the days when actions take place and the waiting goods. If it is standard practice in the country for parties periods between. The respondents make separate estimates of to call witnesses or expert witnesses to give an opinion on the average duration of different stages of dispute resolution: the quality of the goods, the parties each call one witness the completion of service of process (time to file the case), the or expert witness. If it is standard practice for the judge to issuance of judgment (time for the trial and obtaining the judg- appoint an independent expert to give an expert opinion ment) and the moment of payment (time for enforcement). (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank Data notes 81 Cost Cost is recorded as a percentage of the claim, assumed to be This methodology was developed in Djankov and others (2003) equivalentto200%ofincomepercapita.Onlyofficialcosts and is adopted here with minor changes. required by law are recorded, including court and enforce- ment costs and average attorney fees where the use of attor- neys is mandatory or common. Closing a business procedure aimed at the liquidation or winding up of the com- pany; or a debt enforcement or foreclosure procedure aimed Doing Business studies the time, cost and outcomes of bank- at selling the hotel either piecemeal or as a going concern, ruptcy proceedings involving domestic entities. The data are enforced either in court (or through a government authority derived from survey responses by local insolvency practition- like a debt collection agency) or out of court (for example, by ers and verified through a study of laws and regulations as appointing a receiver). well as public information on bankruptcy systems. To make the data comparable across countries, several as- Time sumptions about the business and the case are used. Time is recorded in calendar years. Information is collected Assumptions about the business on the sequence of procedures and on whether any pro- cedures can be carried out simultaneously. Potential delay The business: tactics by the parties, such as the filing of dilatory appeals or · Isalimitedliabilitycompany. requests for extension, are taken into consideration. · Operatesinthecountry'smostpopulouscity. · Is100%domesticallyowned,withthefounder,whoisalso Cost thechairmanofthesupervisoryboard,owning51%(no The cost of the proceedings is recorded as a percentage of othershareholderholdsmorethan5%ofshares). the estate's value. The cost is calculated on the basis of survey · Hasdowntownrealestate,whereitrunsahotel,asits responses by insolvency practitioners and includes court fees major asset. as well as fees of insolvency practitioners, independent asses- · Hasaprofessionalgeneralmanager. sors, lawyers and accountants. Respondents provide cost esti- · Hashadaverageannualrevenueof1,000timesincome matesfromamongthefollowingoptions:lessthan2%,2­5%, per capita over the past 3 years. 5­8%,8­11%,11­18%,18­25%,25­33%,33­50%,50­75% · Has201employeesand50suppliers,eachofwhichis andmorethan75%ofthevalueofthebusinessestate. owed money for the last delivery. · Borrowedfromadomesticbank5yearsago(theloanhas Recovery rate 10 years to full repayment) and bought real estate (the The recovery rate is recorded as cents on the dollar recouped hotel building), using it as security for the bank loan. by creditors through the bankruptcy or insolvency proceed- · Hasobservedthepaymentscheduleandallother ings. The calculation takes into account whether the business conditions of the loan up to now. emerges from the proceedings as a going concern as well · Hasamortgage,withthevalueofthemortgageprincipal as costs and the loss in value due to the time spent closing being exactly equal to the market value of the hotel. down. If the business keeps operating, no value is lost on the Assumptions about the case initial claim, set at 100 cents on the dollar. If it does not, the initial 100 cents on the dollar are reduced to 70 cents on the The business is experiencing liquidity problems. The com- dollar. Then the official costs of the insolvency procedure are pany's loss in 2006 reduced its net worth to a negative figure. deducted (1 cent for each percentage of the initial value). Fi- There is no cash to pay the bank interest or principal in full, nally, the value lost as a result of the time the money remains due tomorrow. Therefore, the business defaults on its loan. tied up in insolvency proceedings is taken into account, Management believes that losses will be incurred in 2007 and including the loss of value due to depreciation of the hotel 2008 as well. furniture. Consistent with international accounting practice, The bank holds a floating charge against the hotel in coun- thedepreciationrateforfurnitureistakentobe20%.Thefur- tries where floating charges are possible. If the law does not niture is assumed to account for a quarter of the total value of permit a floating charge but contracts commonly use some assets. The recovery rate is the present value of the remaining other provision to that effect, this provision is specified in the proceeds, based on end-2006 lending rates from the Inter- lending contract. national Monetary Fund's International Financial Statistics, The business has too many creditors to negotiate an infor- supplemented with data from central banks. mal out-of-court workout. It has the following options: a ju- dicial procedure aimed at the rehabilitation or reorganization This methodology was developed in Djankov and others of the business to permit its continued operation; a judicial (2006). (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 82 Ease of doing business The ease of doing business index ranks economies from 1 The ease of doing business index is limited in scope. It to 178. The index is calculated as the ranking on the simple does not account for a country's proximity to large markets, average of country percentile rankings on each of the 10 the quality of its infrastructure services (other than services topics covered in Doing Business 2008. The ranking on each related to trading across borders), the security of property topic is the simple average of the percentile rankings on its from theft and looting, macroeconomic conditions or the component indicators. strength of underlying institutions. There remains a large un- If an economy has no laws or regulations covering a spe- finished agenda for research into what regulation constitutes cific area--for example, bankruptcy--it receives a "no prac- binding constraints, what package of reforms is most effective tice" or "not possible" mark. Similarly, an economy receives a and how these issues are shaped by the country context. The "no practice" or "not possible" mark if regulation exists but is Doing Business indicators provide a new empirical data set never used in practice or if a competing regulation prohibits that may improve understanding of these issues. such practice. Either way, such a mark puts the country at the Doing Business also uses a simple method to determine the bottom of the rankings on the relevant indicator. top reformers (see table 1.1). First, it selects the economies that Here is one example of how the ranking on the ease of reformed in 3 or more of the 10 Doing Business topics (table doing business is constructed. In Iceland it takes 5 proce- 14.1). This year 21 economies met this criterion: Armenia, dures,5daysand3%ofannualincomepercapitainfeesto Bhutan, Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, China, Colombia, Croa- open a business. The minimum capital required amounts to tia, the Czech Republic, Egypt, Georgia, Ghana, Guatemala, 14%ofincomepercapita.Onthese4indicatorsIcelandranks Honduras, Kenya, FYR Macedonia, Mauritius, Mozambique, in the 6th, 2nd, 10th and 55th percentiles. So Iceland ranks Portugal, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia and Uzbekistan. Second, in the 18th percentile--the average of the 4 percentiles--on Doing Business ranks these economies on the increase in their the ease of starting a business. It ranks in the 46th percentile ranking on the ease of doing business from the previous year. on protecting investors, 11th on trading across borders, 8th For example, Croatia, Honduras and Kenya each reformed in on enforcing contracts, 6th on closing a business and so on. 4 aspects of business regulation. Croatia's ranking improved Higher rankings indicate simpler regulation and stronger from 120 to 97, Honduras's from 126 to 121 and Kenya's from protection of property rights. The simple average of Iceland's 82 to 72. These changes represent an improvement in the rank- percentilerankingsonalltopicsis19%.Whenallcountries ings by 23 places, 5 places and 10 places, respectively. Croatia are ordered by their average percentile ranking, Iceland is in therefore ranks ahead of Kenya in the list of top 10 reformers. 10th place. Honduras doesn't make the list. More complex aggregation methods--such as princi- pal components and unobserved components--yield nearly identical rankings.1 The choice of aggregation method has little influence on the rankings because the 10 sets of indica- tors in Doing Business provide sufficiently broad coverage Note across topics. So Doing Business uses the method most likely to lead to reform--the simplest method. 1. SeeDjankovandothers(2005). (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank ease oF Doing Business 83 TABLE 14.1 RefoRms in 2006/07 3 Positive reform Dealing Trading 7 negative reform Starting with Employing Registering Getting Protecting Paying across Enforcing Closing Economy a business licenses workers property credit investors taxes borders contracts a business afghanistan 3 albania 3 algeria 7 angola antigua and Barbuda argentina 7 armenia 3 3 3 australia 3 austria 3 azerbaijan 3 3 Bangladesh 7 7 Belarus 3 3 Belgium 3 Belize Benin 3 Bhutan 3 3 3 Bolivia Bosnia and Herzegovina 3 Botswana 7 Brazil 3 3 Brunei Bulgaria 3 3 3 Burkina Faso 3 3 3 Burundi 3 Cambodia Cameroon Canada Cape Verde Central african Republic Chad Chile China 3 3 3 Colombia 3 3 3 Comoros Congo, Dem. Rep. 3 Congo, Rep. Costa Rica 3 Côte d'ivoire 3 Croatia 3 3 3 3 Czech Republic 3 3 3 Denmark 3 Djibouti 3 3 Dominica Dominican Republic 3 3 7 3 ecuador egypt 3 3 3 3 3 el salvador 3 equatorial guinea eritrea estonia 3 ethiopia Fiji 3 Finland 3 France 3 3 gabon gambia 3 georgia 3 3 3 3 3 3 germany 3 7 ghana 3 3 3 3 3 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 84 Doing Business 2008 RefoRms in 2006/07 3 Positive reform Dealing Trading 7 negative reform Starting with Employing Registering Getting Protecting Paying across Enforcing Closing Economy a business licenses workers property credit investors taxes borders contracts a business greece 3 grenada guatemala 3 3 3 3 3 guinea guinea-Bissau 3 guyana Haiti 3 Honduras 3 3 3 3 Hong Kong, China Hungary 3 3 7 3 iceland 3 india 3 3 indonesia 7 3 3 3 iran iraq ireland israel 3 italy 3 Jamaica Japan Jordan 3 Kazakhstan 3 Kenya 3 3 3 3 Kiribati Korea Kuwait 3 3 Kyrgyz Republic 7 3 Lao PDR 3 3 Latvia 3 Lebanon Lesotho 3 3 Liberia Lithuania Luxembourg Macedonia, FYR 3 3 3 Madagascar 3 3 Malawi 3 Malaysia 3 3 Maldives Mali 3 3 Marshall islands Mauritania 3 3 Mauritius 3 3 3 3 3 3 Mexico 3 3 Micronesia 3 Moldova 3 7 3 3 Mongolia 3 Montenegro Morocco 3 7 3 Mozambique 3 3 3 namibia nepal netherlands 3 3 new Zealand nicaragua niger 3 3 nigeria 3 3 norway 3 oman (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank ease oF Doing Business 85 RefoRms in 2006/07 3 Positive reform Dealing Trading 7 negative reform Starting with Employing Registering Getting Protecting Paying across Enforcing Closing Economy a business licenses workers property credit investors taxes borders contracts a business Pakistan 3 3 Palau Panama Papua new guinea Paraguay 3 7 Peru Philippines Poland 3 3 Portugal 3 3 3 3 3 3 Puerto Rico Romania 7 3 3 Russia 7 3 Rwanda 3 3 samoa são tomé and Principe saudi arabia 3 3 3 senegal serbia seychelles 3 sierra Leone 3 singapore slovakia slovenia 7 7 3 3 solomon islands south africa 3 3 spain 3 3 sri Lanka 3 7 3 st. Kitts and nevis st. Lucia St.Vincent and the Grenadines sudan suriname swaziland sweden switzerland 3 syria 7 3 taiwan, China tajikistan 3 tanzania 3 thailand 3 timor-Leste 3 togo 7 tonga 3 trinidad and tobago 3 3 tunisia 3 3 3 turkey 3 3 uganda 3 3 ukraine united arab emirates united Kingdom united states uruguay 3 uzbekistan 3 3 3 3 Vanuatu 7 Venezuela 7 7 7 Vietnam 3 3 West Bank and gaza 3 3 Yemen Zambia Zimbabwe 7 7 7 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 87 Indicator tables Doing business indicators Country tables (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 88 Doing Business 2008 Starting a business Dealing with licenses Minimum Cost capital Cost Procedures Time (% of income (% of income Procedures Time (% of income Economy (number) (days) per capita) per capita) (number) (days) per capita) Afghanistan 4 9 84.6 0.0 13 340 21,230.8 Albania 10 36 20.9 34.3 24 331 461.0 Algeria 14 24 13.2 45.2 22 240 57.8 Angola 12 119 343.7 50.5 14 337 1,109.7 Antigua and Barbuda 7 21 11.8 0.0 14 157 26.3 Argentina 14 31 9.7 4.8 28 338 234.1 Armenia 9 18 4.8 3.1 19 116 411.3 Australia 2 2 0.8 0.0 16 221 13.2 Austria 8 28 5.4 55.5 13 194 73.7 Azerbaijan 13 30 6.9 0.0 31 207 768.3 Bangladesh 8 74 46.2 0.0 14 252 751.0 Belarus 10 48 8.8 29.7 17 350 60.9 Belgium 3 4 5.3 20.1 14 169 63.7 Belize 9 44 53.1 0.0 11 66 18.5 Benin 7 31 195.0 354.2 15 332 316.6 Bhutan 8 48 10.4 0.0 25 183 195.9 Bolivia 15 50 134.1 3.4 17 249 198.6 Bosnia and Herzegovina 12 54 30.1 43.0 16 467 790.3 Botswana 11 108 9.9 0.0 24 167 322.3 Brazil 18 152 10.4 0.0 18 411 59.4 Brunei 18 116 9.0 0.0 32 167 5.2 Bulgaria 9 32 8.4 56.3 22 131 499.9 Burkina Faso 6 18 82.1 415.7 32 226 701.2 Burundi 11 43 251.0 0.0 20 384 9,939.0 Cambodia 10 86 190.3 50.8 23 709 74.3 Cameroon 13 37 129.2 177.1 15 426 1,202.9 Canada 2 3 0.9 0.0 14 75 125.4 Cape Verde 12 52 40.1 53.4 18 120 718.3 Central African Republic 10 14 205.4 531.2 21 239 288.3 Chad 19 75 188.8 398.4 9 181 1,063.8 Chile 9 27 8.6 0.0 18 155 128.1 China 13 35 8.4 190.2 37 336 840.2 Colombia 11 42 19.3 0.0 14 146 602.8 Comoros 11 23 188.4 280.3 18 164 77.8 Congo, Dem. Rep. 13 155 487.2 0.0 14 322 2,112.6 Congo, Rep. 10 37 150.1 206.3 14 169 565.9 Costa Rica 12 77 21.3 0.0 23 178 244.2 Côte d'ivoire 10 40 135.8 219.8 21 628 247.7 Croatia 8 40 11.7 18.4 22 255 722.4 Czech Republic 10 17 10.6 34.9 36 180 18.5 Denmark 4 6 0.0 40.7 6 69 61.8 Djibouti 11 37 206.6 530.8 14 195 1,010.6 Dominica 5 19 27.1 0.0 12 219 74.4 Dominican Republic 9 22 31.1 0.0 17 214 116.1 ecuador 14 65 29.2 7.0 19 148 55.3 egypt 7 9 28.6 12.9 28 249 474.9 el salvador 9 26 73.1 112.5 34 155 197.9 equatorial guinea 20 136 105.1 23.2 18 201 239.9 eritrea 13 84 125.8 488.0 no practice no practice no practice estonia 5 7 2.0 28.1 13 117 28.1 ethiopia 7 16 41.3 960.0 12 128 1,094.4 Fiji 8 46 25.3 0.0 16 114 40.8 Finland 3 14 1.0 7.7 18 38 122.3 France 5 7 1.1 0.0 13 137 24.9 gabon 9 58 164.0 38.2 14 210 48.3 gambia 9 32 279.0 0.0 17 146 363.7 georgia 5 11 9.5 0.0 12 113 28.9 germany 9 18 5.7 42.8 12 100 63.1 ghana 11 42 41.4 20.9 18 220 1,498.3 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank Doing Business inDiCAToRs 89 Starting a business Dealing with licenses Minimum Cost capital Cost Procedures Time (% of income (% of income Procedures Time (% of income Economy (number) (days) per capita) per capita) (number) (days) per capita) greece 15 38 23.3 104.1 15 169 61.7 grenada 6 20 31.7 0.0 9 149 31.0 guatemala 11 26 47.3 24.9 22 235 1,142.2 guinea 13 41 138.3 466.5 32 255 237.7 guinea-Bissau 17 233 255.5 1,006.6 15 167 2,607.0 guyana 8 44 87.2 0.0 12 222 313.9 Haiti 12 202 133.9 32.2 11 1,179 817.8 Honduras 13 21 59.9 27.4 17 125 634.1 Hong Kong, China 5 11 3.1 0.0 23 155 21.3 Hungary 6 16 17.7 65.1 31 211 10.4 iceland 5 5 2.7 14.1 18 76 13.9 india 13 33 74.6 0.0 20 224 519.4 indonesia 12 105 80.0 38.4 19 196 286.8 iran 8 47 5.3 1.3 19 670 653.4 iraq 11 77 93.5 65.4 14 215 915.0 ireland 4 13 0.3 0.0 11 185 19.8 israel 5 34 4.4 0.0 20 235 115.5 italy 9 13 18.7 9.8 14 257 138.2 Jamaica 6 8 8.7 0.0 10 236 438.4 Japan 8 23 7.5 0.0 15 177 17.8 Jordan 10 14 66.2 795.4 18 122 486.1 Kazakhstan 8 21 7.6 22.9 38 231 2,129.9 Kenya 12 44 46.1 0.0 10 100 58.8 Kiribati 6 21 56.6 30.6 14 160 629.3 Korea 10 17 16.9 296.0 13 34 170.2 Kuwait 13 35 1.6 99.9 25 104 209.4 Kyrgyz Republic 8 21 8.8 0.5 20 291 555.4 Lao PDR 8 103 16.5 0.0 24 172 202.4 Latvia 5 16 3.0 22.0 26 188 27.5 Lebanon 6 46 94.1 60.4 20 211 229.5 Lesotho 8 73 37.4 14.3 15 601 805.3 Liberia 12 99 493.3 0.0 25 398 61,049.3 Lithuania 7 26 3.0 46.2 17 156 133.1 Luxembourg 6 26 2.3 20.5 13 217 19.4 Macedonia, FYR 9 15 6.6 0.0 19 192 109.3 Madagascar 5 7 22.7 333.4 16 268 880.0 Malawi 10 37 188.7 0.0 21 213 189.2 Malaysia 9 24 18.1 0.0 25 285 10.0 Maldives 5 9 13.4 5.8 9 118 39.9 Mali 11 26 132.1 434.6 14 208 1,320.7 Marshall islands 5 17 17.7 0.0 10 55 36.8 Mauritania 11 65 56.2 503.1 25 201 565.5 Mauritius 6 7 5.3 0.0 18 107 43.3 Mexico 8 27 13.3 11.6 11 131 103.5 Micronesia 7 16 137.0 0.0 14 73 19.7 Moldova 9 23 11.5 14.6 30 292 154.2 Mongolia 8 20 4.3 96.3 21 126 15.7 Montenegro 15 24 6.2 0.0 19 185 599.6 Morocco 6 12 11.5 59.8 19 163 334.7 Mozambique 10 29 21.6 115.8 17 361 705.0 namibia 10 99 22.3 0.0 12 139 156.7 nepal 7 31 73.9 0.0 15 424 304.7 netherlands 6 10 6.0 52.9 18 230 76.0 new Zealand 2 12 0.1 0.0 7 65 25.0 nicaragua 6 39 119.1 0.0 17 219 898.6 niger 11 23 174.8 735.6 16 293 2,823.6 nigeria 9 34 56.6 0.0 18 350 1,016.0 norway 6 10 2.3 23.4 14 252 46.2 oman 9 34 4.3 541.8 16 242 847.6 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 90 Doing Business 2008 Starting a business Dealing with licenses Minimum Cost capital Cost Procedures Time (% of income (% of income Procedures Time (% of income Economy (number) (days) per capita) per capita) (number) (days) per capita) Pakistan 11 24 14.0 0.0 12 223 869.5 Palau 8 28 4.7 12.5 25 118 6.1 Panama 7 19 22.0 0.0 25 149 143.9 Papua new guinea 8 56 26.4 0.0 24 217 106.3 Paraguay 7 35 77.6 0.0 13 291 439.0 Peru 10 72 29.9 0.0 21 210 165.0 Philippines 15 58 26.8 6.9 21 177 75.9 Poland 10 31 21.2 196.8 30 308 159.8 Portugal 7 7 3.4 34.7 20 327 54.0 Puerto Rico 7 7 0.8 0.0 22 209 550.8 Romania 6 14 4.7 1.5 17 243 124.3 Russia 8 29 3.7 3.2 54 704 3,788.4 Rwanda 9 16 171.5 0.0 16 227 822.1 samoa 9 35 41.3 0.0 18 88 95.4 são Tomé and Principe 10 144 94.5 0.0 13 255 825.9 saudi Arabia 7 15 32.3 0.0 18 125 94.5 senegal 10 58 107.0 255.0 14 217 176.9 serbia 11 23 8.9 8.0 20 204 2,713.1 seychelles 9 38 8.7 0.0 19 144 46.5 sierra Leone 9 26 1,075.2 0.0 47 235 191.7 singapore 5 5 0.8 0.0 11 102 22.9 slovakia 9 25 4.2 34.1 13 287 14.9 slovenia 9 60 8.5 49.8 15 208 113.9 solomon islands 7 57 58.9 0.0 12 62 518.0 south Africa 8 31 7.1 0.0 17 174 30.4 spain 10 47 15.1 13.7 11 233 64.9 sri Lanka 5 39 8.5 0.0 22 214 1,929.0 st. Kitts and nevis 9 46 22.9 0.0 14 72 14.0 st. Lucia 6 40 23.7 0.0 9 139 31.9 St.Vincent and the Grenadines 8 12 29.2 0.0 11 74 9.2 sudan 10 39 57.9 0.0 19 271 296.0 suriname 13 694 141.8 1.1 14 431 158.0 swaziland 13 61 38.7 0.6 13 93 94.0 sweden 3 15 0.6 31.1 8 116 106.4 switzerland 6 20 2.1 13.9 14 154 52.7 syria 13 43 55.7 3,673.3 21 128 258.5 Taiwan, China 8 48 4.1 178.4 30 198 206.9 Tajikistan 13 49 39.6 311.0 32 191 1,991.9 Tanzania 12 29 47.1 0.0 21 308 2,365.5 Thailand 8 33 5.6 0.0 11 156 10.7 Timor-Leste 9 82 11.9 595.2 22 208 113.1 Togo 13 53 245.7 546.4 15 277 1,366.3 Tonga 4 32 10.8 0.0 14 88 183.6 Trinidad and Tobago 9 43 0.9 0.0 20 261 5.9 Tunisia 10 11 8.3 25.3 20 93 922.1 Turkey 6 6 20.7 16.2 25 188 369.9 uganda 18 28 92.0 0.0 16 143 811.8 ukraine 10 27 7.8 203.1 29 429 668.5 united Arab emirates 11 62 36.9 312.4 21 125 1.5 united Kingdom 6 13 0.8 0.0 19 144 64.6 united states 6 6 0.7 0.0 19 40 13.4 uruguay 11 44 46.0 180.6 30 234 135.5 uzbekistan 7 13 14.2 25.3 26 260 140.7 Vanuatu 8 39 54.9 0.0 7 51 357.7 Venezuela 16 141 28.2 0.0 11 395 326.0 Vietnam 11 50 20.0 0.0 13 194 373.6 West Bank and gaza 12 92 280.4 9.3 21 199 726.1 Yemen 12 63 178.8 2,003.2 13 107 239.2 Zambia 6 33 30.5 2.2 17 254 1,518.0 Zimbabwe 10 96 21.3 54.6 19 952 11,799.0 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank Doing Business inDiCAToRs 91 Employing workers Registering property Difficulty Rigidity Difficulty Rigidity of of hiring of hours of firing employment Nonwage Firing cost Cost index index index index labor cost (weeks Procedures Time (% of property Economy (0­100) (0­100) (0­100) (0­100) (% of salary) of salary) (number) (days) value) Afghanistan 0 40 30 23 0 0 9 250 7.0 Albania 44 40 20 35 22 56 7 47 3.5 Algeria 44 60 40 48 27 17 14 51 7.5 Angola 78 60 70 69 8 58 7 334 11.1 Antigua and Barbuda 11 0 20 10 9 52 5 26 13.0 Argentina 44 60 20 41 26 139 5 65 7.6 Armenia 33 40 20 31 19 13 3 4 0.4 Australia 0 0 10 3 20 4 5 5 4.9 Austria 11 60 40 37 31 2 3 32 4.5 Azerbaijan 33 40 40 38 22 22 7 61 0.2 Bangladesh 44 20 40 35 0 104 8 425 10.3 Belarus 0 40 40 27 39 22 7 231 0.1 Belgium 11 40 10 20 55 16 7 132 12.7 Belize 22 20 0 14 4 24 8 60 4.7 Benin 39 40 40 40 29 36 3 118 11.4 Bhutan 0 0 20 7 1 10 5 64 0.0 Bolivia 78 60 100 79 14 not possible 7 92 4.9 Bosnia and Herzegovina 67 40 30 46 15 31 7 331 5.0 Botswana 0 20 40 20 0 90 4 30 5.0 Brazil 78 60 0 46 37 37 14 45 2.8 Brunei 0 20 0 7 5 4 no practice no practice no practice Bulgaria 17 60 10 29 23 9 9 19 2.3 Burkina Faso 83 60 40 61 20 34 8 182 12.2 Burundi 33 60 30 41 7 26 5 94 11.5 Cambodia 44 60 30 45 0 39 7 56 4.4 Cameroon 28 40 70 46 16 33 5 93 17.8 Canada 11 0 0 4 13 28 6 17 1.8 Cape Verde 33 40 60 44 17 91 6 83 7.8 Central African Republic 72 60 50 61 18 22 3 69 11.7 Chad 39 60 40 46 21 36 6 44 21.2 Chile 33 20 20 24 3 52 6 31 1.3 China 11 20 40 24 44 91 4 29 3.6 Colombia 22 40 20 27 29 59 9 23 2.5 Comoros 39 60 40 46 0 100 5 24 20.8 Congo, Dem. Rep. 72 80 70 74 7 31 8 57 9.4 Congo, Rep. 78 60 70 69 29 33 7 137 27.3 Costa Rica 56 40 0 32 26 35 6 21 3.3 Côte d'ivoire 33 60 20 38 18 49 7 62 16.9 Croatia 61 40 50 50 17 39 5 174 5.0 Czech Republic 33 40 20 31 35 22 4 123 3.0 Denmark 0 20 10 10 1 0 6 42 0.6 Djibouti 67 40 30 46 16 56 7 40 13.2 Dominica 11 20 20 17 7 58 4 40 13.5 Dominican Republic 56 40 0 32 14 88 7 60 5.1 ecuador 44 60 50 51 12 135 10 17 3.0 egypt 0 20 60 27 25 132 7 193 1.0 el salvador 33 40 0 24 15 86 5 31 3.6 equatorial guinea 67 60 70 66 23 133 6 23 6.3 eritrea 0 40 20 20 0 69 12 101 5.3 estonia 33 80 60 58 33 35 3 51 0.5 ethiopia 33 40 30 34 0 40 13 43 7.5 Fiji 22 20 0 14 9 2 3 48 12.0 Finland 44 60 40 48 26 26 3 14 4.0 France 67 60 40 56 47 32 9 123 6.1 gabon 17 80 80 59 20 43 8 60 10.5 gambia 0 40 30 23 11 9 5 371 7.6 georgia 0 20 0 7 20 4 5 5 0.1 germany 33 60 40 44 19 69 4 40 5.2 ghana 22 40 50 37 13 178 5 34 1.3 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 92 Doing Business 2008 Employing workers Registering property Difficulty Rigidity Difficulty Rigidity of of hiring of hours of firing employment Nonwage Firing cost Cost index index index index labor cost (weeks Procedures Time (% of property Economy (0­100) (0­100) (0­100) (0­100) (% of salary) of salary) (number) (days) value) greece 44 80 40 55 28 24 12 23 4.0 grenada 44 20 0 21 5 29 8 77 7.4 guatemala 44 40 0 28 13 101 5 30 1.0 guinea 33 60 30 41 27 26 6 104 15.3 guinea-Bissau 67 60 70 66 22 87 9 211 5.4 guyana 33 20 20 24 8 56 6 34 4.5 Haiti 22 40 0 21 11 17 5 405 6.5 Honduras 89 40 0 43 10 74 7 24 5.8 Hong Kong, China 0 0 0 0 5 62 5 54 5.0 Hungary 0 80 10 30 34 35 4 63 11.0 iceland 33 40 10 28 12 13 3 4 2.4 india 0 20 70 30 17 56 6 62 7.7 indonesia 72 0 60 44 10 108 7 42 10.5 iran 11 60 50 40 23 91 9 36 10.6 iraq 33 60 20 38 12 0 5 8 6.3 ireland 11 20 20 17 11 24 5 38 10.2 israel 11 60 0 24 6 91 7 144 7.5 italy 33 40 40 38 37 2 8 27 0.6 Jamaica 11 0 0 4 12 61 5 54 13.5 Japan 0 20 30 17 13 4 6 14 5.0 Jordan 11 20 60 30 11 4 8 22 10.0 Kazakhstan 0 40 20 20 14 9 8 52 0.9 Kenya 33 0 30 21 4 47 8 64 4.2 Kiribati 0 0 50 17 8 4 5 513 0.1 Korea 11 60 40 37 13 91 7 11 6.3 Kuwait 0 40 0 13 11 78 8 55 0.5 Kyrgyz Republic 33 40 40 38 21 17 4 4 4.1 Lao PDR 11 40 60 37 5 19 9 135 4.2 Latvia 50 40 40 43 24 17 8 54 2.0 Lebanon 44 0 30 25 22 17 8 25 5.9 Lesotho 22 40 10 24 0 44 6 101 8.2 Liberia 33 20 40 31 5 84 13 50 14.9 Lithuania 33 80 30 48 31 30 3 3 0.7 Luxembourg 67 80 40 62 13 39 8 29 10.2 Macedonia, FYR 61 60 30 50 33 26 6 98 3.5 Madagascar 89 60 40 63 18 30 8 134 11.6 Malawi 56 0 20 25 1 84 6 88 3.3 Malaysia 0 0 30 10 15 75 5 144 2.4 Maldives 0 0 0 0 0 9 no practice no practice no practice Mali 33 40 40 38 28 31 5 29 21.2 Marshall islands 0 0 0 0 11 0 no practice no practice no practice Mauritania 56 40 40 45 16 31 4 49 5.2 Mauritius 0 20 50 23 6 35 6 210 10.8 Mexico 33 40 70 48 21 52 5 74 4.7 Micronesia 22 0 0 7 6 0 no practice no practice no practice Moldova 33 40 40 38 28 37 6 48 0.9 Mongolia 22 80 0 34 20 9 5 11 2.2 Montenegro 33 40 40 38 18 39 8 86 2.4 Morocco 100 40 50 63 19 85 8 47 4.9 Mozambique 83 60 20 54 4 143 8 42 8.1 namibia 0 40 20 20 0 24 9 23 9.9 nepal 67 20 70 52 10 90 3 5 6.4 netherlands 17 40 70 42 18 17 2 5 6.2 new Zealand 11 0 10 7 1 0 2 2 0.1 nicaragua 22 60 0 27 17 24 8 124 3.5 niger 100 60 50 70 17 31 5 32 9.0 nigeria 0 0 20 7 9 50 14 82 22.2 norway 61 40 40 47 14 13 1 3 2.5 oman 33 40 0 24 11 4 2 16 3.0 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank Doing Business inDiCAToRs 93 Employing workers Registering property Difficulty Rigidity Difficulty Rigidity of of hiring of hours of firing employment Nonwage Firing cost Cost index index index index labor cost (weeks Procedures Time (% of property Economy (0­100) (0­100) (0­100) (0­100) (% of salary) of salary) (number) (days) value) Pakistan 78 20 30 43 11 90 6 50 5.3 Palau 11 0 0 4 6 0 5 14 0.4 Panama 78 60 70 69 19 44 7 44 2.4 Papua new guinea 11 20 0 10 10 39 4 72 5.1 Paraguay 56 60 60 59 17 113 6 46 3.5 Peru 44 60 60 55 10 52 5 33 3.3 Philippines 56 20 30 35 7 91 8 33 4.2 Poland 11 60 40 37 21 13 6 197 0.5 Portugal 33 60 50 48 24 95 5 42 7.4 Puerto Rico 44 0 20 21 13 0 8 194 1.4 Romania 78 80 40 66 31 8 8 150 2.8 Russia 33 60 40 44 31 17 6 52 0.3 Rwanda 56 40 30 42 5 26 5 371 9.4 samoa 11 20 0 10 6 9 5 147 1.8 são Tomé and Principe 50 80 60 63 6 91 7 62 12.6 saudi Arabia 0 40 0 13 11 80 4 4 0.0 senegal 72 60 50 61 21 38 6 114 19.5 serbia 67 40 30 46 18 25 6 111 5.4 seychelles 33 20 50 34 25 39 4 33 7.0 sierra Leone 44 60 50 51 10 189 8 235 14.9 singapore 0 0 0 0 13 4 3 9 2.8 slovakia 17 60 30 36 35 13 3 17 0.1 slovenia 78 60 50 63 19 40 6 391 2.0 solomon islands 11 20 20 17 8 44 10 297 4.9 south Africa 56 40 30 42 4 24 6 24 8.8 spain 78 60 30 56 33 56 4 18 7.1 sri Lanka 0 20 60 27 15 169 8 83 5.1 st. Kitts and nevis 11 20 20 17 10 8 6 81 13.3 st. Lucia 0 20 0 7 5 56 5 20 7.4 St.Vincent and the Grenadines 11 20 20 17 4 54 6 37 11.9 sudan 39 20 50 36 17 118 6 9 3.2 suriname 0 20 50 23 0 26 4 193 13.7 swaziland 11 20 20 17 2 53 11 46 7.1 sweden 17 60 40 39 32 26 1 2 3.0 switzerland 0 40 10 17 15 13 4 16 0.4 syria 22 40 50 37 17 80 4 34 28.1 Taiwan, China 67 40 40 49 13 91 3 5 6.2 Tajikistan 33 80 40 51 25 22 6 37 1.9 Tanzania 89 40 60 63 16 32 10 119 5.3 Thailand 33 20 0 18 6 54 2 2 6.3 Timor-Leste 33 20 50 34 0 17 no practice no practice no practice Togo 61 60 40 54 25 36 5 295 13.9 Tonga 0 20 0 7 0 0 4 108 10.2 Trinidad and Tobago 0 0 20 7 3 67 8 162 7.0 Tunisia 28 40 80 49 22 17 5 49 6.1 Turkey 56 40 30 42 22 95 6 6 3.1 uganda 0 0 10 3 10 13 13 227 4.6 ukraine 44 60 30 45 38 13 10 93 3.3 united Arab emirates 0 60 0 20 13 84 3 6 2.0 united Kingdom 11 0 10 7 11 22 2 21 4.1 united states 0 0 0 0 8 0 4 12 0.5 uruguay 33 60 0 31 6 31 8 66 7.1 uzbekistan 33 40 30 34 25 22 12 78 1.4 Vanuatu 22 40 10 24 4 56 2 188 11.0 Venezuela 78 60 100 79 16 not possible 8 47 2.2 Vietnam 0 40 40 27 17 87 4 67 1.2 West Bank and gaza 33 40 20 31 0 91 10 72 2.2 Yemen 0 60 40 33 9 17 6 21 3.9 Zambia 33 40 30 34 9 178 6 70 9.6 Zimbabwe 0 40 60 33 4 446 4 30 25.0 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 94 Doing Business 2008 Getting credit Protecting investors Strength of Depth of credit Public Private Extent of Extent of Ease of Strength legal rights information registry bureau disclosure director shareholder of investor index index coverage coverage index liability index suits index protection Economy (0­10) (0­6) (% of adults) (% of adults) (0­10) (0­10) (0­10) index (0­10) Afghanistan 0 0 0.0 0.0 0 0 2 0.7 Albania 9 0 0.0 0.0 0 5 3 2.7 Algeria 3 2 0.2 0.0 6 6 4 5.3 Angola 3 4 2.3 0.0 5 6 6 5.7 Antigua and Barbuda 4 0 0.0 0.0 4 8 7 6.3 Argentina 3 6 25.5 100.0 6 2 6 4.7 Armenia 5 5 2.8 13.5 5 2 8 5.0 Australia 9 5 0.0 100.0 8 2 7 5.7 Austria 5 6 1.3 40.6 3 5 4 4.0 Azerbaijan 7 4 1.4 0.0 4 1 8 4.3 Bangladesh 7 2 0.7 0.0 6 7 7 6.7 Belarus 2 3 . . 0.0 5 1 8 4.7 Belgium 5 4 57.2 0.0 8 6 7 7.0 Belize 7 0 0.0 0.0 3 4 6 4.3 Benin 4 1 7.8 0.0 6 1 3 3.3 Bhutan 3 0 0.0 0.0 5 3 4 4.0 Bolivia 1 5 12.1 22.6 1 5 6 4.0 Bosnia and Herzegovina 7 5 0.0 63.7 3 6 6 5.0 Botswana 7 4 0.0 58.3 8 2 3 4.3 Brazil 2 5 17.1 46.4 6 7 3 5.3 Brunei 6 0 0.0 0.0 3 2 8 4.3 Bulgaria 6 6 25.4 3.0 10 1 7 6.0 Burkina Faso 4 1 2.1 0.0 6 1 4 3.7 Burundi 1 1 0.2 0.0 4 1 5 3.3 Cambodia 0 0 0.0 0.0 5 9 2 5.3 Cameroon 3 2 1.0 0.0 6 1 6 4.3 Canada 7 6 0.0 100.0 8 9 8 8.3 Cape Verde 5 3 20.3 0.0 1 5 6 4.0 Central African Republic 3 2 1.4 0.0 6 1 5 4.0 Chad 3 1 0.2 0.0 6 1 5 4.0 Chile 4 5 26.2 33.5 7 6 5 6.0 China 3 4 49.2 0.0 10 1 4 5.0 Colombia 2 5 0.0 39.9 8 2 9 6.3 Comoros 3 0 0.0 0.0 6 1 5 4.0 Congo, Dem. Rep. 3 0 0.0 0.0 3 3 4 3.3 Congo, Rep. 3 2 2.4 0.0 6 1 3 3.3 Costa Rica 4 5 6.1 52.7 2 5 2 3.0 Côte d'ivoire 3 1 2.8 0.0 6 1 3 3.3 Croatia 6 3 0.0 72.4 1 5 6 4.0 Czech Republic 6 5 4.2 53.0 2 5 8 5.0 Denmark 8 4 0.0 11.5 7 5 7 6.3 Djibouti 3 1 0.2 0.0 5 2 0 2.3 Dominica 6 0 0.0 0.0 4 8 7 6.3 Dominican Republic 4 6 13.3 35.4 5 0 7 4.0 ecuador 1 5 37.9 44.1 1 5 6 4.0 egypt 1 4 1.6 . . 7 3 5 5.0 el salvador 3 6 17.2 74.6 5 2 6 4.3 equatorial guinea 2 2 1.9 0.0 6 1 4 3.7 eritrea 3 0 0.0 0.0 4 5 5 4.7 estonia 4 5 0.0 19.7 8 4 6 6.0 ethiopia 4 2 0.1 0.0 4 4 5 4.3 Fiji 5 4 0.0 41.2 3 8 7 6.0 Finland 6 5 0.0 14.9 6 4 7 5.7 France 6 4 24.8 0.0 10 1 5 5.3 gabon 3 2 2.4 0.0 6 1 3 3.3 gambia 4 0 0.0 0.0 2 1 5 2.7 georgia 5 4 0.0 0.2 8 6 4 6.0 germany 8 6 0.7 98.1 5 5 5 5.0 ghana 5 0 0.0 0.0 7 5 6 6.0 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank Doing Business inDiCAToRs 95 Getting credit Protecting investors Strength of Depth of credit Public Private Extent of Extent of Ease of Strength legal rights information registry bureau disclosure director shareholder of investor index index coverage coverage index liability index suits index protection Economy (0­10) (0­6) (% of adults) (% of adults) (0­10) (0­10) (0­10) index (0­10) greece 3 4 0.0 38.7 1 3 5 3.0 grenada 6 0 0.0 0.0 4 8 7 6.3 guatemala 3 5 20.7 13.1 3 3 6 4.0 guinea 4 0 0.0 0.0 6 1 1 2.7 guinea-Bissau 3 1 0.9 0.0 6 1 5 4.0 guyana 3 0 0.0 0.0 5 5 6 5.3 Haiti 3 2 0.7 0.0 2 3 4 3.0 Honduras 6 6 12.7 58.0 1 5 4 3.3 Hong Kong, China 10 5 0.0 64.7 10 8 9 9.0 Hungary 6 5 0.0 6.9 2 4 7 4.3 iceland 7 5 0.0 100.0 5 5 6 5.3 india 6 4 0.0 10.8 7 4 7 6.0 indonesia 5 3 20.5 0.2 9 5 3 5.7 iran 5 3 22.2 0.0 5 4 0 3.0 iraq 4 0 0.0 0.0 4 5 4 4.3 ireland 8 5 0.0 100.0 10 6 9 8.3 israel 8 5 0.0 91.6 7 9 9 8.3 italy 3 5 11.0 71.5 7 4 6 5.7 Jamaica 5 0 0.0 0.0 4 8 4 5.3 Japan 6 6 0.0 68.3 7 6 8 7.0 Jordan 5 2 0.8 0.0 5 4 4 4.3 Kazakhstan 5 4 0.0 13.7 7 1 9 5.7 Kenya 8 4 0.0 1.5 3 2 10 5.0 Kiribati 3 0 0.0 0.0 6 5 7 6.0 Korea 5 5 0.0 74.2 7 2 7 5.3 Kuwait 4 4 0.0 14.5 7 7 5 6.3 Kyrgyz Republic 5 3 0.0 1.6 8 1 9 6.0 Lao PDR 2 0 0.0 0.0 0 3 2 1.7 Latvia 8 4 2.6 0.0 5 4 8 5.7 Lebanon 4 5 4.7 0.0 9 1 5 5.0 Lesotho 5 0 0.0 0.0 2 1 8 3.7 Liberia 4 0 0.0 0.0 4 1 6 3.7 Lithuania 4 6 6.6 7.3 5 4 6 5.0 Luxembourg 6 0 0.0 0.0 6 4 3 4.3 Macedonia, FYR 6 3 4.0 0.0 5 6 4 5.0 Madagascar 1 0 0.1 0.0 5 6 6 5.7 Malawi 7 0 0.0 0.0 4 7 5 5.3 Malaysia 8 6 44.5 . . 10 9 7 8.7 Maldives 4 0 0.0 0.0 0 8 8 5.3 Mali 3 1 2.5 0.0 6 1 3 3.3 Marshall islands 2 0 0.0 0.0 2 0 8 3.3 Mauritania 4 1 0.2 0.0 5 3 3 3.7 Mauritius 5 1 38.6 0.0 6 8 9 7.7 Mexico 3 6 0.0 61.2 8 5 5 6.0 Micronesia 7 0 0.0 0.0 0 0 8 2.7 Moldova 6 0 0.0 0.0 7 1 6 4.7 Mongolia 5 3 9.5 0.0 5 8 6 6.3 Montenegro 7 0 0.0 0.0 5 8 6 6.3 Morocco 3 1 2.3 0.0 6 2 1 3.0 Mozambique 3 3 0.9 0.0 5 4 9 6.0 namibia 5 5 0.0 59.9 5 5 6 5.3 nepal 4 2 0.0 0.2 6 1 9 5.3 netherlands 7 5 0.0 78.1 4 4 6 4.7 new Zealand 9 5 0.0 100.0 10 9 10 9.7 nicaragua 3 5 14.8 100.0 4 5 6 5.0 niger 3 1 1.0 0.0 6 1 3 3.3 nigeria 7 0 0.0 0.0 5 7 5 5.7 norway 6 4 0.0 100.0 7 6 7 6.7 oman 4 2 12.4 0.0 8 5 3 5.3 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 96 Doing Business 2008 Getting credit Protecting investors Strength of Depth of credit Public Private Extent of Extent of Ease of Strength legal rights information registry bureau disclosure director shareholder of investor index index coverage coverage index liability index suits index protection Economy (0­10) (0­6) (% of adults) (% of adults) (0­10) (0­10) (0­10) index (0­10) Pakistan 4 4 4.6 1.4 6 6 7 6.3 Palau 2 0 0.0 0.0 0 0 8 2.7 Panama 6 6 0.0 41.6 1 4 9 4.7 Papua new guinea 5 0 0.0 0.0 5 5 8 6.0 Paraguay 3 6 11.0 48.7 6 5 6 5.7 Peru 4 6 20.7 33.0 8 5 7 6.7 Philippines 3 3 0.0 5.5 1 2 8 3.7 Poland 4 4 0.0 51.5 7 2 9 6.0 Portugal 4 4 67.1 11.3 6 5 7 6.0 Puerto Rico 6 5 0.0 62.0 7 6 8 7.0 Romania 7 5 4.1 10.9 9 5 4 6.0 Russia 3 4 0.0 4.4 6 2 7 5.0 Rwanda 1 2 0.2 0.0 2 5 1 2.7 samoa 4 0 0.0 0.0 5 6 8 6.3 são Tomé and Principe 5 0 0.0 0.0 5 1 6 4.0 saudi Arabia 3 6 0.0 23.5 7 7 3 5.7 senegal 3 1 4.0 0.0 6 1 2 3.0 serbia 7 5 0.1 51.3 7 6 3 5.3 seychelles 3 0 0.0 0.0 4 8 5 5.7 sierra Leone 5 0 0.0 0.0 3 6 5 4.7 singapore 9 4 0.0 42.7 10 9 9 9.3 slovakia 9 4 1.2 56.0 3 4 7 4.7 slovenia 6 2 2.5 0.0 3 8 8 6.3 solomon islands 4 0 0.0 0.0 3 7 7 5.7 south Africa 5 6 0.0 52.1 8 8 8 8.0 spain 6 6 44.9 8.3 5 6 4 5.0 sri Lanka 3 3 0.0 2.9 4 5 7 5.3 st. Kitts and nevis 5 0 0.0 0.0 4 8 7 6.3 st. Lucia 6 0 0.0 0.0 4 8 7 6.3 St.Vincent and the Grenadines 7 0 0.0 0.0 4 8 7 6.3 sudan 4 0 0.0 0.0 0 6 5 3.7 suriname 4 0 0.0 0.0 2 0 5 2.3 swaziland 5 5 0.0 37.6 0 1 5 2.0 sweden 6 4 0.0 100.0 6 4 7 5.7 switzerland 6 5 0.0 24.0 0 5 4 3.0 syria 3 0 0.0 0.0 6 5 2 4.3 Taiwan, China 4 5 0.0 67.1 7 4 5 5.3 Tajikistan 4 0 0.0 0.0 0 0 5 1.7 Tanzania 5 0 0.0 0.0 3 4 8 5.0 Thailand 5 5 0.0 27.9 10 2 6 6.0 Timor-Leste 2 0 0.0 0.0 3 4 5 4.0 Togo 3 1 2.7 0.0 6 1 4 3.7 Tonga 3 0 0.0 0.0 3 3 8 4.7 Trinidad and Tobago 5 4 0.0 34.4 4 9 7 6.7 Tunisia 2 4 13.7 0.0 0 4 6 3.3 Turkey 3 5 10.3 2.7 8 4 4 5.3 uganda 3 0 0.0 0.0 2 5 5 4.0 ukraine 8 0 0.0 0.0 1 3 7 3.7 united Arab emirates 3 2 1.4 0.0 4 7 2 4.3 united Kingdom 10 6 0.0 84.6 10 7 7 8.0 united states 7 6 0.0 100.0 7 9 9 8.3 uruguay 5 6 14.1 93.8 3 4 8 5.0 uzbekistan 2 0 0.0 0.0 4 6 3 4.3 Vanuatu 4 0 0.0 0.0 5 6 5 5.3 Venezuela 4 0 0.0 0.0 3 3 2 2.7 Vietnam 6 3 9.2 0.0 6 0 2 2.7 West Bank and gaza 5 3 1.8 0.0 6 5 7 6.0 Yemen 3 0 0.0 0.0 6 4 2 4.0 Zambia 6 0 0.0 0.0 3 6 7 5.3 Zimbabwe 6 0 0.0 0.0 8 1 4 4.3 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank Doing Business inDiCAToRs 97 Paying taxes Trading across borders Cost Cost Payments Time Total tax Documents Time to to export Documents Time to import (number per (hours rate to export export (us$ per to import to import (us$ per Economy year) per year) (% of profit) (number) (days) container) (number) (days) container) Afghanistan 6 275 35.5 12 67 2,500 11 71 2,100 Albania 44 240 46.8 7 21 745 9 22 750 Algeria 33 451 72.6 8 17 1,198 9 23 1,378 Angola 31 272 53.2 12 64 1,850 9 58 2,325 Antigua and Barbuda 45 184 46.8 5 19 1,107 6 19 1,174 Argentina 19 615 112.9 9 16 1,325 7 20 1,825 Armenia 50 1,120 36.6 7 30 1,165 8 24 1,335 Australia 12 107 50.6 6 9 930 6 12 1,120 Austria 22 170 54.6 4 8 843 5 8 843 Azerbaijan 38 952 40.9 9 56 2,715 14 56 2,945 Bangladesh 17 400 39.5 7 28 844 9 32 1,148 Belarus 124 1,188 144.4 8 24 1,672 8 29 1,672 Belgium 11 156 64.3 4 8 1,600 5 9 1,600 Belize 41 147 30.8 7 23 1,800 6 26 2,130 Benin 55 270 73.3 7 34 1,167 7 41 1,202 Bhutan 19 274 39.8 8 38 1,150 11 38 2,080 Bolivia 41 1,080 78.1 8 24 1,110 7 36 1,230 Bosnia and Herzegovina 51 368 44.1 6 19 1,030 7 18 985 Botswana 19 140 17.2 6 33 2,328 9 43 2,595 Brazil 11 2,600 69.2 8 18 1,090 7 22 1,240 Brunei 15 144 37.4 6 28 515 6 19 590 Bulgaria 17 616 36.7 5 23 1,329 7 21 1,377 Burkina Faso 45 270 48.9 11 45 2,096 11 54 3,522 Burundi 32 140 278.7 9 47 2,147 10 71 3,705 Cambodia 27 137 22.6 11 37 722 11 46 852 Cameroon 41 1,400 51.9 9 27 907 8 33 1,529 Canada 9 119 45.9 3 7 1,385 4 11 1,425 Cape Verde 57 100 54.0 5 21 1,024 5 21 1,024 Central African Republic 54 504 203.8 8 57 4,581 18 66 4,534 Chad 54 122 63.7 6 78 4,867 9 102 5,520 Chile 10 316 25.9 6 21 645 7 21 685 China 35 872 73.9 7 21 390 6 24 430 Colombia 69 268 82.4 6 24 1,440 8 20 1,440 Comoros 20 100 48.8 10 30 971 10 21 974 Congo, Dem. Rep. 32 308 229.8 8 46 2,307 9 66 2,183 Congo, Rep. 89 606 65.4 11 50 2,201 12 62 2,201 Costa Rica 43 402 55.7 7 18 660 8 25 660 Côte d'ivoire 66 270 45.4 10 23 1,653 8 43 2,457 Croatia 28 196 32.5 7 22 1,200 8 16 1,200 Czech Republic 12 930 48.6 5 16 775 7 18 860 Denmark 9 135 33.3 4 5 540 3 5 540 Djibouti 35 114 38.7 8 22 960 6 18 960 Dominica 38 147 37.1 7 16 1,197 8 18 1,107 Dominican Republic 74 286 40.2 6 12 815 7 13 1,015 ecuador 8 600 35.3 10 22 1,090 8 44 1,090 egypt 36 711 47.9 6 15 714 7 18 729 el salvador 66 224 33.8 8 21 540 11 18 540 equatorial guinea 45 212 62.2 7 29 1,403 7 46 1,403 eritrea 18 216 84.5 9 59 1,331 13 69 1,581 estonia 10 81 49.2 3 5 675 4 5 675 ethiopia 20 198 31.1 8 46 1,617 8 42 2,793 Fiji 33 140 38.5 13 25 573 13 25 570 Finland 20 269 47.8 4 8 420 5 8 420 France 23 132 66.3 4 11 1,028 5 12 1,148 gabon 28 272 44.2 6 19 1,510 7 35 1,600 gambia 50 376 286.7 7 23 809 8 23 869 georgia 29 387 38.6 8 12 1,105 7 14 1,105 germany 16 196 50.8 4 7 740 5 7 765 ghana 32 304 32.9 6 19 895 7 29 895 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 98 Doing Business 2008 Paying taxes Trading across borders Cost Cost Payments Time Total tax Documents Time to to export Documents Time to import (number per (hours rate to export export (us$ per to import to import (us$ per Economy year) per year) (% of profit) (number) (days) container) (number) (days) container) greece 21 264 48.6 5 20 998 6 25 1,245 grenada 30 140 45.3 6 19 820 5 23 1,178 guatemala 39 344 37.5 11 19 1,052 11 18 1,177 guinea 56 416 49.9 7 33 570 9 32 995 guinea-Bissau 46 208 45.9 6 27 1,445 6 26 1,749 guyana 34 288 39.0 7 30 850 8 35 856 Haiti 53 160 40.0 8 52 1,650 10 53 1,860 Honduras 47 424 51.4 7 20 1,065 11 23 975 Hong Kong, China 4 80 24.4 4 6 525 4 5 525 Hungary 24 340 55.1 5 18 975 7 17 975 iceland 31 140 27.2 5 15 469 5 14 443 india 60 271 70.6 8 18 820 9 21 910 indonesia 51 266 37.3 5 21 667 6 27 623 iran 22 292 47.4 8 26 860 10 42 1,330 iraq 13 312 24.7 10 102 3,400 10 101 3,400 ireland 9 76 28.9 4 7 1,090 4 12 1,139 israel 33 230 36.0 5 12 560 4 12 560 italy 15 360 76.2 5 20 1,291 5 18 1,291 Jamaica 72 414 51.3 6 21 1,750 6 22 1,350 Japan 13 350 52.0 4 10 989 5 11 1,047 Jordan 26 101 31.1 7 19 680 7 22 1,065 Kazakhstan 9 271 36.7 12 89 2,730 14 76 2,780 Kenya 41 432 50.9 9 29 1,955 8 37 1,995 Kiribati 7 120 31.8 6 21 1,550 7 21 1,550 Korea 48 290 34.9 4 11 745 6 10 745 Kuwait 14 118 14.4 8 20 935 11 20 935 Kyrgyz Republic 75 202 61.4 13 64 2,500 13 75 2,450 Lao PDR 34 672 35.5 9 50 1,750 10 50 1,930 Latvia 7 219 32.6 6 13 800 6 12 800 Lebanon 19 180 35.4 5 27 1,027 7 38 810 Lesotho 22 342 20.8 6 44 1,188 8 49 1,210 Liberia 37 158 81.6 10 20 1,032 9 10 1,032 Lithuania 24 166 48.3 6 10 820 6 13 980 Luxembourg 22 58 35.3 5 6 1,250 4 6 1,250 Macedonia, FYR 52 96 49.8 7 19 1,130 7 17 1,130 Madagascar 26 238 46.5 4 28 1,182 10 49 1,282 Malawi 30 370 32.2 12 45 1,623 10 54 2,500 Malaysia 35 166 36.0 7 18 432 7 14 385 Maldives 1 0 9.1 8 21 1,200 9 20 1,200 Mali 58 270 51.4 9 44 1,752 11 65 2,680 Marshall islands 21 128 64.9 5 21 765 5 33 765 Mauritania 38 696 107.5 11 35 1,360 11 42 1,363 Mauritius 7 161 21.7 5 17 728 6 16 673 Mexico 27 552 51.2 5 17 1,302 5 23 2,411 Micronesia 21 128 58.7 3 30 1,145 6 30 1,145 Moldova 49 218 44.0 6 32 1,425 7 35 1,545 Mongolia 42 204 38.4 10 58 1,807 10 59 3,197 Montenegro 88 372 31.6 9 18 1,580 7 19 1,780 Morocco 28 358 53.1 8 14 600 11 19 800 Mozambique 37 230 34.3 8 27 1,155 10 38 1,185 namibia 37 . . 26.5 11 29 1,539 9 24 1,550 nepal 33 408 32.5 9 43 1,600 10 35 1,725 netherlands 9 180 43.4 4 6 880 5 6 1,005 new Zealand 8 70 35.1 7 10 725 5 9 800 nicaragua 64 240 63.2 5 36 1,021 5 38 1,054 niger 42 270 42.4 8 59 2,945 10 68 2,946 nigeria 35 1,120 29.9 10 26 1,026 9 46 1,047 norway 4 87 42.0 4 7 518 4 7 468 oman 14 62 21.6 10 22 665 10 26 824 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank Doing Business inDiCAToRs 99 Paying taxes Trading across borders Cost Cost Payments Time Total tax Documents Time to to export Documents Time to import (number per (hours rate to export export (us$ per to import to import (us$ per Economy year) per year) (% of profit) (number) (days) container) (number) (days) container) Pakistan 47 560 40.7 9 24 515 8 19 1,336 Palau 19 128 73.0 6 29 1,160 10 35 1,110 Panama 59 482 50.8 3 9 650 4 9 850 Papua new guinea 33 206 41.7 7 26 584 9 29 642 Paraguay 35 328 35.3 9 35 720 10 33 900 Peru 9 424 41.5 7 24 590 8 31 670 Philippines 47 195 52.8 8 17 800 8 18 800 Poland 41 418 38.4 5 17 834 5 27 834 Portugal 8 328 44.8 6 16 580 7 16 994 Puerto Rico 16 140 44.3 7 15 1,225 10 16 1,225 Romania 96 202 46.9 5 12 1,075 6 13 1,075 Russia 22 448 51.4 8 36 2,050 13 36 2,050 Rwanda 34 168 33.8 9 47 2,975 9 69 4,970 samoa 37 224 19.8 7 27 1,010 7 31 1,375 são Tomé and Principe 41 424 51.0 8 27 690 9 29 577 saudi Arabia 14 79 14.5 5 19 1,008 5 20 758 senegal 59 696 46.0 11 20 828 11 26 1,720 serbia 66 279 35.8 6 12 1,240 6 14 1,440 seychelles 16 76 48.4 6 17 1,839 5 19 1,839 sierra Leone 22 399 233.5 8 31 1,282 7 34 1,242 singapore 5 49 23.2 4 5 416 4 3 367 slovakia 31 344 50.5 6 25 1,015 8 25 1,050 slovenia 22 260 39.2 6 20 971 8 21 1,019 solomon islands 33 80 32.6 7 24 1,056 4 21 1,238 south Africa 11 350 37.1 8 30 1,087 9 35 1,195 spain 8 298 62.0 6 9 1,000 8 10 1,000 sri Lanka 62 256 63.7 8 21 810 6 21 844 st. Kitts and nevis 24 172 52.6 6 15 750 6 17 756 st. Lucia 32 71 36.9 5 18 1,375 8 21 1,420 St.Vincent and the Grenadines 36 76 45.0 6 15 1,770 6 16 1,769 sudan 42 180 31.6 7 39 1,700 7 54 2,300 suriname 17 199 27.9 8 25 905 7 25 815 swaziland 33 104 36.6 9 21 1,798 11 34 1,820 sweden 2 122 54.5 4 8 561 3 6 619 switzerland 24 63 29.1 4 8 1,238 5 9 1,333 syria 21 336 46.7 8 19 1,300 9 23 1,900 Taiwan, China 23 340 40.6 7 13 747 7 12 747 Tajikistan 54 224 82.2 10 82 3,000 11 83 4,500 Tanzania 48 172 44.3 5 24 1,212 7 30 1,425 Thailand 35 264 37.7 7 17 615 9 14 786 Timor-Leste 15 640 28.3 6 25 990 7 26 995 Togo 53 270 48.2 6 24 872 8 29 894 Tonga 23 164 25.0 7 19 545 6 25 620 Trinidad and Tobago 40 114 33.1 5 14 693 7 26 1,100 Tunisia 46 268 61.0 5 17 540 7 22 810 Turkey 15 223 45.1 7 14 865 8 15 1,013 uganda 33 237 32.3 6 39 2,940 7 37 2,990 ukraine 99 2,085 57.3 6 31 1,045 10 39 1,065 united Arab emirates 14 12 14.4 7 13 462 8 13 462 united Kingdom 8 105 35.7 4 13 940 4 13 1,267 united states 10 325 46.2 4 6 960 5 5 1,160 uruguay 53 304 40.7 10 24 925 10 23 1,180 uzbekistan 118 196 96.3 7 80 2,550 11 104 4,050 Vanuatu 31 120 8.4 7 26 1,815 9 30 2,225 Venezuela 70 864 53.3 8 45 2,400 9 65 2,400 Vietnam 32 1,050 41.1 6 24 669 8 23 881 West Bank and gaza 27 154 17.1 6 25 830 6 40 995 Yemen 32 248 41.4 6 33 1,129 9 31 1,475 Zambia 37 132 16.1 8 53 2,098 11 64 2,840 Zimbabwe 52 256 53.0 9 52 1,879 13 67 2,420 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 100 Doing Business 2008 Enforcing contracts Closing a business Recovery rate Procedures Time Cost Time Cost (cents on the Economy (number) (days) (% of claim) (years) (% of estate) dollar) Afghanistan 47 1,642 25.0 no practice no practice 0.0 Albania 39 390 31.8 no practice no practice 0.0 Algeria 47 630 17.4 2.5 7 41.7 Angola 46 1,011 44.4 6.2 22 10.8 Antigua and Barbuda 45 351 22.7 3.0 7 35.7 Argentina 36 590 16.5 2.8 12 34.4 Armenia 50 285 19.0 1.9 4 42.0 Australia 28 262 20.7 1.0 8 79.2 Austria 26 397 12.7 1.1 18 72.4 Azerbaijan 39 267 18.5 2.7 8 31.5 Bangladesh 41 1,442 63.3 4.0 8 23.2 Belarus 28 225 23.4 5.8 22 33.2 Belgium 27 505 16.6 0.9 4 85.5 Belize 51 892 27.5 1.0 23 63.5 Benin 42 720 58.7 4.0 15 22.6 Bhutan 47 275 0.1 no practice no practice 0.0 Bolivia 37 591 33.2 1.8 15 38.7 Bosnia and Herzegovina 38 595 38.4 3.3 9 35.0 Botswana 29 987 28.1 1.7 15 59.8 Brazil 45 616 16.5 4.0 12 14.6 Brunei 58 540 36.6 2.5 4 45.3 Bulgaria 40 564 22.2 3.3 9 32.4 Burkina Faso 37 446 107.4 4.0 9 25.6 Burundi 44 558 38.6 no practice no practice 0.0 Cambodia 44 401 102.7 no practice no practice 0.0 Cameroon 43 800 46.6 3.2 15 25.5 Canada 36 570 16.2 0.8 4 88.8 Cape Verde 37 465 24.1 no practice no practice 0.0 Central African Republic 43 660 82.0 4.8 76 0.0 Chad 41 743 77.4 no practice no practice 0.0 Chile 36 480 28.6 4.5 15 23.8 China 35 406 8.8 1.7 22 35.9 Colombia 34 1,346 52.6 3.0 1 58.3 Comoros 43 506 89.4 no practice no practice 0.0 Congo, Dem. Rep. 43 685 151.8 5.2 29 2.9 Congo, Rep. 44 560 53.2 3.0 24 20.4 Costa Rica 40 877 24.3 3.5 15 23.1 Côte d'ivoire 33 770 41.7 2.2 18 33.0 Croatia 38 561 13.8 3.1 15 30.2 Czech Republic 27 820 33.0 6.5 15 21.3 Denmark 34 380 23.3 1.1 4 87.0 Djibouti 40 1,225 34.0 5.0 18 15.9 Dominica 47 681 36.0 no practice no practice 0.0 Dominican Republic 34 460 40.9 3.5 38 8.4 ecuador 39 498 20.8 5.3 18 16.9 egypt 42 1,010 25.3 4.2 22 16.6 el salvador 30 786 19.2 4.0 9 28.4 equatorial guinea 40 553 18.5 no practice no practice 0.0 eritrea 39 405 22.6 no practice no practice 0.0 estonia 36 425 17.3 3.0 9 39.1 ethiopia 39 690 15.2 3.0 15 33.1 Fiji 34 397 38.9 1.8 38 20.2 Finland 33 235 10.4 0.9 4 88.2 France 30 331 17.4 1.9 9 47.4 gabon 38 1,070 34.3 5.0 15 15.2 gambia 32 434 37.9 3.0 15 19.3 georgia 36 285 29.9 3.3 4 22.8 germany 33 394 11.8 1.2 8 53.4 ghana 36 487 23.0 1.9 22 24.0 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank Doing Business inDiCAToRs 101 Enforcing contracts Closing a business Recovery rate Procedures Time Cost Time Cost (cents on the Economy (number) (days) (% of claim) (years) (% of estate) dollar) greece 39 819 14.4 2.0 9 44.8 grenada 47 723 32.6 no practice no practice 0.0 guatemala 28 1,459 26.5 3.0 15 28.1 guinea 50 276 45.0 3.8 8 20.4 guinea-Bissau 41 1,140 25.0 no practice no practice 0.0 guyana 36 581 25.2 3.0 29 17.4 Haiti 35 508 42.6 5.7 30 3.1 Honduras 45 480 30.4 3.8 15 20.3 Hong Kong, China 24 211 14.5 1.1 9 79.0 Hungary 33 335 13.0 2.0 15 38.4 iceland 26 393 6.1 1.0 4 80.3 india 46 1,420 39.6 10.0 9 11.6 indonesia 39 570 122.7 5.5 18 12.6 iran 39 520 17.0 4.5 9 19.0 iraq 51 520 32.5 no practice no practice 0.0 ireland 20 515 26.9 0.4 9 87.1 israel 35 890 25.3 4.0 23 43.6 italy 41 1,210 29.9 1.8 22 61.8 Jamaica 34 565 45.6 1.1 18 64.3 Japan 30 316 22.7 0.6 4 92.6 Jordan 39 689 31.2 4.3 9 27.8 Kazakhstan 38 230 22.0 3.3 18 23.4 Kenya 44 465 26.7 4.5 22 31.0 Kiribati 32 660 25.8 no practice no practice 0.0 Korea 35 230 10.3 1.5 4 81.2 Kuwait 50 566 13.3 4.2 1 33.6 Kyrgyz Republic 39 177 22.0 4.0 15 15.6 Lao PDR 42 443 31.6 no practice no practice 0.0 Latvia 27 279 12.9 3.0 13 34.6 Lebanon 37 721 30.8 4.0 22 19.1 Lesotho 41 695 16.6 2.6 8 34.9 Liberia 41 1,280 35.0 3.0 43 7.8 Lithuania 30 210 23.6 1.7 7 49.2 Luxembourg 26 321 8.8 2.0 15 41.6 Macedonia, FYR 39 385 33.1 3.7 28 15.8 Madagascar 38 871 42.4 no practice no practice 0.0 Malawi 42 432 142.4 2.6 30 13.2 Malaysia 30 600 27.5 2.3 15 38.3 Maldives 41 665 16.5 6.7 4 18.2 Mali 39 860 52.0 3.6 18 21.3 Marshall islands 36 476 27.4 2.0 38 17.9 Mauritania 46 400 23.2 8.0 9 7.8 Mauritius 37 750 17.4 1.7 15 34.3 Mexico 38 415 32.0 1.8 18 63.9 Micronesia 34 965 66.0 5.3 38 3.1 Moldova 31 365 16.6 2.8 9 28.8 Mongolia 32 314 26.1 4.0 8 20.1 Montenegro 49 545 25.7 2.0 8 42.8 Morocco 40 615 25.2 1.8 18 35.3 Mozambique 31 1,010 142.5 5.0 9 13.9 namibia 33 270 29.9 1.5 15 41.3 nepal 39 735 26.8 5.0 9 24.5 netherlands 25 514 24.4 1.1 4 86.7 new Zealand 30 216 22.0 1.3 4 77.1 nicaragua 35 540 26.8 2.2 15 34.6 niger 39 545 59.6 5.0 18 14.2 nigeria 39 457 32.0 2.0 22 27.5 norway 33 310 9.9 0.9 1 90.7 oman 51 598 13.5 4.0 4 35.5 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 102 Doing Business 2008 Enforcing contracts Closing a business Recovery rate Procedures Time Cost Time Cost (cents on the Economy (number) (days) (% of claim) (years) (% of estate) dollar) Pakistan 47 880 23.8 2.8 4 39.1 Palau 38 885 35.3 1.0 23 38.2 Panama 31 686 50.0 2.5 18 32.3 Papua new guinea 43 591 110.3 3.0 23 23.9 Paraguay 38 591 30.0 3.9 9 14.6 Peru 41 468 35.7 3.1 7 24.7 Philippines 37 842 26.0 5.7 38 4.2 Poland 38 830 10.0 3.0 22 27.8 Portugal 35 577 17.7 2.0 9 74.0 Puerto Rico 41 620 16.4 3.8 8 54.1 Romania 32 537 19.9 3.3 9 28.9 Russia 37 281 13.4 3.8 9 29.0 Rwanda 24 310 78.7 no practice no practice 0.0 samoa 44 455 19.7 2.5 38 15.2 são Tomé and Principe 43 405 34.8 no practice no practice 0.0 saudi Arabia 44 635 27.5 2.8 22 29.3 senegal 44 780 26.5 3.0 7 32.4 serbia 36 635 28.4 2.7 23 23.1 seychelles 38 720 14.3 no practice no practice 0.0 sierra Leone 40 515 149.5 2.6 42 8.5 singapore 22 120 17.8 0.8 1 91.3 slovakia 30 565 25.7 4.0 18 45.2 slovenia 32 1,350 18.6 2.0 8 46.6 solomon islands 37 455 78.9 1.0 38 23.3 south Africa 30 600 33.2 2.0 18 33.2 spain 39 515 17.2 1.0 15 76.9 sri Lanka 40 1,318 22.8 1.7 5 44.6 st. Kitts and nevis 47 578 20.5 no practice no practice 0.0 st. Lucia 47 635 37.3 2.0 9 41.8 St.Vincent and the Grenadines 45 394 30.3 no practice no practice 0.0 sudan 53 810 19.8 no practice no practice 0.0 suriname 44 1,715 37.1 5.0 30 7.4 swaziland 40 972 23.1 2.0 15 36.0 sweden 30 508 31.3 2.0 9 74.7 switzerland 32 417 21.2 3.0 4 47.1 syria 55 872 29.3 4.1 9 30.8 Taiwan, China 47 510 17.4 1.9 4 80.2 Tajikistan 34 295 20.5 3.0 9 23.6 Tanzania 38 462 14.3 3.0 22 20.5 Thailand 35 479 14.3 2.7 36 41.8 Timor-Leste 51 1,800 163.2 no practice no practice 0.0 Togo 41 588 47.5 3.0 15 26.3 Tonga 37 350 30.5 2.7 22 25.3 Trinidad and Tobago 42 1,340 33.5 no practice no practice 0.0 Tunisia 39 565 21.8 1.3 7 51.5 Turkey 36 420 18.8 3.3 15 20.3 uganda 38 535 44.9 2.2 30 41.0 ukraine 30 354 41.5 2.9 42 9.1 united Arab emirates 50 607 26.2 5.1 30 10.1 united Kingdom 30 404 23.4 1.0 6 84.6 united states 32 300 9.4 1.5 7 75.9 uruguay 40 720 16.2 2.1 7 44.8 uzbekistan 42 195 22.2 4.0 10 18.7 Vanuatu 30 430 74.7 2.6 38 39.3 Venezuela 29 510 43.7 4.0 38 6.6 Vietnam 34 295 31.0 5.0 15 18.0 West Bank and gaza 44 700 21.2 no practice no practice 0.0 Yemen 37 520 16.5 3.0 8 28.6 Zambia 35 471 38.7 2.7 9 28.4 Zimbabwe 38 410 32.0 3.3 22 0.1 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank country tables 103 AFGHANISTAN South Asia GNI per capita (US$) 260 Ease of doing business (rank) 159 Low income Population (m) 30.9 Starting a business (rank) 24 Registering property (rank) 169 Trading across borders (rank) 174 Procedures (number) 4 Procedures (number) 9 Documents to export (number) 12 Time (days) 9 Time (days) 250 Time to export (days) 67 Cost (% of income per capita) 84.6 Cost (% of property value) 7.0 Cost to export (US$ per container) 2,500 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 0.0 Documents to import (number) 11 Getting credit (rank) 177 Time to import (days) 71 Dealing with licenses (rank) 141 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 0 Cost to import (US$ per container) 2,100 Procedures (number) 13 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 0 Time (days) 340 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 160 Cost (% of income per capita) 21,230.8 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 47 Time (days) 1,642 Employing workers (rank) 24 Protecting investors (rank) 178 Cost (% of claim) 25.0 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 0 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 0 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 40 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 0 Closing a business (rank) 178 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 30 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 2 Time (years) No practice Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 23 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 0.7 Cost (% of estate) No practice Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 0 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 0.0 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 0 Paying taxes (rank) 38 Payments (number per year) 6 Time (hours per year) 275 Total tax rate (% of profit) 35.5 ALBANIA Eastern Europe & Central Asia GNI per capita (US$) 2,960 Ease of doing business (rank) 136 Lower middle income Population (m) 3.1 Starting a business (rank) 123 Registering property (rank) 82 Trading across borders (rank) 70 Procedures (number) 10 Procedures (number) 7 Documents to export (number) 7 Time (days) 36 Time (days) 47 Time to export (days) 21 Cost (% of income per capita) 20.9 Cost (% of property value) 3.5 Cost to export (US$ per container) 745 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 34.3 Documents to import (number) 9 Getting credit (rank) 48 Time to import (days) 22 Dealing with licenses (rank) 168 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 9 Cost to import (US$ per container) 750 Procedures (number) 24 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 0 Time (days) 331 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 74 Cost (% of income per capita) 461.0 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 39 Time (days) 390 Employing workers (rank) 109 Protecting investors (rank) 165 Cost (% of claim) 31.8 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 44 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 0 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 40 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 5 Closing a business (rank) 178 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 20 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 3 Time (years) No practice Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 35 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 2.7 Cost (% of estate) No practice Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 22 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 0.0 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 56 Paying taxes (rank) 118 Payments (number per year) 44 Time (hours per year) 240 Total tax rate (% of profit) 46.8 ALGERIA Middle East & North Africa GNI per capita (US$) 3,030 Ease of doing business (rank) 125 Lower middle income Population (m) 33.3 Starting a business (rank) 131 Registering property (rank) 156 Trading across borders (rank) 114 Procedures (number) 14 Procedures (number) 14 Documents to export (number) 8 Time (days) 24 Time (days) 51 Time to export (days) 17 Cost (% of income per capita) 13.2 Cost (% of property value) 7.5 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,198 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 45.2 Documents to import (number) 9 Getting credit (rank) 115 Time to import (days) 23 Dealing with licenses (rank) 108 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 3 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,378 Procedures (number) 22 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 2 Time (days) 240 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.2 Enforcing contracts (rank) 117 Cost (% of income per capita) 57.8 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 47 Time (days) 630 Employing workers (rank) 118 Protecting investors (rank) 64 Cost (% of claim) 17.4 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 44 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 6 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 60 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 6 Closing a business (rank) 45 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 40 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 4 Time (years) 2.5 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 48 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 5.3 Cost (% of estate) 7 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 27 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 41.7 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 17 Paying taxes (rank) 157 Payments (number per year) 33 Time (hours per year) 451 Total tax rate (% of profit) 72.6 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 104 Doing business 2008 ANGOLA Sub-Saharan Africa GNI per capita (US$) 1,980 Ease of doing business (rank) 167 Lower middle income Population (m) 16.4 Starting a business (rank) 173 Registering property (rank) 166 Trading across borders (rank) 164 Procedures (number) 12 Procedures (number) 7 Documents to export (number) 12 Time (days) 119 Time (days) 334 Time to export (days) 64 Cost (% of income per capita) 343.7 Cost (% of property value) 11.1 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,850 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 50.5 Documents to import (number) 9 Getting credit (rank) 84 Time to import (days) 58 Dealing with licenses (rank) 136 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 3 Cost to import (US$ per container) 2,325 Procedures (number) 14 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 4 Time (days) 337 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 2.3 Enforcing contracts (rank) 176 Cost (% of income per capita) 1,109.7 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 46 Time (days) 1,011 Employing workers (rank) 172 Protecting investors (rank) 51 Cost (% of claim) 44.4 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 78 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 5 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 60 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 6 Closing a business (rank) 138 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 70 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 6 Time (years) 6.2 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 69 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 5.7 Cost (% of estate) 22 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 8 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 10.8 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 58 Paying taxes (rank) 120 Payments (number per year) 31 Time (hours per year) 272 Total tax rate (% of profit) 53.2 ANTIGUA AND BARBUDA Latin America & Caribbean GNI per capita (US$) 11,210 Ease of doing business (rank) 41 High income Population (m) 0.1 Starting a business (rank) 27 Registering property (rank) 75 Trading across borders (rank) 55 Procedures (number) 7 Procedures (number) 5 Documents to export (number) 5 Time (days) 21 Time (days) 26 Time to export (days) 19 Cost (% of income per capita) 11.8 Cost (% of property value) 13.0 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,107 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 0.0 Documents to import (number) 6 Getting credit (rank) 135 Time to import (days) 19 Dealing with licenses (rank) 26 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 4 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,174 Procedures (number) 14 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 0 Time (days) 157 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 74 Cost (% of income per capita) 26.3 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 45 Time (days) 351 Employing workers (rank) 41 Protecting investors (rank) 19 Cost (% of claim) 22.7 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 11 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 4 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 0 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 8 Closing a business (rank) 58 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 20 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 7 Time (years) 3.0 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 10 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 6.3 Cost (% of estate) 7 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 9 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 35.7 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 52 Paying taxes (rank) 108 Payments (number per year) 45 Time (hours per year) 184 Total tax rate (% of profit) 46.8 ARGENTINA Latin America & Caribbean GNI per capita (US$) 5,150 Ease of doing business (rank) 109 Upper middle income Population (m) 39.1 Starting a business (rank) 114 Registering property (rank) 96 Trading across borders (rank) 107 Procedures (number) 14 Procedures (number) 5 Documents to export (number) 9 Time (days) 31 Time (days) 65 Time to export (days) 16 Cost (% of income per capita) 9.7 Cost (% of property value) 7.6 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,325 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 4.8 Documents to import (number) 7 Getting credit (rank) 48 Time to import (days) 20 Dealing with licenses (rank) 165 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 3 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,825 Procedures (number) 28 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 6 Time (days) 338 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 25.5 Enforcing contracts (rank) 47 Cost (% of income per capita) 234.1 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 100.0 Procedures (number) 36 Time (days) 590 Employing workers (rank) 147 Protecting investors (rank) 98 Cost (% of claim) 16.5 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 44 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 6 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 60 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 2 Closing a business (rank) 65 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 20 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 6 Time (years) 2.8 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 41 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 4.7 Cost (% of estate) 12 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 26 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 34.4 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 139 Paying taxes (rank) 147 Payments (number per year) 19 Time (hours per year) 615 Total tax rate (% of profit) 112.9 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank country tables 105 ARMENIA Eastern Europe & Central Asia GNI per capita (US$) 1,930 Ease of doing business (rank) 39 Lower middle income Population (m) 3.0 Starting a business (rank) 47 Registering property (rank) 2 Trading across borders (rank) 118 Procedures (number) 9 Procedures (number) 3 Documents to export (number) 7 Time (days) 18 Time (days) 4 Time to export (days) 30 Cost (% of income per capita) 4.8 Cost (% of property value) 0.4 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,165 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 3.1 Documents to import (number) 8 Getting credit (rank) 36 Time to import (days) 24 Dealing with licenses (rank) 73 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 5 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,335 Procedures (number) 19 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 5 Time (days) 116 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 2.8 Enforcing contracts (rank) 64 Cost (% of income per capita) 411.3 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 13.5 Procedures (number) 50 Time (days) 285 Employing workers (rank) 48 Protecting investors (rank) 83 Cost (% of claim) 19.0 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 33 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 5 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 40 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 2 Closing a business (rank) 42 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 20 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 8 Time (years) 1.9 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 31 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 5.0 Cost (% of estate) 4 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 19 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 42.0 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 13 Paying taxes (rank) 143 Payments (number per year) 50 Time (hours per year) 1,120 Total tax rate (% of profit) 36.6 AUSTRALIA OECD: High Income GNI per capita (US$) 35,990 Ease of doing business (rank) 9 High income Population (m) 20.5 Starting a business (rank) 1 Registering property (rank) 27 Trading across borders (rank) 34 Procedures (number) 2 Procedures (number) 5 Documents to export (number) 6 Time (days) 2 Time (days) 5 Time to export (days) 9 Cost (% of income per capita) 0.8 Cost (% of property value) 4.9 Cost to export (US$ per container) 930 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 0.0 Documents to import (number) 6 Getting credit (rank) 3 Time to import (days) 12 Dealing with licenses (rank) 52 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 9 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,120 Procedures (number) 16 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 5 Time (days) 221 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 11 Cost (% of income per capita) 13.2 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 100.0 Procedures (number) 28 Time (days) 262 Employing workers (rank) 8 Protecting investors (rank) 51 Cost (% of claim) 20.7 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 0 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 8 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 0 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 2 Closing a business (rank) 14 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 10 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 7 Time (years) 1.0 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 3 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 5.7 Cost (% of estate) 8 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 20 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 79.2 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 4 Paying taxes (rank) 41 Payments (number per year) 12 Time (hours per year) 107 Total tax rate (% of profit) 50.6 AUSTRIA OECD: High Income GNI per capita (US$) 39,590 Ease of doing business (rank) 25 High income Population (m) 8.2 Starting a business (rank) 83 Registering property (rank) 30 Trading across borders (rank) 12 Procedures (number) 8 Procedures (number) 3 Documents to export (number) 4 Time (days) 28 Time (days) 32 Time to export (days) 8 Cost (% of income per capita) 5.4 Cost (% of property value) 4.5 Cost to export (US$ per container) 843 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 55.5 Documents to import (number) 5 Getting credit (rank) 26 Time to import (days) 8 Dealing with licenses (rank) 40 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 5 Cost to import (US$ per container) 843 Procedures (number) 13 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 6 Time (days) 194 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 1.3 Enforcing contracts (rank) 6 Cost (% of income per capita) 73.7 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 40.6 Procedures (number) 26 Time (days) 397 Employing workers (rank) 62 Protecting investors (rank) 122 Cost (% of claim) 12.7 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 11 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 3 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 60 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 5 Closing a business (rank) 21 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 40 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 4 Time (years) 1.1 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 37 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 4.0 Cost (% of estate) 18 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 31 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 72.4 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 2 Paying taxes (rank) 80 Payments (number per year) 22 Time (hours per year) 170 Total tax rate (% of profit) 54.6 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 106 Doing business 2008 AZERBAIJAN Eastern Europe & Central Asia GNI per capita (US$) 1,850 Ease of doing business (rank) 96 Lower middle income Population (m) 8.5 Starting a business (rank) 64 Registering property (rank) 56 Trading across borders (rank) 173 Procedures (number) 13 Procedures (number) 7 Documents to export (number) 9 Time (days) 30 Time (days) 61 Time to export (days) 56 Cost (% of income per capita) 6.9 Cost (% of property value) 0.2 Cost to export (US$ per container) 2,715 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 0.0 Documents to import (number) 14 Getting credit (rank) 26 Time to import (days) 56 Dealing with licenses (rank) 159 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 7 Cost to import (US$ per container) 2,945 Procedures (number) 31 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 4 Time (days) 207 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 1.4 Enforcing contracts (rank) 30 Cost (% of income per capita) 768.3 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 39 Time (days) 267 Employing workers (rank) 80 Protecting investors (rank) 107 Cost (% of claim) 18.5 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 33 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 4 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 40 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 1 Closing a business (rank) 75 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 40 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 8 Time (years) 2.7 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 38 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 4.3 Cost (% of estate) 8 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 22 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 31.5 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 22 Paying taxes (rank) 141 Payments (number per year) 38 Time (hours per year) 952 Total tax rate (% of profit) 40.9 BANGLADESH South Asia GNI per capita (US$) 480 Ease of doing business (rank) 107 Low income Population (m) 144.3 Starting a business (rank) 92 Registering property (rank) 171 Trading across borders (rank) 112 Procedures (number) 8 Procedures (number) 8 Documents to export (number) 7 Time (days) 74 Time (days) 425 Time to export (days) 28 Cost (% of income per capita) 46.2 Cost (% of property value) 10.3 Cost to export (US$ per container) 844 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 0.0 Documents to import (number) 9 Getting credit (rank) 48 Time to import (days) 32 Dealing with licenses (rank) 116 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 7 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,148 Procedures (number) 14 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 2 Time (days) 252 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.7 Enforcing contracts (rank) 175 Cost (% of income per capita) 751.0 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 41 Time (days) 1,442 Employing workers (rank) 129 Protecting investors (rank) 15 Cost (% of claim) 63.3 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 44 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 6 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 20 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 7 Closing a business (rank) 102 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 40 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 7 Time (years) 4.0 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 35 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 6.7 Cost (% of estate) 8 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 0 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 23.2 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 104 Paying taxes (rank) 81 Payments (number per year) 17 Time (hours per year) 400 Total tax rate (% of profit) 39.5 BELARUS Eastern Europe & Central Asia GNI per capita (US$) 3,380 Ease of doing business (rank) 110 Lower middle income Population (m) 9.7 Starting a business (rank) 119 Registering property (rank) 94 Trading across borders (rank) 137 Procedures (number) 10 Procedures (number) 7 Documents to export (number) 8 Time (days) 48 Time (days) 231 Time to export (days) 24 Cost (% of income per capita) 8.8 Cost (% of property value) 0.1 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,672 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 29.7 Documents to import (number) 8 Getting credit (rank) 115 Time to import (days) 29 Dealing with licenses (rank) 94 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 2 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,672 Procedures (number) 17 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 3 Time (days) 350 Public registry coverage (% of adults) .. Enforcing contracts (rank) 16 Cost (% of income per capita) 60.9 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 28 Time (days) 225 Employing workers (rank) 43 Protecting investors (rank) 98 Cost (% of claim) 23.4 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 0 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 5 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 40 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 1 Closing a business (rank) 69 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 40 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 8 Time (years) 5.8 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 27 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 4.7 Cost (% of estate) 22 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 39 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 33.2 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 22 Paying taxes (rank) 178 Payments (number per year) 124 Time (hours per year) 1,188 Total tax rate (% of profit) 144.4 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank country tables 107 BELGIUM OECD: High Income GNI per capita (US$) 38,600 Ease of doing business (rank) 19 High income Population (m) 10.5 Starting a business (rank) 19 Registering property (rank) 161 Trading across borders (rank) 48 Procedures (number) 3 Procedures (number) 7 Documents to export (number) 4 Time (days) 4 Time (days) 132 Time to export (days) 8 Cost (% of income per capita) 5.3 Cost (% of property value) 12.7 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,600 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 20.1 Documents to import (number) 5 Getting credit (rank) 48 Time to import (days) 9 Dealing with licenses (rank) 37 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 5 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,600 Procedures (number) 14 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 4 Time (days) 169 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 57.2 Enforcing contracts (rank) 22 Cost (% of income per capita) 63.7 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 27 Time (days) 505 Employing workers (rank) 36 Protecting investors (rank) 12 Cost (% of claim) 16.6 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 11 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 8 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 40 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 6 Closing a business (rank) 9 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 10 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 7 Time (years) 0.9 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 20 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 7.0 Cost (% of estate) 4 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 55 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 85.5 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 16 Paying taxes (rank) 65 Payments (number per year) 11 Time (hours per year) 156 Total tax rate (% of profit) 64.3 BELIZE Latin America & Caribbean GNI per capita (US$) 3,650 Ease of doing business (rank) 59 Upper middle income Population (m) 0.3 Starting a business (rank) 116 Registering property (rank) 113 Trading across borders (rank) 116 Procedures (number) 9 Procedures (number) 8 Documents to export (number) 7 Time (days) 44 Time (days) 60 Time to export (days) 23 Cost (% of income per capita) 53.1 Cost (% of property value) 4.7 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,800 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 0.0 Documents to import (number) 6 Getting credit (rank) 84 Time to import (days) 26 Dealing with licenses (rank) 3 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 7 Cost to import (US$ per container) 2,130 Procedures (number) 11 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 0 Time (days) 66 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 170 Cost (% of income per capita) 18.5 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 51 Time (days) 892 Employing workers (rank) 28 Protecting investors (rank) 107 Cost (% of claim) 27.5 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 22 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 3 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 20 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 4 Closing a business (rank) 24 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 0 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 6 Time (years) 1.0 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 14 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 4.3 Cost (% of estate) 23 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 4 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 63.5 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 24 Paying taxes (rank) 47 Payments (number per year) 41 Time (hours per year) 147 Total tax rate (% of profit) 30.8 BENIN Sub-Saharan Africa GNI per capita (US$) 540 Ease of doing business (rank) 151 Low income Population (m) 8.7 Starting a business (rank) 137 Registering property (rank) 105 Trading across borders (rank) 124 Procedures (number) 7 Procedures (number) 3 Documents to export (number) 7 Time (days) 31 Time (days) 118 Time to export (days) 34 Cost (% of income per capita) 195.0 Cost (% of property value) 11.4 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,167 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 354.2 Documents to import (number) 7 Getting credit (rank) 115 Time to import (days) 41 Dealing with licenses (rank) 123 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 4 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,202 Procedures (number) 15 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 1 Time (days) 332 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 7.8 Enforcing contracts (rank) 166 Cost (% of income per capita) 316.6 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 42 Time (days) 720 Employing workers (rank) 115 Protecting investors (rank) 147 Cost (% of claim) 58.7 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 39 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 6 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 40 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 1 Closing a business (rank) 106 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 40 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 3 Time (years) 4.0 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 40 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 3.3 Cost (% of estate) 15 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 29 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 22.6 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 36 Paying taxes (rank) 161 Payments (number per year) 55 Time (hours per year) 270 Total tax rate (% of profit) 73.3 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 108 Doing business 2008 BHUTAN South Asia GNI per capita (US$) 1,410 Ease of doing business (rank) 119 Low income Population (m) 0.6 Starting a business (rank) 52 Registering property (rank) 33 Trading across borders (rank) 149 Procedures (number) 8 Procedures (number) 5 Documents to export (number) 8 Time (days) 48 Time (days) 64 Time to export (days) 38 Cost (% of income per capita) 10.4 Cost (% of property value) 0.0 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,150 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 0.0 Documents to import (number) 11 Getting credit (rank) 158 Time to import (days) 38 Dealing with licenses (rank) 119 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 3 Cost to import (US$ per container) 2,080 Procedures (number) 25 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 0 Time (days) 183 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 38 Cost (% of income per capita) 195.9 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 47 Time (days) 275 Employing workers (rank) 14 Protecting investors (rank) 122 Cost (% of claim) 0.1 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 0 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 5 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 0 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 3 Closing a business (rank) 178 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 20 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 4 Time (years) No practice Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 7 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 4.0 Cost (% of estate) No practice Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 1 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 0.0 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 10 Paying taxes (rank) 68 Payments (number per year) 19 Time (hours per year) 274 Total tax rate (% of profit) 39.8 BOLIVIA Latin America & Caribbean GNI per capita (US$) 1,100 Ease of doing business (rank) 140 Lower middle income Population (m) 9.3 Starting a business (rank) 157 Registering property (rank) 120 Trading across borders (rank) 115 Procedures (number) 15 Procedures (number) 7 Documents to export (number) 8 Time (days) 50 Time (days) 92 Time to export (days) 24 Cost (% of income per capita) 134.1 Cost (% of property value) 4.9 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,110 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 3.4 Documents to import (number) 7 Getting credit (rank) 97 Time to import (days) 36 Dealing with licenses (rank) 106 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 1 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,230 Procedures (number) 17 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 5 Time (days) 249 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 12.1 Enforcing contracts (rank) 112 Cost (% of income per capita) 198.6 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 22.6 Procedures (number) 37 Time (days) 591 Employing workers (rank) 177 Protecting investors (rank) 122 Cost (% of claim) 33.2 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 78 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 1 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 60 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 5 Closing a business (rank) 52 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 100 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 6 Time (years) 1.8 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 79 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 4.0 Cost (% of estate) 15 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 14 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 38.7 Firing cost (weeks of salary) Not possible Paying taxes (rank) 172 Payments (number per year) 41 Time (hours per year) 1,080 Total tax rate (% of profit) 78.1 BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA Eastern Europe & Central Asia GNI per capita (US$) 2,980 Ease of doing business (rank) 105 Lower middle income Population (m) 3.9 Starting a business (rank) 150 Registering property (rank) 144 Trading across borders (rank) 53 Procedures (number) 12 Procedures (number) 7 Documents to export (number) 6 Time (days) 54 Time (days) 331 Time to export (days) 19 Cost (% of income per capita) 30.1 Cost (% of property value) 5.0 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,030 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 43.0 Documents to import (number) 7 Getting credit (rank) 13 Time to import (days) 18 Dealing with licenses (rank) 150 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 7 Cost to import (US$ per container) 985 Procedures (number) 16 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 5 Time (days) 467 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 126 Cost (% of income per capita) 790.3 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 63.7 Procedures (number) 38 Time (days) 595 Employing workers (rank) 114 Protecting investors (rank) 83 Cost (% of claim) 38.4 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 67 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 3 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 40 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 6 Closing a business (rank) 61 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 30 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 6 Time (years) 3.3 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 46 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 5.0 Cost (% of estate) 9 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 15 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 35.0 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 31 Paying taxes (rank) 142 Payments (number per year) 51 Time (hours per year) 368 Total tax rate (% of profit) 44.1 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank country tables 109 BOTSWANA Sub-Saharan Africa GNI per capita (US$) 5,900 Ease of doing business (rank) 51 Upper middle income Population (m) 1.8 Starting a business (rank) 99 Registering property (rank) 36 Trading across borders (rank) 145 Procedures (number) 11 Procedures (number) 4 Documents to export (number) 6 Time (days) 108 Time (days) 30 Time to export (days) 33 Cost (% of income per capita) 9.9 Cost (% of property value) 5.0 Cost to export (US$ per container) 2,328 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 0.0 Documents to import (number) 9 Getting credit (rank) 26 Time to import (days) 43 Dealing with licenses (rank) 122 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 7 Cost to import (US$ per container) 2,595 Procedures (number) 24 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 4 Time (days) 167 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 95 Cost (% of income per capita) 322.3 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 58.3 Procedures (number) 29 Time (days) 987 Employing workers (rank) 70 Protecting investors (rank) 107 Cost (% of claim) 28.1 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 0 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 8 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 20 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 2 Closing a business (rank) 26 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 40 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 3 Time (years) 1.7 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 20 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 4.3 Cost (% of estate) 15 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 0 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 59.8 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 90 Paying taxes (rank) 14 Payments (number per year) 19 Time (hours per year) 140 Total tax rate (% of profit) 17.2 BRAZIL Latin America & Caribbean GNI per capita (US$) 4,730 Ease of doing business (rank) 122 Lower middle income Population (m) 188.7 Starting a business (rank) 122 Registering property (rank) 110 Trading across borders (rank) 93 Procedures (number) 18 Procedures (number) 14 Documents to export (number) 8 Time (days) 152 Time (days) 45 Time to export (days) 18 Cost (% of income per capita) 10.4 Cost (% of property value) 2.8 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,090 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 0.0 Documents to import (number) 7 Getting credit (rank) 84 Time to import (days) 22 Dealing with licenses (rank) 107 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 2 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,240 Procedures (number) 18 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 5 Time (days) 411 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 17.1 Enforcing contracts (rank) 106 Cost (% of income per capita) 59.4 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 46.4 Procedures (number) 45 Time (days) 616 Employing workers (rank) 119 Protecting investors (rank) 64 Cost (% of claim) 16.5 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 78 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 6 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 60 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 7 Closing a business (rank) 131 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 0 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 3 Time (years) 4.0 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 46 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 5.3 Cost (% of estate) 12 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 37 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 14.6 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 37 Paying taxes (rank) 137 Payments (number per year) 11 Time (hours per year) 2,600 Total tax rate (% of profit) 69.2 BRUNEI East Asia & Pacific GNI per capita (US$) 36,216 Ease of doing business (rank) 78 High income Population (m) 0.4 Starting a business (rank) 117 Registering property (rank) 178 Trading across borders (rank) 36 Procedures (number) 18 Procedures (number) No practice Documents to export (number) 6 Time (days) 116 Time (days) No practice Time to export (days) 28 Cost (% of income per capita) 9.0 Cost (% of property value) No practice Cost to export (US$ per container) 515 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 0.0 Documents to import (number) 6 Getting credit (rank) 97 Time to import (days) 19 Dealing with licenses (rank) 66 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 6 Cost to import (US$ per container) 590 Procedures (number) 32 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 0 Time (days) 167 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 158 Cost (% of income per capita) 5.2 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 58 Time (days) 540 Employing workers (rank) 4 Protecting investors (rank) 121 Cost (% of claim) 36.6 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 0 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 3 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 20 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 2 Closing a business (rank) 35 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 0 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 8 Time (years) 2.5 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 7 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 4.3 Cost (% of estate) 4 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 5 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 45.3 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 4 Paying taxes (rank) 28 Payments (number per year) 15 Time (hours per year) 144 Total tax rate (% of profit) 37.4 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 110 Doing business 2008 BULGARIA Eastern Europe & Central Asia GNI per capita (US$) 3,990 Ease of doing business (rank) 46 Lower middle income Population (m) 7.7 Starting a business (rank) 100 Registering property (rank) 62 Trading across borders (rank) 89 Procedures (number) 9 Procedures (number) 9 Documents to export (number) 5 Time (days) 32 Time (days) 19 Time to export (days) 23 Cost (% of income per capita) 8.4 Cost (% of property value) 2.3 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,329 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 56.3 Documents to import (number) 7 Getting credit (rank) 13 Time to import (days) 21 Dealing with licenses (rank) 103 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 6 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,377 Procedures (number) 22 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 6 Time (days) 131 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 25.4 Enforcing contracts (rank) 90 Cost (% of income per capita) 499.9 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 3.0 Procedures (number) 40 Time (days) 564 Employing workers (rank) 57 Protecting investors (rank) 33 Cost (% of claim) 22.2 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 17 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 10 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 60 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 1 Closing a business (rank) 72 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 10 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 7 Time (years) 3.3 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 29 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 6.0 Cost (% of estate) 9 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 23 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 32.4 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 9 Paying taxes (rank) 88 Payments (number per year) 17 Time (hours per year) 616 Total tax rate (% of profit) 36.7 BURKINA FASO Sub-Saharan Africa GNI per capita (US$) 460 Ease of doing business (rank) 161 Low income Population (m) 13.6 Starting a business (rank) 105 Registering property (rank) 170 Trading across borders (rank) 170 Procedures (number) 6 Procedures (number) 8 Documents to export (number) 11 Time (days) 18 Time (days) 182 Time to export (days) 45 Cost (% of income per capita) 82.1 Cost (% of property value) 12.2 Cost to export (US$ per container) 2,096 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 415.7 Documents to import (number) 11 Getting credit (rank) 115 Time to import (days) 54 Dealing with licenses (rank) 169 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 4 Cost to import (US$ per container) 3,522 Procedures (number) 32 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 1 Time (days) 226 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 2.1 Enforcing contracts (rank) 109 Cost (% of income per capita) 701.2 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 37 Time (days) 446 Employing workers (rank) 152 Protecting investors (rank) 138 Cost (% of claim) 107.4 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 83 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 6 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 60 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 1 Closing a business (rank) 91 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 40 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 4 Time (years) 4.0 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 61 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 3.7 Cost (% of estate) 9 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 20 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 25.6 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 34 Paying taxes (rank) 133 Payments (number per year) 45 Time (hours per year) 270 Total tax rate (% of profit) 48.9 BURUNDI Sub-Saharan Africa GNI per capita (US$) 100 Ease of doing business (rank) 174 Low income Population (m) 7.8 Starting a business (rank) 124 Registering property (rank) 122 Trading across borders (rank) 167 Procedures (number) 11 Procedures (number) 5 Documents to export (number) 9 Time (days) 43 Time (days) 94 Time to export (days) 47 Cost (% of income per capita) 251.0 Cost (% of property value) 11.5 Cost to export (US$ per container) 2,147 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 0.0 Documents to import (number) 10 Getting credit (rank) 170 Time to import (days) 71 Dealing with licenses (rank) 171 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 1 Cost to import (US$ per container) 3,705 Procedures (number) 20 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 1 Time (days) 384 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.2 Enforcing contracts (rank) 148 Cost (% of income per capita) 9,939.0 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 44 Time (days) 558 Employing workers (rank) 99 Protecting investors (rank) 147 Cost (% of claim) 38.6 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 33 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 4 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 60 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 1 Closing a business (rank) 178 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 30 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 5 Time (years) No practice Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 41 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 3.3 Cost (% of estate) No practice Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 7 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 0.0 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 26 Paying taxes (rank) 109 Payments (number per year) 32 Time (hours per year) 140 Total tax rate (% of profit) 278.7 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank country tables 111 CAMBODIA East Asia & Pacific GNI per capita (US$) 480 Ease of doing business (rank) 145 Low income Population (m) 14.4 Starting a business (rank) 162 Registering property (rank) 98 Trading across borders (rank) 139 Procedures (number) 10 Procedures (number) 7 Documents to export (number) 11 Time (days) 86 Time (days) 56 Time to export (days) 37 Cost (% of income per capita) 190.3 Cost (% of property value) 4.4 Cost to export (US$ per container) 722 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 50.8 Documents to import (number) 11 Getting credit (rank) 177 Time to import (days) 46 Dealing with licenses (rank) 144 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 0 Cost to import (US$ per container) 852 Procedures (number) 23 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 0 Time (days) 709 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 134 Cost (% of income per capita) 74.3 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 44 Time (days) 401 Employing workers (rank) 133 Protecting investors (rank) 64 Cost (% of claim) 102.7 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 44 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 5 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 60 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 9 Closing a business (rank) 178 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 30 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 2 Time (years) No practice Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 45 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 5.3 Cost (% of estate) No practice Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 0 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 0.0 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 39 Paying taxes (rank) 21 Payments (number per year) 27 Time (hours per year) 137 Total tax rate (% of profit) 22.6 CAMEROON Sub-Saharan Africa GNI per capita (US$) 1,080 Ease of doing business (rank) 154 Lower middle income Population (m) 16.7 Starting a business (rank) 160 Registering property (rank) 134 Trading across borders (rank) 132 Procedures (number) 13 Procedures (number) 5 Documents to export (number) 9 Time (days) 37 Time (days) 93 Time to export (days) 27 Cost (% of income per capita) 129.2 Cost (% of property value) 17.8 Cost to export (US$ per container) 907 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 177.1 Documents to import (number) 8 Getting credit (rank) 115 Time to import (days) 33 Dealing with licenses (rank) 154 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 3 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,529 Procedures (number) 15 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 2 Time (days) 426 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 1.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 172 Cost (% of income per capita) 1,202.9 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 43 Time (days) 800 Employing workers (rank) 120 Protecting investors (rank) 107 Cost (% of claim) 46.6 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 28 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 6 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 40 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 1 Closing a business (rank) 92 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 70 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 6 Time (years) 3.2 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 46 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 4.3 Cost (% of estate) 15 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 16 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 25.5 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 33 Paying taxes (rank) 166 Payments (number per year) 41 Time (hours per year) 1,400 Total tax rate (% of profit) 51.9 CANADA OECD: High Income GNI per capita (US$) 36,170 Ease of doing business (rank) 7 High income Population (m) 32.6 Starting a business (rank) 2 Registering property (rank) 28 Trading across borders (rank) 39 Procedures (number) 2 Procedures (number) 6 Documents to export (number) 3 Time (days) 3 Time (days) 17 Time to export (days) 7 Cost (% of income per capita) 0.9 Cost (% of property value) 1.8 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,385 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 0.0 Documents to import (number) 4 Getting credit (rank) 7 Time to import (days) 11 Dealing with licenses (rank) 26 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 7 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,425 Procedures (number) 14 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 6 Time (days) 75 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 43 Cost (% of income per capita) 125.4 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 100.0 Procedures (number) 36 Time (days) 570 Employing workers (rank) 19 Protecting investors (rank) 5 Cost (% of claim) 16.2 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 11 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 8 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 0 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 9 Closing a business (rank) 4 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 0 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 8 Time (years) 0.8 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 4 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 8.3 Cost (% of estate) 4 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 13 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 88.8 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 28 Paying taxes (rank) 25 Payments (number per year) 9 Time (hours per year) 119 Total tax rate (% of profit) 45.9 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 112 Doing business 2008 CAPE VERDE Sub-Saharan Africa GNI per capita (US$) 2,130 Ease of doing business (rank) 132 Lower middle income Population (m) 0.5 Starting a business (rank) 156 Registering property (rank) 127 Trading across borders (rank) 51 Procedures (number) 12 Procedures (number) 6 Documents to export (number) 5 Time (days) 52 Time (days) 83 Time to export (days) 21 Cost (% of income per capita) 40.1 Cost (% of property value) 7.8 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,024 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 53.4 Documents to import (number) 5 Getting credit (rank) 68 Time to import (days) 21 Dealing with licenses (rank) 79 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 5 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,024 Procedures (number) 18 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 3 Time (days) 120 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 20.3 Enforcing contracts (rank) 56 Cost (% of income per capita) 718.3 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 37 Time (days) 465 Employing workers (rank) 143 Protecting investors (rank) 122 Cost (% of claim) 24.1 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 33 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 1 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 40 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 5 Closing a business (rank) 178 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 60 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 6 Time (years) No practice Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 44 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 4.0 Cost (% of estate) No practice Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 17 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 0.0 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 91 Paying taxes (rank) 117 Payments (number per year) 57 Time (hours per year) 100 Total tax rate (% of profit) 54.0 CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC Sub-Saharan Africa GNI per capita (US$) 360 Ease of doing business (rank) 177 Low income Population (m) 4.1 Starting a business (rank) 139 Registering property (rank) 95 Trading across borders (rank) 172 Procedures (number) 10 Procedures (number) 3 Documents to export (number) 8 Time (days) 14 Time (days) 69 Time to export (days) 57 Cost (% of income per capita) 205.4 Cost (% of property value) 11.7 Cost to export (US$ per container) 4,581 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 531.2 Documents to import (number) 18 Getting credit (rank) 115 Time to import (days) 66 Dealing with licenses (rank) 133 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 3 Cost to import (US$ per container) 4,534 Procedures (number) 21 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 2 Time (days) 239 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 1.4 Enforcing contracts (rank) 169 Cost (% of income per capita) 288.3 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 43 Time (days) 660 Employing workers (rank) 149 Protecting investors (rank) 122 Cost (% of claim) 82.0 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 72 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 6 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 60 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 1 Closing a business (rank) 178 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 50 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 5 Time (years) 4.8 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 61 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 4.0 Cost (% of estate) 76 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 18 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 0.0 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 22 Paying taxes (rank) 175 Payments (number per year) 54 Time (hours per year) 504 Total tax rate (% of profit) 203.8 CHAD Sub-Saharan Africa GNI per capita (US$) 480 Ease of doing business (rank) 173 Low income Population (m) 10.0 Starting a business (rank) 177 Registering property (rank) 123 Trading across borders (rank) 157 Procedures (number) 19 Procedures (number) 6 Documents to export (number) 6 Time (days) 75 Time (days) 44 Time to export (days) 78 Cost (% of income per capita) 188.8 Cost (% of property value) 21.2 Cost to export (US$ per container) 4,867 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 398.4 Documents to import (number) 9 Getting credit (rank) 135 Time to import (days) 102 Dealing with licenses (rank) 68 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 3 Cost to import (US$ per container) 5,520 Procedures (number) 9 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 1 Time (days) 181 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.2 Enforcing contracts (rank) 167 Cost (% of income per capita) 1,063.8 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 41 Time (days) 743 Employing workers (rank) 135 Protecting investors (rank) 122 Cost (% of claim) 77.4 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 39 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 6 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 60 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 1 Closing a business (rank) 178 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 40 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 5 Time (years) No practice Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 46 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 4.0 Cost (% of estate) No practice Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 21 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 0.0 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 36 Paying taxes (rank) 124 Payments (number per year) 54 Time (hours per year) 122 Total tax rate (% of profit) 63.7 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank country tables 113 CHILE Latin America & Caribbean GNI per capita (US$) 6,980 Ease of doing business (rank) 33 Upper middle income Population (m) 16.5 Starting a business (rank) 39 Registering property (rank) 34 Trading across borders (rank) 43 Procedures (number) 9 Procedures (number) 6 Documents to export (number) 6 Time (days) 27 Time (days) 31 Time to export (days) 21 Cost (% of income per capita) 8.6 Cost (% of property value) 1.3 Cost to export (US$ per container) 645 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 0.0 Documents to import (number) 7 Getting credit (rank) 48 Time to import (days) 21 Dealing with licenses (rank) 58 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 4 Cost to import (US$ per container) 685 Procedures (number) 18 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 5 Time (days) 155 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 26.2 Enforcing contracts (rank) 64 Cost (% of income per capita) 128.1 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 33.5 Procedures (number) 36 Time (days) 480 Employing workers (rank) 68 Protecting investors (rank) 33 Cost (% of claim) 28.6 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 33 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 7 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 20 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 6 Closing a business (rank) 98 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 20 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 5 Time (years) 4.5 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 24 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 6.0 Cost (% of estate) 15 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 3 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 23.8 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 52 Paying taxes (rank) 34 Payments (number per year) 10 Time (hours per year) 316 Total tax rate (% of profit) 25.9 CHINA East Asia & Pacific GNI per capita (US$) 2,010 Ease of doing business (rank) 83 Lower middle income Population (m) 1,311.8 Starting a business (rank) 135 Registering property (rank) 29 Trading across borders (rank) 42 Procedures (number) 13 Procedures (number) 4 Documents to export (number) 7 Time (days) 35 Time (days) 29 Time to export (days) 21 Cost (% of income per capita) 8.4 Cost (% of property value) 3.6 Cost to export (US$ per container) 390 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 190.2 Documents to import (number) 6 Getting credit (rank) 84 Time to import (days) 24 Dealing with licenses (rank) 175 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 3 Cost to import (US$ per container) 430 Procedures (number) 37 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 4 Time (days) 336 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 49.2 Enforcing contracts (rank) 20 Cost (% of income per capita) 840.2 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 35 Time (days) 406 Employing workers (rank) 86 Protecting investors (rank) 83 Cost (% of claim) 8.8 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 11 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 10 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 20 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 1 Closing a business (rank) 57 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 40 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 4 Time (years) 1.7 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 24 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 5.0 Cost (% of estate) 22 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 44 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 35.9 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 91 Paying taxes (rank) 168 Payments (number per year) 35 Time (hours per year) 872 Total tax rate (% of profit) 73.9 COLOMBIA Latin America & Caribbean GNI per capita (US$) 2,740 Ease of doing business (rank) 66 Lower middle income Population (m) 45.6 Starting a business (rank) 88 Registering property (rank) 69 Trading across borders (rank) 105 Procedures (number) 11 Procedures (number) 9 Documents to export (number) 6 Time (days) 42 Time (days) 23 Time to export (days) 24 Cost (% of income per capita) 19.3 Cost (% of property value) 2.5 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,440 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 0.0 Documents to import (number) 8 Getting credit (rank) 84 Time to import (days) 20 Dealing with licenses (rank) 61 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 2 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,440 Procedures (number) 14 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 5 Time (days) 146 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 147 Cost (% of income per capita) 602.8 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 39.9 Procedures (number) 34 Time (days) 1,346 Employing workers (rank) 83 Protecting investors (rank) 19 Cost (% of claim) 52.6 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 22 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 8 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 40 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 2 Closing a business (rank) 27 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 20 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 9 Time (years) 3.0 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 27 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 6.3 Cost (% of estate) 1 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 29 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 58.3 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 59 Paying taxes (rank) 167 Payments (number per year) 69 Time (hours per year) 268 Total tax rate (% of profit) 82.4 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 114 Doing business 2008 COMOROS Sub-Saharan Africa GNI per capita (US$) 660 Ease of doing business (rank) 147 Low income Population (m) 0.6 Starting a business (rank) 145 Registering property (rank) 84 Trading across borders (rank) 119 Procedures (number) 11 Procedures (number) 5 Documents to export (number) 10 Time (days) 23 Time (days) 24 Time to export (days) 30 Cost (% of income per capita) 188.4 Cost (% of property value) 20.8 Cost to export (US$ per container) 971 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 280.3 Documents to import (number) 10 Getting credit (rank) 158 Time to import (days) 21 Dealing with licenses (rank) 56 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 3 Cost to import (US$ per container) 974 Procedures (number) 18 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 0 Time (days) 164 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 152 Cost (% of income per capita) 77.8 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 43 Time (days) 506 Employing workers (rank) 158 Protecting investors (rank) 122 Cost (% of claim) 89.4 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 39 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 6 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 60 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 1 Closing a business (rank) 178 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 40 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 5 Time (years) No practice Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 46 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 4.0 Cost (% of estate) No practice Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 0 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 0.0 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 100 Paying taxes (rank) 46 Payments (number per year) 20 Time (hours per year) 100 Total tax rate (% of profit) 48.8 CONGO, DEM. REP. Sub-Saharan Africa GNI per capita (US$) 130 Ease of doing business (rank) 178 Low income Population (m) 59.3 Starting a business (rank) 146 Registering property (rank) 141 Trading across borders (rank) 154 Procedures (number) 13 Procedures (number) 8 Documents to export (number) 8 Time (days) 155 Time (days) 57 Time to export (days) 46 Cost (% of income per capita) 487.2 Cost (% of property value) 9.4 Cost to export (US$ per container) 2,307 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 0.0 Documents to import (number) 9 Getting credit (rank) 158 Time to import (days) 66 Dealing with licenses (rank) 138 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 3 Cost to import (US$ per container) 2,183 Procedures (number) 14 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 0 Time (days) 322 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 173 Cost (% of income per capita) 2,112.6 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 43 Time (days) 685 Employing workers (rank) 171 Protecting investors (rank) 147 Cost (% of claim) 151.8 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 72 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 3 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 80 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 3 Closing a business (rank) 150 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 70 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 4 Time (years) 5.2 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 74 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 3.3 Cost (% of estate) 29 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 7 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 2.9 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 31 Paying taxes (rank) 149 Payments (number per year) 32 Time (hours per year) 308 Total tax rate (% of profit) 229.8 CONGO, REP. Sub-Saharan Africa GNI per capita (US$) 927 Ease of doing business (rank) 175 Lower middle income Population (m) 4.1 Starting a business (rank) 154 Registering property (rank) 168 Trading across borders (rank) 171 Procedures (number) 10 Procedures (number) 7 Documents to export (number) 11 Time (days) 37 Time (days) 137 Time to export (days) 50 Cost (% of income per capita) 150.1 Cost (% of property value) 27.3 Cost to export (US$ per container) 2,201 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 206.3 Documents to import (number) 12 Getting credit (rank) 115 Time to import (days) 62 Dealing with licenses (rank) 67 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 3 Cost to import (US$ per container) 2,201 Procedures (number) 14 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 2 Time (days) 169 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 2.4 Enforcing contracts (rank) 156 Cost (% of income per capita) 565.9 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 44 Time (days) 560 Employing workers (rank) 167 Protecting investors (rank) 147 Cost (% of claim) 53.2 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 78 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 6 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 60 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 1 Closing a business (rank) 110 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 70 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 3 Time (years) 3.0 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 69 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 3.3 Cost (% of estate) 24 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 29 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 20.4 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 33 Paying taxes (rank) 176 Payments (number per year) 89 Time (hours per year) 606 Total tax rate (% of profit) 65.4 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank country tables 115 COSTA RICA Latin America & Caribbean GNI per capita (US$) 4,980 Ease of doing business (rank) 115 Upper middle income Population (m) 4.4 Starting a business (rank) 113 Registering property (rank) 41 Trading across borders (rank) 54 Procedures (number) 12 Procedures (number) 6 Documents to export (number) 7 Time (days) 77 Time (days) 21 Time to export (days) 18 Cost (% of income per capita) 21.3 Cost (% of property value) 3.3 Cost to export (US$ per container) 660 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 0.0 Documents to import (number) 8 Getting credit (rank) 48 Time to import (days) 25 Dealing with licenses (rank) 120 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 4 Cost to import (US$ per container) 660 Procedures (number) 23 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 5 Time (days) 178 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 6.1 Enforcing contracts (rank) 130 Cost (% of income per capita) 244.2 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 52.7 Procedures (number) 40 Time (days) 877 Employing workers (rank) 79 Protecting investors (rank) 158 Cost (% of claim) 24.3 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 56 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 2 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 40 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 5 Closing a business (rank) 104 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 0 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 2 Time (years) 3.5 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 32 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 3.0 Cost (% of estate) 15 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 26 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 23.1 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 35 Paying taxes (rank) 162 Payments (number per year) 43 Time (hours per year) 402 Total tax rate (% of profit) 55.7 COTE D'IVOIRE Sub-Saharan Africa GNI per capita (US$) 870 Ease of doing business (rank) 155 Low income Population (m) 18.5 Starting a business (rank) 155 Registering property (rank) 153 Trading across borders (rank) 147 Procedures (number) 10 Procedures (number) 7 Documents to export (number) 10 Time (days) 40 Time (days) 62 Time to export (days) 23 Cost (% of income per capita) 135.8 Cost (% of property value) 16.9 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,653 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 219.8 Documents to import (number) 8 Getting credit (rank) 135 Time to import (days) 43 Dealing with licenses (rank) 157 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 3 Cost to import (US$ per container) 2,457 Procedures (number) 21 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 1 Time (days) 628 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 2.8 Enforcing contracts (rank) 122 Cost (% of income per capita) 247.7 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 33 Time (days) 770 Employing workers (rank) 112 Protecting investors (rank) 147 Cost (% of claim) 41.7 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 33 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 6 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 60 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 1 Closing a business (rank) 71 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 20 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 3 Time (years) 2.2 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 38 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 3.3 Cost (% of estate) 18 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 18 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 33.0 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 49 Paying taxes (rank) 140 Payments (number per year) 66 Time (hours per year) 270 Total tax rate (% of profit) 45.4 CROATIA Eastern Europe & Central Asia GNI per capita (US$) 9,330 Ease of doing business (rank) 97 Upper middle income Population (m) 4.4 Starting a business (rank) 93 Registering property (rank) 99 Trading across borders (rank) 96 Procedures (number) 8 Procedures (number) 5 Documents to export (number) 7 Time (days) 40 Time (days) 174 Time to export (days) 22 Cost (% of income per capita) 11.7 Cost (% of property value) 5.0 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,200 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 18.4 Documents to import (number) 8 Getting credit (rank) 48 Time to import (days) 16 Dealing with licenses (rank) 162 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 6 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,200 Procedures (number) 22 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 3 Time (days) 255 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 45 Cost (% of income per capita) 722.4 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 72.4 Procedures (number) 38 Time (days) 561 Employing workers (rank) 139 Protecting investors (rank) 122 Cost (% of claim) 13.8 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 61 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 1 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 40 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 5 Closing a business (rank) 78 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 50 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 6 Time (years) 3.1 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 50 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 4.0 Cost (% of estate) 15 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 17 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 30.2 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 39 Paying taxes (rank) 43 Payments (number per year) 28 Time (hours per year) 196 Total tax rate (% of profit) 32.5 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 116 Doing business 2008 CZECH REPUBLIC Eastern Europe & Central Asia GNI per capita (US$) 12,680 Ease of doing business (rank) 56 Upper middle income Population (m) 10.2 Starting a business (rank) 91 Registering property (rank) 54 Trading across borders (rank) 30 Procedures (number) 10 Procedures (number) 4 Documents to export (number) 5 Time (days) 17 Time (days) 123 Time to export (days) 16 Cost (% of income per capita) 10.6 Cost (% of property value) 3.0 Cost to export (US$ per container) 775 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 34.9 Documents to import (number) 7 Getting credit (rank) 26 Time to import (days) 18 Dealing with licenses (rank) 83 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 6 Cost to import (US$ per container) 860 Procedures (number) 36 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 5 Time (days) 180 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 4.2 Enforcing contracts (rank) 97 Cost (% of income per capita) 18.5 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 53.0 Procedures (number) 27 Time (days) 820 Employing workers (rank) 55 Protecting investors (rank) 83 Cost (% of claim) 33.0 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 33 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 2 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 40 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 5 Closing a business (rank) 108 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 20 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 8 Time (years) 6.5 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 31 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 5.0 Cost (% of estate) 15 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 35 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 21.3 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 22 Paying taxes (rank) 113 Payments (number per year) 12 Time (hours per year) 930 Total tax rate (% of profit) 48.6 DENMARK OECD: High Income GNI per capita (US$) 51,700 Ease of doing business (rank) 5 High income Population (m) 5.4 Starting a business (rank) 18 Registering property (rank) 39 Trading across borders (rank) 2 Procedures (number) 4 Procedures (number) 6 Documents to export (number) 4 Time (days) 6 Time (days) 42 Time to export (days) 5 Cost (% of income per capita) 0.0 Cost (% of property value) 0.6 Cost to export (US$ per container) 540 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 40.7 Documents to import (number) 3 Getting credit (rank) 13 Time to import (days) 5 Dealing with licenses (rank) 6 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 8 Cost to import (US$ per container) 540 Procedures (number) 6 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 4 Time (days) 69 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 30 Cost (% of income per capita) 61.8 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 11.5 Procedures (number) 34 Time (days) 380 Employing workers (rank) 10 Protecting investors (rank) 19 Cost (% of claim) 23.3 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 0 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 7 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 20 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 5 Closing a business (rank) 7 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 10 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 7 Time (years) 1.1 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 10 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 6.3 Cost (% of estate) 4 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 1 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 87.0 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 0 Paying taxes (rank) 13 Payments (number per year) 9 Time (hours per year) 135 Total tax rate (% of profit) 33.3 DJIBOUTI Middle East & North Africa GNI per capita (US$) 1,060 Ease of doing business (rank) 146 Lower middle income Population (m) 0.8 Starting a business (rank) 165 Registering property (rank) 131 Trading across borders (rank) 66 Procedures (number) 11 Procedures (number) 7 Documents to export (number) 8 Time (days) 37 Time (days) 40 Time to export (days) 22 Cost (% of income per capita) 206.6 Cost (% of property value) 13.2 Cost to export (US$ per container) 960 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 530.8 Documents to import (number) 6 Getting credit (rank) 135 Time to import (days) 18 Dealing with licenses (rank) 92 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 3 Cost to import (US$ per container) 960 Procedures (number) 14 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 1 Time (days) 195 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.2 Enforcing contracts (rank) 159 Cost (% of income per capita) 1,010.6 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 40 Time (days) 1,225 Employing workers (rank) 130 Protecting investors (rank) 173 Cost (% of claim) 34.0 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 67 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 5 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 40 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 2 Closing a business (rank) 126 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 30 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 0 Time (years) 5.0 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 46 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 2.3 Cost (% of estate) 18 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 16 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 15.9 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 56 Paying taxes (rank) 51 Payments (number per year) 35 Time (hours per year) 114 Total tax rate (% of profit) 38.7 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank country tables 117 DOMINICA Latin America & Caribbean GNI per capita (US$) 3,960 Ease of doing business (rank) 77 Upper middle income Population (m) 0.1 Starting a business (rank) 23 Registering property (rank) 83 Trading across borders (rank) 80 Procedures (number) 5 Procedures (number) 4 Documents to export (number) 7 Time (days) 19 Time (days) 40 Time to export (days) 16 Cost (% of income per capita) 27.1 Cost (% of property value) 13.5 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,197 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 0.0 Documents to import (number) 8 Getting credit (rank) 97 Time to import (days) 18 Dealing with licenses (rank) 47 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 6 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,107 Procedures (number) 12 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 0 Time (days) 219 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 164 Cost (% of income per capita) 74.4 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 47 Time (days) 681 Employing workers (rank) 54 Protecting investors (rank) 19 Cost (% of claim) 36.0 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 11 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 4 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 20 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 8 Closing a business (rank) 178 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 20 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 7 Time (years) No practice Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 17 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 6.3 Cost (% of estate) No practice Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 7 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 0.0 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 58 Paying taxes (rank) 64 Payments (number per year) 38 Time (hours per year) 147 Total tax rate (% of profit) 37.1 DOMINICAN REPUBLIC Latin America & Caribbean GNI per capita (US$) 2,850 Ease of doing business (rank) 99 Lower middle income Population (m) 9.6 Starting a business (rank) 84 Registering property (rank) 106 Trading across borders (rank) 35 Procedures (number) 9 Procedures (number) 7 Documents to export (number) 6 Time (days) 22 Time (days) 60 Time to export (days) 12 Cost (% of income per capita) 31.1 Cost (% of property value) 5.1 Cost to export (US$ per container) 815 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 0.0 Documents to import (number) 7 Getting credit (rank) 36 Time to import (days) 13 Dealing with licenses (rank) 74 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 4 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,015 Procedures (number) 17 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 6 Time (days) 214 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 13.3 Enforcing contracts (rank) 82 Cost (% of income per capita) 116.1 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 35.4 Procedures (number) 34 Time (days) 460 Employing workers (rank) 106 Protecting investors (rank) 122 Cost (% of claim) 40.9 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 56 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 5 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 40 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 0 Closing a business (rank) 142 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 0 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 7 Time (years) 3.5 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 32 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 4.0 Cost (% of estate) 38 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 14 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 8.4 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 88 Paying taxes (rank) 139 Payments (number per year) 74 Time (hours per year) 286 Total tax rate (% of profit) 40.2 ECUADOR Latin America & Caribbean GNI per capita (US$) 2,840 Ease of doing business (rank) 128 Lower middle income Population (m) 13.4 Starting a business (rank) 148 Registering property (rank) 70 Trading across borders (rank) 131 Procedures (number) 14 Procedures (number) 10 Documents to export (number) 10 Time (days) 65 Time (days) 17 Time to export (days) 22 Cost (% of income per capita) 29.2 Cost (% of property value) 3.0 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,090 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 7.0 Documents to import (number) 8 Getting credit (rank) 97 Time to import (days) 44 Dealing with licenses (rank) 53 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 1 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,090 Procedures (number) 19 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 5 Time (days) 148 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 37.9 Enforcing contracts (rank) 59 Cost (% of income per capita) 55.3 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 44.1 Procedures (number) 39 Time (days) 498 Employing workers (rank) 168 Protecting investors (rank) 122 Cost (% of claim) 20.8 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 44 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 1 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 60 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 5 Closing a business (rank) 124 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 50 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 6 Time (years) 5.3 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 51 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 4.0 Cost (% of estate) 18 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 12 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 16.9 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 135 Paying taxes (rank) 57 Payments (number per year) 8 Time (hours per year) 600 Total tax rate (% of profit) 35.3 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 118 Doing business 2008 EGYPT Middle East & North Africa GNI per capita (US$) 1,350 Ease of doing business (rank) 126 Lower middle income Population (m) 75.4 Starting a business (rank) 55 Registering property (rank) 101 Trading across borders (rank) 26 Procedures (number) 7 Procedures (number) 7 Documents to export (number) 6 Time (days) 9 Time (days) 193 Time to export (days) 15 Cost (% of income per capita) 28.6 Cost (% of property value) 1.0 Cost to export (US$ per container) 714 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 12.9 Documents to import (number) 7 Getting credit (rank) 115 Time to import (days) 18 Dealing with licenses (rank) 163 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 1 Cost to import (US$ per container) 729 Procedures (number) 28 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 4 Time (days) 249 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 1.6 Enforcing contracts (rank) 145 Cost (% of income per capita) 474.9 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) .. Procedures (number) 42 Time (days) 1,010 Employing workers (rank) 108 Protecting investors (rank) 83 Cost (% of claim) 25.3 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 0 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 7 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 20 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 3 Closing a business (rank) 125 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 60 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 5 Time (years) 4.2 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 27 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 5.0 Cost (% of estate) 22 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 25 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 16.6 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 132 Paying taxes (rank) 150 Payments (number per year) 36 Time (hours per year) 711 Total tax rate (% of profit) 47.9 EL SALVADOR Latin America & Caribbean GNI per capita (US$) 2,540 Ease of doing business (rank) 69 Lower middle income Population (m) 7.0 Starting a business (rank) 130 Registering property (rank) 37 Trading across borders (rank) 68 Procedures (number) 9 Procedures (number) 5 Documents to export (number) 8 Time (days) 26 Time (days) 31 Time to export (days) 21 Cost (% of income per capita) 73.1 Cost (% of property value) 3.6 Cost to export (US$ per container) 540 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 112.5 Documents to import (number) 11 Getting credit (rank) 48 Time to import (days) 18 Dealing with licenses (rank) 121 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 3 Cost to import (US$ per container) 540 Procedures (number) 34 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 6 Time (days) 155 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 17.2 Enforcing contracts (rank) 54 Cost (% of income per capita) 197.9 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 74.6 Procedures (number) 30 Time (days) 786 Employing workers (rank) 76 Protecting investors (rank) 107 Cost (% of claim) 19.2 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 33 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 5 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 40 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 2 Closing a business (rank) 85 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 0 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 6 Time (years) 4.0 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 24 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 4.3 Cost (% of estate) 9 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 15 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 28.4 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 86 Paying taxes (rank) 101 Payments (number per year) 66 Time (hours per year) 224 Total tax rate (% of profit) 33.8 EQUATORIAL GUINEA Sub-Saharan Africa GNI per capita (US$) 8,250 Ease of doing business (rank) 165 Upper middle income Population (m) 0.5 Starting a business (rank) 172 Registering property (rank) 56 Trading across borders (rank) 133 Procedures (number) 20 Procedures (number) 6 Documents to export (number) 7 Time (days) 136 Time (days) 23 Time to export (days) 29 Cost (% of income per capita) 105.1 Cost (% of property value) 6.3 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,403 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 23.2 Documents to import (number) 7 Getting credit (rank) 135 Time to import (days) 46 Dealing with licenses (rank) 90 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 2 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,403 Procedures (number) 18 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 2 Time (days) 201 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 1.9 Enforcing contracts (rank) 72 Cost (% of income per capita) 239.9 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 40 Time (days) 553 Employing workers (rank) 175 Protecting investors (rank) 141 Cost (% of claim) 18.5 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 67 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 6 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 60 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 1 Closing a business (rank) 178 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 70 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 4 Time (years) No practice Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 66 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 3.7 Cost (% of estate) No practice Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 23 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 0.0 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 133 Paying taxes (rank) 136 Payments (number per year) 45 Time (hours per year) 212 Total tax rate (% of profit) 62.2 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank country tables 119 ERITREA Sub-Saharan Africa GNI per capita (US$) 200 Ease of doing business (rank) 171 Low income Population (m) 4.5 Starting a business (rank) 174 Registering property (rank) 158 Trading across borders (rank) 159 Procedures (number) 13 Procedures (number) 12 Documents to export (number) 9 Time (days) 84 Time (days) 101 Time to export (days) 59 Cost (% of income per capita) 125.8 Cost (% of property value) 5.3 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,331 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 488.0 Documents to import (number) 13 Getting credit (rank) 158 Time to import (days) 69 Dealing with licenses (rank) 178 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 3 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,581 Procedures (number) No practice Depth of credit information index (0­6) 0 Time (days) No practice Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 52 Cost (% of income per capita) No practice Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 39 Time (days) 405 Employing workers (rank) 58 Protecting investors (rank) 98 Cost (% of claim) 22.6 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 0 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 4 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 40 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 5 Closing a business (rank) 178 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 20 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 5 Time (years) No practice Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 20 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 4.7 Cost (% of estate) No practice Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 0 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 0.0 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 69 Paying taxes (rank) 103 Payments (number per year) 18 Time (hours per year) 216 Total tax rate (% of profit) 84.5 ESTONIA Eastern Europe & Central Asia GNI per capita (US$) 11,410 Ease of doing business (rank) 17 Upper middle income Population (m) 1.3 Starting a business (rank) 20 Registering property (rank) 21 Trading across borders (rank) 7 Procedures (number) 5 Procedures (number) 3 Documents to export (number) 3 Time (days) 7 Time (days) 51 Time to export (days) 5 Cost (% of income per capita) 2.0 Cost (% of property value) 0.5 Cost to export (US$ per container) 675 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 28.1 Documents to import (number) 4 Getting credit (rank) 48 Time to import (days) 5 Dealing with licenses (rank) 14 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 4 Cost to import (US$ per container) 675 Procedures (number) 13 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 5 Time (days) 117 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 29 Cost (% of income per capita) 28.1 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 19.7 Procedures (number) 36 Time (days) 425 Employing workers (rank) 156 Protecting investors (rank) 33 Cost (% of claim) 17.3 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 33 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 8 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 80 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 4 Closing a business (rank) 50 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 60 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 6 Time (years) 3.0 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 58 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 6.0 Cost (% of estate) 9 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 33 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 39.1 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 35 Paying taxes (rank) 31 Payments (number per year) 10 Time (hours per year) 81 Total tax rate (% of profit) 49.2 ETHIOPIA Sub-Saharan Africa GNI per capita (US$) 180 Ease of doing business (rank) 102 Low income Population (m) 72.7 Starting a business (rank) 106 Registering property (rank) 147 Trading across borders (rank) 150 Procedures (number) 7 Procedures (number) 13 Documents to export (number) 8 Time (days) 16 Time (days) 43 Time to export (days) 46 Cost (% of income per capita) 41.3 Cost (% of property value) 7.5 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,617 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 960.0 Documents to import (number) 8 Getting credit (rank) 97 Time to import (days) 42 Dealing with licenses (rank) 58 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 4 Cost to import (US$ per container) 2,793 Procedures (number) 12 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 2 Time (days) 128 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.1 Enforcing contracts (rank) 77 Cost (% of income per capita) 1,094.4 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 39 Time (days) 690 Employing workers (rank) 89 Protecting investors (rank) 107 Cost (% of claim) 15.2 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 33 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 4 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 40 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 4 Closing a business (rank) 70 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 30 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 5 Time (years) 3.0 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 34 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 4.3 Cost (% of estate) 15 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 0 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 33.1 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 40 Paying taxes (rank) 29 Payments (number per year) 20 Time (hours per year) 198 Total tax rate (% of profit) 31.1 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 120 Doing business 2008 FIJI East Asia & Pacific GNI per capita (US$) 3,300 Ease of doing business (rank) 36 Lower middle income Population (m) 0.9 Starting a business (rank) 69 Registering property (rank) 77 Trading across borders (rank) 111 Procedures (number) 8 Procedures (number) 3 Documents to export (number) 13 Time (days) 46 Time (days) 48 Time to export (days) 25 Cost (% of income per capita) 25.3 Cost (% of property value) 12.0 Cost to export (US$ per container) 573 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 0.0 Documents to import (number) 13 Getting credit (rank) 48 Time to import (days) 25 Dealing with licenses (rank) 28 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 5 Cost to import (US$ per container) 570 Procedures (number) 16 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 4 Time (days) 114 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 62 Cost (% of income per capita) 40.8 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 41.2 Procedures (number) 34 Time (days) 397 Employing workers (rank) 16 Protecting investors (rank) 33 Cost (% of claim) 38.9 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 22 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 3 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 20 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 8 Closing a business (rank) 114 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 0 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 7 Time (years) 1.8 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 14 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 6.0 Cost (% of estate) 38 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 9 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 20.2 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 2 Paying taxes (rank) 52 Payments (number per year) 33 Time (hours per year) 140 Total tax rate (% of profit) 38.5 FINLAND OECD: High Income GNI per capita (US$) 40,650 Ease of doing business (rank) 13 High income Population (m) 5.3 Starting a business (rank) 16 Registering property (rank) 17 Trading across borders (rank) 5 Procedures (number) 3 Procedures (number) 3 Documents to export (number) 4 Time (days) 14 Time (days) 14 Time to export (days) 8 Cost (% of income per capita) 1.0 Cost (% of property value) 4.0 Cost to export (US$ per container) 420 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 7.7 Documents to import (number) 5 Getting credit (rank) 26 Time to import (days) 8 Dealing with licenses (rank) 39 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 6 Cost to import (US$ per container) 420 Procedures (number) 18 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 5 Time (days) 38 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 7 Cost (% of income per capita) 122.3 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 14.9 Procedures (number) 33 Time (days) 235 Employing workers (rank) 127 Protecting investors (rank) 51 Cost (% of claim) 10.4 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 44 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 6 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 60 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 4 Closing a business (rank) 5 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 40 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 7 Time (years) 0.9 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 48 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 5.7 Cost (% of estate) 4 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 26 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 88.2 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 26 Paying taxes (rank) 83 Payments (number per year) 20 Time (hours per year) 269 Total tax rate (% of profit) 47.8 FRANCE OECD: High Income GNI per capita (US$) 36,550 Ease of doing business (rank) 31 High income Population (m) 61.0 Starting a business (rank) 12 Registering property (rank) 159 Trading across borders (rank) 25 Procedures (number) 5 Procedures (number) 9 Documents to export (number) 4 Time (days) 7 Time (days) 123 Time to export (days) 11 Cost (% of income per capita) 1.1 Cost (% of property value) 6.1 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,028 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 0.0 Documents to import (number) 5 Getting credit (rank) 36 Time to import (days) 12 Dealing with licenses (rank) 17 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 6 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,148 Procedures (number) 13 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 4 Time (days) 137 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 24.8 Enforcing contracts (rank) 14 Cost (% of income per capita) 24.9 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 30 Time (days) 331 Employing workers (rank) 144 Protecting investors (rank) 64 Cost (% of claim) 17.4 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 67 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 10 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 60 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 1 Closing a business (rank) 32 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 40 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 5 Time (years) 1.9 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 56 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 5.3 Cost (% of estate) 9 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 47 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 47.4 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 32 Paying taxes (rank) 82 Payments (number per year) 23 Time (hours per year) 132 Total tax rate (% of profit) 66.3 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank country tables 121 GABON Sub-Saharan Africa GNI per capita (US$) 5,000 Ease of doing business (rank) 144 Upper middle income Population (m) 1.4 Starting a business (rank) 147 Registering property (rank) 148 Trading across borders (rank) 106 Procedures (number) 9 Procedures (number) 8 Documents to export (number) 6 Time (days) 58 Time (days) 60 Time to export (days) 19 Cost (% of income per capita) 164.0 Cost (% of property value) 10.5 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,510 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 38.2 Documents to import (number) 7 Getting credit (rank) 115 Time to import (days) 35 Dealing with licenses (rank) 44 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 3 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,600 Procedures (number) 14 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 2 Time (days) 210 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 2.4 Enforcing contracts (rank) 145 Cost (% of income per capita) 48.3 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 38 Time (days) 1,070 Employing workers (rank) 163 Protecting investors (rank) 147 Cost (% of claim) 34.3 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 17 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 6 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 80 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 1 Closing a business (rank) 130 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 80 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 3 Time (years) 5.0 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 59 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 3.3 Cost (% of estate) 15 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 20 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 15.2 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 43 Paying taxes (rank) 93 Payments (number per year) 28 Time (hours per year) 272 Total tax rate (% of profit) 44.2 GAMBIA Sub-Saharan Africa GNI per capita (US$) 310 Ease of doing business (rank) 131 Low income Population (m) 1.6 Starting a business (rank) 94 Registering property (rank) 133 Trading across borders (rank) 73 Procedures (number) 9 Procedures (number) 5 Documents to export (number) 7 Time (days) 32 Time (days) 371 Time to export (days) 23 Cost (% of income per capita) 279.0 Cost (% of property value) 7.6 Cost to export (US$ per container) 809 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 0.0 Documents to import (number) 8 Getting credit (rank) 135 Time to import (days) 23 Dealing with licenses (rank) 70 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 4 Cost to import (US$ per container) 869 Procedures (number) 17 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 0 Time (days) 146 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 61 Cost (% of income per capita) 363.7 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 32 Time (days) 434 Employing workers (rank) 29 Protecting investors (rank) 165 Cost (% of claim) 37.9 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 0 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 2 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 40 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 1 Closing a business (rank) 116 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 30 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 5 Time (years) 3.0 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 23 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 2.7 Cost (% of estate) 15 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 11 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 19.3 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 9 Paying taxes (rank) 173 Payments (number per year) 50 Time (hours per year) 376 Total tax rate (% of profit) 286.7 GEORGIA Eastern Europe & Central Asia GNI per capita (US$) 1,560 Ease of doing business (rank) 18 Lower middle income Population (m) 4.4 Starting a business (rank) 10 Registering property (rank) 11 Trading across borders (rank) 64 Procedures (number) 5 Procedures (number) 5 Documents to export (number) 8 Time (days) 11 Time (days) 5 Time to export (days) 12 Cost (% of income per capita) 9.5 Cost (% of property value) 0.1 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,105 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 0.0 Documents to import (number) 7 Getting credit (rank) 48 Time to import (days) 14 Dealing with licenses (rank) 11 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 5 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,105 Procedures (number) 12 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 4 Time (days) 113 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 42 Cost (% of income per capita) 28.9 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.2 Procedures (number) 36 Time (days) 285 Employing workers (rank) 4 Protecting investors (rank) 33 Cost (% of claim) 29.9 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 0 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 8 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 20 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 6 Closing a business (rank) 105 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 0 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 4 Time (years) 3.3 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 7 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 6.0 Cost (% of estate) 4 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 20 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 22.8 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 4 Paying taxes (rank) 102 Payments (number per year) 29 Time (hours per year) 387 Total tax rate (% of profit) 38.6 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 122 Doing business 2008 GERMANY OECD: High Income GNI per capita (US$) 36,620 Ease of doing business (rank) 20 High income Population (m) 82.4 Starting a business (rank) 71 Registering property (rank) 47 Trading across borders (rank) 10 Procedures (number) 9 Procedures (number) 4 Documents to export (number) 4 Time (days) 18 Time (days) 40 Time to export (days) 7 Cost (% of income per capita) 5.7 Cost (% of property value) 5.2 Cost to export (US$ per container) 740 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 42.8 Documents to import (number) 5 Getting credit (rank) 3 Time to import (days) 7 Dealing with licenses (rank) 16 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 8 Cost to import (US$ per container) 765 Procedures (number) 12 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 6 Time (days) 100 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.7 Enforcing contracts (rank) 15 Cost (% of income per capita) 63.1 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 98.1 Procedures (number) 33 Time (days) 394 Employing workers (rank) 137 Protecting investors (rank) 83 Cost (% of claim) 11.8 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 33 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 5 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 60 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 5 Closing a business (rank) 29 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 40 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 5 Time (years) 1.2 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 44 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 5.0 Cost (% of estate) 8 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 19 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 53.4 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 69 Paying taxes (rank) 67 Payments (number per year) 16 Time (hours per year) 196 Total tax rate (% of profit) 50.8 GHANA Sub-Saharan Africa GNI per capita (US$) 520 Ease of doing business (rank) 87 Low income Population (m) 22.5 Starting a business (rank) 138 Registering property (rank) 26 Trading across borders (rank) 61 Procedures (number) 11 Procedures (number) 5 Documents to export (number) 6 Time (days) 42 Time (days) 34 Time to export (days) 19 Cost (% of income per capita) 41.4 Cost (% of property value) 1.3 Cost to export (US$ per container) 895 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 20.9 Documents to import (number) 7 Getting credit (rank) 115 Time to import (days) 29 Dealing with licenses (rank) 140 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 5 Cost to import (US$ per container) 895 Procedures (number) 18 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 0 Time (days) 220 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 51 Cost (% of income per capita) 1,498.3 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 36 Time (days) 487 Employing workers (rank) 138 Protecting investors (rank) 33 Cost (% of claim) 23.0 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 22 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 7 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 40 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 5 Closing a business (rank) 96 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 50 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 6 Time (years) 1.9 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 37 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 6.0 Cost (% of estate) 22 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 13 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 24.0 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 178 Paying taxes (rank) 75 Payments (number per year) 32 Time (hours per year) 304 Total tax rate (% of profit) 32.9 GREECE OECD: High Income GNI per capita (US$) 21,690 Ease of doing business (rank) 100 High income Population (m) 11.1 Starting a business (rank) 152 Registering property (rank) 93 Trading across borders (rank) 65 Procedures (number) 15 Procedures (number) 12 Documents to export (number) 5 Time (days) 38 Time (days) 23 Time to export (days) 20 Cost (% of income per capita) 23.3 Cost (% of property value) 4.0 Cost to export (US$ per container) 998 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 104.1 Documents to import (number) 6 Getting credit (rank) 84 Time to import (days) 25 Dealing with licenses (rank) 42 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 3 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,245 Procedures (number) 15 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 4 Time (days) 169 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 87 Cost (% of income per capita) 61.7 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 38.7 Procedures (number) 39 Time (days) 819 Employing workers (rank) 142 Protecting investors (rank) 158 Cost (% of claim) 14.4 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 44 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 1 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 80 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 3 Closing a business (rank) 38 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 40 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 5 Time (years) 2.0 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 55 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 3.0 Cost (% of estate) 9 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 28 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 44.8 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 24 Paying taxes (rank) 86 Payments (number per year) 21 Time (hours per year) 264 Total tax rate (% of profit) 48.6 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank country tables 123 GRENADA Latin America & Caribbean GNI per capita (US$) 4,420 Ease of doing business (rank) 70 Upper middle income Population (m) 0.1 Starting a business (rank) 32 Registering property (rank) 145 Trading across borders (rank) 52 Procedures (number) 6 Procedures (number) 8 Documents to export (number) 6 Time (days) 20 Time (days) 77 Time to export (days) 19 Cost (% of income per capita) 31.7 Cost (% of property value) 7.4 Cost to export (US$ per container) 820 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 0.0 Documents to import (number) 5 Getting credit (rank) 97 Time to import (days) 23 Dealing with licenses (rank) 15 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 6 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,178 Procedures (number) 9 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 0 Time (days) 149 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 163 Cost (% of income per capita) 31.0 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 47 Time (days) 723 Employing workers (rank) 46 Protecting investors (rank) 19 Cost (% of claim) 32.6 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 44 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 4 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 20 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 8 Closing a business (rank) 178 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 0 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 7 Time (years) No practice Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 21 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 6.3 Cost (% of estate) No practice Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 5 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 0.0 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 29 Paying taxes (rank) 59 Payments (number per year) 30 Time (hours per year) 140 Total tax rate (% of profit) 45.3 GUATEMALA Latin America & Caribbean GNI per capita (US$) 2,640 Ease of doing business (rank) 114 Lower middle income Population (m) 12.9 Starting a business (rank) 128 Registering property (rank) 23 Trading across borders (rank) 116 Procedures (number) 11 Procedures (number) 5 Documents to export (number) 11 Time (days) 26 Time (days) 30 Time to export (days) 19 Cost (% of income per capita) 47.3 Cost (% of property value) 1.0 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,052 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 24.9 Documents to import (number) 11 Getting credit (rank) 68 Time to import (days) 18 Dealing with licenses (rank) 167 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 3 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,177 Procedures (number) 22 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 5 Time (days) 235 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 20.7 Enforcing contracts (rank) 98 Cost (% of income per capita) 1,142.2 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 13.1 Procedures (number) 28 Time (days) 1,459 Employing workers (rank) 105 Protecting investors (rank) 122 Cost (% of claim) 26.5 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 44 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 3 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 40 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 3 Closing a business (rank) 86 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 0 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 6 Time (years) 3.0 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 28 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 4.0 Cost (% of estate) 15 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 13 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 28.1 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 101 Paying taxes (rank) 116 Payments (number per year) 39 Time (hours per year) 344 Total tax rate (% of profit) 37.5 GUINEA Sub-Saharan Africa GNI per capita (US$) 410 Ease of doing business (rank) 166 Low income Population (m) 9.2 Starting a business (rank) 171 Registering property (rank) 151 Trading across borders (rank) 102 Procedures (number) 13 Procedures (number) 6 Documents to export (number) 7 Time (days) 41 Time (days) 104 Time to export (days) 33 Cost (% of income per capita) 138.3 Cost (% of property value) 15.3 Cost to export (US$ per container) 570 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 466.5 Documents to import (number) 9 Getting credit (rank) 135 Time to import (days) 32 Dealing with licenses (rank) 158 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 4 Cost to import (US$ per container) 995 Procedures (number) 32 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 0 Time (days) 255 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 127 Cost (% of income per capita) 237.7 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 50 Time (days) 276 Employing workers (rank) 99 Protecting investors (rank) 165 Cost (% of claim) 45.0 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 33 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 6 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 60 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 1 Closing a business (rank) 111 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 30 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 1 Time (years) 3.8 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 41 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 2.7 Cost (% of estate) 8 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 27 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 20.4 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 26 Paying taxes (rank) 163 Payments (number per year) 56 Time (hours per year) 416 Total tax rate (% of profit) 49.9 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 124 Doing business 2008 GUINEA-BISSAU Sub-Saharan Africa GNI per capita (US$) 190 Ease of doing business (rank) 176 Low income Population (m) 1.6 Starting a business (rank) 178 Registering property (rank) 164 Trading across borders (rank) 109 Procedures (number) 17 Procedures (number) 9 Documents to export (number) 6 Time (days) 233 Time (days) 211 Time to export (days) 27 Cost (% of income per capita) 255.5 Cost (% of property value) 5.4 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,445 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 1,006.6 Documents to import (number) 6 Getting credit (rank) 135 Time to import (days) 26 Dealing with licenses (rank) 101 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 3 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,749 Procedures (number) 15 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 1 Time (days) 167 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.9 Enforcing contracts (rank) 137 Cost (% of income per capita) 2,607.0 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 41 Time (days) 1,140 Employing workers (rank) 174 Protecting investors (rank) 122 Cost (% of claim) 25.0 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 67 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 6 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 60 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 1 Closing a business (rank) 178 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 70 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 5 Time (years) No practice Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 66 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 4.0 Cost (% of estate) No practice Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 22 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 0.0 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 87 Paying taxes (rank) 112 Payments (number per year) 46 Time (hours per year) 208 Total tax rate (% of profit) 45.9 GUYANA Latin America & Caribbean GNI per capita (US$) 1,130 Ease of doing business (rank) 104 Lower middle income Population (m) 0.8 Starting a business (rank) 86 Registering property (rank) 53 Trading across borders (rank) 101 Procedures (number) 8 Procedures (number) 6 Documents to export (number) 7 Time (days) 44 Time (days) 34 Time to export (days) 30 Cost (% of income per capita) 87.2 Cost (% of property value) 4.5 Cost to export (US$ per container) 850 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 0.0 Documents to import (number) 8 Getting credit (rank) 158 Time to import (days) 35 Dealing with licenses (rank) 69 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 3 Cost to import (US$ per container) 856 Procedures (number) 12 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 0 Time (days) 222 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 73 Cost (% of income per capita) 313.9 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 36 Time (days) 581 Employing workers (rank) 71 Protecting investors (rank) 64 Cost (% of claim) 25.2 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 33 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 5 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 20 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 5 Closing a business (rank) 123 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 20 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 6 Time (years) 3.0 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 24 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 5.3 Cost (% of estate) 29 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 8 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 17.4 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 56 Paying taxes (rank) 100 Payments (number per year) 34 Time (hours per year) 288 Total tax rate (% of profit) 39.0 HAITI Latin America & Caribbean GNI per capita (US$) 480 Ease of doing business (rank) 148 Low income Population (m) 8.6 Starting a business (rank) 170 Registering property (rank) 128 Trading across borders (rank) 153 Procedures (number) 12 Procedures (number) 5 Documents to export (number) 8 Time (days) 202 Time (days) 405 Time to export (days) 52 Cost (% of income per capita) 133.9 Cost (% of property value) 6.5 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,650 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 32.2 Documents to import (number) 10 Getting credit (rank) 115 Time to import (days) 53 Dealing with licenses (rank) 126 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 3 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,860 Procedures (number) 11 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 2 Time (days) 1,179 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.7 Enforcing contracts (rank) 95 Cost (% of income per capita) 817.8 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 35 Time (days) 508 Employing workers (rank) 35 Protecting investors (rank) 158 Cost (% of claim) 42.6 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 22 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 2 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 40 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 3 Closing a business (rank) 148 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 0 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 4 Time (years) 5.7 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 21 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 3.0 Cost (% of estate) 30 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 11 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 3.1 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 17 Paying taxes (rank) 96 Payments (number per year) 53 Time (hours per year) 160 Total tax rate (% of profit) 40.0 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank country tables 125 HONDURAS Latin America & Caribbean GNI per capita (US$) 1,200 Ease of doing business (rank) 121 Lower middle income Population (m) 7.4 Starting a business (rank) 135 Registering property (rank) 78 Trading across borders (rank) 103 Procedures (number) 13 Procedures (number) 7 Documents to export (number) 7 Time (days) 21 Time (days) 24 Time to export (days) 20 Cost (% of income per capita) 59.9 Cost (% of property value) 5.8 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,065 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 27.4 Documents to import (number) 11 Getting credit (rank) 13 Time to import (days) 23 Dealing with licenses (rank) 72 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 6 Cost to import (US$ per container) 975 Procedures (number) 17 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 6 Time (days) 125 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 12.7 Enforcing contracts (rank) 124 Cost (% of income per capita) 634.1 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 58.0 Procedures (number) 45 Time (days) 480 Employing workers (rank) 116 Protecting investors (rank) 147 Cost (% of claim) 30.4 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 89 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 1 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 40 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 5 Closing a business (rank) 113 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 0 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 4 Time (years) 3.8 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 43 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 3.3 Cost (% of estate) 15 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 10 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 20.3 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 74 Paying taxes (rank) 160 Payments (number per year) 47 Time (hours per year) 424 Total tax rate (% of profit) 51.4 HONG KONG, CHINA East Asia & Pacific GNI per capita (US$) 28,460 Ease of doing business (rank) 4 High income Population (m) 7.0 Starting a business (rank) 13 Registering property (rank) 58 Trading across borders (rank) 3 Procedures (number) 5 Procedures (number) 5 Documents to export (number) 4 Time (days) 11 Time (days) 54 Time to export (days) 6 Cost (% of income per capita) 3.1 Cost (% of property value) 5.0 Cost to export (US$ per container) 525 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 0.0 Documents to import (number) 4 Getting credit (rank) 2 Time to import (days) 5 Dealing with licenses (rank) 60 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 10 Cost to import (US$ per container) 525 Procedures (number) 23 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 5 Time (days) 155 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 1 Cost (% of income per capita) 21.3 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 64.7 Procedures (number) 24 Time (days) 211 Employing workers (rank) 23 Protecting investors (rank) 3 Cost (% of claim) 14.5 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 0 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 10 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 0 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 8 Closing a business (rank) 15 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 0 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 9 Time (years) 1.1 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 0 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 9.0 Cost (% of estate) 9 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 5 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 79.0 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 62 Paying taxes (rank) 3 Payments (number per year) 4 Time (hours per year) 80 Total tax rate (% of profit) 24.4 HUNGARY Eastern Europe & Central Asia GNI per capita (US$) 10,950 Ease of doing business (rank) 45 Upper middle income Population (m) 10.1 Starting a business (rank) 67 Registering property (rank) 96 Trading across borders (rank) 45 Procedures (number) 6 Procedures (number) 4 Documents to export (number) 5 Time (days) 16 Time (days) 63 Time to export (days) 18 Cost (% of income per capita) 17.7 Cost (% of property value) 11.0 Cost to export (US$ per container) 975 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 65.1 Documents to import (number) 7 Getting credit (rank) 26 Time to import (days) 17 Dealing with licenses (rank) 87 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 6 Cost to import (US$ per container) 975 Procedures (number) 31 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 5 Time (days) 211 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 12 Cost (% of income per capita) 10.4 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 6.9 Procedures (number) 33 Time (days) 335 Employing workers (rank) 81 Protecting investors (rank) 107 Cost (% of claim) 13.0 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 0 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 2 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 80 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 4 Closing a business (rank) 53 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 10 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 7 Time (years) 2.0 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 30 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 4.3 Cost (% of estate) 15 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 34 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 38.4 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 35 Paying taxes (rank) 127 Payments (number per year) 24 Time (hours per year) 340 Total tax rate (% of profit) 55.1 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 126 Doing business 2008 ICELAND OECD: High Income GNI per capita (US$) 50,580 Ease of doing business (rank) 10 High income Population (m) 0.3 Starting a business (rank) 14 Registering property (rank) 8 Trading across borders (rank) 11 Procedures (number) 5 Procedures (number) 3 Documents to export (number) 5 Time (days) 5 Time (days) 4 Time to export (days) 15 Cost (% of income per capita) 2.7 Cost (% of property value) 2.4 Cost to export (US$ per container) 469 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 14.1 Documents to import (number) 5 Getting credit (rank) 13 Time to import (days) 14 Dealing with licenses (rank) 23 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 7 Cost to import (US$ per container) 443 Procedures (number) 18 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 5 Time (days) 76 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 4 Cost (% of income per capita) 13.9 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 100.0 Procedures (number) 26 Time (days) 393 Employing workers (rank) 42 Protecting investors (rank) 64 Cost (% of claim) 6.1 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 33 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 5 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 40 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 5 Closing a business (rank) 12 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 10 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 6 Time (years) 1.0 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 28 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 5.3 Cost (% of estate) 4 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 12 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 80.3 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 13 Paying taxes (rank) 27 Payments (number per year) 31 Time (hours per year) 140 Total tax rate (% of profit) 27.2 INDIA South Asia GNI per capita (US$) 820 Ease of doing business (rank) 120 Low income Population (m) 1,109.8 Starting a business (rank) 111 Registering property (rank) 112 Trading across borders (rank) 79 Procedures (number) 13 Procedures (number) 6 Documents to export (number) 8 Time (days) 33 Time (days) 62 Time to export (days) 18 Cost (% of income per capita) 74.6 Cost (% of property value) 7.7 Cost to export (US$ per container) 820 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 0.0 Documents to import (number) 9 Getting credit (rank) 36 Time to import (days) 21 Dealing with licenses (rank) 134 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 6 Cost to import (US$ per container) 910 Procedures (number) 20 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 4 Time (days) 224 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 177 Cost (% of income per capita) 519.4 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 10.8 Procedures (number) 46 Time (days) 1,420 Employing workers (rank) 85 Protecting investors (rank) 33 Cost (% of claim) 39.6 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 0 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 7 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 20 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 4 Closing a business (rank) 137 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 70 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 7 Time (years) 10.0 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 30 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 6.0 Cost (% of estate) 9 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 17 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 11.6 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 56 Paying taxes (rank) 165 Payments (number per year) 60 Time (hours per year) 271 Total tax rate (% of profit) 70.6 INDONESIA East Asia & Pacific GNI per capita (US$) 1,420 Ease of doing business (rank) 123 Lower middle income Population (m) 223.0 Starting a business (rank) 168 Registering property (rank) 121 Trading across borders (rank) 41 Procedures (number) 12 Procedures (number) 7 Documents to export (number) 5 Time (days) 105 Time (days) 42 Time to export (days) 21 Cost (% of income per capita) 80.0 Cost (% of property value) 10.5 Cost to export (US$ per container) 667 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 38.4 Documents to import (number) 6 Getting credit (rank) 68 Time to import (days) 27 Dealing with licenses (rank) 99 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 5 Cost to import (US$ per container) 623 Procedures (number) 19 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 3 Time (days) 196 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 20.5 Enforcing contracts (rank) 141 Cost (% of income per capita) 286.8 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.2 Procedures (number) 39 Time (days) 570 Employing workers (rank) 153 Protecting investors (rank) 51 Cost (% of claim) 122.7 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 72 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 9 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 0 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 5 Closing a business (rank) 136 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 60 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 3 Time (years) 5.5 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 44 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 5.7 Cost (% of estate) 18 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 10 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 12.6 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 108 Paying taxes (rank) 110 Payments (number per year) 51 Time (hours per year) 266 Total tax rate (% of profit) 37.3 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank country tables 127 IRAN Middle East & North Africa GNI per capita (US$) 3,000 Ease of doing business (rank) 135 Lower middle income Population (m) 69.2 Starting a business (rank) 77 Registering property (rank) 143 Trading across borders (rank) 135 Procedures (number) 8 Procedures (number) 9 Documents to export (number) 8 Time (days) 47 Time (days) 36 Time to export (days) 26 Cost (% of income per capita) 5.3 Cost (% of property value) 10.6 Cost to export (US$ per container) 860 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 1.3 Documents to import (number) 10 Getting credit (rank) 68 Time to import (days) 42 Dealing with licenses (rank) 164 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 5 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,330 Procedures (number) 19 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 3 Time (days) 670 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 22.2 Enforcing contracts (rank) 57 Cost (% of income per capita) 653.4 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 39 Time (days) 520 Employing workers (rank) 141 Protecting investors (rank) 158 Cost (% of claim) 17.0 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 11 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 5 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 60 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 4 Closing a business (rank) 118 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 50 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 0 Time (years) 4.5 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 40 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 3.0 Cost (% of estate) 9 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 23 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 19.0 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 91 Paying taxes (rank) 97 Payments (number per year) 22 Time (hours per year) 292 Total tax rate (% of profit) 47.4 IRAQ Middle East & North Africa GNI per capita (US$) 1,224 Ease of doing business (rank) 141 Lower middle income Population (m) 28.5 Starting a business (rank) 164 Registering property (rank) 40 Trading across borders (rank) 175 Procedures (number) 11 Procedures (number) 5 Documents to export (number) 10 Time (days) 77 Time (days) 8 Time to export (days) 102 Cost (% of income per capita) 93.5 Cost (% of property value) 6.3 Cost to export (US$ per container) 3,400 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 65.4 Documents to import (number) 10 Getting credit (rank) 135 Time to import (days) 101 Dealing with licenses (rank) 104 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 4 Cost to import (US$ per container) 3,400 Procedures (number) 14 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 0 Time (days) 215 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 150 Cost (% of income per capita) 915.0 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 51 Time (days) 520 Employing workers (rank) 60 Protecting investors (rank) 107 Cost (% of claim) 32.5 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 33 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 4 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 60 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 5 Closing a business (rank) 178 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 20 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 4 Time (years) No practice Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 38 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 4.3 Cost (% of estate) No practice Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 12 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 0.0 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 0 Paying taxes (rank) 37 Payments (number per year) 13 Time (hours per year) 312 Total tax rate (% of profit) 24.7 IRELAND OECD: High Income GNI per capita (US$) 45,580 Ease of doing business (rank) 8 High income Population (m) 4.2 Starting a business (rank) 5 Registering property (rank) 79 Trading across borders (rank) 20 Procedures (number) 4 Procedures (number) 5 Documents to export (number) 4 Time (days) 13 Time (days) 38 Time to export (days) 7 Cost (% of income per capita) 0.3 Cost (% of property value) 10.2 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,090 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 0.0 Documents to import (number) 4 Getting credit (rank) 7 Time to import (days) 12 Dealing with licenses (rank) 20 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 8 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,139 Procedures (number) 11 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 5 Time (days) 185 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 39 Cost (% of income per capita) 19.8 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 100.0 Procedures (number) 20 Time (days) 515 Employing workers (rank) 37 Protecting investors (rank) 5 Cost (% of claim) 26.9 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 11 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 10 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 20 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 6 Closing a business (rank) 6 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 20 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 9 Time (years) 0.4 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 17 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 8.3 Cost (% of estate) 9 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 11 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 87.1 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 24 Paying taxes (rank) 6 Payments (number per year) 9 Time (hours per year) 76 Total tax rate (% of profit) 28.9 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 128 Doing business 2008 ISRAEL Middle East & North Africa GNI per capita (US$) 18,280 Ease of doing business (rank) 29 High income Population (m) 7.0 Starting a business (rank) 17 Registering property (rank) 152 Trading across borders (rank) 8 Procedures (number) 5 Procedures (number) 7 Documents to export (number) 5 Time (days) 34 Time (days) 144 Time to export (days) 12 Cost (% of income per capita) 4.4 Cost (% of property value) 7.5 Cost to export (US$ per container) 560 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 0.0 Documents to import (number) 4 Getting credit (rank) 7 Time to import (days) 12 Dealing with licenses (rank) 109 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 8 Cost to import (US$ per container) 560 Procedures (number) 20 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 5 Time (days) 235 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 102 Cost (% of income per capita) 115.5 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 91.6 Procedures (number) 35 Time (days) 890 Employing workers (rank) 87 Protecting investors (rank) 5 Cost (% of claim) 25.3 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 11 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 7 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 60 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 9 Closing a business (rank) 40 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 0 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 9 Time (years) 4.0 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 24 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 8.3 Cost (% of estate) 23 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 6 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 43.6 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 91 Paying taxes (rank) 69 Payments (number per year) 33 Time (hours per year) 230 Total tax rate (% of profit) 36.0 ITALY OECD: High Income GNI per capita (US$) 32,020 Ease of doing business (rank) 53 High income Population (m) 58.6 Starting a business (rank) 65 Registering property (rank) 49 Trading across borders (rank) 62 Procedures (number) 9 Procedures (number) 8 Documents to export (number) 5 Time (days) 13 Time (days) 27 Time to export (days) 20 Cost (% of income per capita) 18.7 Cost (% of property value) 0.6 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,291 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 9.8 Documents to import (number) 5 Getting credit (rank) 68 Time to import (days) 18 Dealing with licenses (rank) 78 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 3 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,291 Procedures (number) 14 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 5 Time (days) 257 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 11.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 155 Cost (% of income per capita) 138.2 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 71.5 Procedures (number) 41 Time (days) 1,210 Employing workers (rank) 56 Protecting investors (rank) 51 Cost (% of claim) 29.9 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 33 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 7 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 40 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 4 Closing a business (rank) 25 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 40 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 6 Time (years) 1.8 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 38 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 5.7 Cost (% of estate) 22 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 37 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 61.8 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 2 Paying taxes (rank) 122 Payments (number per year) 15 Time (hours per year) 360 Total tax rate (% of profit) 76.2 JAMAICA Latin America & Caribbean GNI per capita (US$) 3,480 Ease of doing business (rank) 63 Lower middle income Population (m) 2.7 Starting a business (rank) 11 Registering property (rank) 108 Trading across borders (rank) 92 Procedures (number) 6 Procedures (number) 5 Documents to export (number) 6 Time (days) 8 Time (days) 54 Time to export (days) 21 Cost (% of income per capita) 8.7 Cost (% of property value) 13.5 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,750 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 0.0 Documents to import (number) 6 Getting credit (rank) 115 Time to import (days) 22 Dealing with licenses (rank) 74 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 5 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,350 Procedures (number) 10 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 0 Time (days) 236 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 103 Cost (% of income per capita) 438.4 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 34 Time (days) 565 Employing workers (rank) 33 Protecting investors (rank) 64 Cost (% of claim) 45.6 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 11 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 4 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 0 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 8 Closing a business (rank) 22 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 0 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 4 Time (years) 1.1 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 4 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 5.3 Cost (% of estate) 18 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 12 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 64.3 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 61 Paying taxes (rank) 170 Payments (number per year) 72 Time (hours per year) 414 Total tax rate (% of profit) 51.3 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank country tables 129 JAPAN OECD: High Income GNI per capita (US$) 38,410 Ease of doing business (rank) 12 High income Population (m) 127.6 Starting a business (rank) 44 Registering property (rank) 48 Trading across borders (rank) 18 Procedures (number) 8 Procedures (number) 6 Documents to export (number) 4 Time (days) 23 Time (days) 14 Time to export (days) 10 Cost (% of income per capita) 7.5 Cost (% of property value) 5.0 Cost to export (US$ per container) 989 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 0.0 Documents to import (number) 5 Getting credit (rank) 13 Time to import (days) 11 Dealing with licenses (rank) 32 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 6 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,047 Procedures (number) 15 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 6 Time (days) 177 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 21 Cost (% of income per capita) 17.8 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 68.3 Procedures (number) 30 Time (days) 316 Employing workers (rank) 17 Protecting investors (rank) 12 Cost (% of claim) 22.7 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 0 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 7 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 20 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 6 Closing a business (rank) 1 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 30 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 8 Time (years) 0.6 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 17 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 7.0 Cost (% of estate) 4 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 13 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 92.6 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 4 Paying taxes (rank) 105 Payments (number per year) 13 Time (hours per year) 350 Total tax rate (% of profit) 52.0 JORDAN Middle East & North Africa GNI per capita (US$) 2,660 Ease of doing business (rank) 80 Lower middle income Population (m) 5.5 Starting a business (rank) 133 Registering property (rank) 109 Trading across borders (rank) 59 Procedures (number) 10 Procedures (number) 8 Documents to export (number) 7 Time (days) 14 Time (days) 22 Time to export (days) 19 Cost (% of income per capita) 66.2 Cost (% of property value) 10.0 Cost to export (US$ per container) 680 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 795.4 Documents to import (number) 7 Getting credit (rank) 84 Time to import (days) 22 Dealing with licenses (rank) 71 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 5 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,065 Procedures (number) 18 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 2 Time (days) 122 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.8 Enforcing contracts (rank) 128 Cost (% of income per capita) 486.1 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 39 Time (days) 689 Employing workers (rank) 45 Protecting investors (rank) 107 Cost (% of claim) 31.2 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 11 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 5 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 20 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 4 Closing a business (rank) 87 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 60 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 4 Time (years) 4.3 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 30 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 4.3 Cost (% of estate) 9 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 11 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 27.8 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 4 Paying taxes (rank) 19 Payments (number per year) 26 Time (hours per year) 101 Total tax rate (% of profit) 31.1 KAZAKHSTAN Eastern Europe & Central Asia GNI per capita (US$) 3,790 Ease of doing business (rank) 71 Lower middle income Population (m) 15.3 Starting a business (rank) 57 Registering property (rank) 72 Trading across borders (rank) 178 Procedures (number) 8 Procedures (number) 8 Documents to export (number) 12 Time (days) 21 Time (days) 52 Time to export (days) 89 Cost (% of income per capita) 7.6 Cost (% of property value) 0.9 Cost to export (US$ per container) 2,730 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 22.9 Documents to import (number) 14 Getting credit (rank) 48 Time to import (days) 76 Dealing with licenses (rank) 173 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 5 Cost to import (US$ per container) 2,780 Procedures (number) 38 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 4 Time (days) 231 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 28 Cost (% of income per capita) 2,129.9 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 13.7 Procedures (number) 38 Time (days) 230 Employing workers (rank) 22 Protecting investors (rank) 51 Cost (% of claim) 22.0 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 0 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 7 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 40 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 1 Closing a business (rank) 100 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 20 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 9 Time (years) 3.3 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 20 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 5.7 Cost (% of estate) 18 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 14 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 23.4 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 9 Paying taxes (rank) 44 Payments (number per year) 9 Time (hours per year) 271 Total tax rate (% of profit) 36.7 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 130 Doing business 2008 KENYA Sub-Saharan Africa GNI per capita (US$) 580 Ease of doing business (rank) 72 Low income Population (m) 35.1 Starting a business (rank) 112 Registering property (rank) 114 Trading across borders (rank) 148 Procedures (number) 12 Procedures (number) 8 Documents to export (number) 9 Time (days) 44 Time (days) 64 Time to export (days) 29 Cost (% of income per capita) 46.1 Cost (% of property value) 4.2 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,955 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 0.0 Documents to import (number) 8 Getting credit (rank) 13 Time to import (days) 37 Dealing with licenses (rank) 9 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 8 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,995 Procedures (number) 10 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 4 Time (days) 100 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 107 Cost (% of income per capita) 58.8 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 1.5 Procedures (number) 44 Time (days) 465 Employing workers (rank) 66 Protecting investors (rank) 83 Cost (% of claim) 26.7 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 33 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 3 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 0 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 2 Closing a business (rank) 76 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 30 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 10 Time (years) 4.5 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 21 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 5.0 Cost (% of estate) 22 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 4 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 31.0 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 47 Paying taxes (rank) 154 Payments (number per year) 41 Time (hours per year) 432 Total tax rate (% of profit) 50.9 KIRIBATI East Asia & Pacific GNI per capita (US$) 1,230 Ease of doing business (rank) 73 Lower middle income Population (m) 0.1 Starting a business (rank) 86 Registering property (rank) 60 Trading across borders (rank) 97 Procedures (number) 6 Procedures (number) 5 Documents to export (number) 6 Time (days) 21 Time (days) 513 Time to export (days) 21 Cost (% of income per capita) 56.6 Cost (% of property value) 0.1 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,550 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 30.6 Documents to import (number) 7 Getting credit (rank) 158 Time to import (days) 21 Dealing with licenses (rank) 65 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 3 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,550 Procedures (number) 14 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 0 Time (days) 160 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 71 Cost (% of income per capita) 629.3 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 32 Time (days) 660 Employing workers (rank) 25 Protecting investors (rank) 33 Cost (% of claim) 25.8 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 0 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 6 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 0 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 5 Closing a business (rank) 178 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 50 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 7 Time (years) No practice Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 17 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 6.0 Cost (% of estate) No practice Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 8 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 0.0 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 4 Paying taxes (rank) 10 Payments (number per year) 7 Time (hours per year) 120 Total tax rate (% of profit) 31.8 KOREA OECD: High Income GNI per capita (US$) 17,690 Ease of doing business (rank) 30 High income Population (m) 48.4 Starting a business (rank) 110 Registering property (rank) 68 Trading across borders (rank) 13 Procedures (number) 10 Procedures (number) 7 Documents to export (number) 4 Time (days) 17 Time (days) 11 Time to export (days) 11 Cost (% of income per capita) 16.9 Cost (% of property value) 6.3 Cost to export (US$ per container) 745 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 296.0 Documents to import (number) 6 Getting credit (rank) 36 Time to import (days) 10 Dealing with licenses (rank) 22 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 5 Cost to import (US$ per container) 745 Procedures (number) 13 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 5 Time (days) 34 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 10 Cost (% of income per capita) 170.2 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 74.2 Procedures (number) 35 Time (days) 230 Employing workers (rank) 131 Protecting investors (rank) 64 Cost (% of claim) 10.3 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 11 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 7 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 60 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 2 Closing a business (rank) 11 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 40 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 7 Time (years) 1.5 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 37 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 5.3 Cost (% of estate) 4 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 13 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 81.2 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 91 Paying taxes (rank) 106 Payments (number per year) 48 Time (hours per year) 290 Total tax rate (% of profit) 34.9 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank country tables 131 KUWAIT Middle East & North Africa GNI per capita (US$) 25,963 Ease of doing business (rank) 40 High income Population (m) 2.6 Starting a business (rank) 121 Registering property (rank) 72 Trading across borders (rank) 99 Procedures (number) 13 Procedures (number) 8 Documents to export (number) 8 Time (days) 35 Time (days) 55 Time to export (days) 20 Cost (% of income per capita) 1.6 Cost (% of property value) 0.5 Cost to export (US$ per container) 935 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 99.9 Documents to import (number) 11 Getting credit (rank) 68 Time to import (days) 20 Dealing with licenses (rank) 85 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 4 Cost to import (US$ per container) 935 Procedures (number) 25 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 4 Time (days) 104 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 99 Cost (% of income per capita) 209.4 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 14.5 Procedures (number) 50 Time (days) 566 Employing workers (rank) 39 Protecting investors (rank) 19 Cost (% of claim) 13.3 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 0 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 7 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 40 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 7 Closing a business (rank) 67 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 0 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 5 Time (years) 4.2 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 13 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 6.3 Cost (% of estate) 1 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 11 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 33.6 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 78 Paying taxes (rank) 8 Payments (number per year) 14 Time (hours per year) 118 Total tax rate (% of profit) 14.4 KYRGYZ REPUBLIC Eastern Europe & Central Asia GNI per capita (US$) 490 Ease of doing business (rank) 94 Low income Population (m) 5.2 Starting a business (rank) 49 Registering property (rank) 16 Trading across borders (rank) 177 Procedures (number) 8 Procedures (number) 4 Documents to export (number) 13 Time (days) 21 Time (days) 4 Time to export (days) 64 Cost (% of income per capita) 8.8 Cost (% of property value) 4.1 Cost to export (US$ per container) 2,500 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 0.5 Documents to import (number) 13 Getting credit (rank) 68 Time to import (days) 75 Dealing with licenses (rank) 152 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 5 Cost to import (US$ per container) 2,450 Procedures (number) 20 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 3 Time (days) 291 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 32 Cost (% of income per capita) 555.4 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 1.6 Procedures (number) 39 Time (days) 177 Employing workers (rank) 74 Protecting investors (rank) 33 Cost (% of claim) 22.0 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 33 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 8 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 40 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 1 Closing a business (rank) 128 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 40 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 9 Time (years) 4.0 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 38 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 6.0 Cost (% of estate) 15 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 21 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 15.6 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 17 Paying taxes (rank) 152 Payments (number per year) 75 Time (hours per year) 202 Total tax rate (% of profit) 61.4 LAO PDR East Asia & Pacific GNI per capita (US$) 500 Ease of doing business (rank) 164 Low income Population (m) 5.8 Starting a business (rank) 78 Registering property (rank) 149 Trading across borders (rank) 158 Procedures (number) 8 Procedures (number) 9 Documents to export (number) 9 Time (days) 103 Time (days) 135 Time to export (days) 50 Cost (% of income per capita) 16.5 Cost (% of property value) 4.2 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,750 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 0.0 Documents to import (number) 10 Getting credit (rank) 170 Time to import (days) 50 Dealing with licenses (rank) 111 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 2 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,930 Procedures (number) 24 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 0 Time (days) 172 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 111 Cost (% of income per capita) 202.4 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 42 Time (days) 443 Employing workers (rank) 82 Protecting investors (rank) 176 Cost (% of claim) 31.6 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 11 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 0 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 40 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 3 Closing a business (rank) 178 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 60 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 2 Time (years) No practice Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 37 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 1.7 Cost (% of estate) No practice Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 5 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 0.0 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 19 Paying taxes (rank) 114 Payments (number per year) 34 Time (hours per year) 672 Total tax rate (% of profit) 35.5 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 132 Doing business 2008 LATVIA Eastern Europe & Central Asia GNI per capita (US$) 8,100 Ease of doing business (rank) 22 Upper middle income Population (m) 2.3 Starting a business (rank) 30 Registering property (rank) 85 Trading across borders (rank) 19 Procedures (number) 5 Procedures (number) 8 Documents to export (number) 6 Time (days) 16 Time (days) 54 Time to export (days) 13 Cost (% of income per capita) 3.0 Cost (% of property value) 2.0 Cost to export (US$ per container) 800 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 22.0 Documents to import (number) 6 Getting credit (rank) 13 Time to import (days) 12 Dealing with licenses (rank) 82 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 8 Cost to import (US$ per container) 800 Procedures (number) 26 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 4 Time (days) 188 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 2.6 Enforcing contracts (rank) 3 Cost (% of income per capita) 27.5 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 27 Time (days) 279 Employing workers (rank) 96 Protecting investors (rank) 51 Cost (% of claim) 12.9 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 50 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 5 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 40 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 4 Closing a business (rank) 64 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 40 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 8 Time (years) 3.0 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 43 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 5.7 Cost (% of estate) 13 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 24 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 34.6 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 17 Paying taxes (rank) 20 Payments (number per year) 7 Time (hours per year) 219 Total tax rate (% of profit) 32.6 LEBANON Middle East & North Africa GNI per capita (US$) 5,490 Ease of doing business (rank) 85 Upper middle income Population (m) 4.1 Starting a business (rank) 132 Registering property (rank) 92 Trading across borders (rank) 83 Procedures (number) 6 Procedures (number) 8 Documents to export (number) 5 Time (days) 46 Time (days) 25 Time to export (days) 27 Cost (% of income per capita) 94.1 Cost (% of property value) 5.9 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,027 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 60.4 Documents to import (number) 7 Getting credit (rank) 48 Time to import (days) 38 Dealing with licenses (rank) 113 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 4 Cost to import (US$ per container) 810 Procedures (number) 20 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 5 Time (days) 211 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 4.7 Enforcing contracts (rank) 121 Cost (% of income per capita) 229.5 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 37 Time (days) 721 Employing workers (rank) 53 Protecting investors (rank) 83 Cost (% of claim) 30.8 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 44 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 9 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 0 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 1 Closing a business (rank) 117 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 30 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 5 Time (years) 4.0 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 25 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 5.0 Cost (% of estate) 22 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 22 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 19.1 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 17 Paying taxes (rank) 33 Payments (number per year) 19 Time (hours per year) 180 Total tax rate (% of profit) 35.4 LESOTHO Sub-Saharan Africa GNI per capita (US$) 1,030 Ease of doing business (rank) 124 Lower middle income Population (m) 1.8 Starting a business (rank) 126 Registering property (rank) 132 Trading across borders (rank) 129 Procedures (number) 8 Procedures (number) 6 Documents to export (number) 6 Time (days) 73 Time (days) 101 Time to export (days) 44 Cost (% of income per capita) 37.4 Cost (% of property value) 8.2 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,188 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 14.3 Documents to import (number) 8 Getting credit (rank) 115 Time to import (days) 49 Dealing with licenses (rank) 146 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 5 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,210 Procedures (number) 15 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 0 Time (days) 601 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 99 Cost (% of income per capita) 805.3 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 41 Time (days) 695 Employing workers (rank) 69 Protecting investors (rank) 141 Cost (% of claim) 16.6 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 22 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 2 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 40 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 1 Closing a business (rank) 62 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 10 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 8 Time (years) 2.6 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 24 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 3.7 Cost (% of estate) 8 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 0 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 34.9 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 44 Paying taxes (rank) 49 Payments (number per year) 22 Time (hours per year) 342 Total tax rate (% of profit) 20.8 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank country tables 133 LIBERIA Sub-Saharan Africa GNI per capita (US$) 140 Ease of doing business (rank) 170 Low income Population (m) 3.4 Starting a business (rank) 141 Registering property (rank) 167 Trading across borders (rank) 98 Procedures (number) 12 Procedures (number) 13 Documents to export (number) 10 Time (days) 99 Time (days) 50 Time to export (days) 20 Cost (% of income per capita) 493.3 Cost (% of property value) 14.9 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,032 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 0.0 Documents to import (number) 9 Getting credit (rank) 135 Time to import (days) 10 Dealing with licenses (rank) 176 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 4 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,032 Procedures (number) 25 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 0 Time (days) 398 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 165 Cost (% of income per capita) 61,049.3 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 41 Time (days) 1,280 Employing workers (rank) 103 Protecting investors (rank) 138 Cost (% of claim) 35.0 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 33 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 4 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 20 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 1 Closing a business (rank) 144 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 40 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 6 Time (years) 3.0 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 31 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 3.7 Cost (% of estate) 43 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 5 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 7.8 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 84 Paying taxes (rank) 119 Payments (number per year) 37 Time (hours per year) 158 Total tax rate (% of profit) 81.6 LITHUANIA Eastern Europe & Central Asia GNI per capita (US$) 7,870 Ease of doing business (rank) 26 Upper middle income Population (m) 3.4 Starting a business (rank) 57 Registering property (rank) 4 Trading across borders (rank) 23 Procedures (number) 7 Procedures (number) 3 Documents to export (number) 6 Time (days) 26 Time (days) 3 Time to export (days) 10 Cost (% of income per capita) 3.0 Cost (% of property value) 0.7 Cost to export (US$ per container) 820 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 46.2 Documents to import (number) 6 Getting credit (rank) 36 Time to import (days) 13 Dealing with licenses (rank) 57 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 4 Cost to import (US$ per container) 980 Procedures (number) 17 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 6 Time (days) 156 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 6.6 Enforcing contracts (rank) 18 Cost (% of income per capita) 133.1 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 7.3 Procedures (number) 30 Time (days) 210 Employing workers (rank) 124 Protecting investors (rank) 83 Cost (% of claim) 23.6 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 33 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 5 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 80 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 4 Closing a business (rank) 31 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 30 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 6 Time (years) 1.7 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 48 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 5.0 Cost (% of estate) 7 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 31 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 49.2 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 30 Paying taxes (rank) 71 Payments (number per year) 24 Time (hours per year) 166 Total tax rate (% of profit) 48.3 LUXEMBOURG OECD: High Income GNI per capita (US$) 76,040 Ease of doing business (rank) 42 High income Population (m) 0.5 Starting a business (rank) 41 Registering property (rank) 116 Trading across borders (rank) 32 Procedures (number) 6 Procedures (number) 8 Documents to export (number) 5 Time (days) 26 Time (days) 29 Time to export (days) 6 Cost (% of income per capita) 2.3 Cost (% of property value) 10.2 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,250 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 20.5 Documents to import (number) 4 Getting credit (rank) 97 Time to import (days) 6 Dealing with licenses (rank) 36 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 6 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,250 Procedures (number) 13 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 0 Time (days) 217 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 2 Cost (% of income per capita) 19.4 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 26 Time (days) 321 Employing workers (rank) 164 Protecting investors (rank) 107 Cost (% of claim) 8.8 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 67 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 6 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 80 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 4 Closing a business (rank) 46 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 40 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 3 Time (years) 2.0 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 62 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 4.3 Cost (% of estate) 15 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 13 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 41.6 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 39 Paying taxes (rank) 17 Payments (number per year) 22 Time (hours per year) 58 Total tax rate (% of profit) 35.3 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 134 Doing business 2008 MACEDONIA, FYR Eastern Europe & Central Asia GNI per capita (US$) 3,060 Ease of doing business (rank) 75 Lower middle income Population (m) 2.0 Starting a business (rank) 21 Registering property (rank) 91 Trading across borders (rank) 72 Procedures (number) 9 Procedures (number) 6 Documents to export (number) 7 Time (days) 15 Time (days) 98 Time to export (days) 19 Cost (% of income per capita) 6.6 Cost (% of property value) 3.5 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,130 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 0.0 Documents to import (number) 7 Getting credit (rank) 48 Time to import (days) 17 Dealing with licenses (rank) 76 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 6 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,130 Procedures (number) 19 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 3 Time (days) 192 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 4.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 84 Cost (% of income per capita) 109.3 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 39 Time (days) 385 Employing workers (rank) 128 Protecting investors (rank) 83 Cost (% of claim) 33.1 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 61 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 5 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 60 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 6 Closing a business (rank) 127 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 30 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 4 Time (years) 3.7 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 50 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 5.0 Cost (% of estate) 28 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 33 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 15.8 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 26 Paying taxes (rank) 99 Payments (number per year) 52 Time (hours per year) 96 Total tax rate (% of profit) 49.8 MADAGASCAR Sub-Saharan Africa GNI per capita (US$) 280 Ease of doing business (rank) 149 Low income Population (m) 19.1 Starting a business (rank) 61 Registering property (rank) 165 Trading across borders (rank) 126 Procedures (number) 5 Procedures (number) 8 Documents to export (number) 4 Time (days) 7 Time (days) 134 Time to export (days) 28 Cost (% of income per capita) 22.7 Cost (% of property value) 11.6 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,182 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 333.4 Documents to import (number) 10 Getting credit (rank) 176 Time to import (days) 49 Dealing with licenses (rank) 139 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 1 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,282 Procedures (number) 16 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 0 Time (days) 268 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.1 Enforcing contracts (rank) 151 Cost (% of income per capita) 880.0 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 38 Time (days) 871 Employing workers (rank) 150 Protecting investors (rank) 51 Cost (% of claim) 42.4 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 89 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 5 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 60 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 6 Closing a business (rank) 178 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 40 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 6 Time (years) No practice Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 63 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 5.7 Cost (% of estate) No practice Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 18 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 0.0 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 30 Paying taxes (rank) 86 Payments (number per year) 26 Time (hours per year) 238 Total tax rate (% of profit) 46.5 MALAWI Sub-Saharan Africa GNI per capita (US$) 170 Ease of doing business (rank) 127 Low income Population (m) 13.2 Starting a business (rank) 108 Registering property (rank) 87 Trading across borders (rank) 161 Procedures (number) 10 Procedures (number) 6 Documents to export (number) 12 Time (days) 37 Time (days) 88 Time to export (days) 45 Cost (% of income per capita) 188.7 Cost (% of property value) 3.3 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,623 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 0.0 Documents to import (number) 10 Getting credit (rank) 84 Time to import (days) 54 Dealing with licenses (rank) 117 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 7 Cost to import (US$ per container) 2,500 Procedures (number) 21 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 0 Time (days) 213 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 135 Cost (% of income per capita) 189.2 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 42 Time (days) 432 Employing workers (rank) 90 Protecting investors (rank) 64 Cost (% of claim) 142.4 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 56 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 4 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 0 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 7 Closing a business (rank) 135 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 20 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 5 Time (years) 2.6 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 25 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 5.3 Cost (% of estate) 30 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 1 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 13.2 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 84 Paying taxes (rank) 78 Payments (number per year) 30 Time (hours per year) 370 Total tax rate (% of profit) 32.2 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank country tables 135 MALAYSIA East Asia & Pacific GNI per capita (US$) 5,490 Ease of doing business (rank) 24 Upper middle income Population (m) 25.8 Starting a business (rank) 74 Registering property (rank) 67 Trading across borders (rank) 21 Procedures (number) 9 Procedures (number) 5 Documents to export (number) 7 Time (days) 24 Time (days) 144 Time to export (days) 18 Cost (% of income per capita) 18.1 Cost (% of property value) 2.4 Cost to export (US$ per container) 432 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 0.0 Documents to import (number) 7 Getting credit (rank) 3 Time to import (days) 14 Dealing with licenses (rank) 105 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 8 Cost to import (US$ per container) 385 Procedures (number) 25 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 6 Time (days) 285 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 44.5 Enforcing contracts (rank) 63 Cost (% of income per capita) 10.0 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) .. Procedures (number) 30 Time (days) 600 Employing workers (rank) 43 Protecting investors (rank) 4 Cost (% of claim) 27.5 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 0 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 10 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 0 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 9 Closing a business (rank) 54 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 30 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 7 Time (years) 2.3 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 10 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 8.7 Cost (% of estate) 15 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 15 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 38.3 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 75 Paying taxes (rank) 56 Payments (number per year) 35 Time (hours per year) 166 Total tax rate (% of profit) 36.0 MALDIVES South Asia GNI per capita (US$) 2,680 Ease of doing business (rank) 60 Lower middle income Population (m) 0.3 Starting a business (rank) 34 Registering property (rank) 178 Trading across borders (rank) 110 Procedures (number) 5 Procedures (number) No practice Documents to export (number) 8 Time (days) 9 Time (days) No practice Time to export (days) 21 Cost (% of income per capita) 13.4 Cost (% of property value) No practice Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,200 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 5.8 Documents to import (number) 9 Getting credit (rank) 135 Time to import (days) 20 Dealing with licenses (rank) 8 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 4 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,200 Procedures (number) 9 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 0 Time (days) 118 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 94 Cost (% of income per capita) 39.9 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 41 Time (days) 665 Employing workers (rank) 7 Protecting investors (rank) 64 Cost (% of claim) 16.5 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 0 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 0 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 0 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 8 Closing a business (rank) 120 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 0 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 8 Time (years) 6.7 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 0 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 5.3 Cost (% of estate) 4 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 0 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 18.2 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 9 Paying taxes (rank) 1 Payments (number per year) 1 Time (hours per year) - Total tax rate (% of profit) 9.1 MALI Sub-Saharan Africa GNI per capita (US$) 440 Ease of doing business (rank) 158 Low income Population (m) 13.9 Starting a business (rank) 149 Registering property (rank) 90 Trading across borders (rank) 162 Procedures (number) 11 Procedures (number) 5 Documents to export (number) 9 Time (days) 26 Time (days) 29 Time to export (days) 44 Cost (% of income per capita) 132.1 Cost (% of property value) 21.2 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,752 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 434.6 Documents to import (number) 11 Getting credit (rank) 135 Time to import (days) 65 Dealing with licenses (rank) 101 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 3 Cost to import (US$ per container) 2,680 Procedures (number) 14 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 1 Time (days) 208 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 2.5 Enforcing contracts (rank) 157 Cost (% of income per capita) 1,320.7 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 39 Time (days) 860 Employing workers (rank) 88 Protecting investors (rank) 147 Cost (% of claim) 52.0 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 33 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 6 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 40 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 1 Closing a business (rank) 107 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 40 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 3 Time (years) 3.6 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 38 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 3.3 Cost (% of estate) 18 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 28 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 21.3 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 31 Paying taxes (rank) 151 Payments (number per year) 58 Time (hours per year) 270 Total tax rate (% of profit) 51.4 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 136 Doing Business 2008 MARSHALL ISLANDS East Asia & Pacific GNI per capita (US$) 3,000 Ease of doing business (rank) 89 Lower middle income Population (m) 0.1 Starting a business (rank) 15 Registering property (rank) 178 Trading across borders (rank) 46 Procedures (number) 5 Procedures (number) NO PRACTICE Documents to export (number) 5 Time (days) 17 Time (days) NO PRACTICE Time to export (days) 21 Cost (% of income per capita) 17.7 Cost (% of property value) NO PRACTICE Cost to export (US$ per container) 765 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 0.0 Documents to import (number) 5 Getting credit (rank) 170 Time to import (days) 33 Dealing with licenses (rank) 4 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 2 Cost to import (US$ per container) 765 Procedures (number) 10 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 0 Time (days) 55 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 60 Cost (% of income per capita) 36.8 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 36 Time (days) 476 Employing workers (rank) 1 Protecting investors (rank) 147 Cost (% of claim) 27.4 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 0 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 2 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 0 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 0 Closing a business (rank) 122 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 0 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 8 Time (years) 2.0 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 0 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 3.3 Cost (% of estate) 38 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 11 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 17.9 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 0 Paying taxes (rank) 74 Payments (number per year) 21 Time (hours per year) 128 Total tax rate (% of profit) 64.9 MAURITANIA Sub-Saharan Africa GNI per capita (US$) 740 Ease of doing business (rank) 157 Low income Population (m) 3.2 Starting a business (rank) 167 Registering property (rank) 52 Trading across borders (rank) 152 Procedures (number) 11 Procedures (number) 4 Documents to export (number) 11 Time (days) 65 Time (days) 49 Time to export (days) 35 Cost (% of income per capita) 56.2 Cost (% of property value) 5.2 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,360 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 503.1 Documents to import (number) 11 Getting credit (rank) 115 Time to import (days) 42 Dealing with licenses (rank) 142 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 4 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,363 Procedures (number) 25 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 1 Time (days) 201 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.2 Enforcing contracts (rank) 89 Cost (% of income per capita) 565.5 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 46 Time (days) 400 Employing workers (rank) 117 Protecting investors (rank) 141 Cost (% of claim) 23.2 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 56 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 5 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 40 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 3 Closing a business (rank) 143 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 40 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 3 Time (years) 8.0 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 45 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 3.7 Cost (% of estate) 9 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 16 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 7.8 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 31 Paying taxes (rank) 171 Payments (number per year) 38 Time (hours per year) 696 Total tax rate (% of profit) 107.5 MAURITIUS Sub-Saharan Africa GNI per capita (US$) 5,450 Ease of doing business (rank) 27 Upper middle income Population (m) 1.3 Starting a business (rank) 8 Registering property (rank) 153 Trading across borders (rank) 17 Procedures (number) 6 Procedures (number) 6 Documents to export (number) 5 Time (days) 7 Time (days) 210 Time to export (days) 17 Cost (% of income per capita) 5.3 Cost (% of property value) 10.8 Cost to export (US$ per container) 728 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 0.0 Documents to import (number) 6 Getting credit (rank) 97 Time to import (days) 16 Dealing with licenses (rank) 33 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 5 Cost to import (US$ per container) 673 Procedures (number) 18 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 1 Time (days) 107 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 38.6 Enforcing contracts (rank) 78 Cost (% of income per capita) 43.3 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 37 Time (days) 750 Employing workers (rank) 61 Protecting investors (rank) 11 Cost (% of claim) 17.4 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 0 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 6 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 20 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 8 Closing a business (rank) 66 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 50 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 9 Time (years) 1.7 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 23 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 7.7 Cost (% of estate) 15 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 6 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 34.3 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 35 Paying taxes (rank) 11 Payments (number per year) 7 Time (hours per year) 161 Total tax rate (% of profit) 21.7 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank country taBles 137 MEXICO Latin America & Caribbean GNI per capita (US$) 7,870 Ease of doing business (rank) 44 Upper middle income Population (m) 104.2 Starting a business (rank) 75 Registering property (rank) 71 Trading across borders (rank) 76 Procedures (number) 8 Procedures (number) 5 Documents to export (number) 5 Time (days) 27 Time (days) 74 Time to export (days) 17 Cost (% of income per capita) 13.3 Cost (% of property value) 4.7 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,302 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 11.6 Documents to import (number) 5 Getting credit (rank) 48 Time to import (days) 23 Dealing with licenses (rank) 21 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 3 Cost to import (US$ per container) 2,411 Procedures (number) 11 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 6 Time (days) 131 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 83 Cost (% of income per capita) 103.5 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 61.2 Procedures (number) 38 Time (days) 415 Employing workers (rank) 134 Protecting investors (rank) 33 Cost (% of claim) 32.0 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 33 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 8 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 40 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 5 Closing a business (rank) 23 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 70 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 5 Time (years) 1.8 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 48 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 6.0 Cost (% of estate) 18 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 21 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 63.9 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 52 Paying taxes (rank) 135 Payments (number per year) 27 Time (hours per year) 552 Total tax rate (% of profit) 51.2 MICRONESIA East Asia & Pacific GNI per capita (US$) 2,380 Ease of doing business (rank) 112 Lower middle income Population (m) 0.1 Starting a business (rank) 46 Registering property (rank) 178 Trading across borders (rank) 85 Procedures (number) 7 Procedures (number) NO PRACTICE Documents to export (number) 3 Time (days) 16 Time (days) NO PRACTICE Time to export (days) 30 Cost (% of income per capita) 137.0 Cost (% of property value) NO PRACTICE Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,145 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 0.0 Documents to import (number) 6 Getting credit (rank) 84 Time to import (days) 30 Dealing with licenses (rank) 9 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 7 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,145 Procedures (number) 14 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 0 Time (days) 73 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 139 Cost (% of income per capita) 19.7 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 34 Time (days) 965 Employing workers (rank) 12 Protecting investors (rank) 165 Cost (% of claim) 66.0 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 22 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 0 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 0 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 0 Closing a business (rank) 149 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 0 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 8 Time (years) 5.3 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 7 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 2.7 Cost (% of estate) 38 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 6 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 3.1 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 0 Paying taxes (rank) 70 Payments (number per year) 21 Time (hours per year) 128 Total tax rate (% of profit) 58.7 MOLDOVA Eastern Europe & Central Asia GNI per capita (US$) 1,100 Ease of doing business (rank) 92 Lower middle income Population (m) 3.8 Starting a business (rank) 81 Registering property (rank) 46 Trading across borders (rank) 122 Procedures (number) 9 Procedures (number) 6 Documents to export (number) 6 Time (days) 23 Time (days) 48 Time to export (days) 32 Cost (% of income per capita) 11.5 Cost (% of property value) 0.9 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,425 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 14.6 Documents to import (number) 7 Getting credit (rank) 97 Time to import (days) 35 Dealing with licenses (rank) 153 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 6 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,545 Procedures (number) 30 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 0 Time (days) 292 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 17 Cost (% of income per capita) 154.2 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 31 Time (days) 365 Employing workers (rank) 93 Protecting investors (rank) 98 Cost (% of claim) 16.6 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 33 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 7 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 40 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 1 Closing a business (rank) 82 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 40 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 6 Time (years) 2.8 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 38 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 4.7 Cost (% of estate) 9 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 28 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 28.8 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 37 Paying taxes (rank) 111 Payments (number per year) 49 Time (hours per year) 218 Total tax rate (% of profit) 44.0 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 138 Doing Business 2008 MONGOLIA East Asia & Pacific GNI per capita (US$) 880 Ease of doing business (rank) 52 Low income Population (m) 2.6 Starting a business (rank) 62 Registering property (rank) 18 Trading across borders (rank) 168 Procedures (number) 8 Procedures (number) 5 Documents to export (number) 10 Time (days) 20 Time (days) 11 Time to export (days) 58 Cost (% of income per capita) 4.3 Cost (% of property value) 2.2 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,807 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 96.3 Documents to import (number) 10 Getting credit (rank) 68 Time to import (days) 59 Dealing with licenses (rank) 43 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 5 Cost to import (US$ per container) 3,197 Procedures (number) 21 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 3 Time (days) 126 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 9.5 Enforcing contracts (rank) 27 Cost (% of income per capita) 15.7 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 32 Time (days) 314 Employing workers (rank) 64 Protecting investors (rank) 19 Cost (% of claim) 26.1 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 22 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 5 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 80 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 8 Closing a business (rank) 115 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 0 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 6 Time (years) 4.0 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 34 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 6.3 Cost (% of estate) 8 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 20 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 20.1 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 9 Paying taxes (rank) 90 Payments (number per year) 42 Time (hours per year) 204 Total tax rate (% of profit) 38.4 MONTENEGRO Eastern Europe & Central Asia GNI per capita (US$) 3,860 Ease of doing business (rank) 81 Lower middle income Population (m) 0.6 Starting a business (rank) 98 Registering property (rank) 103 Trading across borders (rank) 113 Procedures (number) 15 Procedures (number) 8 Documents to export (number) 9 Time (days) 24 Time (days) 86 Time to export (days) 18 Cost (% of income per capita) 6.2 Cost (% of property value) 2.4 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,580 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 0.0 Documents to import (number) 7 Getting credit (rank) 84 Time to import (days) 19 Dealing with licenses (rank) 113 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 7 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,780 Procedures (number) 19 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 0 Time (days) 185 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 131 Cost (% of income per capita) 599.6 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 49 Time (days) 545 Employing workers (rank) 98 Protecting investors (rank) 19 Cost (% of claim) 25.7 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 33 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 5 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 40 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 8 Closing a business (rank) 41 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 40 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 6 Time (years) 2.0 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 38 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 6.3 Cost (% of estate) 8 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 18 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 42.8 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 39 Paying taxes (rank) 129 Payments (number per year) 88 Time (hours per year) 372 Total tax rate (% of profit) 31.6 MOROCCO Middle East & North Africa GNI per capita (US$) 1,900 Ease of doing business (rank) 129 Lower middle income Population (m) 30.5 Starting a business (rank) 51 Registering property (rank) 102 Trading across borders (rank) 67 Procedures (number) 6 Procedures (number) 8 Documents to export (number) 8 Time (days) 12 Time (days) 47 Time to export (days) 14 Cost (% of income per capita) 11.5 Cost (% of property value) 4.9 Cost to export (US$ per container) 600 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 59.8 Documents to import (number) 11 Getting credit (rank) 135 Time to import (days) 19 Dealing with licenses (rank) 88 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 3 Cost to import (US$ per container) 800 Procedures (number) 19 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 1 Time (days) 163 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 2.3 Enforcing contracts (rank) 114 Cost (% of income per capita) 334.7 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 40 Time (days) 615 Employing workers (rank) 165 Protecting investors (rank) 158 Cost (% of claim) 25.2 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 100 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 6 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 40 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 2 Closing a business (rank) 60 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 50 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 1 Time (years) 1.8 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 63 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 3.0 Cost (% of estate) 18 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 19 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 35.3 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 85 Paying taxes (rank) 132 Payments (number per year) 28 Time (hours per year) 358 Total tax rate (% of profit) 53.1 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank country taBles 139 MOZAMBIQUE Sub-Saharan Africa GNI per capita (US$) 340 Ease of doing business (rank) 134 Low income Population (m) 20.1 Starting a business (rank) 125 Registering property (rank) 126 Trading across borders (rank) 140 Procedures (number) 10 Procedures (number) 8 Documents to export (number) 8 Time (days) 29 Time (days) 42 Time to export (days) 27 Cost (% of income per capita) 21.6 Cost (% of property value) 8.1 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,155 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 115.8 Documents to import (number) 10 Getting credit (rank) 97 Time to import (days) 38 Dealing with licenses (rank) 147 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 3 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,185 Procedures (number) 17 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 3 Time (days) 361 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.9 Enforcing contracts (rank) 138 Cost (% of income per capita) 705.0 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 31 Time (days) 1,010 Employing workers (rank) 162 Protecting investors (rank) 33 Cost (% of claim) 142.5 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 83 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 5 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 60 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 4 Closing a business (rank) 134 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 20 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 9 Time (years) 5.0 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 54 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 6.0 Cost (% of estate) 9 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 4 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 13.9 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 143 Paying taxes (rank) 72 Payments (number per year) 37 Time (hours per year) 230 Total tax rate (% of profit) 34.3 NAMIBIA Sub-Saharan Africa GNI per capita (US$) 3,230 Ease of doing business (rank) 43 Lower middle income Population (m) 2.1 Starting a business (rank) 101 Registering property (rank) 128 Trading across borders (rank) 144 Procedures (number) 10 Procedures (number) 9 Documents to export (number) 11 Time (days) 99 Time (days) 23 Time to export (days) 29 Cost (% of income per capita) 22.3 Cost (% of property value) 9.9 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,539 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 0.0 Documents to import (number) 9 Getting credit (rank) 36 Time to import (days) 24 Dealing with licenses (rank) 31 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 5 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,550 Procedures (number) 12 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 5 Time (days) 139 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 33 Cost (% of income per capita) 156.7 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 59.9 Procedures (number) 33 Time (days) 270 Employing workers (rank) 33 Protecting investors (rank) 64 Cost (% of claim) 29.9 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 0 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 5 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 40 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 5 Closing a business (rank) 47 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 20 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 6 Time (years) 1.5 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 20 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 5.3 Cost (% of estate) 15 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 0 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 41.3 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 24 Paying taxes (rank) 48 Payments (number per year) 37 Time (hours per year) . . Total tax rate (% of profit) 26.5 NEPAL South Asia GNI per capita (US$) 290 Ease of doing business (rank) 111 Low income Population (m) 27.7 Starting a business (rank) 60 Registering property (rank) 25 Trading across borders (rank) 151 Procedures (number) 7 Procedures (number) 3 Documents to export (number) 9 Time (days) 31 Time (days) 5 Time to export (days) 43 Cost (% of income per capita) 73.9 Cost (% of property value) 6.4 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,600 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 0.0 Documents to import (number) 10 Getting credit (rank) 97 Time to import (days) 35 Dealing with licenses (rank) 125 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 4 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,725 Procedures (number) 15 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 2 Time (days) 424 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 123 Cost (% of income per capita) 304.7 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.2 Procedures (number) 39 Time (days) 735 Employing workers (rank) 155 Protecting investors (rank) 64 Cost (% of claim) 26.8 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 67 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 6 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 20 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 1 Closing a business (rank) 95 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 70 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 9 Time (years) 5.0 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 52 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 5.3 Cost (% of estate) 9 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 10 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 24.5 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 90 Paying taxes (rank) 92 Payments (number per year) 33 Time (hours per year) 408 Total tax rate (% of profit) 32.5 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 140 Doing Business 2008 NETHERLANDS OECD: High Income GNI per capita (US$) 42,670 Ease of doing business (rank) 21 High income Population (m) 16.4 Starting a business (rank) 41 Registering property (rank) 22 Trading across borders (rank) 14 Procedures (number) 6 Procedures (number) 2 Documents to export (number) 4 Time (days) 10 Time (days) 5 Time to export (days) 6 Cost (% of income per capita) 6.0 Cost (% of property value) 6.2 Cost to export (US$ per container) 880 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 52.9 Documents to import (number) 5 Getting credit (rank) 13 Time to import (days) 6 Dealing with licenses (rank) 84 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 7 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,005 Procedures (number) 18 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 5 Time (days) 230 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 36 Cost (% of income per capita) 76.0 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 78.1 Procedures (number) 25 Time (days) 514 Employing workers (rank) 92 Protecting investors (rank) 98 Cost (% of claim) 24.4 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 17 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 4 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 40 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 4 Closing a business (rank) 8 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 70 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 6 Time (years) 1.1 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 42 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 4.7 Cost (% of estate) 4 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 18 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 86.7 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 17 Paying taxes (rank) 36 Payments (number per year) 9 Time (hours per year) 180 Total tax rate (% of profit) 43.4 NEW ZEALAND OECD: High Income GNI per capita (US$) 27,250 Ease of doing business (rank) 2 High income Population (m) 4.1 Starting a business (rank) 3 Registering property (rank) 1 Trading across borders (rank) 16 Procedures (number) 2 Procedures (number) 2 Documents to export (number) 7 Time (days) 12 Time (days) 2 Time to export (days) 10 Cost (% of income per capita) 0.1 Cost (% of property value) 0.1 Cost to export (US$ per container) 725 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 0.0 Documents to import (number) 5 Getting credit (rank) 3 Time to import (days) 9 Dealing with licenses (rank) 2 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 9 Cost to import (US$ per container) 800 Procedures (number) 7 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 5 Time (days) 65 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 13 Cost (% of income per capita) 25.0 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 100.0 Procedures (number) 30 Time (days) 216 Employing workers (rank) 13 Protecting investors (rank) 1 Cost (% of claim) 22.0 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 11 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 10 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 0 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 9 Closing a business (rank) 16 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 10 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 10 Time (years) 1.3 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 7 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 9.7 Cost (% of estate) 4 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 1 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 77.1 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 0 Paying taxes (rank) 9 Payments (number per year) 8 Time (hours per year) 70 Total tax rate (% of profit) 35.1 NICARAGUA Latin America & Caribbean GNI per capita (US$) 1,000 Ease of doing business (rank) 93 Lower middle income Population (m) 5.2 Starting a business (rank) 70 Registering property (rank) 130 Trading across borders (rank) 87 Procedures (number) 6 Procedures (number) 8 Documents to export (number) 5 Time (days) 39 Time (days) 124 Time to export (days) 36 Cost (% of income per capita) 119.1 Cost (% of property value) 3.5 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,021 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 0.0 Documents to import (number) 5 Getting credit (rank) 68 Time to import (days) 38 Dealing with licenses (rank) 127 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 3 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,054 Procedures (number) 17 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 5 Time (days) 219 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 14.8 Enforcing contracts (rank) 69 Cost (% of income per capita) 898.6 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 100.0 Procedures (number) 35 Time (days) 540 Employing workers (rank) 59 Protecting investors (rank) 83 Cost (% of claim) 26.8 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 22 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 4 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 60 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 5 Closing a business (rank) 63 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 0 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 6 Time (years) 2.2 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 27 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 5.0 Cost (% of estate) 15 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 17 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 34.6 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 24 Paying taxes (rank) 156 Payments (number per year) 64 Time (hours per year) 240 Total tax rate (% of profit) 63.2 (c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank country taBles 141 NIGER Sub-Saharan Africa GNI per capita (US$) 260 Ease of doing business (rank) 169 Low income Population (m) 14.4 Starting a business (rank) 153 Registering property (rank) 63 Trading across borders (rank) 163 Procedures (number) 11 Procedures (number) 5 Documents to export (number) 8 Time (days) 23 Time (days) 32 Time to export (days) 59 Cost (% of income per capita) 174.8 Cost (% of property value) 9.0 Cost to export (US$ per container) 2,945 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 735.6 Documents to import (number) 10 Getting credit (rank) 135 Time to import (days) 68 Dealing with licenses (rank) 155 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 3 Cost to import (US$ per container) 2,946 Procedures (number) 16 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 1 Time (days) 293 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 1.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 132 Cost (% of income per capita) 2,823.6 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 39 Time (days) 545 Employing workers (rank) 161 Protecting investors (rank) 147 Cost (% of claim) 59.6 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 100 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 6 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 60 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 1 Closing a business (rank) 133 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 50 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 3 Time (years) 5.0 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 70 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 3.3 Cost (% of estate) 18 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 17 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 14.2 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 31 Paying taxes (rank) 115 Payments (number per year) 42 Time (hours per year) 270 Total tax rate (% of profit) 42.4 NIGERIA Sub-Saharan Africa GNI per capita (US$) 640 Ease of doing business (rank) 108 Low income Population (m) 144.7 Starting a business (rank) 80 Registering property (rank) 173 Trading across borders (rank) 138 Procedures (number) 9 Procedures (number) 14 Documents to export (number) 10 Time (days) 34 Time (days) 82 Time to export (days) 26 Cost (% of income per capita) 56.6 Cost (% of property value) 22.2 Cost to export (US$ per container) 1,026 Minimum capital (% of income per capita) 0.0 Documents to import (number) 9 Getting credit (rank) 84 Time to import (days) 46 Dealing with licenses (rank) 161 Strength of legal rights index (0­10) 7 Cost to import (US$ per container) 1,047 Procedures (number) 18 Depth of credit information index (0­6) 0 Time (days) 350 Public registry coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Enforcing contracts (rank) 93 Cost (% of income per capita) 1,016.0 Private bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 Procedures (number) 39 Time (days) 457 Employing workers (rank) 30 Protecting investors (rank) 51 Cost (% of claim) 32.0 Difficulty of hiring index (0­100) 0 Extent of disclosure index (0­10) 5 Rigidity of hours index (0­100) 0 Extent of director liability index (0­10) 7 Closing a business (rank) 89 Difficulty of firing index (0­100) 20 Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) 5 Time (years) 2.0 Rigidity of employment index (0­100) 7 Strength of investor protection index (0­10) 5.7 Cost (% of estate) 22 Nonwage labor cost (% of salary) 9 Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 27.5 Firing cost (weeks of salary) 50 Paying taxes (rank) 107 Payments (number per year) 35