Armenia improves Doing Business standing by 6 notches

PanARMENIAN.Net - Armenia ranks 41st by the ease of doing business against the 47th spot last year, the new edition of the World Bank Group’s annual Doing Business report reveals.

Doing Business covers reforms affecting all sets of indicators included in this year’s report, implemented from June 2017 to May 2018. The reforms, carried out in 128 economies, benefit small and medium enterprises as well as entrepreneurs, enabling jobcreation and stimulating private investment. This year’s reforms surpass the previous all-time high of 290 reforms two

years ago.

In particular, the reforms making it easier to do business in Armenia are as follows:

- Armenia made starting a business easier by allowing voluntary value added tax registration at the time of business incorporation.

- Armenia made getting electricity faster by imposing new deadlines for procedures to obtain a new electrical connection.

- Armenia strengthened minority investor protections by increasing disclosure of related-party transactions, clarifying ownership and control structures and requiring greater corporate transparency.

- Armenia made paying taxes easier by introducing administrative measures to ease compliance with corporate income tax, value added tax and labor tax rules.

- Armenia made enforcing contracts easier by introducing a simplified procedure for small claims and time standards for key court events.

Meanwhile, neighboring Georgia and Azerbaijan come in the 6th and 25th, respectively, the latter having jumped 40 notches from last year's 65th position. Turkey is placed the 43rd, Russia is 31st, the United Sates has the 8th spot, while Iran is on the 128th position.