Bulgaria Retains Stable Ranking in Doing Business 2009 Report

by Sofia News Agency www.novinite.com

Bulgaria has retained its stable ranking in the global lists of countries conducting regulatory reforms, according to the "Doing Business 2009" report"the sixth in a series of annual reports published by the International Monetary fund (IFC) and the World Bank. Bulgaria's "Doing Business 2009" rank is 45th among 181 economies. Bulgaria is ahead of Romania (47th) and other countries from the area, members of the European Union (EU) such as Slovenia (54), Italy (65) and Poland (76). "Doing Business" ranks economies based on 10 indicators of business regulation that record the time and cost to meet government requirements in starting and operating a business, trading across borders, paying taxes, and closing a business. The rankings do not reflect such areas as macroeconomic policy, quality of infrastructure, currency volatility, investor perceptions, or crime rates. In 2005 Bulgaria has realized five of the reforms that are monitored by "Doing Business": Starting a Business, Paying Taxes, Enforcing Contracts, Closing a Business while Dealing with Construction Permits has been made more difficult. Bulgaria passed two new laws - the Civil Procedure Code and the Law for the Commercial Registry, which will speed the resolution of bankruptcy. The Civil Procedure Code removed the requirement for the Supreme Cassation Court to hear all cases. Now the court can decide whether or not to hear a case. Bulgaria made business start-up easier by creating a central electronic database for commercial registration. This reform consolidated and reduced the number of registration procedures and cut other registration formalities. Amendments to the civil procedural code have helped speed contract enforcement. They reformed rules for evidence and default judgments, raised the minimum threshold for cases in the lower courts, and empowered the civil court of last instance to decide which cases to hear, limiting abuse of the appeals process. Bulgaria introduced a new Corporate Income Tax Act and a new Value Added Tax Act to synchronize local tax legislation with EU legislation. Dealing with construction permits has become more difficult. The fees for obtaining construction permits were increased by about 16 percent in 2008. Stricter environmental requirements mean that companies in Sofia now have to obtain a certificate of energy efficiency before and after construction. This adds 2 steps and 8 days for dealing with construction permits. For the fifth year in a row, Eastern Europe and Central Asia has led the world in "Doing Business" reforms"the region accounts for a third of all reforms observed since "Doing Business 2004". In 2007 Eastern Europe and Central Asia surpassed East Asia and Pacific in the average ease of doing business and has maintained its place this year. Around the world, more regulatory reforms were recorded between June 2007 and June 2008 than in any previous year"113 economies implemented 239 reforms. Azerbaijan led the world as the top reformer in 2007/08, with improvements on seven out of 10 indicators of regulatory reform. Azerbaijan started operating a one-stop shop in January 2008 that halved the time, cost, and number of procedures to start a business. Business registrations increased by 40% in the first 6 months. Azerbaijan also eliminated the minimum loan cutoff of $1,100, more than doubling the number of borrowers covered at the credit registry. Also, taxpayers can now file and pay their taxes online. Azerbaijan's extensive reforms moved it far up the ranks, from 97 to 33 in the overall ease of doing business. Albania, the runner-up in reforming regulations, rose from 135 to 86 in the global rankings on the ease of doing business, with reforms in four areas. These made it easier to start a business, eased tax burdens, and strengthened investor protections and credit information. "Countries in Eastern Europe and Central Asia continue to lead the world in easing the regulatory burden on business and in sustaining their reform agendas," said Svetlana Bagaudinova, a coauthor of the report. "We see many of these countries advancing to the top 30 in the overall rankings on the ease of doing business. Many countries that made improvements this year looked to earlier pacesetters for ideas on how to reform. "Economies need rules that are efficient, easy to use, and accessible to all who use them. Otherwise, businesses are trapped in the unregulated, informal economy, where they have less access to finance and hire fewer workers and where workers lack the protection of labor law," said Michael Klein, World Bank/IFC Vice President for Financial and Private Sector Development. "Doing Business encourages good rules, and good rules are a better basis for healthy business than â��who you know,'" he added. Singapore leads the global rankings on the overall regulatory ease of doing business for a third consecutive year. New Zealand is runner-up, and the United States third. Bahrain and Mauritius join the ranks of the top 25 this year. The top 25 are, in order, Singapore, New Zealand, the United States, Hong Kong (China), Denmark, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Canada, Australia, Norway, Iceland, Japan, Thailand, Finland, Georgia, Saudi Arabia, Sweden, Bahrain, Belgium, Malaysia, Switzerland, Estonia, Korea, Mauritius, and Germany.

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