Greece has made significant progress in recent years regarding the ease of starting a business and is ranked by the World Bank among the top countries in Europe, while in the not-too-distant past, the setting up of a business in the country was a lot more difficult and expensive.
According to the Doing Business in the European Union 2020 report put together by the World Bank, which looks at the business environment in 24 cities of Greece, Ireland and Italy and compares results with another 187 countries from annual Doing Business report, reforms in recent years have made setting up a company in Greece considerably simpler and cheaper.
"Greece is regulating the setting up of business through just three procedures. Only four other countries in the EU - Estonia, Finland, Ireland, and Slovenia - have completed this simpler process," says the report.
The time needed to set up a business has been reduced to about four days, while business owners pay the equivalent of 1.5 percent of per capita income to set up their operations, a cost that is below half of the European average.
With 250 euros or less if done online, a business owner can list a company on the commercial registrar, without needing the help of an accountant or lawyer. Based on the law, the minimum allowable capital required to set up an IKE company is 1.1 euros.
Six Greek cities (Athens, Thessaloniki, Patras, Larissa Heraklio, Alexandroupolis) rank among the top in Europe regarding the time needed to set up a business. On the completion time, Alexandroupolis is in position number one in Europe with three days, followed by the five Greek cities that require four days.
On the costs required to set up a business, Greece is very close to the top, which is occupied by Slovenia and the UK.
The report also points out that if Athens followed the example of other cities in the country, then Greece could climb 18 places from position number 61. The report also points out the significant differences separating the cities in four areas, apart from setting up a business: obtaining a construction permit, getting power supply, registering ownership rights and contract execution.
For example, the time needed for a legal dispute to be heard at a Court of First Instance ranges from 20 months in Thessaloniki to a bit less than four years in Athens. Building contractors can get all necessary permits to build a storage area and connect it with all utilities in less than five months whereas their colleagues in Heraklion need double the time.
"The Greek government is making progress on reforms and the regulatory framework that relates to entrepreneurship. Inconsistent performances among the cities underline that there exists large room for improvements and better results on competitiveness levels," says Arup Banerji, Regional Director for the European Union countries for the World Bank Group.
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