Which country has the cheapest listed annual company cost?
Georgia has the lowest listed annual company cost in the 2026 dataset at $100. This is a comparison field, not a quote or a guarantee of total setup costs.
WhereNext Open Data
Business Incorporation by Country 2026
A neutral country-by-country reference for comparing listed company formation, banking, tax-system, freelancer tax-rate, and freelance-visa fields already held in the WhereNext registry.
Quick answer
Quick answer
In the 2026 dataset, Georgia has the cheapest listed annual company cost at $100.In the 2026 dataset, the fastest listed company-formation time is 1 week across 17 jurisdictions.In the 2026 dataset, 6 jurisdictions use the no-income-tax classification.In the 2026 dataset, the easiest-banking picks by freelance-friendliness are UAE, Estonia, Georgia, and Portugal.
Based on the WhereNext freelance & business dataset — 95 countries; sources: Global Nomad Guide (2025), Wise Business, OECD Tax Database, Nomad List, various government immigration portals, Startups Without Borders, World Bank Doing Business indicators (legacy + B-READY 2024). Informational comparison only — not tax or legal advice.
Country comparison
Annual company cost means the registry's listed yearly comparison field. Missing registry values remain visibly unlisted.
| Country | Annual company cost | Formation time | Banking difficulty | Tax system | Freelancer income tax rate | Freelance visa |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Georgia | $100 | 1 week | Easy | Territorial | 1% as small business (20% standard) | Remotely from Georgia |
| Albania | $200 | 2 weeks | Difficult | Worldwide | 0-23% progressive | Not listed |
| Estonia | $200 | 1 week | Easy | Worldwide | 22% flat (0% on retained profits) | Digital Nomad Visa |
| Moldova | $200 | 3 weeks | Difficult | Worldwide | 12% flat | Not listed |
| North Macedonia | $200 | 1 week | Moderate | Worldwide | 10% flat | Not listed |
| Rwanda | $200 | 1 week | Moderate | Worldwide | 0-30% progressive | Not listed |
| Serbia | $250 | 1 week | Moderate | Worldwide | 10-15% flat | Not listed |
| Bangladesh | $300 | 8 weeks | Difficult | Worldwide | 0-30% progressive | Not listed |
| Bosnia and Herzegovina | $300 | 4 weeks | Difficult | Worldwide | 10% flat | Not listed |
| Bulgaria | $300 | 2 weeks | Moderate | Worldwide | 10% flat | Not listed |
| Cambodia | $300 | 3 weeks | Moderate | Territorial | 0% on foreign income | Business Visa (EB) |
| Ghana | $300 | 3 weeks | Moderate | Worldwide | 5-35% progressive | Not listed |
| Guatemala | $300 | 6 weeks | Difficult | Territorial | 5-7% on local income | Not listed |
| Hungary | $300 | 2 weeks | Moderate | Worldwide | 15% flat | White Card (Digital Nomad Permit) |
| India | $300 | 3 weeks | Moderate | Worldwide | Base income tax up to 30%; separate surcharge and cess apply | Not listed |
| Kenya | $300 | 2 weeks | Moderate | Worldwide | 10-35% progressive | Not listed |
| Latvia | $300 | 2 weeks | Moderate | Worldwide | 25.5-33% progressive; separate 3% surtax above EUR 200,000 | Not listed |
| Lithuania | $300 | 1 week | Easy | Worldwide | 20-32% progressive; self-employment relief depends on eligibility | Not listed |
| Mongolia | $300 | 4 weeks | Difficult | Worldwide | 10% flat | Not listed |
| Montenegro | $300 | 1 week | Moderate | Worldwide | 9-15% progressive | Not listed |
| Nepal | $300 | 6 weeks | Difficult | Worldwide | 1-36% progressive | Not listed |
| Nigeria | $300 | 4 weeks | Difficult | Worldwide | 0-25% progressive | Not listed |
| Romania | $300 | 2 weeks | Moderate | Worldwide | 10% flat (+ 10% dividend) | Digital Nomad Visa |
| Sri Lanka | $300 | 3 weeks | Difficult | Worldwide | 6-36% progressive | Digital Nomad Visa |
| Tunisia | $300 | 4 weeks | Difficult | Worldwide | 0-40% progressive | Not listed |
| United Kingdom | $300 | 1 week | Easy | Worldwide | 20-45% progressive | Innovator Founder Visa |
| Colombia | $400 | 2 weeks | Moderate | Worldwide | 0-39% (tax residence after 183 days in any 365-day period; the nomad visa gives no exemption) | Digital Nomad Visa |
| Costa Rica | $400 | 4 weeks | Moderate | Territorial | 0% on foreign income | Digital Nomad Visa (Rentista) |
| Croatia | $400 | 2 weeks | Moderate | Worldwide | 20-30% (nomad visa: tax-exempt) | Digital Nomad Permit |
| Czech Republic | $400 | 3 weeks | Moderate | Worldwide | 15% flat (23% above ~$75K) | Business License (Zivnostensky List) |
| Dominican Republic | $400 | 3 weeks | Moderate | Territorial | 0% on foreign income (first 5 years) | Not listed |
| Ecuador | $400 | 4 weeks | Difficult | Worldwide | 0-37% progressive | Professional Visa |
| Egypt | $400 | 4 weeks | Difficult | Worldwide | 0-27.5% progressive | Not listed |
| Jamaica | $400 | 4 weeks | Difficult | Worldwide | 25% flat | Not listed |
| Laos | $400 | 6 weeks | Difficult | Worldwide | 0-25% progressive | Not listed |
| Morocco | $400 | 3 weeks | Moderate | Worldwide | 0-37% progressive | Not listed |
| Peru | $400 | 4 weeks | Difficult | Worldwide | 8-30% progressive | Not listed |
| Philippines | $400 | 4 weeks | Moderate | Worldwide | 0-35% progressive | Not listed |
| Poland | $400 | 2 weeks | Moderate | Worldwide | 12-32% (flat 19% option) | Not listed |
| Slovakia | $400 | 3 weeks | Moderate | Worldwide | 19-35% progressive | Not listed |
| South Africa | $400 | 2 weeks | Moderate | Worldwide | 18-45% progressive | Not listed |
| Taiwan | $400 | 3 weeks | Moderate | Worldwide | 5-40% progressive (Gold Card benefits) | Employment Gold Card |
| Turkey | $400 | 2 weeks | Moderate | Worldwide | 15-40% progressive | Not listed |
| Argentina | $500 | 8 weeks | Difficult | Worldwide | 5-35% progressive | Not listed |
| Chile | $500 | 2 weeks | Moderate | Territorial | 0-40% (3-year foreign income exemption) | Tech Visa |
| Fiji | $500 | 4 weeks | Difficult | Worldwide | 0-39% progressive | Not listed |
| Hong Kong | $500 | 1 week | Easy | Territorial | 2-17% on HK-sourced income only | Not listed |
| Ireland | $500 | 1 week | Easy | Worldwide | 20-40% (12.5% corporate) | Not listed |
| Jordan | $500 | 4 weeks | Moderate | Worldwide | 5-30% progressive | Not listed |
| Malaysia | $500 | 2 weeks | Moderate | Territorial | 0% on foreign-sourced income | DE Rantau (Digital Nomad Pass) |
| Mauritius | $500 | 2 weeks | Easy | Territorial | 15% flat (0% on foreign income) | Premium Visa (Digital Nomad) |
| Mexico | $500 | 4 weeks | Moderate | Worldwide | 1.92-35% progressive | Temporary Resident Visa |
| New Zealand | $500 | 1 week | Easy | Worldwide | 10.5-39% progressive | Not listed |
| Portugal | $500 | 1 week | Easy | Worldwide | 14.5-48% (IFICI: 20% flat for qualifying new residents) | Digital Nomad Visa (D8) |
| Slovenia | $500 | 2 weeks | Moderate | Worldwide | 16-50% progressive | Not listed |
| Trinidad and Tobago | $500 | 4 weeks | Difficult | Worldwide | 25% flat | Not listed |
| United States | $500 | 1 week | Moderate | Citizenship-based | 10-37% + 15.3% self-employment | Not listed |
| Uruguay | $500 | 3 weeks | Moderate | Territorial | 0% on foreign income (10-year exemption) | Not listed |
| Vietnam | $500 | 6 weeks | Difficult | Worldwide | 5-35% progressive | Not listed |
| Canada | $600 | 2 weeks | Moderate | Worldwide | 14-33% federal (2026) + provincial | Not listed |
| Cyprus | $600 | 2 weeks | Moderate | Worldwide | 0-35% (non-dom: dividends exempt) | Digital Nomad Visa |
| Finland | $600 | 3 weeks | Moderate | Worldwide | 30-48.4% progressive | Not listed |
| Greece | $600 | 3 weeks | Moderate | Worldwide | 9-44% (7% flat for foreign income) | Digital Nomad Visa |
| Indonesia | $600 | 8 weeks | Difficult | Worldwide | 5-35% (DN visa: potentially exempt) | Digital Nomad Visa (B211A/Second Home) |
| Netherlands | $600 | 1 week | Easy | Worldwide | 9.32-49.5% (30% ruling available) | Orientation Visa / Self-Employment |
| Panama | $600 | 3 weeks | Moderate | Territorial | 0% on foreign income | Friendly Nations Visa |
| Thailand | $600 | 4 weeks | Moderate | Territorial | 0% on non-remitted income | Long-Term Resident Visa / DTV |
| Denmark | $700 | 2 weeks | Moderate | Worldwide | 37-57.1% progressive | Not listed |
| Australia | $800 | 1 week | Easy | Worldwide | National income tax 0–45%; Medicare levy separate | Not listed |
| Bahrain | $800 | 2 weeks | Easy | No income tax | 0% personal income tax | Freelance Visa (Flexi Permit) |
| Brazil | $800 | 6 weeks | Difficult | Worldwide | 7.5-27.5% progressive | Digital Nomad Visa |
| Iceland | $800 | 3 weeks | Moderate | Worldwide | 31.49-46.29% progressive | Remote Work Long-Term Visa |
| Israel | $800 | 4 weeks | Moderate | Worldwide | 10-50% progressive | Digital Nomad Visa |
| Malta | $800 | 2 weeks | Moderate | Worldwide | 0-35% (remittance-based for non-doms) | Nomad Residence Permit |
| Singapore | $800 | 1 week | Easy | Territorial | 0-24% progressive (territorial) | EntrePass |
| South Korea | $800 | 4 weeks | Difficult | Worldwide | 6.6%-49.5% combined: national rates of 6%-45% plus local income tax equal to 10% of the national tax | Digital Nomad Visa (Workcation) |
| Spain | $800 | 3 weeks | Easy | Worldwide | 19-47% (Beckham Law: 24%) | Digital Nomad Visa |
| Sweden | $800 | 4 weeks | Moderate | Worldwide | 30-52% (with municipal tax) | Not listed |
| France | $900 | 4 weeks | Moderate | Worldwide | 0-45% (micro-entrepreneur: 22%) | Not listed |
| Austria | $1,000 | 4 weeks | Moderate | Worldwide | 20-55% progressive | Not listed |
| Belgium | $1,000 | 3 weeks | Moderate | Worldwide | 25-50% progressive | Not listed |
| Italy | $1,000 | 4 weeks | Moderate | Worldwide | 23-43% (flat tax: 7% for new residents) | Digital Nomad Visa |
| Norway | $1,000 | 2 weeks | Moderate | Worldwide | 22% flat + social contributions | Not listed |
| Oman | $1,000 | 4 weeks | Moderate | No income tax | 0% personal income tax | Not listed |
| Germany | $1,200 | 6 weeks | Moderate | Worldwide | 14-45% progressive | Freelance Visa (Freiberufler) |
| Japan | $1,500 | 4 weeks | Difficult | Worldwide | National income tax 5–45%; local tax and reconstruction surtax separate | Digital Nomad Visa |
| Luxembourg | $1,500 | 4 weeks | Moderate | Worldwide | 0-42% progressive | Not listed |
| Qatar | $1,500 | 3 weeks | Easy | No income tax | 0% personal income tax | Freelance Visa |
| Saudi Arabia | $1,500 | 6 weeks | Moderate | No income tax | 0% personal income tax | Freelance License |
| China | $2,000 | 12 weeks | Difficult | Worldwide | 3-45% progressive | Not listed |
| Switzerland | $2,000 | 3 weeks | Moderate | Worldwide | 0-40% (varies by canton) | Not listed |
| UAE | $2,000 | 1 week | Easy | No income tax | 0% personal income tax | Freelance Permit / Virtual Work Visa |
| Kuwait | Not listed | Not listed | Difficult | No income tax | 0% personal income tax | Not listed |
| Myanmar | Not listed | Not listed | Difficult | Worldwide | 0-25% progressive | Not listed |
| Papua New Guinea | Not listed | Not listed | Difficult | Worldwide | 22-42% progressive | Not listed |
Sorted by annual company cost ascending. Cost and time are registry comparison fields, not provider quotes or promised timelines. Visa availability is a dataset flag, not an eligibility assessment.
Which countries pay you to start a company?
Qatar Development Bank lists START funding up to USD 1,100,000 for technology startups launching in Qatar. It calls the support funding, without stating whether it is a grant, equity or a loan; every amount below links to its issuer and retains the issuer's currency.
| Programme | Amount | Instrument | Eligibility and qualification |
|---|---|---|---|
| Startup Qatar Investment ProgramQA · Qatar Development Bank | START USD 1,100,000 · GROW USD 5,500,000 | Not stated by issuer | For high-growth technology startups launching in Qatar or established startups expanding there. Funding is released against agreed milestones. |
| EXIST Research TransferDE · Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWE) | EUR 250,000 | grant | For demanding, high-risk deep-tech projects moving from proof of concept toward a market-ready prototype and startup. The listed amount is the Phase 1 material-expense ceiling, not a total project cap. |
| HTGF Opportunity FundDE · High-Tech Gründerfonds | Selected portfolio company EUR 30,000,000 · Exceptional case EUR 50,000,000 | Not stated by issuer | Growth financing for selected companies already in the HTGF portfolio, alongside private investors. It is not a general launch grant for a new applicant. |
| New to R&D GrantNZ · MBIE Innovation Services | NZD 400,000 | grant | For eligible New Zealand businesses new to in-house R&D. The grant co-funds 40% of eligible costs, with the business funding the remaining 60%; applications are open. |
| Hub71 Access ProgrammeAE · Hub71 Abu Dhabi | Initial cash for equity AED 250,000 · Conditional additional cash for equity AED 250,000 | equity | For pre-seed to Series A startups establishing themselves in Abu Dhabi. At least one founder is expected to relocate; the listed cash amount is the initial tranche, with a further conditional cash top-up stated separately. |
A programme ceiling is not a guaranteed award. Startup SG Founder, Dubai Future District Fund and SVC are omitted from the amount table because their issuer pages do not state a current founder-level maximum. The New Zealand grant is now administered by MBIE Innovation Services during Callaghan Innovation's disestablishment.
Frequently asked questions
What is the fastest listed company formation time?
The fastest listed formation time is 1 week, shared by 17 jurisdictions in the dataset. Actual timelines can vary with entity type and documentation.
How many jurisdictions have no personal income tax?
6 jurisdictions are classified as no-income-tax in the registry: Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and UAE. This classification does not rule out corporate, consumption, social, or other taxes.
Which countries use territorial taxation?
13 countries are classified as territorial in the dataset: Cambodia, Chile, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Georgia, Guatemala, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Mauritius, Panama, Singapore, Thailand, and Uruguay. Treatment depends on residence, source, remittance, and local rules.
How many countries list a freelance or digital-nomad visa?
38 of 95 countries have freelance-visa availability marked true in the registry. Availability is not an eligibility determination; verify current rules with the relevant government portal.
Methodology & sources
This page is a server-rendered projection of the existing WhereNext freelance & business dataset. It does not add, normalize, or adjust country figures. Annual company cost usescompanyFormation.annualCostUSDand formation time usescompanyFormation.formationTimeWeeks.
Dataset-level sources: Global Nomad Guide (2025), Wise Business, OECD Tax Database, Nomad List, various government immigration portals, Startups Without Borders, World Bank Doing Business indicators (legacy + B-READY 2024). The registry has no per-row source fields, so this page does not invent or imply per-country citations. The easiest-banking picks are ranked by the dataset's curated freelance-friendliness score, 1-10.
This is simplified information for comparison purposes only. Tax obligations, visa requirements, and company formation rules change frequently. Consult a qualified advisor before making decisions.
For filters and side-by-side comparisons, use the interactive freelance guide. For broader editorial context, read best countries to start a business abroad.
Cite and reuse
WhereNext. "Business Incorporation & Freelance Conditions 2026." getwherenext.com/data/business-incorporation-2026.
Licensed under CC BY 4.0. Free to reuse with attribution.
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