Estonia retained its position as 12th among 190 countries in the latest edition of the World Bank’s Doing Business rankings published on October 31.
“As Minister of Finance, I am pleased to see that the World Bank has deemed Estonia to deserve 14th place in ease of paying taxes – this is definitely recognition for the good work of our Estonian Tax and Customs Board (EMTA),” Minister of Finance Toomas Toniste (IRL) said in a press release.
He noted that even though 12th place on the overall scoreboard was a good result, there was definitely room for development in several areas.
This year’s rankings were topped by New Zealand, Singapore and Denmark. Of Estonia’s neighbors, Finland ranks 13th, Latvia 19th and Lithuania 16th.
Estonia received good scores in the report in the registration of real estate, obtaining of construction permits and enforcement of contracts. The report finds that Estonia could do more to ensure the protection of the rights of minority shareholders, better resolve insolvencies and ensure the availability of electricity supply. (ERR/Business World Magazine)