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  • Essay / Business Opportunities in the Czech Republic

    SummaryThe Czech Republic began to grow rapidly after the separation of the Czech and Slovak Federal Republic into the Czech Republic and the Slovak Republic and its adoption into the European Union. Today, it ranks 33rd in the World Bank Group's Ease of Doing Business rankings among 189 economies. Regarding three factors: initial capital, legal framework and future opportunities, the Czech Republic is a suitable place for beginning entrepreneurs. Certainly, the Czech economy has some disadvantages, for example high taxes and processing of building permits, which the Czech government strives to prevent and minimize. There are also many benefits that the Czech government wants to maintain and prevent. The aim of this article is to find out the strengths and weaknesses of business development in the Czech Republic. This may be of interest to businessmen who wish to set up and operate their business in Central Europe. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why violent video games should not be banned”?Get the original essayThesis: Entrepreneurs can start and operate their business in the Czech Republic due to its low initial capital, stable legal framework and of its future opportunities. Starting a Business in the Czech RepublicThe Czech Republic is a safe and calm country in Central Europe, and it offers many capabilities for businessmen to start their business. The ideal location of the country gives the possibility of cooperation with countries such as Germany, Austria, Slovakia and Poland. Prague is the capital of the Czech Republic and the center of tourism. Millions of tourists from different countries visit Prague every year, due to its value for money. The national currency is the Czech crown, which also offers opportunities because this exchange rate does not experience sharp jumps or drops. The Czech Republic ranks 33rd in the section presenting the Ease of Doing Business 2015 ranking among 189 economies according to the World Bank Group. According to exclusive data from the international analytical agency Bisnode published in the Prague Telegraph newspaper (Kashapov, 2015), 16,767 Czech companies are owned by Russian citizens. The economic situation in the Czech Republic is progressive and positive, as annual GDP growth is 2 percent for 2014, according to the World Bank. The Czech government offers certain advantages to small and medium-sized businesses, as they are the engine of entrepreneurship, growth, innovation and competitiveness. The minimum share capital of a limited liability company is one Czech crown. Entrepreneurs can start and operate their business in the Czech Republic due to its low initial capital, stable legal framework and future opportunities. There are some negative aspects of developing a business in the Czech Republic. First of all, you have to learn the Czech language or pay translators, because many documents are printed in Czech. There is a problem communicating with people from the foreign police or the Interior Ministry because some of them do not speak English. Additionally, there is a problem in obtaining a business visa because it takes a long time to examine a visa at the embassy. After overcoming these difficulties at the beginning of starting a business in the Czech Republic, there are two important factors that can interfere with the business, such as higher taxes and dealing with building permits. According to the World Bank Group, the Czech Republicranks 123rd in the Czech Republic. the section of paying taxes between 189 countries. Value added tax (VAT) is 21 percent in the Czech Republic. This is a high tax, although the situation is even worse in some European Union countries, such as VAT in Hungary which is 28 percent. At the end of the reporting year (before April 1 following the reporting year), a company pays income tax of 19 percent. Furthermore, the income tax was 45 percent in 1993, but every three years it increased.decreased. In the Czech Republic, an individual entrepreneur pays 15 percent income tax. If the entrepreneur's annual turnover is less than CZK 400,000, income tax is not paid. In addition, the entrepreneur is required to pay social security contributions. Real estate transfer taxes amount to four percent and are paid by the seller. According to Doing Business, the Czech Republic ranks 126th in the area of ​​building permits. It is necessary to undergo procedure 21 for the construction of an object in the Czech Republic. A procedure is an interaction of company employees and managers with external parties. Approximately 247 days are required for the issuance of documents to start construction of the object. In the German example, there are only nine procedures and around 98 days. However, the Czech government is working to develop its economy, which is why CR ranked first in cross-border trade. The Czech Republic has the lowest export and import cost and time than 189 other countries, according to Doing Business. Nowadays, nuclear reactors, boilers, machinery and mechanical devices export to Germany, while Germans supply motor vehicle parts and accessories. The main trading partner is Germany, which accounts for more than 30% of total exports and imports. Economy of the Czech Republic: Business Climate Overview (2004) considers that the Czech Republic has two most attractive characteristics: “proximity and well-developed transport links to EU markets, especially Germany; and an abundance of skilled technical workers. More than ten years have passed and the Czech Republic still maintains its position and eliminates the flaws in its economy. The country's per capita foreign trade volume is higher than that of Japan, the United Kingdom, France and Italy. One of the reasons why the Czech Republic is a suitable place to start a business is that it does not require large upfront investments. According to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD, 2015), there are “around 1.1 million active companies in the Czech Republic, most of them small and medium-sized enterprises with fewer than 250 employees (99.8%). of all companies in the world). of 2013), employing almost 1.8 million people (60.0% of the Czech Republic's workforce employed in companies regardless of their size). Financial small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and entrepreneurs lead the data on “business distribution in the Czech Republic 2015” which shows that there are 1,115,053 companies in total. Micro-enterprises, which have one to nine employees, occupy 92.5 percent. Small businesses (10 to 49 employees) and medium-sized businesses (50 to 249 employees) represent only 7.3 percent. Large companies with more than 250 employees represent only 0.2% of all companies. According to OECD (2015), there is a reduction in venture capital that “peaked in 2008, then declined dramatically until2013 inclusive, by a factor of more than ten.” This is a negative fact because reduced investment means there is less money to invest in growing or failing businesses. The Czech government minimizes the initial capital needed to start a business. Today in the Czech Republic, if an entrepreneur wants to register as an individual entrepreneur, he only needs one Czech crown as capital. The most common business activity in Prague is that of a centrally located newsagent, which can generate income of $500 to $800 per month, with an initial capital of $5,000. Cafes and restaurants are in great demand in the city center because there are many tourists from different countries. Beauty salons and gyms also generate decent income, but this requires higher costs. The second reason is the regulatory structure of the Czech government that controls entrepreneurship within the state. The Czech Republic stands out from other countries for the trust and stability of its system. Czechoslovakia was one of the most developed economies before the Second World War. According to The Economist (1994), in 1937, "per capita income there was about the same as in France, and much higher than in Italy or Austria." The Czechoslovak government made the right decisions to improve the country's economy. According to DeFillippi's (1995) economic analysis, the biggest implication of small business development was the 'Small Privatization Act' of 1990, which authorized the auctioning of 100,000 small utility companies to Czechoslovak citizens. Foreigners were not allowed to participate; there is therefore a significant growth in private property in the country. After the separation of the Czech and Slovak Federal Republic into the Czech Republic and Slovak Republic and accession to the European Union, the Czech Republic began to develop rapidly. Nowadays, the Czech government offers certain advantages to small and medium-sized businesses. According to the Czech Business Web Portal, created by the Czech Trade Agency, there is a program based on support for small and medium-sized businesses. The Enterprise and Innovation operational program is one of the Czech government's support programs for SMEs. The objective of the program, managed by the Ministry of Industry and Trade, is to promote innovation in manufacturing and services, energy consumption and ICT in businesses. There are other government supports in the Czech Republic, according to the OECD (2015). ). The Revit program focuses on supporting regions with lower economic activity and higher unemployment rates. SMEs can benefit from preferential loans and financial contributions. The Inostart program is intended to support small start-up businesses, which face difficulty in raising funds to finance their operations due to higher risk, poor financial history and low collateral. The program provides access to loan guarantees of up to 60 percent of the outstanding loan amount for start-up entrepreneurs' innovations. The program also allows the use of consulting services to improve business strategy and development and the development of a business plan. The Guarantee program uses assets from the termination of old contracts and repaid credits. The guarantee fund “is administered and managed by the Czech-Moravian Guarantee and Development Bank which has been under the full control of the Czech Republic since 2012”. The CMZRB collaborates “on a contractual basis with partner private banks and provides guarantees..