Plan on moving to a start-up favorable country

[RealDreams]

I currently live in Italy and in the last months I figured out it's perhaps one of the worst countries to start a business due to the bureaucratic system and legal procedures.
I'm at the first year of University but I plan on moving out from my country. In fact, I had to stop a project I started as soon as I found out the tax system in Italy would have brought my income into a negative value.

Unfortunately, my parents want me to finish University so I'm trying to find a country where I can both 1. start a company, and 2. study without going into debt due to tuition fees.

I'd love to move in the US but tuition fees are over the roof as many of you already know, so I had to exclude that from the options. Same thing with the UK.

As I'm half-Russian, I thought of moving to Moscow or St.Petersburg. However, I've read that the start-up environment isn't that better (compared to the Italian one).

I also thought about Amsterdam as the Netherlands seem to be a great place for entrepreneurs. However, expenses would be extra high as I currently have no job and the rent in Amsterdam costs around $600+ for a single room from what I've read.

So it looks like I'm struggling to make a decision and would like to know some opinion from you and from your experiences.
Is Russia really that bad for entrepreneurs? Is there an EU country which is not too costly but still gives some advantage to business owners?

Thanks in advance.

 

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[thijskrijs]

I currently live in Italy and in the last months I figured out it's perhaps one of the worst countries to start a business due to the bureaucratic system and legal procedures.
I'm at the first year of University but I plan on moving out from my country. In fact, I had to stop a project I started as soon as I found out the tax system in Italy would have brought my income into a negative value.

Unfortunately, my parents want me to finish University so I'm trying to find a country where I can both 1. start a company, and 2. study without going into debt due to tuition fees.

I'd love to move in the US but tuition fees are over the roof as many of you already know, so I had to exclude that from the options. Same thing with the UK.

As I'm half-Russian, I thought of moving to Moscow or St.Petersburg. However, I've read that the start-up environment isn't that better (compared to the Italian one).

I also thought about Amsterdam as the Netherlands seem to be a great place for entrepreneurs. However, expenses would be extra high as I currently have no job and the rent in Amsterdam costs around $600+ for a single room from what I've read.

So it looks like I'm struggling to make a decision and would like to know some opinion from you and from your experiences.
Is Russia really that bad for entrepreneurs? Is there an EU country which is not too costly but still gives some advantage to business owners?

Thanks in advance.

Hello, i currently in the Netherlands, if you are thinking of comming here because of the legal system. You can look for other places than Amsterdam, as Amsterdam is nice but it is mainly occupied by tourist. Therefor i would advise a place like Rotterdam, Den Haag (The Hague) or Groningen would be suitable. I studied in Leeuwarden and i was part of an incubator, they help young entrepreneurs to start and i think they have it in all the major cities.

 

[Bobby_italy]

AHAHAHA came in to say JUST DON'T COME TO ITALY, and you were italian.

Leaving satisfied.

 

[Antti]

If I were you, I would look into eastern EU members such as the Baltic states, Poland, Bulgaria etc. I think they are nowadays more small-business friendly than most Central or West European countries. And many of those countries have a large Russian minority and/or the language is related to Russian, so assuming you speak Russian that would be a bonus too. Ukraine or Georgia could be a wild card, too.

 

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[Knugs]

The best place for you to start a business is in.... Italy, and here's why.

You speak italian, you know italians, you understand the culture, you know Italy as a country and you most likely have a network there. All the advice above is completely useless without knowing what kind of business you intend to start and what your personal circumstances are like. But even if we knew, its foolish to assume that you have a better position in any other country. If regulations, beaucratics and taxes are stopping you from doing business then the problem lies in the business itself and not the regulations of the country. Or are you telling me that nobody is sucessfully starting a business in Italy?

A high barrier to entry is sometimes good.

 

[Madame Peccato]

If you can't start a business in your home country, what makes you think you'll be able to start one somewhere else?

I am fully aware that Italy is a terrible place to conduct business in. To put it in perspective, in the index of economic freedom Italy barely reaches the "Moderately Free" score, and we aren't even in the top 50 in it.

Setting up a business here is a nightmare because taxes are going to suffocate you before you even start with your first client.

So, here's how I have been tackling the issue. Start with your businees, but don't make it official. Yes, I am telling you to gasp evade taxes, but only do it for the first 6 to 12 months, to see if it makes monetary sense to make your business official.

Regardless, there is a threshold that makes conducting business without official stuff completely legal as long as you don't earn more than 4.800€ in a calendar year. You are always in time to pay what you owe to the INPS eventually (unless you are dumb and evade thousands of €).

Consider the fact that starting a business in a country that isn't your home one comes with even bigger headaches. You will need to rely on your accountant even more, and you need to find one who speaks English (or another language you have in common). Also things like laws, healthcare, and culture have a huge impact on businesses, and at least in Italy you know how things works.

If you can't sell services or products to people in your home country, switching it won't solve anything.

 

[xmartel]

Try Canada.

Starting a business is very easy and taxes aren't as high as many countries (though still too high in my opinion)
You can register a business provincially or federally. Provincial will give you control of the name and allow you to operate in the province of you're registered. Federal covers the entire country in one registration.

Federal is a little more work but it's aways what I do so I can expand without issues. I can setup a federal company in about 20-30 minutes for about $200. And then I can start operating. There are no other taxes unless you're earning income or paying wages.

University costs are also reasonable from what I've heard. (though I don't know for sure, I never attended and haven't compared)

 

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[Pard]

I currently live in Italy and in the last months I figured out it's perhaps one of the worst countries to start a business due to the bureaucratic system and legal procedures.
I'm at the first year of University but I plan on moving out from my country. In fact, I had to stop a project I started as soon as I found out the tax system in Italy would have brought my income into a negative value.

Unfortunately, my parents want me to finish University so I'm trying to find a country where I can both 1. start a company, and 2. study without going into debt due to tuition fees.

I'd love to move in the US but tuition fees are over the roof as many of you already know, so I had to exclude that from the options. Same thing with the UK.

As I'm half-Russian, I thought of moving to Moscow or St.Petersburg. However, I've read that the start-up environment isn't that better (compared to the Italian one).

I also thought about Amsterdam as the Netherlands seem to be a great place for entrepreneurs. However, expenses would be extra high as I currently have no job and the rent in Amsterdam costs around $600+ for a single room from what I've read.

So it looks like I'm struggling to make a decision and would like to know some opinion from you and from your experiences.
Is Russia really that bad for entrepreneurs? Is there an EU country which is not too costly but still gives some advantage to business owners?

Thanks in advance.

Bear in mind I have no personal experience with what I am writing so take it with a metric ton of salt.
One country that I have looked a bit at is Estonia,they have made it quite easy to start companies there,and the taxes look low.
And if you speak Russian that would probably help,at least with the older generations.

 

[Bobby_italy]

If you can't start a business in your home country, what makes you think you'll be able to start one somewhere else?

I am fully aware that Italy is a terrible place to conduct business in. To put it in perspective, in the index of economic freedom Italy barely reaches the "Moderately Free" score, and we aren't even in the top 50 in it.

Setting up a business here is a nightmare because taxes are going to suffocate you before you even start with your first client.

So, here's how I have been tackling the issue. Start with your businees, but don't make it official. Yes, I am telling you to gasp evade taxes, but only do it for the first 6 to 12 months, to see if it makes monetary sense to make your business official.

Regardless, there is a threshold that makes conducting business without official stuff completely legal as long as you don't earn more than 4.800€ in a calendar year. You are always in time to pay what you owe to the INPS eventually (unless you are dumb and evade thousands of €).

Consider the fact that starting a business in a country that isn't your home one comes with even bigger headaches. You will need to rely on your accountant even more, and you need to find one who speaks English (or another language you have in common). Also things like laws, healthcare, and culture have a huge impact on businesses, and at least in Italy you know how things works.

If you can't sell services or products to people in your home country, switching it won't solve anything.

This is retarded advice that will get you in a lot of trouble... evading became penal in Italy for very little money you could get 2 years in jail, this is the exact reason why I always take what I read on forums with a grain of salt(or in this case with a kg).

also the 5000€ limit isn’t really clear, don’t mistake FREE-LANCER for business, it’s not like you can sell 5000€ of stuff, it’s really strict and you have to document yourself really well altough it makes zero sense, why would you? Just get a job...

So to get back to the point, is it possible to do business in Italy? For sure!
Is it profitable? No... you could make a lot more money in other countries depending on your niche, Italy has a lot of hidden costs and taxes which if calculated come at around 70% of the profit.
But hey there are thousands upon thousands of companies if they could make it work what’s wrong with you?
Sure you’ll struggle MORE than in other countries but to give you more advice we need to know WHAT you want to do, you want to clean offices? Go ahead and do the 5k€ thing risking you break some law or people toy around with you...

Do you want to create a dropshipping business/affialiate marketing? Well than you don’t need to be here to operate.

So let us know what you want to do and we’ll be more than happy to help, ALWAYS DO YOUR OWN RESEARCH!

 

[Madame Peccato]

This is retarded advice that will get you in a lot of trouble... evading became penal in Italy for very little money you could get 2 years in jail, this is the exact reason why I always take what I read on forums with a grain of salt(or in this case with a kg).

My post as with every post on this forum is not to be taken lightly, and you should question everything someone posts with a grain of salt, whether they are MJ, or a new user who just registered. It is up to your own critical judgment to decide whether or not you want to follow my advice.

Anyway you are right, it's not advice I should give to people on a public forum. Sorry.

 

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[Strm]

Baltic states might be a good choice when you speak russian.. Im in Estonia. Let me know if I can help.

 

[TheProcess]

I currently live in Italy and in the last months I figured out it's perhaps one of the worst countries to start a business due to the bureaucratic system and legal procedures.
I'm at the first year of University but I plan on moving out from my country. In fact, I had to stop a project I started as soon as I found out the tax system in Italy would have brought my income into a negative value.

Unfortunately, my parents want me to finish University so I'm trying to find a country where I can both 1. start a company, and 2. study without going into debt due to tuition fees.

I'd love to move in the US but tuition fees are over the roof as many of you already know, so I had to exclude that from the options. Same thing with the UK.

As I'm half-Russian, I thought of moving to Moscow or St.Petersburg. However, I've read that the start-up environment isn't that better (compared to the Italian one).

I also thought about Amsterdam as the Netherlands seem to be a great place for entrepreneurs. However, expenses would be extra high as I currently have no job and the rent in Amsterdam costs around $600+ for a single room from what I've read.

So it looks like I'm struggling to make a decision and would like to know some opinion from you and from your experiences.
Is Russia really that bad for entrepreneurs? Is there an EU country which is not too costly but still gives some advantage to business owners?

Thanks in advance.

I live in Canada I love it. There's a nice entrepreneurial spirit here if you look for it. It should be stated that I'm in the process of started my first business, so I have a lot to learn.

 

[JordanAvery]

I lived in Melbourne for a few years. I also moved there because I wanted to finish a good university and start a career. If you consider Australia, then Melbourne is a good option for what you want. After, I moved to another city, because of work, and I worked with some furniture removalists melbourne that moved all my stuff to where I needed really quickly. I agree that the Netherlands is a great place for entrepreneurs though, but I can't say the same thing about Russia. It's your decision, and it doesn't matter that much which place you'll choose, what matters, are your opportunities and further development there.

 

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[LifeisSuffering]

I currently live in Italy and in the last months I figured out it's perhaps one of the worst countries to start a business due to the bureaucratic system and legal procedures.
I'm at the first year of University but I plan on moving out from my country. In fact, I had to stop a project I started as soon as I found out the tax system in Italy would have brought my income into a negative value.

Unfortunately, my parents want me to finish University so I'm trying to find a country where I can both 1. start a company, and 2. study without going into debt due to tuition fees.

I'd love to move in the US but tuition fees are over the roof as many of you already know, so I had to exclude that from the options. Same thing with the UK.

As I'm half-Russian, I thought of moving to Moscow or St.Petersburg. However, I've read that the start-up environment isn't that better (compared to the Italian one).

I also thought about Amsterdam as the Netherlands seem to be a great place for entrepreneurs. However, expenses would be extra high as I currently have no job and the rent in Amsterdam costs around $600+ for a single room from what I've read.

So it looks like I'm struggling to make a decision and would like to know some opinion from you and from your experiences.
Is Russia really that bad for entrepreneurs? Is there an EU country which is not too costly but still gives some advantage to business owners?

Singapore you can register your business online from your home country
Malaysia also have a great environment fro start-up
Norway and Uk are also good choices to take in consideration