Countries Ranked by Time to start a business (days) (2019)
Time to start a business (days): each country's latest value (2014–2019), ranked from highest to lowest. Source: The World Bank (CC BY 4.0).
Summary
Venezuela, RB ranks #1 with 8,970 days. Lao PDR is second with 6,747 days, 32.9% behind. The top five are Venezuela, RB, Lao PDR, Cambodia, Haiti and Eritrea. The median across all 190 is 468 days; Timor-Leste is last at 9 days. Venezuela, RB's figure has fallen 43% since 2003 (15,620 days to 8,970 days in 2019).
- #1
- Venezuela, RB · 8,970 days
- Median
- 468 days
- Coverage
- 190 countries
- Data year
- 2019
- Last updated
- 2026-11-14
Full ranking
| Rank | Country | Time to start a business (days) (days) | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Venezuela, RB | 8,970 | 2019 |
| 2 | Lao PDR | 6,747 | 2019 |
| 3 | Cambodia | 3,861 | 2019 |
| 4 | Haiti | 3,783 | 2019 |
| 5 | Eritrea | 3,276 | 2019 |
| 6 | Bosnia and Herzegovina | 3,120 | 2019 |
| 7 | Iran, Islamic Rep. | 2,828 | 2019 |
| 8 | Somalia, Fed. Rep. | 2,730 | 2019 |
| 9 | Suriname | 2,574 | 2019 |
| 10 | Chad | 2,262 | 2019 |
| 11 | Namibia | 2,106 | 2019 |
| 12 | Congo, Rep. | 1,931 | 2019 |
| 13 | Ecuador | 1,892 | 2019 |
| 14 | Belize | 1,873 | 2019 |
| 15 | Botswana | 1,872 | 2019 |
| 16 | Liechtenstein | 1,794 | 2019 |
| 17 | Honduras | 1,638 | 2019 |
| 18 | Papua New Guinea | 1,599 | 2019 |
| 19 | Yemen, Rep. | 1,580 | 2019 |
| 20 | Fiji | 1,560 | 2019 |
| 21 | South Africa | 1,560 | 2019 |
| 22 | Bolivia | 1,541 | 2019 |
| 23 | Malawi | 1,443 | 2019 |
| 24 | Poland | 1,443 | 2019 |
| 25 | Angola | 1,404 | 2019 |
| 26 | Libya | 1,365 | 2019 |
| 27 | Paraguay | 1,365 | 2019 |
| 28 | Sudan | 1,346 | 2019 |
| 29 | Equatorial Guinea | 1,287 | 2019 |
| 30 | Philippines | 1,287 | 2019 |
| 31 | Ethiopia | 1,248 | 2019 |
| 32 | Seychelles | 1,248 | 2019 |
| 33 | Kiribati | 1,207 | 2019 |
| 34 | Tanzania | 1,151 | 2019 |
| 35 | Palau | 1,092 | 2019 |
| 36 | Zimbabwe | 1,053 | 2019 |
| 37 | Iraq | 1,034 | 2019 |
| 38 | Peru | 1,014 | 2019 |
| 39 | Czechia | 955.5 | 2019 |
| 40 | Uganda | 936 | 2019 |
| 41 | Bulgaria | 897 | 2019 |
| 42 | Costa Rica | 897 | 2019 |
| 43 | Kenya | 897 | 2019 |
| 44 | Nepal | 877.5 | 2019 |
| 45 | Central African Republic | 858 | 2019 |
| 46 | Slovak Republic | 838.5 | 2019 |
| 47 | Eswatini | 838.5 | 2019 |
| 48 | Austria | 819 | 2019 |
| 49 | Malta | 799.4 | 2019 |
| 50 | Romania | 780 | 2019 |
| 51 | Bangladesh | 760.5 | 2019 |
| 52 | Croatia | 760.5 | 2019 |
| 53 | Kuwait | 756.6 | 2019 |
| 54 | Antigua and Barbuda | 741 | 2019 |
| 55 | St. Kitts and Nevis | 721.5 | 2019 |
| 56 | Algeria | 702 | 2019 |
| 57 | Guyana | 702 | 2019 |
| 58 | Liberia | 702 | 2019 |
| 59 | Vanuatu | 702 | 2019 |
| 60 | India | 682.5 | 2019 |
| 61 | Malaysia | 682.5 | 2019 |
| 62 | Marshall Islands | 663 | 2019 |
| 63 | Mozambique | 663 | 2019 |
| 64 | Brazil | 647.4 | 2019 |
| 65 | Dominican Republic | 643.5 | 2019 |
| 66 | Luxembourg | 643.5 | 2019 |
| 67 | Pakistan | 643.5 | 2019 |
| 68 | El Salvador | 643.5 | 2019 |
| 69 | Barbados | 624 | 2019 |
| 70 | Comoros | 624 | 2019 |
| 71 | Micronesia, Fed. Sts. | 624 | 2019 |
| 72 | Viet Nam | 624 | 2019 |
| 73 | Tonga | 622.2 | 2019 |
| 74 | Syrian Arab Republic | 604.5 | 2019 |
| 75 | Guinea | 585 | 2019 |
| 76 | Guatemala | 585 | 2019 |
| 77 | Lebanon | 585 | 2019 |
| 78 | Lesotho | 585 | 2019 |
| 79 | North Macedonia | 585 | 2019 |
| 80 | Djibouti | 546 | 2019 |
| 81 | Nicaragua | 546 | 2019 |
| 82 | Cameroon | 526.5 | 2019 |
| 83 | Burkina Faso | 507 | 2019 |
| 84 | Finland | 507 | 2019 |
| 85 | Ghana | 507 | 2019 |
| 86 | South Sudan | 507 | 2019 |
| 87 | Indonesia | 491.4 | 2019 |
| 88 | Egypt, Arab Rep. | 487.5 | 2019 |
| 89 | Spain | 487.5 | 2019 |
| 90 | Jordan | 487.5 | 2019 |
| 91 | Bhutan | 468 | 2019 |
| 92 | Dominica | 468 | 2019 |
| 93 | Grenada | 468 | 2019 |
| 94 | Maldives | 468 | 2019 |
| 95 | Montenegro | 468 | 2019 |
| 96 | Mongolia | 468 | 2019 |
| 97 | Argentina | 448.5 | 2019 |
| 98 | Bahamas, The | 448.5 | 2019 |
| 99 | Iceland | 448.5 | 2019 |
| 100 | San Marino | 448.5 | 2019 |
Showing the top 100 of 190. Premium downloads the full list as CSV or JSON.
About the top 10
#1 Venezuela, RB
Venezuela, RB ranks #1 on this list with 8,970 days.
- Capital
- Caracas
- Continent
- South America
- Income group
- Lower middle income
- Population
- 28.52 million people (2025)
- GDP
- US$99.66 billion (2025)
- GDP per person
- US$3,495 (2025)
- Life expectancy
- 72.7 years (2024)
- Urban population
- 89.3% of population (2025)
Largest cities: Caracas, Maracaibo, Valencia.
Also ranks #3 in protected terrestrial area share · #11 in refugee population by origin · #15 in forest area.
#2 Lao PDR
Lao PDR ranks #2 on this list with 6,747 days.
- Capital
- Vientiane
- Continent
- Asia
- Income group
- Lower middle income
- Population
- 7.87 million people (2025)
- GDP
- US$18.3 billion (2025)
- GDP per person
- US$2,325 (2025)
- Life expectancy
- 69.2 years (2024)
- Urban population
- 40.3% of population (2025)
Also ranks #4 in official exchange rate · #7 in livestock production index · #9 in prevalence of wasting (under-5).
#3 Cambodia
Cambodia ranks #3 on this list with 3,861 days.
- Capital
- Phnom Penh
- Continent
- Asia
- Income group
- Lower middle income
- Population
- 17.85 million people (2025)
- GDP
- US$51.27 billion (2025)
- GDP per person
- US$2,872 (2025)
- Life expectancy
- 70.8 years (2024)
- Urban population
- 41.1% of population (2025)
Largest cities: Phnom Penh.
Also ranks #5 in manufacturing value added share of gdp · #6 in labour force participation rate · #7 in female labour force participation.
#4 Haiti
Haiti ranks #4 on this list with 3,783 days.
- Capital
- Port-au-Prince
- Continent
- North America
- Income group
- Lower middle income
- Population
- 11.91 million people (2025)
- GDP
- US$32.08 billion (2025)
- GDP per person
- US$2,694 (2025)
- Life expectancy
- 65.1 years (2024)
- Urban population
- 55.6% of population (2025)
Also ranks #2 in prevalence of undernourishment · #7 in homicide rate · #8 in inflation rate.
#5 Eritrea
Eritrea ranks #5 on this list with 3,276 days.
- Capital
- Asmara
- Continent
- Africa
- Income group
- Low income
- Population
- 3.61 million people (2025)
- Life expectancy
- 68.9 years (2024)
- Urban population
- 34.5% of population (2025)
- International tourist arrivals
- 142,000 arrivals (2016)
- CO2 emissions per person
- 0.22 t CO2e per person (2024)
Also ranks #9 in refugee population by origin · #12 in female labour force participation · #13 in labour force participation rate.
#6 Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina ranks #6 on this list with 3,120 days.
- Capital
- Sarajevo
- Continent
- Europe
- Income group
- Upper middle income
- Population
- 3.14 million people (2025)
- GDP
- US$32.6 billion (2025)
- GDP per person
- US$10,382 (2025)
- Life expectancy
- 78 years (2024)
- Urban population
- 52.7% of population (2025)
Also ranks #7 in death rate · #11 in smoking prevalence · #14 in electricity access rate.
#7 Iran, Islamic Rep.
Iran, Islamic Rep. ranks #7 on this list with 2,828 days.
- Capital
- Tehran
- Continent
- Asia
- Income group
- Upper middle income
- Population
- 92.42 million people (2025)
- GDP
- US$362.68 billion (2025)
- GDP per person
- US$3,924 (2025)
- Life expectancy
- 77.9 years (2024)
- Urban population
- 77.4% of population (2025)
Largest cities: Tehran, Isfahan, Ahvaz.
Also ranks #1 in refugee population by asylum · #2 in official exchange rate · #4 in gross capital formation rate.
#8 Somalia, Fed. Rep.
Somalia, Fed. Rep. ranks #8 on this list with 2,730 days.
- Capital
- Mogadishu
- Continent
- Africa
- Income group
- Low income
- Population
- 19.66 million people (2025)
- GDP
- US$13 billion (2025)
- GDP per person
- US$661.2 (2025)
- Life expectancy
- 59 years (2024)
- Urban population
- 55.1% of population (2025)
Largest cities: North East State of Somalia, Mogadishu.
Also ranks #1 in prevalence of undernourishment · #2 in population ages 0-14 share · #2 in age dependency ratio (young).
#9 Suriname
Suriname ranks #9 on this list with 2,574 days.
- Capital
- Paramaribo
- Continent
- South America
- Income group
- Upper middle income
- Population
- 639,850 people (2025)
- GDP
- US$4.52 billion (2025)
- GDP per person
- US$7,070 (2025)
- Life expectancy
- 73.8 years (2024)
- Urban population
- 65.8% of population (2025)
Also ranks #2 in forest area share · #3 in irrigated land share · #3 in water resources per capita.
#10 Chad
Chad ranks #10 on this list with 2,262 days.
- Capital
- N'Djamena
- Continent
- Africa
- Income group
- Low income
- Population
- 21 million people (2025)
- GDP
- US$21.47 billion (2025)
- GDP per person
- US$1,022 (2025)
- Life expectancy
- 55.2 years (2024)
- Urban population
- 27.6% of population (2025)
Largest cities: N'Djamena.
Also ranks #1 in fertility rate · #2 in birth rate · #2 in maternal mortality ratio.
Profile facts: World Bank (CC BY 4.0) and Wikidata (CC0); weather links go to Purr Weather, another ChowChow Labs site.
Source and method
Time to start a business (days): each country's latest value (2014–2019), ranked from highest to lowest.
Source: The World Bank, indicator IC.REG.DURS. Licence: CC BY 4.0. Retrieved: 2026-11-14.
The World Bank: Time required to start a business (days): World Bank, Doing Business project (http://www.doingbusiness.org/). NOTE: Doing Business has been discontinued as of 9/16/2021. For more information: https://bit.ly/3CLCbme (via World Development Indicators)
Original data provider, as recorded by the World Bank: World Bank, Doing Business project (http://www.doingbusiness.org/). NOTE: Doing Business has been discontinued as of 9/16/2021. For more information: https://bit.ly/3CLCbme.
Values are shown as published. Provider terms: The World Bank. All licences: Sources & licences.