A Strategic place
Located in the heart of the Balkans, Kosovo offers an easy access in European Union (EU), through air, road, railway transport and three see ports, such as:
- Thessaloniki, Greece: 329.0 km
- Durres, Albania: 262 km
- Trivet, Montenegro: 299 km
Regional Center Traveling destination from Pristina in kilometers (km):
|
City
|
Kilometers
|
|
Skopje
|
86
|
|
Sofia
|
279
|
|
Thessaloniki
|
329
|
|
Tirana
|
256
|
|
Belgrade
|
355
|
|
Durres
|
262
|
|
Sarajevo
|
390
|
|
Bari- Italy
|
531
|
|
Zagreb
|
741
|
|
Budapest
|
747
|
Business Environment in Kosovo
The business environment in Kosovo is becoming one of the most competitive in the region. Advantages such as an excellent tax system, abundant natural resources, quick and easy business registration, and transparent laws on foreign investment, make Kosovo an attractive and friendly environment for foreign investors. For companies looking to invest in a low cost location with easy access to the EU, Central European and Balkan markets, Kosovo represents a highly attractive option.
For the first time in Kosovo, an investor can register a business in 2 days, free of charge with zero chartered capital (for LLCs).
The World Bank Report on Doing Business 2020, published on October 24, 2019, confirms Kosovo's gradual and sustainable progress towards creating a favourable business climate and attracting investment in our country.
Though, in 2020 report, Kosovo has fallen in ranking position to 57th (from 44th that was in 2019), the difference in ranking between these two years is not fully comparable due to methodological and data differences, which was done retroactively by the World Bank for several years.
Progress made by Kosovo is evident, from data analysis taken from the report showing that Kosovo has achieved a plus (+) 2.2% in facilitating doing business and has made progress on 7 out of 10 indicators in total.
Liberal Trade Regime
Stabilization and Association Agreement (SAA) with European Union (EU) –is signed in October 2015 and is in power from 1st April 2016. (For more details on SAA you can find in: www//mti.rks-gov.net)
- Free Trade Agreement with EU (28 countries).
- A market above 500 million – third largest in the world with population, after China and India
CEFTA (2006)
- The Central European Free Trade Agreement (CEFTA) that includes 7 non-EU member states: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, North Macedonia, Moldova, Montenegro and Serbia.
- Population: 21 million
Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) Program with US, Japan and Norway
Free Trade Agreement with Turkey (awaiting ratification from Kosovo)
Economic Stability
The real development of the country, measured by the gross domestic product (GDP), has been favorable the past years, showing a positive and continuously increasing trends, despite the effects of the international crisis.
The private sector consumption and investments are the most important factors behind economic growth. These investments are mainly being driven by the quickly expanding financial sector. Moreover. Kosovo’s Government runs a stable and forward-looking policy. The tax revenue base has been widened, thus enabling Government expenditures to increase and, in turn, support economic growth.
Kosovo runs a very stable monetary policy. Kosovo is one of the few countries outside the EU-zone that has introduced the Euro as its official currency. By eliminating the exchange rate risk, transaction costs have been reduced, facilitating the promotion of trade and investment. Due to the absence of monetary instruments resulting from the use of the Euro, Kosovo dose not run any monetary policy risk either. Prixes are expected to remain stable in the future.
Low Operating Costs
The main advantages of the Kosovo labor force is its low operating cost. With the average monthly salary between 300 and 400 €.
The new fiscal package (from September 2015) is m aiming to stimulate formal economy
- Standard VAT rate 8% (for services and food basket) and 18 % for other products
- Dividend tax 0%
Import liberalization:
- Production lines and equipment’s for productions
- Row material (not produced in Kosovo)
- Information Technology (IT) equipment
E-Procurement System
Tax Corporative Income: 10%
Personal Income Tax: 0 - 10 % (progressive)
Required Pension contribution: 5%
Specific taxation cod for impairment
According to article 15 of the Law on Tax Corporative Income (no. 03/L-165), the allowed as a depreciation deduction for the tax period shall be defined by applying the following percentages to the capital accounts through discount balancing method:
Category 1: Buildings; five percent (5%)
Category 2: Vehicles and office equipment; twenty percent (20%)
Category 3: Heavy transportation machinery and vehicles; fifteen percent (15%)