Ireland is one of the top places in the world to do business. Our highly educated, young, English-speaking workforce, EU membership and favourable corporation tax rate (12.5%) has attracted the attention of many of the world’s top companies across a range of industries. We’re happy to be home to more than half the world’s top financial services firms, nine of the top 10 information and communications technology (ICT) companies, eight of the top 10 pharmaceutical companies and fifteen of the top 20 medical device companies.

That’s not all. The Irish government has pledged to make this the best little country in the world to do business. We have a transparent and stable tax system, a favourable holding company regime, strong support for research and development (R&D), a highly developed telecoms and transport infrastructure and an extensive network of double taxation agreements (DTAs).

You don’t have to believe us; just look at what some of the most influential global business groups and publications have to say:

The World Bank Doing Business 2013 report ranks Ireland 15th in the world (2013) as a place for doing business using a series of benchmarks to compare key performance indicators across Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) economies. – The IMD Work Competitiveness Yearbook 2012 lists Ireland as number one for:

1. Skilled labour
2. A flexible, adaptable workforce
3. Incentives for investment
4. Globalisation attitude

– The IMD Global Competitiveness Yearbook 2011 says Ireland ranks fourth for labour productivity. – Forbes ranks Ireland as the best place in Europe to do business in 2011. – The IBM Global Location Trends annual report 2011 lists Ireland as the top destination globally by quality and value of investment. – The World Economic Forum says Ireland has one of the best primary education systems in the world, ranking it 10th out of 142 countries in 2011.

A good place to live

There are countless reasons for choosing to live and work in Ireland. With a beautiful coastline, a warm welcome and an ability to attract some of the world’s most respected employers, it is easy to see why so many people want to come and live here. Ireland is a small country with a big reputation, particularly when it comes to quality of life. The country was rated as one of the best places to be born in a recent study undertaken by the Economist Intelligence Unit. Ireland is also ranked among the leading countries for quality of life, according to the OECD’s Better Life Index, which reported on the country’s strong sense of community and work-life balance.

As if that wasn’t enough, Ireland’s capital city Dublin was placed higher than Paris, San Francisco, London and Helsinki in the Mercer Quality of Living Survey 2012. The survey compared a wide range of factors including personal, transportation, health and education.

Do you have any questions about Doing Business in Ireland? 

Feel free to contact Tony on +353 (0) 1 677 9000 or by email for a complimentary confidential consultation.

Tony Carey is a Managing partner and founder of Cooney Carey. He has over 30 years’ experience in corporate finance and business advisory services.  Tony’s clients particularly value his straight-talking, can-do attitude.  At times of crisis they know they can rely on him to stick with them and get the job done. Tony's specialist areas include: Corporate Recovery and Restructuring, Business development and Banking and funding.

This is the first article in our series on "Doing Business In Ireland". Watch this space for more!

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