New Zealand

Hopeful business owners in New Zealand need only apply online with the New Zealand Companies Office. The application process takes one day, costs $127 and yields a certificate of incorporation via email minutes after you finish. New Zealand has kept up a high percentage of new companies founded annually, with 12.1 percent in 2007 and in recent years, 10 percent.

Australia

Entrepreneurs in Australia can be certified to open a business in just two days for around $500. Australia was ranked the fifth best place for business opportunities out of the 27 nations surveyed by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development.

Canada

Starting a business in Canada is as easy as filing for incorporation via the Online Electronic Filing Center. The complete process takes around five days and costs $195. Business owners in Canada are also only taxed at around 28 percent of profit — far less than U.S. or French business owners.

United States

The U.S. is known for praising entrepreneurs and innovators in the media, which has proven to be a great incentive (free advertising!) Fees associated with incorporation are $675 and there are very few steps involved. However, the U.S. experiences about a 10.43 percent failure of new businesses yearly.

Ireland

Getting incorporated in Ireland is about a 13-day process, but only costs between $100 and $165. Entrepreneurs have this added incentive: Ireland rewards successful businesses with special access to financing. Loans and financing from existing stockholders are highly common for new businesses, with 63.4 percent of fast-growing start-ups receiving loans.

Chile

Chileans experience one of the most flexible systems for founding a business. The process of getting incorporated can take less than a week, and the Chilean government even began a program called Start-Up Chile to promote innovation and entrepreneurship by giving hopeful business owners $40,000 of equity-free seed capital, plus a yearlong visa.

France

The week-long process of getting incorporated in France costs around $345. The French government recently instated auto-entrepreneurship, a plan meant to spur start-ups by lowering the taxes, paperwork and social charges associated with new businesses. The program prompted a 55.5 percent increase in the number of new businesses within the first year.

South Korea

Starting a business in South Korea requires five procedures, but the total of these costs is just $36. Although many Koreans do not perceive their country to be a good place to begin a business, 24.8 percent of Koreans work for start-ups.

United Kingdom

Starting a business in the U.K. takes about two weeks and costs $257. Bank loan success rates are only around 64.6 percent, but the government recently created a new type of visa, made specifically for entrepreneurs. Foreign investors and entrepreneurs can now settle in the U.K. within two years, compared to the original five required years.

Portugal

Starting a business in Portugal takes just a few days and five procedures. The Gross Domestic Product from start ups averages around $230.6 billion. In addition, a high percentage of Portuguese workers are employed by start-ups.