New Zealand is second amongst OECD countries for the competitiveness of its taxes overall according to the Tax Foundation’s 2016 International Tax Competitiveness Index (ITCI). Transparency International’s 2017 Corruption Perception Index ranked New Zealand the least corrupt country in the world.
New Zealand’s unmatched quality of life and thriving but stable business environment makes it an ideal destination for savvy investors and entrepreneurs. The New Zealand Government actively promotes growth and innovation with a range of business and migrant-friendly policies.
There are investment opportunities in many fields, in both traditional business sectors and in new, often highly innovative areas. Just some of the areas where New Zealand is doing exceptionally well include information and communications technology, tourism, film and special effects production, biotechnology, agricultural research, and wood-based technology.
New Zealand benefits greatly from its ties in the Asia-Pacific Region – The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), of which it is a part, was the equivalent of the world’s sixth largest economy in 2016. By 2025, about two-thirds of the world’s middle class will be in Asia. As a result, Asia-Pacific is becoming much more integrated, whether from tourism, from education or from trade.
New Zealand is rightly positioned to benefit greatly from such growth, in particular as barriers to trade are decreased. Asia already has the Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific (FTAAP) and Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) deals on the table, which put in place building blocks for Asia to trade amongst itself, but which are also expected to increase intra-Asia trade.
Mark Copeland Lawyers, in Rotorua is the New Zealand commercial and real estate member Firm of IR Global, a global network of over 300 professional services firms in over 150 countries who are able to provide expert local advice on international business transactions.
Mark was recently invited to contribute his perspective on doing business in New Zealand, as a part of an IR Global feature “Gateway to Asia Pacific: A Guide to doing business in Asia. Read what Mark and 8 other member contributors had to say here: “Gateway to Asia Pacific: A Guide to doing bu