As more and more jurisdictions open to foreign trade, companies can gain access to large pool of resources abroad. They can establish relationships with foreign partners and move their production to foreign locations or simply export their products to new markets. IT and software development businesses also seek to benefit from moving the production to foreign jurisdictions.

Generally, the main benefit for moving the software development abroad is lower costs in comparison to the home-country. For example, the cost of developing exactly the same software is 50% less in India if compared to the US. The savings generally come from lower labour costs, but moving the IT and software production abroad can also broaden company’s access to a wider pool of labour with higher skills and expertise. This might explain why 50% of American Fortune 500 businesses are using offshore IT and software development. Let us look at some of the jurisdictions where opening a software development business might be more beneficial in comparison to others and discuss the reasons why.

India
India has long been one of the preferred outsourcing software development destinations for leading multinational companies around the world. This means that one of the biggest benefits of choosing India for your IT and software development business would be a multinational demand for outsourced software development services. Meanwhile, the company would enjoy relatively lower labour costs, wide pool of skilled labour and business-friendly environment with the government that promotes start-ups and small businesses. Additionally, due to favourable policy and economic initiatives by the Indian government, IT industry is expected to grow in early to mid-teens for the next few years.

United Kingdom
London was recently described as the city that offers the most opportunities to businesses and ranked first for technology readiness. While low labour costs will not be one of the benefits of setting up a software development company in London, there are several other benefits that might compensate for relatively higher wages. Numerous hubs and incubators offer an environment for new start-ups and small businesses with all the necessary functions and support for less than 300 GBP per month. Also the government is committed to support software development and technology sector with such organizations as Tech City UK and Innovate UK with an aim to accelerate the growth of IT businesses. Meanwhile, various tax benefits are available to IT and software development companies in London. Other benefits to consider are skilled workforce and high-speed internet access.

Poland
Eastern Europe is becoming increasingly attractive for IT and software development companies with Poland ranking as the number one Eastern European country. While Poland cannot offer as low labour costs as those in India, it can offer other benefits such as proximity to Western Europe and ability to find common working hours with the rest of the world. Poland also shares a cultural affinity with the Western world as well as other Eastern countries. It is also believed to provide better product quality and business environment in comparison to lower-cost destinations for software development businesses.

More jurisdictions to consider for registering an IT business can be found on each continent – each with their own benefits and peculiarities:

Americas: Brazil, Argentina and Chile;
Asia/Pacific: China;
Europe: Romania, Belarus and Ukraine.
Above countries have large enough populations to have wide labour pool and good education systems to produce skilled software developers. Business risks in these countries are manageable and costs are reasonable in comparison to US, Canada and Western Europe.

It is important to remember, that while a particular jurisdiction can be considered to be the best place for incorporating an IT company for one entrepreneur, it may be unsuitable for another one. Consider the necessities that your business is most interested in. It can be a language, geographical location, regulation of particular activities, skilled workforce or costs.

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Asia has a very rich cultural heritage that has been carefully nurtured through centuries of history. Today Asia is very attractive to international investors due to the fact that it has several large economic areas as well as several special areas with a thriving economy and favorable tax systems.
Below is our top list of jurisdictions for international investing in Asia.

Hong Kong

Modern Hong Kong can offer a free market economy that relies heavily on international trade, the financial sector, the extent of export / import, including a fairly large proportion of re-exports. Hong Kong does not impose tariffs on imported items. Also, there are only four groups of goods subject to excise duty: high alcohol beverages, tobacco, hydrocarbon oil, and methyl-based alcohol. Currently, Hong Kong does not have any import / export quotas for anything. The Hong Kong government continues to peg the local currency (Hong Kong dollar) tightly to the US dollar, in support of an agreement signed in 1983.

The local government is actively developing the Special Administrative Region (SAR) to make it a desirable destination for mainland China Renminbi to achieve their internationalization in the business community. Residents are allowed to open savings accounts in RMB currency; In addition, Hong Kong public and Chinese government bonds were issued in RMB currency; as well as currently in the private and public sectors, RMB agreements are permitted. The Hong Kong government is working really hard right now to increase the additional use of RMB in Hong Kong's financial markets and is looking for an opportunity to increase the RMB ratio significantly.

Macau

Since establishing its local casino industry hotspot in 2001, Macau has attracted tens of billions of dollars in international investment, completely transforming the area into one of the largest global gambling hotspots. The Macau gambling and tourism industries have been heavily influenced by China's decision to relax travel restrictions on Chinese nationals looking for an opportunity to visit Macau. In 2016, Macau gambling taxes estimated over 76% of total household revenue.
Macau's economy suffered quite a bit in 2009. It was a consequence of a global economic crisis, but the rapid economic growth continued somewhere until 2013. In 2015, Macau was home to approximately 31 million tourists, with an urban population of 646,800. About 68% came from mainland China. The services offered, mainly gambling, have boosted Macau's economic performance several times. Recently, however, the anti-corruption campaign carried out by the Chinese government has suffered slightly for the Macau gaming industry.

Singapore

Singapore is currently having a prosperous, well-developed free-market-oriented economy. Singapore government has hardly worked on and achieved an open and nearly 100% corruption-free government and business environment as well as strong economy, and quite high competitive (even by the Western standards) per capita GDP. Employment rates are extremely high, while the Singapore budget mostly relies on exports, specifically of consumer goods and electronics, IT & software, medical technology and devices, pharmaceuticals as well as on lively business, banking and financial industries.

Singapore is a famous destination for many international investors and entrepreneurs, especially in certain industries. According to financial analytics data it will continue to develop and evolve into Pacific Asia’s major business and high-tech hotspot. Singapore is a proud member of the 12-nation Trans-Pacific Partnership free trade agreement. It is also a part of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership agreement. Back in year 2015, Singapore has established, along with the rest of the ASEAN participants, the ASEAN Economic Community.

China

Starting back in the late 70s, China has been working on it’s economy and market, rapidly going from internal government controlled closed market, to more liberal, open government planned system with profoundly internal market-oriented economy, leading to an increase of China’s impact on the global market. By year 2010, China has turned into the largest global exporter. Changes and reforms have started with slowly abandoning collectively planned agriculture, developing to introduce free-market pricing, decentralizing taxation, granting more autonomy for government-owned companies, expansions of the private sector, fast development of stock markets and introduction of a modern banking system as well as China’s access to international trade and investment.

China did undergo a number of reforms lately. During last few decades, Chinese government has renewed its support for government-owned companies in industries, which are strategic for country’s security and development. Such decision was made specifically to boost certain industries and make them more competitive on a global market. Such change of economy and the following benefits have dramatically impacted to a China’s GDP making more than ten times increase since year 1978.

Taiwan

Modern Taiwan has a prosperous free-market economy with overall decreasing government control over international investment and trade industries. Strategic production industries, such as production of electronics, machinery and petrochemicals, have given the major boost and factors necessary for rapid growth of economy. However, such factors as Taiwan’s diplomatic isolation, extremely low birth rate, and quickly aging population are several major long-term challenges that Taiwan’s government needs to face and solve.

Bearing in mind that within the European Union there are no withholding taxes on IP royalty payments between one member state and another, we can suggest a number of countries where royalty income taxes are particularly advantageous.

CYPRUS
The intellectual property royalty tax system in Cyprus changed as a consequence of the recommendations of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)'s Action 5 report, as well as the conclusions of the Ecofin Council, published on 8 December 2015. The legislation was amended to limit the companies that can benefit from exemptions for research and development (R&D), but the tax rate in Cyprus is still one of the most favourable in the EU for foreign companies wishing to license the use of IP to a Cyprus-resident company (intermediary), where that right is then sub-licensed to the end user. Overall, the effective tax on income from IP royalties should be less than 2.5%.

IRELAND
In 2015, Ireland introduced an effective corporation tax rate of 6.25% on income derived from IP, based on an allowance for the research and development costs sustained by the company. By linking the two components in this way, Irish law encourages companies to conduct R&D directly, inside the EU — leading to the creation of IP — whereas it discourages them from buying licences without making a direct commitment to R&D.

BELGIUM
Belgium has established a tax regime that works in favour of those with income deriving from acquired copyrights. This fiscal regime can have many different applications, and can be used to protect artworks as well as providing a useful tax concession for IT developers. Revenues deriving from royalties on IP rights are taxed at 15%. These revenues are not taken into account when social security contributions are calculated. Moreover, for imports these taxes are reduced by 50% due to the application of standard entry costs. The first 15,000 euros earned by a copyright holder in a year is therefore taxed at 7.5%, and the following 15,000 at 11.25%. This tax system applies to those with a total annual income of up to 56,450 euros.

THE NETHERLANDS
Since 2010, IP revenues in the Netherlands have been taxed at just 5%. There is no income threshold, except with respect to patents. Patent holders can in fact have access to this tax system if their share of the expected income is between 30% and 70%, taking into account the total combined revenue from patents and other sources. These rates also apply to foreign companies that own intangible assets or companies that have obtained a research and development accreditation from the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs, if they are the holders of software IP or trade secrets. The only other limitation of this favourable tax regime is that it does not apply to marketing- and brand-related assets.

LUXEMBOURG
Generally, corporation tax in Luxembourg is 29.22%, but on revenues from IP licensing it can be as low as 5.8%. This is due to a corporate income tax exemption of 80%. Interestingly, this exemption also applies to companies that have registered a patent to be used in connection with their own activities, which then calculate a fictional net income, as if they had received the income from licensing it.

ITALY

Italy is a bigger market compared to the other countries discussed, and it can be a very attractive place for a company to invest in research and development, because since 2015 companies have been able to deduct income deriving from intellectual property from their taxable income base. The fiscal deduction was set at 30% in 2015, 40% in 2016 and 50% starting from 2017. Companies will therefore enjoy a substantial tax discount as a result of the reduction in their taxable income.

The total population of Albania is 2,934,363 people. The people of Albania speak the Albanian language. The linguistic diversity of Albania is almost homogeneous according to a fractionation scale, which is 0.0399 for Albania. The average age is around 31.6 years. Life expectancy in Albania is 77.35. The female fertility rate in Albania is 1.8. About 21% of Albania's population is obese. Ethnic diversity is nearly uniform according to a fractionation scale, which is 0.2204 for Albania. Details on the language, religion, age, gender distribution and advancement of the people of Albania can be found in the sections below, as well as the section on education in the country.

Population
In Albania, the population density is 8 people per square kilometer (21 per square mile). Based on these statistics, this country is considered very sparsely populated. The total population of Albania is 2,934,363 people. Albania has approximately 57,616 foreign immigrants. Immigrants in Albania account for 0.1 percent of the total number of immigrants worldwide. Immigrants in Albania account for 3.1 percent of the total number of immigrants worldwide. Albania's ethnic diversity is nearly uniform according to a fractionation scale based on ethnicity. Ethnic Fractionation (EF) deals with the number, size, socioeconomic distribution, and geographic location of diverse cultural groups, usually within a state or some other demarcated area. Specific cultural characteristics can refer to language, skin color, religion, ethnicity, customs and traditions, history, or other distinctive criteria, alone or in combination. These characteristics are often used for social exclusion and power monopolization. The index of ethnic fractionation in Albania is 0.2204. This means that the people living in Albania come from a narrow group of ethnic groups, all of which are related to one another. EF is usually measured as 1 minus the Herfindahl concentration index of ethnolinguistic group proportions, which reflects the probability that two randomly drawn individuals from the population belong to different groups. The theoretical maximum of EF of 1 means that each person belongs to a different group. Below you will find statistics of Albania on the average age and gender distribution at different ages.

Age
The average age is around 31.6 years. The average age of men is 30.3, the average age of women is 32.9.

Gender
The sex ratio, or number of males per female (estimated at birth), is 1.118. It can be further broken down into the following categories: sex ratio under 15 - 1.1; sex ratio from 15 to 64 - 1.05; sex ratio over 64 - 0.87; Overall sex ratio - 1.04. The overall sex ratio differs from the sex ratio estimated at birth. This is because some newborns are included in the sex ratio estimated at birth, but die within the first few weeks of life and are not included in the overall sex ratio.

Religion
The majority religion in Albania is Islam, whose adherents make up 80.3% of all religious believers in the country. Islam (Arabic: الإسلام‎‎) is a monotheistic and Abrahamic religion articulated through the Qur'an, a religious text believed to be the literal word of God (Allāh) by its followers and by the teachings and norms for the vast majority of followers becomes an example (called Sunna, Arabic سنة, composed of reports, called Hadith, Arabic حديث) of Muhammad, who is considered by most of them to be the last prophet of God. A follower of Islam is called a Muslim. In addition to Islam, there are some followers of Christianity in Albania. Albania's religious diversity is diverse according to a fractionation scale based on the number of religions in Albania. The index of religious fractionation in Albania is 0.4719. This score means that within the country there is one major religion and several other minor beliefs.