CPR's Arab Business Database

Doing business in Bahrain

Of all the places in the world that you could start a business, Bahrain is definitely one of the best. The country has made a concerted effort to become the business center of the Middle East and they have largely succeeded. The major attraction of course is the very low taxes but there are other reasons that you would want to do business in Bahrain. The main ones are the outstanding infrastructure and the very liberal laws on foreign business operations.

Bahrain is one of the Gulf States and as such is right at the center of one of the wealthiest regions in the world. The country has become wealthy because of its oil production but it is now trying to diversify its economy. For centuries the area has been at the center of world trade routes and they are trying to continue in that tradition. The goal is to make Bahrain the center of trade for the Middle East. In order to do this they have created a number of incentives to encourage business. This has made Bahrain one of the best places to business in the entire world.

The main advantage of doing business in Bahrain is the tax incentives. There is no tax on corporate or personal income in Bahrain. There is also no sales tax. Perhaps most important are the policies on duties on products being imported. Since Bahrain is trying to become a trading center they allow products on be imported to the country duty free provided they are going to be re-exported. That means that you can use Bahrain as the base of operations and bring in products from around the world and then send them off to other places without having to pay tax in Bahrain. There is also no duty on raw materials that are going to be used in manufacturing in Bahrain.

One of the other benefits of doing business is Bahrain is that they have a very modern infrastructure. There are modern communications and transportation facilities that are better than you will find in many Western countries. Bahrain also has a very modern and sophisticated financial center with a number of very successful banks and a strong stock exchange. The country is set up to do business so you won’t have to worry about the infrastructure that you need not being in place.

Bahrain has some of the most liberal laws in the world when it comes to finance and investment. All foreign companies are treated the same as local companies so there is no worry about being at a disadvantage. There are also no restrictions on foreign ownership or on currency exchange. The cost of doing business in Bahrain is very low and there is very little interference by the government in the operation of business. This is a large part of what makes the country such an appealing place to do business.