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As the article states, Denmark, while having high taxes, is very business-friendly: Very little bureaucracy, almost zero corruption, English-speaking population

As the article states, Denmark, while having high taxes, is very business-friendly: Very little bureaucracy, almost zero corruption, English-speaking population, relatively cheap apartments ($1,850 per month for a newly constructed two-bedroom apartment in central Copenhagen) and very low expenses of health care and firing people. Also, while wages are generally very high, they're not high compared to Silicon Valley wages, which is an advantage if you want to start a business here. We rank as no. 4 on Forbes' list of Best Countries for Business (http://www.forbes.com/best-countries-for-business/list/ http://www.forbes.com/best-countries-for-business/list/) and as no. 5 on World Banks' Ease of Doing Business list (http://www.doingbusiness.org/rankings http://www.doingbusiness.org/rankings). So what's bad about doing business in Denmark? The cloudy weather (think UK) and the personal income taxes :) The corporate tax isn't particularly high, though (24%).

akumen 13y ago
Very good point. We are in a country that's No.33 on business friendliness list and it shows. More hoops to jump through than there are in Northern Europe or the US. So incorporation in the US was an improvement.
Systemic33 13y ago
And god forbid, the 180% registration tax on vehicles (basicly any type of vehicle becomes twice as expensive) PS. Electric vehicles are an exception, making the Tesla very cheap in terms of premium cars (think Mercedes-Benz S class, BMW 7-series)
- workhere-io 13y ago
  True, but note that public transportation is much better, and riding your bicycle is easier. Denmark has one of the lowest daily commute times in the OECD countries according to the graph on http://www.theatlanticcities.com/commute/2011/10/american-commute-times-so-difficult-to-measure/307/ http://www.theatlanticcities.com/commute/2011/10/american-co... Basicly any type of vehicle becomes twice as expensive No, not vehicles used for business. The high taxes are on personal cars.
  - throwaway_yy2Di 13y ago
    What's impressive about Copenhagen's transport is the driverless, electronic metro that runs 24 hours a day: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copenhagen_Metro https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copenhagen_Metro
    - workhere-io 13y ago
      Yup, you get to pretend to be the driver if you sit up front :) http://www.kongper.dk/foto_stor/metro1f.jpg http://www.kongper.dk/foto_stor/metro1f.jpg
  - Systemic33 13y ago
    I've lived in Sweden for 6 years, and the danish public transport is pretty much the same, while I think Stockholm's is better. My point is that good public transport is not an argument for having ludicruos taxes. Sweden does exceptionally well and doesn't require a 180% reg. tax. Vehicles used for business is cheaper, still significantly more expensive than vehicles in Sweden. Let's check with the Volkswagen Golf, a very ordinary car We'll choose Golf Comfortline (5d.) 1,4 TSI BMT - 122 HP with Automatic incl. VAT: VW Golf DK (Private):318.495,- DKK (59.5k USD) VW Golf SWE (Private):173.795,- DKK (32.5k USD) VW Golf DK (Company): 206.608,- DKK (38.6k USD) VW GOLF SWE (Company): Same as private
    - gambiting 13y ago
      Jesus christ, and I was getting upset about the 18.7% tax on cars with engines over 2.0L displacement here in Poland......
    - jpatokal 13y ago
      Try Singapore! VW Golf 1.4 TSI DSG (A) S$132,800 (104.9k USD) http://www.sgcarmart.com/new_cars/newcars_pricing.php?CarCode=11262 http://www.sgcarmart.com/new_cars/newcars_pricing.php?CarCod...
      - lstamour 13y ago
throwaway_yy2Di 13y ago
How does that translate to software startups? I haven't seen many on HN, for whatever that means.
- workhere-io 13y ago
  Skype started in Denmark, as did Bitbucket, Zendesk, Podio, Unity, SteelSeries, AppHarbor, Tradeshift, Endomondo, Iconfinder, Momondo, TrustPilot and many others (http://starrt.dk/startups http://starrt.dk/startups). European software startups that need a huge infusion of capital tend to move some of their business to Silicon Valley while sometimes maintaining a development department back home (e.g., Unity is now headquartered in San Francisco while having its chief development department in Copenhagen, AFAIK).
  - throwaway_yy2Di 13y ago
    Wow that's a long list! edit: I count 249 startups, https://gist.github.com/anonymous/9529391 https://gist.github.com/anonymous/9529391
- Symmetry 13y ago
  I'd be very cautious about running a software startup in Denmark. If you succeed great, but Denmark doesn't have the sort of easy bankruptcy laws the US has and you have to pay your employees 6 months wages if you go under. So if your startup fails you might be in debt for the rest of your life.
  - workhere-io 13y ago
    Denmark doesn't have the sort of easy bankruptcy laws the US has Lots of Danish companies go bankrupt without it affecting the personal finances of the owners. It all depends on the kind of company you form. you have to pay your employees 6 months wages if you go under. Source? AFAIK, as long as your business is alive and well you pay a small amount of money each month to an organization which will make sure that if you go bankrupt, your employees will get paid anyway. This means you don't have to pay anything if you go bankrupt. https://lifeindenmark.borger.dk/Pages/Compensation-if-employer-is-bankrupt.aspx https://lifeindenmark.borger.dk/Pages/Compensation-if-employ...
alexeisadeski3 13y ago
Denmark has high taxes for the poor and middle class, relative to the US, but taxes on the rich aren't really much higher.
- workhere-io 13y ago
  Denmark has high taxes for the poor and middle class Ironically, there's virtually no place better to be "poor" than in Denmark, because while poor people pay taxes, too, wages (and welfare) are so high that they end up living a better life than in other countries. Taxes on the rich are a different story, though, because while the tax rates on the rich may compare to those in the US, it seems to me (and I might be wrong here) that, through tax deductions and various other things, rich Americans often end up paying relatively low taxes. And that would be hard to accomplish in Denmark.
  - alexeisadeski3 13y ago
    Taxes on the rich are a different story, though, because while the tax rates on the rich may compare to those in the US, it seems to me (and I might be wrong here) that, through tax deductions and various other things, rich Americans often end up paying relatively low taxes. This is a common misconception and is completely incorrect. The "tax loopholes" have been gone for decades. It is actually far easier for wealthy Danes to avoid high taxes - they can simply move to Monaco or Switzerland or Estonia or Poland, whilst Americans must first gain citizenship of a separate nation then renounce their citizenship and pay an exit tax. Capital gains taxes tend to be slightly lower in the US, but corporate taxes far higher. Consumption taxes are of course far higher in Denmark, and this will annoy some rich people there but will typically have little impact on the bottom line. Overall you're likely taxed higher as a rich American than a rich Dane - though individual circumstances will play a huge role.

akumen 13y ago

Very good point. We are in a country that's No.33 on business friendliness list and it shows. More hoops to jump through than there are in Northern Europe or the US. So incorporation in the US was an improvement.

Systemic33 13y ago

And god forbid, the 180% registration tax on vehicles (basicly any type of vehicle becomes twice as expensive) PS. Electric vehicles are an exception, making the Tesla very cheap in terms of premium cars (think Mercedes-Benz S class, BMW 7-series)

workhere-io 13y ago
True, but note that public transportation is much better, and riding your bicycle is easier. Denmark has one of the lowest daily commute times in the OECD countries according to the graph on http://www.theatlanticcities.com/commute/2011/10/american-commute-times-so-difficult-to-measure/307/ http://www.theatlanticcities.com/commute/2011/10/american-co... Basicly any type of vehicle becomes twice as expensive No, not vehicles used for business. The high taxes are on personal cars.
- throwaway_yy2Di 13y ago
  What's impressive about Copenhagen's transport is the driverless, electronic metro that runs 24 hours a day: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copenhagen_Metro https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copenhagen_Metro
  - workhere-io 13y ago
    Yup, you get to pretend to be the driver if you sit up front :) http://www.kongper.dk/foto_stor/metro1f.jpg http://www.kongper.dk/foto_stor/metro1f.jpg
- Systemic33 13y ago
  I've lived in Sweden for 6 years, and the danish public transport is pretty much the same, while I think Stockholm's is better. My point is that good public transport is not an argument for having ludicruos taxes. Sweden does exceptionally well and doesn't require a 180% reg. tax. Vehicles used for business is cheaper, still significantly more expensive than vehicles in Sweden. Let's check with the Volkswagen Golf, a very ordinary car We'll choose Golf Comfortline (5d.) 1,4 TSI BMT - 122 HP with Automatic incl. VAT: VW Golf DK (Private):318.495,- DKK (59.5k USD) VW Golf SWE (Private):173.795,- DKK (32.5k USD) VW Golf DK (Company): 206.608,- DKK (38.6k USD) VW GOLF SWE (Company): Same as private
  - gambiting 13y ago
    Jesus christ, and I was getting upset about the 18.7% tax on cars with engines over 2.0L displacement here in Poland......
  - jpatokal 13y ago
    Try Singapore! VW Golf 1.4 TSI DSG (A) S$132,800 (104.9k USD) http://www.sgcarmart.com/new_cars/newcars_pricing.php?CarCode=11262 http://www.sgcarmart.com/new_cars/newcars_pricing.php?CarCod...
    - lstamour 13y ago

throwaway_yy2Di 13y ago

How does that translate to software startups? I haven't seen many on HN, for whatever that means.

workhere-io 13y ago
Skype started in Denmark, as did Bitbucket, Zendesk, Podio, Unity, SteelSeries, AppHarbor, Tradeshift, Endomondo, Iconfinder, Momondo, TrustPilot and many others (http://starrt.dk/startups http://starrt.dk/startups). European software startups that need a huge infusion of capital tend to move some of their business to Silicon Valley while sometimes maintaining a development department back home (e.g., Unity is now headquartered in San Francisco while having its chief development department in Copenhagen, AFAIK).
- throwaway_yy2Di 13y ago
  Wow that's a long list! edit: I count 249 startups, https://gist.github.com/anonymous/9529391 https://gist.github.com/anonymous/9529391
Symmetry 13y ago
I'd be very cautious about running a software startup in Denmark. If you succeed great, but Denmark doesn't have the sort of easy bankruptcy laws the US has and you have to pay your employees 6 months wages if you go under. So if your startup fails you might be in debt for the rest of your life.
- workhere-io 13y ago
  Denmark doesn't have the sort of easy bankruptcy laws the US has Lots of Danish companies go bankrupt without it affecting the personal finances of the owners. It all depends on the kind of company you form. you have to pay your employees 6 months wages if you go under. Source? AFAIK, as long as your business is alive and well you pay a small amount of money each month to an organization which will make sure that if you go bankrupt, your employees will get paid anyway. This means you don't have to pay anything if you go bankrupt. https://lifeindenmark.borger.dk/Pages/Compensation-if-employer-is-bankrupt.aspx https://lifeindenmark.borger.dk/Pages/Compensation-if-employ...

alexeisadeski3 13y ago

Denmark has high taxes for the poor and middle class, relative to the US, but taxes on the rich aren't really much higher.

workhere-io 13y ago
Denmark has high taxes for the poor and middle class Ironically, there's virtually no place better to be "poor" than in Denmark, because while poor people pay taxes, too, wages (and welfare) are so high that they end up living a better life than in other countries. Taxes on the rich are a different story, though, because while the tax rates on the rich may compare to those in the US, it seems to me (and I might be wrong here) that, through tax deductions and various other things, rich Americans often end up paying relatively low taxes. And that would be hard to accomplish in Denmark.
- alexeisadeski3 13y ago
  Taxes on the rich are a different story, though, because while the tax rates on the rich may compare to those in the US, it seems to me (and I might be wrong here) that, through tax deductions and various other things, rich Americans often end up paying relatively low taxes. This is a common misconception and is completely incorrect. The "tax loopholes" have been gone for decades. It is actually far easier for wealthy Danes to avoid high taxes - they can simply move to Monaco or Switzerland or Estonia or Poland, whilst Americans must first gain citizenship of a separate nation then renounce their citizenship and pay an exit tax. Capital gains taxes tend to be slightly lower in the US, but corporate taxes far higher. Consumption taxes are of course far higher in Denmark, and this will annoy some rich people there but will typically have little impact on the bottom line. Overall you're likely taxed higher as a rich American than a rich Dane - though individual circumstances will play a huge role.