Business Registration Single Window

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The Business Registration Single Window in Iraq is an online platform that allows investors to register a company entirely online, completing one registration form and making one payment.
What are the main aims and objectives?

The Business Registration Single Window aims to streamline and simplify the process of establishing a business, thereby fostering a more conducive environment for investment and economic growth. By reducing bureaucratic hurdles and minimizing the time and cost associated with business registration, the system seeks to enhance transparency and accessibility for both domestic and foreign investors. Ultimately, the Business Registration Single Window is designed to improve Iraq's ease of doing business, attract more investment, and stimulate economic development by making it easier for businesses to start and operate in the country.

How does the program work?

Prior to 2020, registering a business in Baghdad was a cumbersome task with loopholes that opened the doors to corruption. The process required an entrepreneur to take 35 separate steps, make multiple in-person visits to various government offices, and pay a variety of fees at different times to different entities.

A "single-window" system – business.mot.gov.iq – was implemented to simplify the business registration process and reduce opportunities for corruption. The system replaced the multi-step, multi-payment process with an online portal that allows founders to create businesses entirely online, with no in-person visits to government offices and just a few clicks – or five easy steps – from a web browser.

With this system, founders register businesses with five mandatory registries using one single form, one set of documents and one single payment. It reserves the business name with the Chamber of Commerce of Baghdad and the Iraqi Federation of Chambers of Commerce; registers it with the Company Registry, and provides the entrepreneur with a tax and social security number.

The system provides the following:

  1. Centralized Access: Entrepreneurs can access the platform through a single online portal, which consolidates all necessary steps for business registration. This eliminates the need to visit multiple government offices, significantly reducing time and effort.
  2. Integrated Processes: The system integrates various processes required for business establishment, such as securing business name protection, obtaining necessary licenses, and registering for tax and social security numbers. This integration allows for a one-stop submission and processing of all required documents.
  3. User-Friendly Interface: The platform is designed to be user-friendly, guiding users through each step of the registration process. It provides clear instructions and requirements, ensuring that applicants can easily navigate the system without needing extensive legal or administrative knowledge.
  4. Digital Submission and Verification: All documents and applications can be submitted electronically, and the system facilitates digital verification and approval processes. This reduces paperwork and speeds up the overall registration timeline.
  5. Transparency and Tracking: The system enhances transparency by allowing users to track the progress of their applications in real-time. This feature helps applicants stay informed about the status of their registration and any additional requirements or approvals needed.
What is the overall cost?

There is currently no available information about the overall cost of the program.

How was it implemented?

The Business Registration Single Window was a strategic initiative by the Iraqi government, created in 2020 in collaboration with UNCTAD, the Global Entrepreneurship Network, the US government and technical experts. This collaboration was crucial in ensuring that the system met international standards and incorporated best practices from other successful implementations around the world. The design and development phase involved significant investment in IT infrastructure and software development to create a secure and reliable platform capable of handling various business registration tasks.

Once the platform was developed, a phased implementation plan was adopted to ensure a smooth transition from the old system to the new one. This involved pilot testing the system in select regions and gathering feedback from users to make necessary adjustments and improvements. Training programs were also conducted for government officials and business users to familiarize them with the new system and ensure they could effectively utilize its features. The phased approach allowed for real-time problem-solving and refinement of the system before it was rolled out nationwide.

What impact has been measured?

Iraq is now among the top-rated countries globally for ease of business registration, alongside Australia, Denmark, Estonia, Kenya, Oman and Sweden. It scores 10/10 across all dimensions of the Global Entrepreneurship Registration ranking of online business registration services.

Within its first year of operation, 2,485 businesses opened. The majority of individuals opening businesses are from Iraq (95%), however the system has also enhanced the ease at which foreign entrepreneurs are opening companies in the country. A portion of new business registrations have come from Kuwait, Jordan, Egypt and Lebanon.

Notes + Additional Context

The Iraqi government and its agencies have also been empowered by tools which show them the complexity of procedures and a methodology to simplify them, without changing the rules. They also now have the ability to design user-centric services without the need for IT experts. In response, the Iraq Council of Ministers (COMSEC), wants to automate over 50 services and include all 14 Iraqi provinces in the single window.

CURATED BY

Tom Hancock

Research Associate
Global Entrepreneurship Network
United Kingdom