Estonia
Estonia is a developed country, with a high-income advanced economy; ranking very high in the Human Development Index. The sovereign state of Estonia is a democratic unitary parliamentary republic, it is administratively subdivided into 15 maakond (counties). With a population of just over 1.3 million, it is one of the least populous members of the European Union, the Eurozone, the OECD, the Schengen Area, and NATO. Estonia has consistently ranked highly in international rankings for quality of life, education, digitalization of public services and the prevalence of technology companies.
Estonia produces about 75% of its consumed electricity. Alternative energy sources such as wood, peat, and biomass make up approximately 9% of primary energy production. Renewable wind energy was about 6% of total consumption in 2009. Estonia imports petroleum products from western Europe and Russia. Estonia imports 100% of its natural gas from Russia. Oil shale energy, telecommunications, textiles, chemical products, banking, services, food and fishing, timber, shipbuilding, electronics, and transportation are key sectors of the economy. The ice-free port of Muuga, near Tallinn, is a modern facility featuring good transshipment capability, a high-capacity grain elevator, chill/frozen storage, and new oil tanker off-loading capabilities.[citation needed] The railroad serves as a conduit between the West, Russia, and other points.
The Bank of Estonia (Eesti Pank) is the independent central bank. As Estonia is part of the Euro zone, the core tasks of the Bank are to help to defi ne the monetary policy of the European Community and to implement the monetary policy of the European Central Bank. Eesti Pank is also responsible for holding and managing Estonian offi cial foreign exchange reserves as well as supervising overall fi nancial stability and maintaining reliable and well-functioning payment systems. Eesti Pank is responsible for the circulation of cash in Estonia.
The banking sector is dominated by two major commercial banks, Swedbank and SEB, owned by Swedish banking groups. These two banks control approximately 66% of the fi nancial services market. The third largest bank is Luminor Bank AS, which was merged by Nordea and DNB. The fourth largest bank is AS LHV Pank. There are no state-owned commercial banks or other credit institutions.
Taxes are levied on the basis of tax laws enacted by Parliament. Both state and local taxes are imposed under the taxation laws. The structure and basis of the tax system is regulated by the Law on Taxation. Local taxes are introduced by local municipal councils according to the Law on Local Taxes. Local taxes play an insignifi cant role in the Estonian tax system.
The tax administrator is the Estonian Tax and Customs Board. Local taxes are administrated by the local municipal councils and local offi ces of the Tax Board.
Estonia is the leading country in Central and Eastern Europe in terms of attracting foreign direct investments. Overall, the business climate in Estonia is characterised as free business and trade in alignment with EU practices. Many companies are subsidiaries of European, particularly Scandinavian, fi rms. Estonia has some of the highest credit ratings in the region (Standard & Poor: AA-; Moody’s: A1; Fitch IBCA: AA-).
Estonia is a member of euro area since 2011, but the country’s cost level is still signifi cantly lower than that of neighbouring Scandinavian countries.
The overall Government attitude is very welcoming towards foreign capital, especially into sectors that are export-oriented, innovative and support regional development. 0% corporate income tax is imposed on all reinvested earnings in Estonia.
Estonia is one of the leading countries in the world in creating and implementing e-government solutions and cyber security. 99% of people use Internet banking services and more than 95% complete their income tax return over the Internet. Estonia hosts both the cyber security centre of NATO and the ITagency of the European Union.
The principal Estonian laws governing intellectual property are the Copyright Act, the Patents Act, the Trademark Act, the Utility Models Act, the Industrial Design Protection Act and the GeographicalIndication Protection Act. Business names and trade secrets are protected under the Commercial Code and the Competition Act. Estonia has been a member of the WIPO (World Intellectual Property Organization) since 1994, and a signatory to several international treaties, including the Paris and Berne Conventions, the Geneva Act of the Hague Agreement and the Madrid Protocol.
The Constitution of Estonia is the fundamental law, establishing the constitutional order based on five principles: human dignity, democracy, rule of law, social state, and the Estonian identity. Estonia has a civil law legal system based on the Germanic legal model. The court system has a three-level structure. The first instance are county courts which handle all criminal and civil cases, and administrative courts which hear complaints about government and local officials, and other public disputes. The second instance are district courts which handle appeals about the first instance decisions. The Supreme Court is the court of cassation, and also conducts constitutional review, it has 19 members. The judiciary is independent, judges are appointed for life, and can be removed from office only when convicted by court for a criminal deed. The Estonian justice system has been rated among the most efficient in the European Union by the EU Justice Scoreboard.
Our law firm VLO provides legal services for corporate and private clients in Estonia. These services include mergers and acquisitions, business and debt restructuring, tax and tax disputes, corporate disputes, investments, bankruptcy, litigation and arbitration.
If you have questions, please us right now.
E-mail: vlolawfirm@gmail.com
Estonia produces about 75% of its consumed electricity. Alternative energy sources such as wood, peat, and biomass make up approximately 9% of primary energy production. Renewable wind energy was about 6% of total consumption in 2009. Estonia imports petroleum products from western Europe and Russia. Estonia imports 100% of its natural gas from Russia. Oil shale energy, telecommunications, textiles, chemical products, banking, services, food and fishing, timber, shipbuilding, electronics, and transportation are key sectors of the economy. The ice-free port of Muuga, near Tallinn, is a modern facility featuring good transshipment capability, a high-capacity grain elevator, chill/frozen storage, and new oil tanker off-loading capabilities.[citation needed] The railroad serves as a conduit between the West, Russia, and other points.
The Bank of Estonia (Eesti Pank) is the independent central bank. As Estonia is part of the Euro zone, the core tasks of the Bank are to help to defi ne the monetary policy of the European Community and to implement the monetary policy of the European Central Bank. Eesti Pank is also responsible for holding and managing Estonian offi cial foreign exchange reserves as well as supervising overall fi nancial stability and maintaining reliable and well-functioning payment systems. Eesti Pank is responsible for the circulation of cash in Estonia.
The banking sector is dominated by two major commercial banks, Swedbank and SEB, owned by Swedish banking groups. These two banks control approximately 66% of the fi nancial services market. The third largest bank is Luminor Bank AS, which was merged by Nordea and DNB. The fourth largest bank is AS LHV Pank. There are no state-owned commercial banks or other credit institutions.
Taxes are levied on the basis of tax laws enacted by Parliament. Both state and local taxes are imposed under the taxation laws. The structure and basis of the tax system is regulated by the Law on Taxation. Local taxes are introduced by local municipal councils according to the Law on Local Taxes. Local taxes play an insignifi cant role in the Estonian tax system.
The tax administrator is the Estonian Tax and Customs Board. Local taxes are administrated by the local municipal councils and local offi ces of the Tax Board.
Estonia is the leading country in Central and Eastern Europe in terms of attracting foreign direct investments. Overall, the business climate in Estonia is characterised as free business and trade in alignment with EU practices. Many companies are subsidiaries of European, particularly Scandinavian, fi rms. Estonia has some of the highest credit ratings in the region (Standard & Poor: AA-; Moody’s: A1; Fitch IBCA: AA-).
Estonia is a member of euro area since 2011, but the country’s cost level is still signifi cantly lower than that of neighbouring Scandinavian countries.
The overall Government attitude is very welcoming towards foreign capital, especially into sectors that are export-oriented, innovative and support regional development. 0% corporate income tax is imposed on all reinvested earnings in Estonia.
Estonia is one of the leading countries in the world in creating and implementing e-government solutions and cyber security. 99% of people use Internet banking services and more than 95% complete their income tax return over the Internet. Estonia hosts both the cyber security centre of NATO and the ITagency of the European Union.
The principal Estonian laws governing intellectual property are the Copyright Act, the Patents Act, the Trademark Act, the Utility Models Act, the Industrial Design Protection Act and the GeographicalIndication Protection Act. Business names and trade secrets are protected under the Commercial Code and the Competition Act. Estonia has been a member of the WIPO (World Intellectual Property Organization) since 1994, and a signatory to several international treaties, including the Paris and Berne Conventions, the Geneva Act of the Hague Agreement and the Madrid Protocol.
The Constitution of Estonia is the fundamental law, establishing the constitutional order based on five principles: human dignity, democracy, rule of law, social state, and the Estonian identity. Estonia has a civil law legal system based on the Germanic legal model. The court system has a three-level structure. The first instance are county courts which handle all criminal and civil cases, and administrative courts which hear complaints about government and local officials, and other public disputes. The second instance are district courts which handle appeals about the first instance decisions. The Supreme Court is the court of cassation, and also conducts constitutional review, it has 19 members. The judiciary is independent, judges are appointed for life, and can be removed from office only when convicted by court for a criminal deed. The Estonian justice system has been rated among the most efficient in the European Union by the EU Justice Scoreboard.
Our law firm VLO provides legal services for corporate and private clients in Estonia. These services include mergers and acquisitions, business and debt restructuring, tax and tax disputes, corporate disputes, investments, bankruptcy, litigation and arbitration.
If you have questions, please us right now.
E-mail: vlolawfirm@gmail.com
