The new TMF Global Business Complexity Index 2026 shows significant differences across Central Europe in terms of the ease of doing business. The ranking covers 81 jurisdictions and is based on 292 indicators measuring the complexity of procedures in taxation and accounting, legal entity management, and HR and payroll. In the index, 1st place means the most administratively complex country, while 81st place means the least complex.
From this perspective, Poland ranks 19th, which places it among the relatively more difficult countries for business. At the same time, its position has improved compared with 2025, when it ranked 15th. Nevertheless, Poland remains higher in the complexity ranking than most countries in the region.
Among Central European and CEE countries, relatively high positions are also held by Croatia – 21st, Romania – 29th, Slovakia – 32nd, Slovenia – 33rd, and Hungary – 34th. This means that a significant part of the region is located in the middle or upper part of the ranking, where administrative, tax, and regulatory procedures are perceived as a notable burden for companies.
Austria – 36th, Serbia – 37th, and Bulgaria – 39th also stand out in the regional context. These positions are closer to the middle of the ranking, although still far from the group of countries considered the simplest for doing business. In Bulgaria’s case, there was a slight deterioration: it moved from 40th place in 2025 to 39th in 2026, meaning it became marginally more complex compared with the previous edition.
The sharpest contrast is provided by Czechia, which ranked only 75th. In practice, this means that according to TMF it is one of the least complex jurisdictions in the entire ranking. Czechia performs much better than Poland, Hungary, Slovakia, or Romania and comes close to the group of countries regarded as the most administratively predictable.
The 2026 ranking also includes the Baltic states: Lithuania ranked 57th, while Latvia ranked 66th. Both countries therefore place significantly lower than Poland and most Central European states, suggesting lower formal and administrative complexity from the perspective of international companies.
In the broader European context, it is worth noting that Greece remains the most complex country in the world, while the top ten also include, among others, France and Italy. This shows that high complexity is not only a problem of emerging markets, but also affects mature European economies.
For investors, the key conclusion is that Central Europe does not form a uniform regulatory bloc. Poland remains one of the more administratively demanding markets in the region, while Czechia, Lithuania, and Latvia are perceived as much simpler. This is an important signal for companies planning expansion: geographical proximity and historical similarity do not necessarily mean a similar level of bureaucratic complexity.
