In order to decide on starting a business in a new location it is vital to know the costs of doing business. Information about the following type of costs is available:
— Starting a company
Russian companies, as well as branches and representative offices of foreign companies in Russia, must be registered with several authorities. Companies must be registered with the state registration authorities (currently the tax authorities) who take care of state registration and registration for tax purposes, with the state statistic committee and with three social funds.
— Human resources
The economically active population of St. Petersburg is 2,711,000. According to results from 2010, the average wage is 36,602 RUB (~1,200USD).
— Office, retail and warehouse real estate
St. Petersburg is one of the leading Russian regions in terms of commercial areas. A short review of of the commercial real estate market in St. Petersburg is presented in this section.
In St.‑Petersburg, a system to support investment activity has been created and is being constantly improved. There is also ongoing work on the reduction of administrative barriers and the simplification of procedures for conducting investment activity — including those to obtain building permits and register property rights.
Transparent rules for conducting business, equal access to land plots and both to transport and energy resources are guaranteed to the investors. For those who are ready to participate in the development of St.‑Petersburg, all necessary conditions for the effective, stable and safe business are provided.
During the last years a huge number of investment projects have been realized in St.‑Petersburg by international companies such as Coca-Cola, Pepsi, Gillett, Wrigley, Electrolux, British American Tobacco, Bosch Siemens , General Motors, Hyundai and many others.
Assistance in realizing investment projects has made it possible to considerably reduce search times and choosing the right area, and also running all procedures necessary for building the enterprise.
St. Petersburg is the administrative centre of the North-West Federal District of the Russian Federation, which comprises the Republic of Karelia, the Republic of Komi, Archangelsk Region, Vologda Region, Kaliningrad Region, Leningrad Region, Murmansk Region, Novgorod Region, Pskov Region, and the Nenets Autonomous Area.
St. Petersburg is host to representative offices of international organizations, consulates, the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation, and regional federal agencies.
St.‑Petersburg is listed a UNESCO world heritage site, and is an important European centre for tourism. Each year, about 4.8 million tourists visit St.‑Petersburg.
St. Petersburg is the second largest economic, transport, academic, cultural, and tourist centre of Russia. St. Petersburg with its administratively subordinated territories occupies a square area of 1439 km2.