Time required to start a business in Malaysia
Malaysia: Time required to start a business was 17.5 days in 2019. ◆ Volatile
Time required to start a business in Malaysia, 2003–2019
Source: Doing Business project, World Bank (2025) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in days.
Analysis
Malaysia recorded 17.5 days for time required to start a business in 2019.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 29.6% on the previous year and down 5.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, time required to start a business in Malaysia peaked at 37.5 days in 2003 and was at its lowest, 7.5 days, in 2014.
Malaysia ranks 60th of 188 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Time required to start a business in Malaysia, year by year
| Year | days | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2003 | 37.5 days | — |
| 2004 | 37.5 days | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 37.5 days | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 37.5 days | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 31.5 days | -16.0% |
| 2008 | 20.5 days | -34.9% |
| 2009 | 18.5 days | -9.8% |
| 2010 | 17.5 days | -5.4% |
| 2011 | 8.5 days | -51.4% |
| 2012 | 9.5 days | +11.8% |
| 2013 | 9.5 days | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 7.5 days | -21.1% |
| 2015 | 7.5 days | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 23.5 days | +213.3% |
| 2017 | 23.5 days | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 13.5 days | -42.6% |
| 2019 | 17.5 days | +29.6% |
Malaysia compared with similar countries
- Malaysia's 17.5 days is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 12 days, 1.5× the median. (55 countries reporting)
- Malaysia's 17.5 days is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 12.8 days, 1.4× the median. (28 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Time required to start a business in Malaysia changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | +213.3% | 7.5 days | 23.5 days |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 31.5 days | 18.5 days | 37.5 days | 7 |
| 2010s | 13.8 days | 7.5 days | 23.5 days | 10 |
Countries ranked near Malaysia
- 60 India 17.5 days compare
- 62 Marshall Islands 17 days compare
- 62 Mozambique 17 days compare
More reference data data for Malaysia
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.7102 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.5869 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 4.62 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.1487 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 4.62 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 2.38 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 1.64 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 3.29 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 21.1 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.8098 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is time required to start a business in Malaysia?
- Time required to start a business in Malaysia was 17.5 days in 2019, according to Doing Business project, World Bank (2025) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest time required to start a business recorded in Malaysia?
- The highest recorded value was 37.5 days in 2003.
- What is the lowest time required to start a business recorded in Malaysia?
- The lowest recorded value was 7.5 days in 2014.
- How does Malaysia rank for time required to start a business?
- Malaysia ranks 60th out of 188 countries with data for 2019.
- Is time required to start a business rising or falling in Malaysia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 5.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Malaysia data come from?
- The figures come from Doing Business project, World Bank (2025) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Time required to start a business. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 17 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Number of calendar days needed to complete the procedures to legally operate a business.