Client Alerts
European Commission proposes five substantial initiatives to enhance EU economic security
Once implemented, those initiatives will require significantly more efforts from parties involved in trade and foreign investments to ensure regulatory compliance. The pursued security aims will lead to enhanced monitoring, assessments and controls being put in place, which will have to be factored into a reframed regulatory compliance approach by affected parties. In late January […]...
Life Sciences Bulletin: The managed entry agreements race in Slovakia
As 2023 drew to a close, the pharmaceutical sector in Slovakia saw a notably busy period due to a looming deadline for the conclusion of Managed Entry Agreements (MEAs). All medicinal products previously subject to conditional reimbursement were required to undergo resubmission, culminating in the conclusion of MEAs with the Ministry of Health by the […]...
Employment Brief: New rules on platform work in Croatia
Changes to the Croatian Labor Act, governing work for digital platforms, took effect on January 1, 2024. Croatia opted to regulate platform work before the formal adoption of the EU Platform Work Directive. What are the main novelties? Work organization Digital working platforms (e.g., companies offering services through mobile apps for transport or food delivery) […]...
Changes to Hungarian employment law in 2024
This article is available in both English and Hungarian. This year several employment law rules of practical relevance will change in Hungary. These changes will have different entry into force dates, and are all briefly summarised below. Child and parental leave allocation As of 1 January 2024, the conditions for granting child and parental leave […]...
New opportunities for on-site electricity producers and suppliers in Hungary
*This article is available in both English and Hungarian. In the evolving landscape of the Hungarian energy market, there is a growing emphasis on transitioning to self-sufficiency and on-site energy which helps with substantial costs and energy losses associated with transmission. As a result, there is an increasing interest in the industrial sector and commercial […]...
Hungary’s new visa programme 2024
Extensive experience in supporting your investments in Hungary and across CEE/SEE In December 2023, Parliament passed a bill to reform the Hungarian immigration system. Act XC of 2023, which entered into force on 1 January 2024, introduces the guest investor residence permit with effect from 1 July 2024, thus re-launching the Hungarian “Golden Visa” programme. […]...
On steep hills: Hungary tightens rules on the clearance of foreign investments
The current rules on foreign direct investments (FDI), which are already quite restrictive, will be tightened further from January next year: the current exemptions will be narrowed, and the Hungarian State will have a right of first refusal for solar power plant investments. The government is trying to address a long-standing and sensitive issue for […]...
Hungary narrows exemptions under its alternative FDI screening regime
The current Hungarian rules on the screening of foreign direct investments (FDI), which are already unprecedently restrictive, will be further tightened from mid-January next year by narrowing the available exemptions from the filing obligation. Last week, the Hungarian Government passed a decree amending certain provisions of the so-called “alternative” FDI screening regime. The amended rules […]...
Changes to Hungary’s immigration rules
As of 1 January 2024, the Hungarian Parliament is expected to introduce a new framework for the conditions of residence and employment of third-country nationals in Hungary, significantly rewriting the existing rules. Based on the currently effective Act II of 2007, employees – on general basis – can secure their longer-term employment with a residence […]...
Life Science Bulletin: Upcoming changes to parallel distribution of medicinal products in Bulgaria
In August 2023, the Bulgarian Ministry of Health published a draft bill for amendment of the Law on Medicinal Products in the Human Medicine for public consultations. The proposed changes mark a shift towards greater transparency and regulatory control over the pharmaceutical value chain in Bulgaria. They target practices of parallel distributors which lead to […]...
Antitrust reform in Ukraine: The stage is set
In early September of this year, the President of Ukraine signed the Law “On Amendments to Certain Legislative Acts of Ukraine on Improving Legislation on Protection of Economic Competition and Activities of the Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine” (the “Law”). The Law launches the reform of Ukrainian antitrust legislation which had been blocked by the Ukrainian […]...
Employment Brief: Bulgaria to implement “the right to disconnect” and other changes for remote workers
Widely debated amendments in the Bulgarian Labour Code are expected to enter into force in early 2024, elaborating on remote/hybrid work provisions introduced in local legislation in 2011. A summary of some key changes from the legislative draft can be found below. Right to Disconnect The “right to disconnect” concept was developed at the EU […]...