Amends its FDI screening regime
11 Oct 2020
On 11 October 2020, the Law no. 682/2020 entered into force. It amends the Act on the Screening of Foreign Corporate Acquisitions of 2012, in particular with the aim of making the Finish investment review mechanism compatible with the EU Regulation on the matter. The Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment was designated as a national focal point for cooperation and exchange of information between EU Member States and the European Union.
Further changes include clarifications of the definitions used in the Act. Thus, the key national interest, against which foreign acquisitions are reviewd, shall mean "securing military national defence, functions vital to society, national security and foreign and security policy objectives, and safeguarding public order and security in accordance with Articles 52 and 65 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, if there is a genuine and sufficiently serious threat to a fundamental interest of society". Furthermore, a foreign owner, whose acquisitions may be screened, designate any person natural or legal not domiciled within the EU and EFTA and any person domiciled in those countries, but in which a foreign person controls at least 10% votes or exercises similar influence. Foreign acquisition thresholds are set at 10%, one third and 50% of votes in a Finish business.
The amending Act also stipulates new provisions allowing the Ministry to set conditions on foreign owners in an approving decision, regulating inadmissibility of matters and attempts to circumvent the Act.
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Entry and establishment (Approval and admission)
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