The Ministry of Finance has published the Draft Law on the Control of State Aid (hereinafter: the “Draft”), which provides a more detailed regulatory framework for the granting of subsidies, concessional loans, tax incentives, and other forms of support financed from public funds.
Key information and proposed changes:
- The proposed provisions further define the concept of state aid, the manner in which it may be granted, as well as the competences of the Commission for State Aid Control, which plays a central role in assessing the compatibility of such measures with competition rules. The Draft distinguishes between state aid schemes, intended for a broader circle of beneficiaries, and individual aid granted to specifically identified undertakings.
- The Draft also separately regulates the concepts of existing aid and new aid, with certain amendments to existing programmes being treated as new aid, including cases involving a significant budget increase (exceeding 20%).
- The text of the Draft covers specific categories of aid, including regional aid, horizontal aid, aid for environmental protection and energy, culture, transport, as well as aid for the rescue and restructuring of undertakings.
- The Draft provides that state aid may be granted through various instruments, including grants, subsidised interest rates, tax and other fiscal incentives, state guarantees, debt write-offs, as well as the disposal of public assets on terms deviating from market conditions. At the same time, the provider of the aid is required to monitor whether the granted funds are used for their designated purpose.
- Among the recognised forms of state aid, the Draft expressly includes transactions involving public assets carried out on terms that depart from market conditions, including sales below market value or acquisitions at a price above market value.
- Aid granted in the fields of agriculture and fisheries is excluded from the scope of the Draft, as these areas are subject to a special regulatory regime aligned with the Stabilisation and Association Agreement with the European Union.
- A significant part of the Draft concerns misdemeanor liability. Financial penalties are envisaged for legal entities and responsible persons in cases of granting aid without prior review, failure to maintain the prescribed records, failure to notify de minimis aid, non-compliance with requests issued by the Commission, and other breaches of statutory obligations.
- The proposed provisions also regulate judicial review of the Commission’s decisions by allowing an administrative dispute to be initiated before the Administrative Court against final decisions of the Commission, with the possibility of suspending enforcement under the prescribed conditions. The Draft further lays down rules on limitation periods for the recovery of incompatible state aid and for the imposition of procedural penalties.
The Draft establishes a more detailed framework for the granting and control of state aid, with enhanced obligations for aid providers and a more formalised system of oversight over the use of public funds.
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