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Zákon č. 34/2021 Sb. creates the Czech Republic's first horizontal cross-sector FDI screening regime, replacing the prior sectoral patchwork (defence-procurement vetting, ad-hoc Ministry of Defence licensing, ČNB approvals for banking acquisitions) with a single statutory base and a single administering authority. Four operating axes:
1. Two-track scope. - Mandatory pre-closing consent for non-EU investors acquiring ≥10% (or "effective influence") in Czech target undertakings operating in any of three enumerated sectors: (i) production of military material under Act No. 38/1994 Sb. (defence industry); (ii) selected dual-use goods (EU Reg 2021/821 Annex I + Czech transposition); (iii) operators of critical infrastructure or critical information infrastructure designated under the Czech Cybersecurity Act (Act No. 181/2014 Sb. and successors). - Discretionary ex-officio screening available up to 5 years after closing for any other investment whose impact on "national security or internal/public order" raises concern — a long-tail call-in power applicable across all sectors and all transaction types (asset deals, mergers, JV restructurings).
2. Triggers and ownership thresholds. Mandatory regime triggers at 10% direct or indirect ownership / voting rights in the target, or any acquisition conferring "effective control" (board seats, veto rights, golden-share-style governance). Non-EU beneficial- ownership is the principal jurisdictional test — EU and EEA investors are out of scope of the mandatory regime but remain covered by the residual ex-officio limb.
3. Process. Pre-closing notification to MPO; standard review period of 90 days for the initial determination, extendable into a second-phase national-security assessment co-ordinated across relevant ministries (Defence, Interior, Foreign Affairs, Finance, Industry and Trade) and intelligence services (BIS, ÚZSI, VZ). The Government — not MPO alone — adopts the final decision on MPO's recommendation. A voluntary consultation channel allows investors in the discretionary-scope universe to obtain legal certainty within 45 days.
4. Remedies and enforcement. The Government may impose conditions, prohibit the transaction, order divestiture of the acquired stake, or unwind a completed transaction. Administrative fines for non-notification or breach of conditions reach up to 1% of the global net annual turnover of the foreign investor — among the higher tariffs in the EU FDI-regime peer set, calibrated to match GDPR-style global-revenue caps. Wilful concealment can additionally engage criminal liability under general Czech criminal law.
Republic's first horizontal FDI screening instrument and the sole statutory base for compliance with EU Reg 2019/452's cooperation mechanism. Subsequent sectoral tightenings — Act No. 266/2025 Sb. on critical-infrastructure resilience (filed) and the National Semiconductor Strategy 2024 (filed) — operate alongside the Act but route through it for foreign-control review.
UK NSI Act 2021 / NL Wet Vifo / IT Golden Power / ES Ley 19/2003 art 7-bis / SE FDI Act / DK Lov nr 842/2021 / AT InvKG.** Brings Czechia into structural parity with the other Central/Western EU FDI-screening regimes. Material given Czechia's role as central-European automotive supply-chain hub (Skoda Auto / VW Group), nuclear-power expansion site (Dukovany 5+6 tender ongoing, KHNP / EDF / Westinghouse bidding), defence-industrial cluster (CSG, Tatra Trucks, Aero Vodochody, Czechoslovak Group's CZUB), and a growing semiconductor footprint (Onsemi Rožnov SiC fab — see 2025-11-21 EU/CZ state-aid filing).
5-year discretionary call-in tail.** The 5-year ex-officio reach-back is among the longer in the EU peer set (vs Denmark's voluntary regime, Sweden's narrower mandatory-only design, Austria InvKG's 5-year tail), giving MPO a long shadow over otherwise non-notifiable deals. The 1%-of-global-turnover penalty cap also aligns Czech enforcement with the high-end of the EU FDI tariff.
the Czech regime is younger, has issued no high-profile prohibitions publicly to date, and operates within a smaller deal market. Czech enforcement statistics published by MPO show majority-approve outcomes with conditions, not outright blocks.
Group's largest non-German production cluster, and the surrounding Tier-1/2 supplier base (Continental Otrokovice, Bosch Jihlava, Magna, Faurecia) are partially in scope via the critical- infrastructure / dual-use limbs (EV / battery / semiconductor components). Non-EU sovereign-wealth or state-aligned acquisitions of Skoda Auto-aligned suppliers will route through MPO clearance.
stake) and its supplier network are covered by the critical-infrastructure limb. Any non-EU equity investment in CEZ subsidiaries or new-build SPVs (Dukovany 5+6 contractor JVs) triggers mandatory review. Sits alongside the Act No. 266/2025 Sb. critical-infrastructure resilience filing.
of CZUB / Tatra Defence Vehicles / Excalibur Army), Aero Vodochody (L-39NG / L-159), Tatra Trucks (Kopřivnice — military and dual-use heavy trucks supplying Czech / Slovak / Ukrainian armed forces) are covered by the military-material limb. Any non-EU acquisition of a stake in these undertakings or their parent groups requires MPO consent and Government decision.
power-electronics fab expansion (filed 2025-11-21 EU/CZ state-aid decision) operates within the dual-use / critical-technology perimeter. Future capacity-expansion JVs or strategic-investor rounds will route through MPO clearance under the Act's dual-use limb.
shared via the EU FDI Cooperation Mechanism (Reg 2019/452), triggering opinions from other Member States and the Commission. Will need re-calibration once 2025-12-11-eu-fdi-screening- regulation-revision-political-agreement (filed) becomes a Regulation with mandatory-screening minimum standards.
specific list of "selected dual-use goods" and the demarcation of critical-infrastructure operators to subordinate decrees and cross-references to Act 38/1994 (defence material) and Act 181/2014 (cybersecurity / critical infrastructure). Track the current consolidated lists for any new file-as-amendment events.
draft legislative amendments to Act 34/2021 in line with the EU 2019/452 revision package — file as an amendments[] row once a resulting zákon is gazetted in Sbírka.
statistics annually (mandatory notifications received, decisions issued, blocks, conditions); pull the 2023 / 2024 / 2025 numbers to calibrate the empirical block-vs-approve ratio and refine severity weighting in a future filing pass.