For an overview on foreign investment control on the EU level, in the UK and France, click HERE.
On 8 April 2020, the Federal Government submitted a draft change to the Foreign Trade Act (Aussenwirtschaftsgesetz or “AWG”). Through this change, the rules on examining investments will be significantly tightened. The new rules will have to be considered in transactions involving direct or indirect acquisitions by non-EU based acquirers – and this will likely be made law soon, alongside changes to the Foreign Trade Regulation (Aussenwirtschaftsverordnung or “AWV”).
Following a brief summary of the current legal position, we outline the principal proposed changes and give a recommendation for future transactions.