Substantial Changes To The Hungarian Competition Act

On 6 December 2016, the Hungarian Parliament adopted substantial changes to the Hungarian Competition Act, which were published in Hungary's official journal on 15 December 2016 (the "Amendment"). With some exceptions, the new provisions will enter in force on 15 January 2017. The main changes include the following:

Merger control

Under the current regime, mergers must be notified to the Hungarian Competition Authority (the "GVH") if, in the preceding business year, the undertakings concerned achieved a combined turnover of more than HUF 15 billion (approximately € 50 million) and the turnovers of at least two of the groups concerned exceeded HUF 500 million (approximately € 1.6 million). The Amendment modifies this regime in the following ways: