On 6 September 2013, the bill amending the Competition Act
entered into force.
The amended Competition Act constitutes Book IV of the new Code
of Business and Economic Law (Wetboek van economisch recht/Code de
droit économique).
Amongst other things, the Act reforms the Belgian Competition
Authority. The objectives of the reform are twofold: on the one
hand, to simplify the Competition Authority's structure and, on
the other hand, to introduce faster and more efficient procedures.
For instance, the Act provides for a settlement procedure for
competition law violations and the possibility to appeal
investigative measures. It also allows the Competition Authority to
impose administrative fines on natural persons. Finally, the
Competition Authority is granted new powers in relation to price
intervention.
