Austria’s new Foreign Direct Investment Law: Review and Outlook

Abstract

Accelerated by the Covid-19 crisis and based on harmonization efforts of the European Union, a new federal law on the control of foreign direct investments (Investment Control Act – InvKG) entered into force in Austria on 25 July 2020. The Investment Control Act aims at the comprehensive and EU-wide formalized control of foreign investments from non-EU countries into Austrian companies that are of strategic importance for Austria due to their activities in areas that are indispensable for security or public order in Austria. The following article sets out the core provisions of the Investment Control Act and provides an initial review of the first experiences in Austrian practice. It ends with an outlook on the impact of the Investment Control Act on M&A transactions in Austria.