National Security Review of Foreign Investments in Hungary

Abstract

Screening mechanisms as investment policy measures keep gaining importance worldwide. In October 2018, the Hungarian Parliament also adopted rules on the national security review of foreign investments. This paper intends to present the newly introduced Hungarian screening mechanism which is applicable from 1st January 2019. The goal of this article is to determine how the established Hungarian FDI system can be typified, integrated into an existing regulatory model, or whether it carries elements of a multi-layered system, possibly providing a completely new approach to FDI. We conclude that Hungarian new rules on foreign investment control have become more transparent and coherent than in the past. Nonetheless the review process suffers from a number of shortcomings that may hinder the full accomplishment of the predictability and the effectiveness.