At the session held on the 12th of March 2026, the Government of Montenegro adopted a set of proposals for laws, particularly noteworthy being the proposal for a new Law on the Protection of Competition. The goal of the stated proposal is to further bring the Montenegrin legal system into accordance with the legal system of the European Union, with the expectation of Montenegro becoming the newest member state of the EU in the year 2028.
The primary goal of the new proposal is to harmonize the existing legislative framework in Montenegro in the competition area with the Directive (EU) 2019/1, also known as the ECN+ Directive, which was adopted in 2018 and regulates the stated area. Of particular importance was to bring in line the rules regarding the powers of state authorities for competition protection, this being the Agency for protection of competition in Montenegro, with the standards of the EU.
A significant number of changes regarding the Agency were introduced with the new proposal, including:
- Strengthening the competences of the Agency;
- Improving its investigative powers;
- Regulating the system of procedural guarantees in the proceedings before the Agency;
- Further improving the mechanisms of cooperation with the European Commission, as well as with competition protection authorities of the EU member states
Furthermore, it is necessary to point out that the sanctions for the breach of provisions of the new law have been made stricter, since the proposal provides the possibility for monetary penalties in the amount of up to 10% of the total worldwide annual turnover of the participant in the market carrying out the breach.
It is expected that the proposal will be adopted in the coming time period.
Prepared by,
Daniel Vujacic, LL. M. (UW)