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Latvia - internal market

Short-term priorities:

  • further alignment of legislation, including in the areas of intellectual and industrial property rights, public procurement, financial services, competition, state aid and indirect taxation;
  • to adopt a law on state aid;
  • to improve the aid inventory;
  • to reinforce the new anti-trust authority.

Assessment (October 1999)

These priorities have been achieved in part.

Alignment has progressed in all the areas concerned. However, further efforts are needed in the areas of public procurement, intellectual and industrial property, indirect taxation and payment and insurance systems. In the field of competition and state aid, further progress has been achieved; the Competition Council and State Aid Surveillance Commission are now fully functioning. The 1998 Annual Report on State aid has been improved in relation to previous years.

Assessment (November 2000)

The procurement law was amended. A new law on copyright came into force in May 2000, but little progress has been made on implementing legislation in this field. A law on personal data protection became operational in January 2001. The new commercial code, which transposes a number of company law directives, was adopted in April 2000. The overall legislative framework governing the free movement of goods has been completed. Several liberalisation measures have been taken in the area of capital movements. Some progress has also been made on the free movement of services. In the tax field, progress has been made on VAT, alcoholic beverages and tobacco. There was also some movement in the area of customs, including the amendment of the law on customs duties and measures to strengthen the customs administration.

Assessment (November 2001)

Good progress has been made on alignment in the public procurement field. The enforcement of intellectual property rights is problematic. Alignment has continued on the free movement of goods, the free movement of capital, financial services and customs. The Latvian tax collection system has been improved.

Assessment (November 2003)

Please refer to the fact sheets on the adoption of the Community acquis.

Medium-term priorities:

  • to align legislation in the fields of products, customs, audiovisual policies, statistics and financial services;
  • to implement competition law;
  • to upgrade standardisation and conformity assessment structures;
  • to establish a market surveillance system and align horizontal technical legislation on industrial products;
  • further alignment of competition legislation;
  • to reinforce anti-trust and state aid authorities;
  • to promote business development (especially SMEs);
  • to align legislation in the fields of telecommunications, consumer protection and the internal energy market.

Assessment (October 1999)

The entry into force of amendments to the Law on Radio and Television represents a positive step forward in the audiovisual sector, but further amendments will be necessary. On free movement of goods, the adoption of standards is advancing, and progress has been made in strengthening implementation structures. In the area of competition and state aid, legislation now meets Community requirements, and the anti-trust and state aid authorities are fully operational. No progress has been made in the other sectors.

Assessment (November 2000)

The process of alignment in the audiovisual sector has continued. The consumer protection law has been supplemented by the advertising law. Other measures have been adopted on distance selling, liability for defective goods and services, and product safety.

Assessment (November 2001)

Alignment of intellectual and industrial property rights has been practically completed. Good progress has been made regarding the free movement of goods, although further efforts are required. Enforcement of competition rules must be improved. The new telecommunications regulatory body has started operating. Further efforts are needed on the audiovisual sector and VAT. The consumer protection system is now virtually aligned with Community law, but problems of enforcement persist. Although the capacity of the customs authorities has been reinforced, further efforts are necessary.

Assessment (November 2003)

Please refer to the fact sheets on the adoption of the Community acquis.

Following the signing of the Accession Treaty on 16 April 2003, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia acceded to the European Union on 1 May 2004.

REFERENCES

Decision 98/263/EC of 30.03.1998Official Journal L 121, 23.04.1998

Decision 1999/854/EC of 06.12.1999Official Journal L 335, 28.12.1999

Commission Opinion COM(97)2004 finalNot published in the Official Journal

Commission Report COM(98)703 finalNot published in the Official Journal

Commission Report COM(1999)506 finalNot published in the Official Journal

Commission Report COM(2000)706 finalNot published in the Official Journal

Commission Report COM(2001)700 final - SEC(2001) 1749Not published in the Official Journal

Commission Report COM(2003) 675 final - SEC(2003) 1203Not published in the Official Journal

Treaty of Accession to the European Union [Official Journal L 236, 23.09.2003]

Last updated: 19.11.2004

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