New Bill on Land Ownership Rights

The Ministry of Finance and Economy is drafting a new law on investments that aims at providing equal treatment to foreign investors. According to the new bill, foreign investors will obtain land ownership rights, local business news provider Monitor reported. The new law is being drafted because the current legislation provides additional protection to foreign investors, but not to the Albanian investors. Moreover, the draft-law will treat strategic investments as a different section based on the principles of equal treatment and non-discrimination for Albanian and foreign investors. The existing law on investments that dates back to 1993 defines that foreign investors are not granted ownership rights in the Republic of Albania. The new legal frame, which aims at providing equal rights, will make possible that foreign investors obtain land ownership rights. This is also an obligation that Albania needs to meet in the frame of the European Union (EU) integration as it has to provide the conditions for the free movement of people, goods, services, and capital. The lack of ownership rights is often referred to international reports as one of the obstacles to foreign investments in the country. The draft law is expected to enter into force in 2019.

Source:  Scan TV