Slovenia. A. Definitions and sources of data

Transcription

1 Slovenia A. Definitions and sources of data Data on foreign direct investment (FDI) in Slovenia are reported by the Bank of Slovenia (BS). Since the 1991 independence, Slovenia has implemented far-reaching liberalization measures in the transformation of the economy, including the full current-account convertibility of the local currency since Legislation is currently enacted to align its political and economic systems with those of the European Union. Agreement has also been reached on the issue of reforming the social security system. To improve access to capital at home and abroad, domestic companies are authorized to open foreign-currency accounts and purchase foreign securities. Despite the conflict in Yugoslavia in March-June 1999 that had a negative impact on trade and tourist arrivals, substantial progress was made in curtailing inflation rate, expanding GDP growth and accelerating the privatization process. Foreign investors are offered national treatment. Protection against expropriation is available, and a guarantee of unrestricted transfer of profits and of invested capital is provided. While most business activities are open to foreign investments, some limitations on share ownership exist in certain sectors. The country will join the European Union in The Trade and Investment Promotion Office (TIPO), a governmental body, acts as a one-stop shop to potential investors and is responsible for private business development. It provides information on investment opportunities and administrative procedures to foreign investors, helps them identify joint-venture partners and implement projects. Financial assistance in the form of grants may be obtained from the TIPO when foreign investors set up projects that contribute to reduce unemployment rate, or establish in less developed regions, or include technology transfer to the country. There are no performance requirements imposed as a condition for establishing, or expanding a business. Under the Foreign Investment Act, foreign investors may establish wholly- or partially-owned companies through partnerships, branches, limited liability companies, joint-stock companies and new joint ventures. Foreign investors may be individuals, legal entities, foreign States or governmental agencies. Contributions may be made in cash, in tangible assets (movable or immovable property), or in rights. The exploitation of natural resources, according to contractual agreement signed, is possible. The registration of a business has to be made with the local Court Register. An entity is considered as a resident company when it is incorporated in the country, regardless of the level of foreign ownership and has the same rights on land and natural resources as any Slovenian company. The complete take-over of a local company by foreign investors requires that the foreign company must first be registered with a local court. Since January 1999, foreign nationals wishing to invest in a local bank are no longer required to seek approval and foreign banks are now authorized to establish branch offices in the country. Under the Corporate Income Tax Act, a tax of only 25 per cent is levied on profits of all business entities. Accelerated depreciation of fixed assets is authorized, and any loss that may occur can be brought forward during a 5-year period. Since July 1999, the value-added tax is fixed at 19 per cent for most goods and services and is reduced to 8 per cent for essential goods. Access to Free Trade Zones (FTZs), where most activities may be carried out, is possible to both local and foreign investors, on the condition that at least 51 per cent of the output of goods and services is exported. No tax or duty is levied on exported goods. Dutyfree imports of capital goods that contribute to the capital base of a foreign-invested enterprise and free entry of imported operating items for meeting production needs are authorized. Goods manufactured or transformed in an FTZ may be sold on the local market, after payment of duties and taxes on imported items. Businesses operating within these zones qualify for a 10 per cent corporate tax on profits. Companies that reinvest their earnings in tangible assets, or incur expenditures on trainees and former unemployed staff, are entitled to additional tax benefits. Data reported by the BS are in accordance with the methodology set out in the Balance of Payments Manual, 5 th edition, 1993 of the International Monetary Fund, and the FDI definitions used by the OECD Benchmark Definition of Foreign Direct Investment, OECD, Paris, They reflect an ownership of 10 per cent or more of a foreign investor in ordinary shares, or voting rights, of a company.

2 The value of investments is assessed on a book-value basis, and includes equity capital, reinvested earnings, claims and liabilities to direct investors, and investments with a long-term characteristic on the management of a company. Direct investment data do not include real estate abroad owned by Slovenian households, and claims on other countries in the territory of the former Yugoslavia that were subject to succession negotiations and assets transferred to the Government. Since 1996, the data include investments made in indirectly affiliated companies. As for stock data, they include changes in equity stocks effected through international payments made by domestic banks and those affecting reinvested earnings reported in companies surveys. Business indicators on financial and operating aspects of companies with foreign direct investments are obtained from company balance sheets and income statements reported by the Agency for Payments. Inward and outward stock data are available both by geographical and industrial sector breakdown.

3 B. Statistics on FDI and the operations of TNCs

4 Table 1. Summary of FDI (Millions of dollars) Variable Inward Outward 1. FDI flows, (annual average) FDI flows as a percentage of GFCF, (annual average) 3. FDI stocks, FDI stocks as a percentage of GDP, Sources : Based on tables 3 and 4; UNCTAD, FDI/TNC database. Table 2. Summary of international production (Number and millions of tolar) Variable Home-based TNCs Affiliates of foreign TNCs in Slovenia Foreign affiliates of home-based TNCs abroad 1. Number, Assets, Employeess, Net Sales, Value added, Net Profit, Exports, Source: Based on tables 21, 22, 29, 34, 44, 49, 54 and 59.

5 Table 3a. FDI flows, by type of investment, (Millions of dollars) Sources : Bank of Slovenia, Balance of Payments for Slovenia : 1994 to 2000, 23 April 2001 ( and unpublished data. Note : No breakdown by components is available. Table 3b. FDI flows, by type of investment, (Millions of dollars) Inward investment Outward investment Intra- Intra- Reinvested company Reinvested company Year Equity earnings loans Total Equity earnings loans Total Inward investment Outward investment Intra- Intra- Reinvested company Reinvested company Year Equity earnings loans Total Equity earnings loans Total Source : International Monetary Fund, September 2002 Balance of Payments CD ROM.

6 Table 4 : FDI stocks, by type of investment, (Millions of dollars) Inward investment Outward investment Equity Equity and Intra- and Intrareinvested company reinvested company Year earnings loans Total earnings loans Total Sources : Bank of Slovenia, International investment position of Slovenia, 29 June 2001 ( and unpublished data.

7 Table 11 : FDI stocks in the host economy, by industry, (Millions of dollars) Sector/industry TOTAL PRIMARY SECTOR Agriculture, hunting, forestry and fishing Mining, quarrying and petroleum SECONDARY SECTOR Food, beverages and tobacco Food products and beverages Tobacco products Textiles, leather and clothing Textiles Clothing Leather and leather products Wood, publishing and printing Paper and paper products Unspecified wood and wood products Publishing, printing and reproduction of recorded media Coke, petroleum products and nuclear fuel Chemicals and chemical products Rubber and plastics products Non-metallic mineral products Metal and metal products Basic metals Fabricated metal products Machinery and equipment Electrical and electronic equipment Office, accounting and computing machinery Electrical machinery and apparatus Radio, television and communication apparatus Precision instruments Motor vehicles Motor vehicles, trailers and semi-trailers Other transport equipment Other manufacturing Recycling TERTIARY SECTOR Electricity, gas and water Construction Trade Automotive trade and repairs Wholesale trade Distributive trade Hotels and restaurants Transports, storage and communications Land transport including pipelines Water transport Air transport Supporting and auxilary transport activities Post and communications Finance Financial intermediation Insurance and pension funding Activities auxiliary to financial intermediation Business activities Real estate Rental activities Computer and related activities Research and development Other business activities Education Health and social services Community, social and personal service activities Sewage and waste disposal, sanitation activities Recreational, cultural and sporting activities Other services Unspecified Sources : Bank of Slovenia, Direct Investment, Table 13, p.45, various volumes Note : Unspecified includes activities with less than three companies with equity FDI.

8 Table 12 : FDI stocks in the host economy, by geographical origin, (Millions of dollars) Region/economy Total world Developed countries Western Europe European Union Austria Belgium Luxembourg Denmark Finlande France Germany Ireland Italy Netherlands Spain Sweden United Kingdom Other Western Europe Gibraltar Liechtenstein San Marino Switzerland North America Canada United States Other developed countries Australia Japan Developing countries /economies Africa North Africa Tunisia Other Africa Gambia Mauritius Latin America and the Caribbean Other Latin America and the Carribean Antigua and Barbuda Bahamas Bermuda Panama Virgin Islands Developing Europe Bosnia and Herzegovina Croatia Malta TFYR Macedonia Serbia and Montenegro Asia West Asia Cyprus Saudi Arabia Turkey United Arab Emirates /..

9 Table 12 : FDI stocks in the host economy, by geographical origin, (concluded) (Millions of dollars) Region/economy South, East and South-East Asia China Democratic People's Republic of Korea Hong Kong, China India Malaysia Singapore Taiwan Province of China Central and Eastern Europe Belarus Czech Republic Hungary Latvia Poland Romania Russian Federation Slovakia Ukraine Unspecified Sources : Bank of Slovenia, Direct Investment, Table 3.1, various volumes (

10 Table 16 : FDI stocks abroad, by geographical destination, (Millions of dollars) Region/economy Total world Developed countries Western Europe European Union Austria Belgium / Luxembourg Belgium Luxembourg Denmark France Germany Greece Ireland Italy Netherlands Portugal Spain Sweden United Kingdom Other Western Europe Liechtenstein Switzerland North America Canada United States Other developed countries Australia Developing countries /economies Africa Other Africa Eritrea Kenya Liberia Nigeria Latin America and the Caribbean South America Ecuador Developing Europe Bosnia and Herzegovina Croatia Malta TFYR Macedonia Serbia and Montenegro Asia West Asia Cyprus Iran, Islamic Republic of Iraq Turkey United Arab Emirates South, East and South-East Asia Hong Kong, China India Malaysia Republic of Korea Singapore /..

11 Table 16 : FDI stocks abroad, by geographical destination, (concluded) (Millions of dollars) Region/economy Central and Eastern Europe Belarus Bulgaria Czech Republic Hungary Lithuania Poland Republic of Moldova Romania Russian Federation Slovakia Ukraine Unspecified Sources: Bank of Slovenia, Direct Investment, Table 4.1, various volumes (

12 Tables : 22, 29, 34, 44, 49, 54 and 59 : The number of companies with FDI in Slovenia, and their assets, employment, sales, values added, profits and exports at end-year stock, (Number and billions of tolar) Year Number of companies with FDI in Slovenia Assets Number of employees Net sales Value added Net profits Exports Sources : Agency for Payments, through the Bank of Slovenia, Direct Investment, Table 45, various volumes (

13 Table 21 : The number of foreign affiliates of home-based TNCs, by geographical location abroad, Region/economy Total world Developed countries Western Europe European Union Austria France Germany Italy Netherlands United Kingdom Other Western Europe Switzerland North America Canada United States Developing countries /economies Developing Europe Bosnia and Herzegovina Croatia TFYR Macedonia Serbia and Montenegro Asia West Asia Cyprus Central and Eastern Europe Czech Republic Hungary Poland Russian Federation Slovakia Ukraine Unspecified Sources : Bank of Slovenia, Direct Investment, Table 29, p.63, various volumes ( Notes : Data refer to the actual aggregate number of Slovenian companies with FDI abroad at end-year. The total may not correspond to data distributed by country, as a company with possibly several investors from different countries is registered by each of these countries.

14 Table 22 : The number of affiliates of foreign TNCs in the host economy, by industry, Sector/industry TOTAL PRIMARY SECTOR Agriculture, hunting, forestry and fishing SECONDARY SECTOR Food, beverages and tobacco Food products and beverages Textiles, leather and clothing Textiles Clothing Leather and leather products Wood, publishing and printing Paper and paper products Unspecified wood and wood products Publishing, printing and reproduction of recorded media Chemicals and chemical products Rubber and plastics products Non-metallic mineral products Metal and metal products Basic metals Fabricated metal products Machinery and equipment Electrical and electronic equipment Office, accounting and computing machinery Electrical machinery and apparatus Radio, television and communication apparatus Precision instruments Motor vehicles Motor vehicles, trailers and semi-trailers Other transport equipment Other manufacturing TERTIARY SECTOR Electricity, gas and water Construction Trade Automotive trade and repairs Wholesale trade Distributive trade Hotels and restaurants Transports, storage and communications Land transport including pipelines Water transport Air Transport Supporting and auxilary transport activities Post and communications Finance Financial intermediation Activities auxiliary to financial intermediation Business activities Real estate Rental activities Computer and related activities Research and development Other business activities Education Health and social services Community, social and personal service activities Sewage and waste disposal, sanitation activities Recreational, cultural and sporting activities Other services Unspecified Sources : Agency for Payments, through the Bank of Slovania, Direct Investment, Table 46, p.84 ( various volumes. Note: Data refer to FDI enterprises at end-year and do not include those in activities with less than three companies.

15 Table 23 : The number of affiliates of foreign TNCs in the host economy, by geographical origin, Region/economy Total world Developed countries Western Europe European Union Austria Belgium Luxembourg Denmark France Germany Ireland Italy Netherlands Sweden United Kingdom Other Western Europe Liechtenstein Switzerland North America Canada United States Other Developed Countries Australia Japan Developing countries /economies Developing Europe Bosnia and Herzegovina Croatia TFYR Macedonia Serbia and Montenegro Asia West Asia Cyprus South, East and South-East Asia China Hong Kong, China Malaysia Singapore Central and Eastern Europe Czech Republic Hungary Russian Federation Ukraine Unspecified Sources : Bank of Slovenia, Direct Investment, Table 9, p.41, various volumes ( Notes : Data refer to the actual aggregate number of Slovenian companies with FDI at end-year. The totals may not correspond to data distributed by industry (table 22), as a company with possible several investors from different countries is registered by each of these countries.

16 Table 29 : Assets of affiliates of foreign TNCs in the host economy, by industry, (Billions of tolar) Sector/industry TOTAL PRIMARY SECTOR Agriculture, hunting, forestry and fishing SECONDARY SECTOR Food, beverages and tobacco Food products and beverages Textiles, leather and clothing Textiles Clothing Leather and leather products Wood, publishing and printing Paper and paper products Unspecified wood and wood products Publishing, printing and reproduction of recorded media Chemicals and chemical products Rubber and plastics products Non-metallic mineral products Metal and metal products Basic metals Fabricated metal products Machinery and equipment Electrical and electronic equipment Office, accounting and computing machinery Electrical machinery and apparatus Radio, television and communication apparatus Precision instruments Motor vehicles Motor vehicles, trailers and semi-trailers Other transport equipment Other manufacturing TERTIARY SECTOR Electricity, gas and water Construction Trade Automotive trade and repairs Wholesale trade Distributive trade Hotels and restaurants Transports, storage and communications Land transport including pipelines Water transport Air transport Supporting and auxilary transport activities Post and communications Finance Financial intermediation Activities auxiliary to financial intermediation Business activities Real estate Rental activities Computer and related activities Research and development Other business activities Education Health and social services Community, social and personal service activities Sewage and waste disposal, sanitation activities Recreational, cultural and sporting activities Others services Unspecified Sources : Agency for Payments, through the Bank of Slovania, Direct Investment, Table 46, p.84 ( various volumes. Note: Data refer to FDI enterprises at end-year and do not include those in activities with less than three companies.

17 Table 34 : Employment of affiliates of foreign TNCs in the host economy, by industry, Sector/industry TOTAL PRIMARY SECTOR Agriculture, hunting, forestry and fishing SECONDARY SECTOR Food, beverages and tobacco Food products and beverages Textiles, leather and clothing Textiles Clothing Leather and leather products Wood, publishing and printing Paper and paper products Unspecified wood and wood products Publishing, printing and reproduction of recorded media Chemicals and chemical products Rubber and plastics products Non-metallic mineral products Metal and metal products Basic metals Fabricated metal products Machinery and equipment Electrical and electronic equipment Office, accounting and computing machinery Electrical machinery and apparatus Radio, television and communication apparatus Precision instruments Motor vehicles Motor vehicles, trailers and semi-trailers Other transport equipment Other manufacturing TERTIARY SECTOR Electricity, gas and water Construction Trade Automotive trade and repairs Wholesale trade Distributive trade Hotels and restaurants Transports, storage and communications Land transport including pipelines Water transport Air Transport Supporting and auxilary transport activities Post and communications Finance Financial intermediation Activities auxiliary to financial intermediation Business activities Real estate Rental activities Computer and related activities Research and development Other business activities Education Health and social services Community, social and personal service activities Sewage and waste disposal, sanitation activities Recreational, cultural and sporting activities Other services Unspecified Sources : Agency for Payments, through the Bank of Slovania, Direct Investment, Table 46, p.84 ( various volumes. Note: Data refer to FDI enterprises at end-year and do not include those in activities with less than three companies.

18 Table 44 : Sales of affiliates of foreign TNCs in the host economy, by industry, (Billions of tolar) Sector/industry TOTAL PRIMARY SECTOR Agriculture, hunting, forestry and fishing SECONDARY SECTOR Food, beverages and tobacco Food products and beverages Textiles, leather and clothing Textiles Clothing Leather and leather products Wood, publishing and printing Paper and paper products Unspecified wood and wood products Publishing, printing and reproduction of recorded media Chemicals and chemical products Rubber and plastics products Non-metallic mineral products Metal and metal products Basic metals Fabricated metal products Machinery and equipment Electrical and electronic equipment Office, accounting and computing machinery Electrical machinery and apparatus Radio, television and communication apparatus Precision instruments Motor vehicles Motor vehicles, trailers and semi-trailers Other transport equipment Other manufacturing TERTIARY SECTOR Electricity, gas and water Construction Trade Automotive trade and repairs Wholesale trade Distributive trade Hotels and restaurants Transports, storage and communications Land transport including pipelines Water transport Air Transport Supporting and auxilary transport activities Post and communications Finance Financial intermediation Activities auxiliary to financial intermediation Business activities Real estate Rental activities Computer and related activities Research and development Other business activities Education Health and social services Community, social and personal service activities Sewage and waste disposal, sanitation activities Recreational, cultural and sporting activities Other services Unspecified Sources : Agency for Payments, through the Bank of Slovania, Direct Investment, Table 46, p.84 ( various volumes. Note: Data refer to FDI enterprises at end-year and do not include those in activities with less than three companies.

19 Table 54 : Profits of affiliates of foreign TNCs in the host economy, by industry, (Millions of tolar) Sector/industry TOTAL PRIMARY SECTOR Agriculture, hunting, forestry and fishing SECONDARY SECTOR Food, beverages and tobacco Food products and beverages Textiles, leather and clothing Textiles Clothing Leather and leather products Wood, publishing and printing Paper and paper products Unspecified wood and wood products Publishing, printing and reproduction of recorded media Chemicals and chemical products Rubber and plastics products Non-metallic mineral products Metal and metal products Basic metals Fabricated metal products Machinery and equipment Electrical and electronic equipment Office, accounting and computing machinery Electrical machinery and apparatus Radio, television and communication apparatus Precision instruments Motor vehicles Motor vehicles, trailers and semi-trailers Other transport equipment Other manufacturing TERTIARY SECTOR Electricity, gas and water Construction Trade Automotive trade and repairs Wholesale trade Distributive trade Hotels and restaurants Transports, storage and communications Land transport including pipelines Water transport Air Transport Supporting and auxilary transport activities Post and communications Finance Financial intermediation Activities auxiliary to financial intermediation Business activities Real estate Rental activities Computer and related activities Research and development Other business activities Education Health and social services Community, social and personal service activities Sewage and waste disposal, sanitation activities Recreational, cultural and sporting activities Other services Unspecified Sources : Agency for Payments, through the Bank of Slovania, Direct Investment, Table 46, p.84 ( various volumes. Notes : Data reflect net profits which are equal to operating profits less operating losses. They refer to FDI enterprises at end-year and do not include those activities with less than three companies.

20 Table 59 : Exports of affiliates of foreign TNCs in the host economy, by industry, (Millions of tolar) Sector/industry TOTAL PRIMARY SECTOR Agriculture, hunting, forestry and fishing SECONDARY SECTOR Food, beverages and tobacco Food products and beverages Textiles, leather and clothing Textiles Clothing Leather and leather products Wood, publishing and printing Paper and paper products Unspecified wood and wood products Publishing, printing and reproduction of recorded media Chemicals and chemical products Rubber and plastics products Non-metallic mineral products Metal and metal products Basic metals Fabricated metal products Machinery and equipment Electrical and electronic equipment Office, accounting and computing machinery Electrical machinery and apparatus Radio, television and communication apparatus Precision instruments Motor vehicles Motor vehicles, trailers and semi-trailers Other transport equipment Other manufacturing TERTIARY SECTOR Electricity, gas and water Construction Trade Automotive trade and repairs Wholesale trade Distributive trade Hotels and restaurants Transports, storage and communications Land transport including pipelines Water transport Air Transport Supporting and auxilary transport activities Post and communications Finance Financial intermediation Activities auxiliary to financial intermediation Business activities Real estate Rental activities Computer and related activities Research and development Other business activities Education Health and social services Community, social and personal service activities Sewage and waste disposal, sanitation activities Recreational, cultural and sporting activities Other services Unspecified Sources : Agency for Payments, through the Bank of Slovania, Direct Investment, Table 46, p.84 ( various volumes. Note : Data refer to FDI enterprises at end-year and do not include those in activities with less than three companies.

21 Table 86 : Largest home-based TNCs, 2000 Company Industry Sales A. Industrial Cimos International DD Motor vehicles.. Fructal Food.. Gorenje Gospodinjski Aparati DD Electrical equipment.. Lek Ljubljana DD Chemicals.. Perutnina Ptuj DD Food.. Pivovarna Lasko DD Beverages.. Razvitak Furniture.. Sava DD Rubber.. Slovenske Energeticke Strojarne Akci Basics metals.. Tobacna Ljubljana DOO Tobacco.. Valkarton Logatec Paper.. B. Tertiary Era Dd Other services.. Etol DD Distributive trade.. Intereuropa DD Transport.. Kolinska DD Distributive trade.. Peko DD Distributive trade.. C. Finance and insurance Nova Ljubljanska Banka DD Banking.. Sources : Dun and Bradstreet Ltd., Who Owns Whom, CD-ROM, United Kingdom, April 2001; The Europa Yearbook 2000, Slovenia, vol.ii, 41 edition (London, Europa Publications Ltd., 2000), pp ; and Trade and Investment Promotion Office, Ljubljana, September 2001, unpublished information.

22 Company Home economy Industry Sales A. Industrial Revoz France Motor vehicles Sava Tires United States Rubber products Porsche Slovenija DOO Austria Motor vehicles a Iskratel Germany Electronic equipment VIVAP Videm krsko Czech Republic Paper products Danfoss Compressors DOO Denmark Machinery and equipment Tabacna Ljublijana DOO France/Germany Tobacco Henkel Slovenija DOO Austria Chemical products Papirnica Vevce DD Austria Paper products Kolicevo Karton DOO Austria Paper products Droga United Kingdom Food ETA Cerkno Switzerland Electrical equipment Johnson Controls NTU DOO United States Automotive components Kolektor DOO United States Electrical equipment a BSH Hisni Aparati DOO Germany Electrical equipment Elektronabava DD France Electrical equipment a Alpos Czech Republic Basic metals Goodyear Engineered Products Europe United States Rubber products Aquasava DOO Italy Textiles a Tovarna Sladkorja DD Italy/Netherlands Food Hermes Softlab Italy Electronic equipment Kemiplas DOO Germany Chemicals Pfleiderer Novoterm Germany Chemical products Bayer Pharma DOO Germany Chemicals Elektrokovina Svetike Germany Electrical equipment Treibacher Schleifmittel DOO Austria Metal products Danfoss Trata DD Denmark Machinery and equipment Coca Cola Beverages Slovenija DD United States Beverages a IBM Slovenija United States Electronic equipment Alusuisse Tomos Switzerland Automotive components Carrera Optyl DOO Italy Precision instruments a Tespack DOO Austria Paper products a Henkel Ecolab Austria Chemical products B.Tertiary Spar Slovenija DOO Austria Distributive trade a Inexa Store DOO Sweden Distributive trade Interina DOO Croatia Distributive trade a Podravka DOO Croatia Distributive trade a Messer Slovenija DOO Germany Gas Simobil Austria Telecommunications.. C. Finance and Insurance Bank Austria Ljubljana DD Austria Banking.. Banka Creditanstalt DD Austria Banking.. Banka Societe Generale Ljubljana DD France Banking.. Sources : Dun and Bradstreet Ltd., Who Owns Whom, CD-ROM, United Kingdom, April 2001; The Europa Yearbook 2000, Slovenia, vol.ii, 41 edition (London, Europa Publications Ltd., 2000), pp ; and Trade and Investment Promotion Office, Ljubljana, September 2001, unpublished information. Note : "a" data refer to Table 88 : Largest affiliates of foreign TNCs in the host economy, 2000 (Millions of tolar)

23 C. Legal framework for FDI 1. National policy framework Slovenia views FDI as an important source of capital, modern technology and "best practices". Consequently, it is increasingly improving the climate for foreign investors. Slovenia accords foreign investors national treatment in many respects and has attractive tax features. Investment framework comprises mainly the foreign investment act, the law on commercial companies, banking law, and the foreign exchange act. As of December 2002, the main features of the national FDI regime included the following: Admission and establishment: Foreign investors may freely engage in all business activities except for a military industry, compulsory pension insurance, and gaming. Foreign investors need concessions for the exploitation of renewable and non-renewable natural and public goods. Investment may be made through the establishment of a new company, making investment into or total acquisition of a Slovenian company. Takeover through a 100 per cent purchase requires registration. Registration gives a foreign company the status of a Slovenian legal entity and hence national treatment and eligibility to membership of the Ljubljana Stock Exchange. Foreign investors may invest into a Slovenian bank with out approval from the government. However, all investors are required to report their investment. There are no entry barriers. Investment may take a form of limited, general, and silent partnerships; joint stock companies, limited liability companies, and partnerships limited by shares and economic interest groups. A foreign investor may through a contractual joint venture participate in the management of a company. Foreign banks may freely establish branch offices in the country. Foreign companies enjoy full national treatment. Ownership and control: Foreign individuals and entities may own companies wholly or partially. Wholly foreign-owned companies are not permitted to operate businesses in the fields of military supply and insurance. The business of re-insurance is closed to insurance companies with majority foreign-ownership. Foreign participation may not exceed 49 per cent in auditing companies, 33 per cent in publishing and broadcasting, and 20 per cent in investment companies dealing with the management of investment funds. Foreign-owned companies are entitled to own property. Non-EU individuals are not allowed to own land. Operational conditions: No performance requirements are imposed as a condition for establishing, maintaining or expanding an investment. Visas are required for management positions and working visas are required for general staff positions. Foreign exchange controls: Foreign investors may freely transfer their profits abroad in foreign currency, once their tax obligations are met. Current account convertibility is fully guaranteed. Repatriation of dividends, shares in a domestic company, and capital upon liquidation is permitted. Incentives: Generally, no express incentives are offered specific to foreign investors. Foreign investors may however negotiate directly with the government for support for their major investment projects. Grants and support schemes including training incentives and regional selective assistance may be negotiated with local authorities. Corporate income tax imposed at a rate of 25 per cent, and may be reduced through various kinds of allowances. Corporate income tax is reduced to 10 per cent for investments in economic zones in Koper and Maribor. Foreign investors are offered financial grants for creating at least 100 new jobs in three years' time, 50 new jobs in less developed parts of the country or 20 jobs in the field of research and development.