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Executive Report on Strategies in Slovakia
ICON Group International, June 2007, Pages: 386
How to Strategically Evaluate Slovakia
Perhaps the most efficient way of evaluating Slovakia is to consider key dimensions which themselves are composites of multiple factors. Composite portfolio approaches have long been used by strategic planners. The biggest challenge in this approach is to choose the appropriate factors that are the most relevant to international planning. The two measures of greatest relevance are “latent demand” and “market accessibility”. The figure below summarizes the key dimensions and recommendations of such an approach. Using these two composites, one can prioritize all countries of the world. Countries of high latent demand and high relative accessibility (e.g. easier entry for one firm compared to other firms) are given highest priority. The figure below shows two different scenarios. Accessibility is defined as a firm’s ease of entering or supplying from or to a market (the “supply side”), and latent demand is an indicator of the potential in serving from or to the market (the “demand side”).
Framework for Prioritizing Countries
Demand/Market Potential Driven Firm
Relative Accessibility
Accessibility/Supply Averse Firm
Relative Accessibility
In the top figure, the firm is driven by market potential, whereas the bottom figure represents a firm that is driven by costs or by an aversion to difficult markets. This report treats the reader as coming from a “generic firm” approaching the global market - neither a market-driven nor a cost-driven company. Planners must therefore augment this report with their own company-specific factors that might change the priorities.
Latent Demand and Accessibility in Slovakia
This report provides an extremely detailed overview of factors driving latent demand and accessibility in Slovakia. Latent demand is largely driven by economic fundamentals. But, latent demand only represents half of the picture. A country may at first sight appear to be attractive due to a high latent demand, but it is often less attractive when one considers at the macro level how easy it might be to serve that entire potential and/or general business risks.
Chapter 2 deals with macro-accessibility. While accessibility will always vary from one company to another for a given country, the following domains are typically considered when evaluating macro-accessibility in Slovakia:
Openness to Trade in Slovakia
Openness to Direct Investment in Slovakia
Local Marketing and Entry Strategy Alternatives
Local Human Resources
Local Risks
Across these domains, a number of not-so-obvious factors can affect accessibility and risk. These are also covered in Chapter 2, which is presented from the perspective of an American firm, though it is equally applicable to most firms entering Slovakia. This chapter has been authored by local offices of the U.S. Government. I have included a number of edits to clarify the provided information as it relates to the general strategic framework.
In Chapter 3, I summarize the economic potential for Slovakia over the next five years for hundreds of industries, categories, and products. The goal of this chapter is to report my findings on the real economic potential, or latent demand, represented by Slovakia when defined as an area of dominant influence. The data presented are the result of various spatial econometric and time-series forecasting models which, for each category presented, are applied to forecast and allocate latent demand across all countries of the world and major distribution centers or centers of dominant influence within each country. This is accomplished knowing that economic fundamentals (e.g. income) generally vary from one country to another within a given country over time. In this chapter, I report the allocation for each category for Slovakia as an area of dominant influence in Europe and, potentially, the world.
The report concludes with trade indicators for Slovakia. Often, the amount of trade flowing into and out of a country is a strong indicator of trading partners, trade openness, and related latent demand. Trade indicators are purely statistical in nature. Although international trade is not a direct measure of latent demand, it does provide an indicator of general market conditions with respect to trade flows and trade openness in Slovakia.
As a whole, this report presents a strategic assessment of Slovakia by considering an extremely broad set of factors affecting both latent demand and accessibility, as outlined in the following chapters.
MACRO-ACCESSIBILITY IN SLOVAKIA
Economic Fundamentals and Dynamics
Privatization
Privatization has helped strengthen the Slovak economy and the once troubled banking sector is now almost entirely under private (and foreign) control. In addition, numerous large utilities have been privatized since 2000 bringing much needed FDI to the country.
In 1999, parliament established a new law privatizing previously restricted strategic companies. Under the new law, forests, water supplies, postal services, high-voltage transmission systems and dispatching centers, and railways still cannot be privatized, and the state must retain a 51 percent stake in the gas company, electric company, oil pipeline operator and three power distribution companies. However, the law did not put any ceilings on privatizing banks, insurance companies, spas, and telecom.
POLITICAL Risks
Politics and the Business Environment
Corruption remains a significant problem. Questions have been raised about numerous tenders for government contracts, and allegations of corruption in the judiciary are common. Slovakia has ratified the OECD anti-bribery convention, but still needs to ensure effective enforcement of the law. The government has begun to enforce a more ambitious anti-corruption program--prosecutions for corruption are more common and many corrupt police officers have been fired-- but much needs to be done.
The Political System
Slovakia is a parliamentary democracy with 150 seats in the legislature. The Prime Minister is the head of government and serves a four-year term. The President, who serves as head of state for a five-year term, has few executive powers, but is commander-in-chief of the armed forces, can grant pardons, and nominate judges to the Constitutional Court. The President also has the right to return legislation to Parliament, but the legislature can override a veto with an absolute simple majority vote.
Marketing Strategies
Distribution Channel Options
Initially, Slovakia privatized 98 percent of their retail outlets consisting mainly of small and medium sized family owned businesses that included grocery stores, clothing stores, flower shops, music shops, and bookstores. The Slovakian retail sector has evolved from single product wholesale outlets to distribution networks of retail and wholesale businesses as well as manufacturing plants.
Bratislava is located in the Western most part of Slovakia, and benefits from the advantage of being the largest metropolitan population making it the most important retail market with the best developed distribution networks. The cities of Kosice, Trnava, Trencin, Zilina, Poprad, and Nitra are the manufacturing areas in Slovakia.
The trend in Western-style retailing which offers a wide variety of products, influenced the British company, Tesco, to take over the Slovakian operations of U.S. retailer K-mart, making Tesco the largest retailer in Slovakia. Tesco’s market share grew by 4 percent in one year. The French company Carrefour and the Austrian supermarket chain Billa are also expanding throughout Slovakia. Other foreign retail chains in Slovakia include Baumax, Drogerie Markt, Delvita, Kaufland, Metro, and IKEA the only significant furniture retail chain in Slovakia. The main Slovak retailers are Rema 1000 and Terno.
The expansion of large retail chains caused smaller businesses to consolidate or liquidate, laying the ground work for franchising, although most potential franchisees will need financial assistance.
Agents and Distributors
The Slovak Commercial Code closely follows the EU legislation and recognizes agents, commission merchants, and brokers not bound by contract.
There are a wide variety of import/export companies in Slovakia competing for business in a turbulent business environment. Slovakia’s foreign trade companies are large organizations with business savvy, capital resources, and experienced personnel and are able to locate representatives and foreign business through in newspapers.
When choosing an agent/partner, consider the advantages of the larger, well-established company compared to a smaller company lacking capital resources, although all decisions should be based on individual situations.
Franchising Activities
Franchising in Slovakia is growing and includes hotels, fast food operations, petrol stations, and business services. Slovak legislation is similar to EU legislation, but there is no Slovak legislation specific to franchising. Franchising agreements are treated as commercial contracts and regulated by the commercial code. U.S. franchises in Slovakia are still limited but already include McDonalds, TGI Fridays and Pizza Hut. This is a good time to enter the market, but franchisers should be prepared to offer creative financial options as some of Slovakia’s most promising entrepreneur’s financial resources are limited at this time due to the country’s development.
Direct Marketing Options
Current direct marketing firms include Amway, Avon, Quelle, Herbalife, Oriflame, Lander, Mary Kay, and Yves Rocher.
Joint Ventures and Licensing Options
The Slovak Commercial Code permits joint ventures and licensing. However, licensing is less common than in Western European countries.
Establishing an Office
Branch offices, joint-stock companies, limited liability companies (LLC), limited or unlimited partnerships, cooperatives, silent partnerships, and associations are all allowed under the Slovak Commercial Code. All companies must register their names with the Slovak Commercial Register.
The following procedures and documents are required for company registration:
Lease contract for premises,
Approval of the office/company’s location by local authorities,
Slovak bank account,
Trade authorization from the local trade authority,
Satisfaction of minimum capital requirements is required for offices headed by foreign nationals, and a long-term residence permit is required.
The most common option for foreign companies is the limited liability company (LLC) because it is the simplest to establish, and permits 100 percent foreign ownership and allows full repatriation of after-tax profits.
To form an LLC in Slovakia follow these rules:
Between 1 and 50 shareholders may form a limited liability company, and the total basic capital must be at least 200,000 SK ($5,460) with a minimum participant deposit of 30,000 SK ($820) each.
A supervisory board is not required, but may be established.
An official appraiser must value non-monetary contributions, and for certain contributions, two appraisers are required.
At least 30 percent of each partner’s deposit and all non-monetary contributions must be paid up before the company may be entered in the Commercial Register, with the total value of these deposits amounting to at least 100,000 SK ($2,730).
If the company is founded by a single entity, the foundation capital must be paid-up in full.
The process of handling an application for entry in the Commercial Register (www.orsr.sk) takes approximately 90 days.
Selling Strategies
Slovak law permits Sunday shopping and round-the-clock shopping but most stores keep retail hours of 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. weekdays and 9:00 a.m. to noon on Saturday and are closed on Sunday.
Slovakia’s disposable income is lower than Western European countries making price a key competitive factor. Slovaks prefer domestic products, especially in grocery stores if there is a price advantage. The importance and awareness of quality is gradually catching on with Slovak consumers as more foreign brand names begin to appear and more new products are launched.
The Slovak retailer understands the benefits of promotion techniques used by U.S. retailers and Western European standards, especially in large metropolitan areas, such as Bratislava and larger towns. Consumer campaigns with special offers and discounts are more common in chain stores and customer protection associations and funds are being established but the Western idea of utilizing promotion techniques such as coupons and small gifts are not regulated by law.
However, the Ministry of Finance does regulate consumer lotteries of Slovak and foreign firms who conduct consumer lotteries with no capital restrictions.
The following requirements apply to hold a lottery:
Company registration in the Slovak Commercial Register
There is no tax on a consumer lottery below SK 300,000 ($8,197) annually (per company) but any amount over this amount is taxed at 20 percent.
Advertising and Trade Promotion
Many companies, both Slovak and foreign, specialize in advertising and vary considerably in quality. The newspaper, radio, and television are the most common means of advertising. Private radio stations offer advertising in all metropolitan areas and billboards are used in cities and along main highways.
Major Newspapers and Business Journals
Narodna Obroda
Tel: +421 2 4825 6402
Fax: +421 2 4825 6280,
E-mail: inzercia@narodnaobroda.sk
Pravda
Tel: +421 2 5292 3760
Fax: +421 2 5063 4798,
E-mail: pravda@pravda.sk
SME
Tel: +421 2 5923 3240
Fax: +421 2 5923 3295,
E-mail: redakcia@sme.sk
Hospodarske Noviny
Tel: +421 2 5296 2938
Fax: +421 2 5063 4666
E-mail: inzercia@hnonline.sk
Trend
Tel: +421 2 5922 1489
Fax: +421 2 4333 1336,
E-mail: inzercia@trend.sk
Profit
Tel: + 421 2 5922 1642
Fax: +421 2 5063 4586
E-mail: profini@profini.sk
The only English language newspaper is the Slovak Spectator (tel.: +421 2 5778 9111, fax: +421 2 5778 9130, email: slspect@gpp.sk). There are two state-owned television stations and two privately owned television stations
Posters and billboards are commonly used to advertise in Slovakia, and are found in post offices, telephone booths, public transportation, outdoor pillars, and along public routes. Again, there is minimal formal consumer protection, and local companies are advised to use ethical principles and advertising strategies or run the risk of a backlash from Slovak consumers who have been well informed about unethical advertising.
Pricing Issues
Since the average per-capita monthly income in Slovakia is $529.00, price remains a key factor for consumers. Slovakian retail prices remain in the low to medium range due to the monthly income, and as wages increase so will retailer prices. There is an obvious gap between prices in urban areas versus rural areas and various depending on products and services.
Most food prices remain well below Western levels. In large cities, prices in some retail stores, especially for imported goods, may exceed those in the United States or Western Europe. Price liberalization began in 1991, and is defined by Act No. 526/1990 Coll.
Supplying Customer Service
All foreign and domestic entities must provide after-sale services, especially for technical products. There is currently no law requiring a company (registered in Slovakia) to provide this service itself, but it must be able to arrange service for the customer either within Slovakia or abroad.
Public Sector Marketing
Slovakia (as a successor to Czechoslovakia) is a founding member of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) and an original signatory to the World Trade Organization (WTO).
Intellectual Property Risks
Slovakia is a successor to conventions signed by the former Czechoslovakia, e.g., the Bern, Paris, Stockholm, Madrid, Nice, Lisbon, Locarno, Washington, Strasbourg, and Budapest conventions. Slovak laws and regulations remain broadly similar to those inherited from Czechoslovakia and are compatible with Western European legislation. Slovakia is a member of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). Nevertheless, U.S. pharmaceutical companies have complained about patent infringement in Slovakia.
Hiring Local Counsel
A number of law firms in Slovakia conduct business in English as well as being familiar with U.S. laws, and a few U.S. firms have opened offices in Slovakia. More detailed information can be obtained from the American Chamber of Commerce (421 2 59 34 05 08, E-mail: director @amcham.sk) and/or the Slovak Chamber of Advocates (address: Kolarska 4, 813 42 Bratislava; tel.: +421 2 52961532, fax: 52961554, E-mail: sak@sak.sk).
Import and Export Regulation Risks
Trade Barrier Risks
Foreign goods imported into Slovakia are subject to customs inspection and imposition of customs duty, taxes and import charges. Import duties (as well as the import surcharge, excise duty and value added tax) are collected by customs offices (www.colnasprava.sk) after submission of a customs declaration for release of these goods into the free circulation regime. All import charges are due within 10 days from notification by the customs authority.
Tariff Rates
The Customs Act distinguishes three types of customs duties, which in turn influence the tariff rate used: general (autonomous), agreed (WTO members and bilateral commercial agreements), preferential (General System of Preferences or international agreements on customs union or free trade zone). The declaration of the origin of goods is the criterion for determining these customs duties.
Valuations on Imports
Slovakia is a member of the WTO and is bound by the GATT Agreement on Implementation of Article VII GATT 1994. In accordance with this article, the basis for calculating the import duty is the customs value of the goods, including transportation costs and insurance up until the point of entry. The rules appear to provide a uniform and neutral system of valuation. Under Slovak legislation, customs valuation is specified by articles 20, 21, 22 and 28 of law No.618/1992 Coll.
Value Added and Excise Taxes
The customs authorities both collect customs duties and are administrators of value added tax (VAT) for imports. The basic VAT rate is 20 percent and the decreased rate for specified goods and services is 14 percent. The import VAT is based on the total of the customs value of the goods plus customs duty plus excise duty (if applicable). As of January 1, 2004 a flat 19% VAT will be applied.
Excise duties are imposed on spirits, alcoholic beverages, hydrocarbon fuels, lubricants and tobacco products. Slovakia does not impose export duties.
Licenses for Import and Export of Goods
The licensing system is Slovakia’s primary non-tariff measure. The Ministry of Economy is authorized to issue import and export permits or licenses for sensitive goods with the objective of protecting the domestic market. The licensing procedure is governed by Regulation no. 15/1998 and amended Regulation no. 163/1999, which describes the conditions for issuing official authorization for import/export of goods and services. These regulations also include individual lists of products subject to the licensing procedures. There are four specific licensing regimes:
Natural resources may be regulated by automatic and non-automatic (obligatory) licenses. Non-automatic import licenses are required for water, black coal, brown coal, crude oil and natural gas, as well as beer. Automatic licenses are used for monitoring imports and as an early warning system of the need to introduce protection mechanisms. Export licenses are required for protected goods (e.g., raw materials, objects of historical or cultural value) and self-limited goods (such as textile goods exported to Norway, Canada and the United States, or metallurgical and agricultural products exported to the European Union) under annual quotas set by trading partners.
Extremely dangerous poisons, narcotics, psychotropic substances, precursors and additive chemical substances are subject to non-automatic licenses that may be issued upon written application of the Slovak importer/exporter of these goods. The license is not transferable.
Dual-use goods and technologies that can be used in military as well as civilian applications (Wassenaar system.)
Weapons, ammunition, explosives, etc.
Local Standards
Most products must have an approval certificate stating that they meet Slovak product standards before the product can be cleared through Customs and allowed to enter Slovakia.
The Slovak Office of Standards, Metrology and Testing (OSMT) (www.normoff.gov.sk) is the central state body in the field of technical standardization and conformity assessment.
Slovak standards legislation is regulated by the Technical Requirements for Products and Conformity Assessment Act, which closely follows EU legislation. Conformity with Slovak technical standards is voluntary, except when specifically required by this Act or other technical regulation. Conformity to Slovak technical standards is only mandatory if there is direct reference to it in technical regulation. According to the law, importers or producers are responsible to assess the conformity of their product to technical requirements.
The Act sets up 11 categories of goods, a structure matching the EU classification. Approximately 95 percent of products fall into the first three modules, A, B and C. Producers or importers can declare conformance of products in category A without pre-market testing, while other modules require pre-market testing. The Directive on Technical Products temporarily moves a number of products, such as electrical equipment, chemicals, cosmetics, textiles, toys, machines and food products from module A into modules B + C and C.
Entering Temporary Imports
Slovakia’s Commercial Code allows temporary imports full or partial exemption from import duties, depending on the product. The temporary import regime allows commercial use of foreign goods (which must remain in the ownership of the foreign entity), such as machinery and equipment, with the obligation to pay only part of the import charges proportional to the period of use in Slovakia. The customs duty is 3 percent of the import charges for each month the goods are in Slovakia, which would have been levied had the foreign goods passed into free circulation. The maximum period of temporary importation is 24 months and can be extended upon the customs broker’s request to 36 months.
Slovakia is a signatory of international customs agreements on ATA and TIR carnets, allowing for temporary import or transit of goods without the obligation to secure the customs debt and import charges in the country of transit or destination. The Slovak Chamber of Commerce and Industry is the national guarantee organization and executive body for ATA carnets. Cesmad Slovakia (Czech and Slovak Association for International Automobile Transportation) has the same responsibilities for TIR.
Re-Entry of Goods; Warranty and Non-Warranty Repairs
Slovak goods may be exported for processing or re-processing abroad, and then returned to the Slovak Republic. Upon return, duties are applied only to the value added abroad. Special conditions apply to repairs, depending on whether or not the repairs are made gratis. Warranty repairs are readmitted free of duty, while other repairs are charged duty based on the cost of the repair. Exchanges may be made free of duty provided the exchanged goods are truly equivalent.
Labeling Issues
Slovakia introduced its own system of labeling in 1995, replacing the old Czechoslovak system. Under a 1995 State Language Law, companies are required to mark contents of domestically produced or imported goods, product manuals, product guarantees, and other consumer-related information in Slovak.
Restrictions on Imports
Import of some commodities and from certain countries are subject to regulation, such as monitoring procedures, voluntary restraint agreements, import declarations and certificate of origin requirements.
Free Trade Zone Options
The Customs Act distinguishes between public and private bonded customs warehouses. Any importer observing warehouse regulations can use public customs warehouses, which are usually located near the customs office and operated by the Government or by regional organizations.
Whether public or private customs warehouses are used, all import charges must be paid before goods are released into free circulation. The period for storing goods in the warehouse is not limited by the Customs Act.
Investment Climate
Openness to Foreign Investment
The industrial park law helps municipalities develop special industrial zones through funding assistance from the Slovak government. Up to 70 percent of the cost to purchase land and to develop its infrastructure can be covered by the Slovak government. Priority is given to industrial parks in regions with high rates of unemployment. Currently, there are several well-developed industrial parks in Slovakia ready for investment. The Slovak Trade and Investment Agency (SARIO) website, at www.sario.sk, offers more information about industrial parks in Slovakia.
The strategic investors’ tax law offers a 10-year tax holiday (capped at 50 percent of the investment) for larger investors, i.e. Over USD 11.5 million, or USD 5.7 million in regions with unemployment exceeding 10 percent (which includes practically all of Slovakia, except Bratislava). In addition, it requires the creation of a new place of business, or upgrade of an existing one, and contains other restrictions on minimum financial ratios and commitments. The law provides for grants from the Slovak government for job creation and re-training. Additional benefits are available for businesses located in high-unemployment areas. The government approves provision of incentives on a case-by-case basis, and the application is subject to approval by the ministry of economy and the state aid office.
The Slovak government signaled its openness to FDI by rescinding the previous government’s law on strategic privatization, which prohibited privatization of a broad range of state-owned enterprises, including banks, monopolies in gas, power and telecommunications, an insurance company and others. The new law permits complete privatization of most of these properties and allows for 49-percent foreign ownership of the natural gas company, the electric power producer, electricity distributors, and an oil pipeline with management control to the purchasers. All these privatizations, except for the electricity production, have been completed. The state must still retain ownership of the railroad rights of way, postal services, water supplies (but not suppliers) and forestry companies.
Expropriation and Compensation
There have been no expropriation cases in Slovakia. The constitution, and both the commercial and civil codes, permit expropriation only in exceptional cases of public interest, and compensation must be provided. The law also provides for an appeal process.
Dispute Settlement
There have been no major investment disputes in Slovakia in recent years. Slovakia is a contracting state of the International Center for the Settlement of Investment Disputes (established under the 1966 Washington convention) and is a member of the 1958 New York convention on the recognition and enforcement of foreign arbitrage awards.
The Slovak legal system is comprised of 43 district courts, four regional courts, and a supreme court, all of which are under the jurisdiction of the ministry of justice. Judges are appointed initially for a term of four years and subsequently either re-appointed for life or removed from office. Once appointed for life, judges may be removed only for cause. Most criminal cases and minor civil cases are handled by district courts, while regional courts hear appeals and major criminal and civil cases. The Supreme Court in Bratislava is the court of final review except for constitutional cases, which are under the exclusive jurisdiction of the constitutional court. The function of the Slovak constitutional court is similar to that of the U.S. Supreme Court, except the president appoints judges to the constitutional court for a single term of seven years.
The legal system enforces property and contractual laws, but decisions may take years, thus limiting the utility of the courts for dispute resolution. Slovak courts recognize and enforce foreign judgments, but they are subject to the same delays. The commercial code is applied consistently; and effective bankruptcy laws exist but enforcement is erratic. Slovakia accepts binding international arbitration, and the Slovak Chamber of Commerce and Industry has a Court of Arbitration for
Alternative Dispute Resolution; nearly all cases involve disputes between Slovak and foreign parties. Slovak domestic companies generally do not make use of arbitration clauses in contracts.
Slovakia recognizes secured interests in immovable property, normally secured by physical possession of, or a conveyed title to, the property in question until the loan is repaid. There is a recognized procedure for foreclosures, which specifies how evictions are handled, debts are repaid and any remaining funds are returned to the titleholder. On January 1, 2003, Slovakia put in place one of the most advanced frameworks for registering security interests for moveable property of any country in Europe.
Performance Requirements and Incentives
Slovakia has no formal performance requirements for establishing, maintaining, or expanding foreign investments. However, requirements can be included as conditions of specific negotiations for property involved in large-scale privatization by direct sale or public auction. There are no obstacles for foreign entities to participate in Slovak government. Both financed and/or subsidized research and development programs receive equal treatment as domestic entities.
Right to Private Ownership and Establishment
Foreign and domestic private entities have the right to establish and own business enterprises and engage in all forms of remunerative activity in Slovakia. Competitive equality is the standard by which private enterprises compete with public entities. In addition, businesses are able to contract directly with foreign entities. Private enterprises are free to establish, acquire and dispose of business interests, but all Slovak obligations of liquidated companies must be paid before any remaining funds are transferred out of Slovakia. An amendment to the foreign exchange act in 2001 liberalized the rights of non-residents of the EU and OECD member countries to acquire real estate necessary for obtaining business premises.
Intellectual Property Risks
Secured interests in property and contractual rights are recognized and enforced. The mortgage market in Slovakia is growing with a reliable system for recording the loans. However, titles to real property are often unclear, and can take months to determine.
Slovak courts recognize and enforce foreign judgments, subject to the aforementioned delays, and the commercial code is applied consistently. A bankruptcy law (No. 328/1991 Coll. as amended) exists, but has not been fully effective, despite several amendments to strengthen it. There is also a conviction in business circles that corruption is a significant factor in the court system.
Protection of intellectual property rights falls under the jurisdiction of two agencies, the Industrial Property Office and the Ministry of Culture is responsible for copyrights (including software). Slovakia is a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO), the European Patent Organization and the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). Slovakia adheres to major intellectual property agreements including the Bern convention for protection of literary and artistic works, the Paris convention for protection of industrial property, and numerous other international agreements on design classification, registration of goods, appellations of origin, patents, etc. In general, patents, copyrights, trademarks and service marks, trade secrets, and semiconductor chip design appear adequately protected under Slovak law and practice.
At present, patent protection is not adequate. The WTO trips agreement is legally in force in Slovakia, but there have been no cases brought to test actual enforcement.
Transparency of the Regulatory System
In genera
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