New Cooperative Law

Newsletter 89

New law allows cooperatives to perform all activities and prescribes registration of cooperative ownership.

As of January next year, cooperatives and cooperative societies will be able to perform not only the current activities (typical of farmers’, agricultural, housing, student & youth cooperatives), but also all other activities not prohibited by the law.

What actions should be undertaken by the owners of cooperatives and cooperative societies by this date?

1. The existing cooperatives and cooperative societies must bring their current organisation, activities and by-laws in line with the new Law on Cooperatives by no later than 7 January 2017, and register such changes with the Business Registers Agency within 15 days of their entry into force.

If it should be established, after the above date, that an existing cooperative is not organised in line with the new Law, the Business Registers Agency will act ex officio by conducting compulsory liquidation of such cooperative and expunging it from the Register.

2. The new law provides in detail for the manner and terms for transferring the registered social ownership into the cooperative ownership. This is of great importance, due to the fact that cooperatives, as holders of rights to the assets registered as social or public ownership, may not dispose of such assets until registration of cooperative ownership.