Competition Law in Kosovo: Problems and Challenges

Competition Law is an important aspect of free market economy. It determines the functioning of the economic system based on the free market principles of supply and demand. Competition law is in the initial stage of its implementation in the Republic of Kosovo. Its development began in 2004 with the adoption of Kosovo’s Law on Competition, the country’s very first law passed to regulate the legal basis of free market competition. The Law on Competition of 2004 had many shortcomings both with respect to its content and implementation. New legislation was thus passed in 2010 under the name the Law on the Protection of Competition. The latter act is in force now along with an Amendment that entered into force in early 2014. Taken in its entirety, Kosovo’s competition law meets the standards and is in accordance with EU legislation. Kosovo, although it is only in the initial stage of its contractual relations with the EU, has aligned most of its laws with the requirements of EU legislation. Kosovo is Europe’s youngest country and as such, it has various problems when it comes to the functioning of the rule of law. This paper will discuss several topics related to the development of competition law in Kosovo including: the political, legal and economical situation in the field of competition law; the legal bases for the protection of competition in Kosovo; the Kosovo Competition Authority and the insufficiency in its capacities to combat competition law infringements; legal provisions on restrictive practices and merger control. The paper also includes comprehensive conclusions. A number of competition cases deal with by the Kosovo Competition Authority will be mentioned throughout the paper