North Macedonia’s new government has sparked a wave of legal and regulatory changes, with renewed competition enforcement while updates in consumer protection, energy, construction, and copyright raise new questions, according to Law Office Pepeljugoski Partner Ana Pepeljugoska.
“North Macedonia has recently elected a new government, and following their election, several legislative reforms and new initiatives have been introduced,” Pepeljugoska notes. “One area worth highlighting is competition law. The newly appointed Competition Commission has become noticeably more active. In just the past few months, it has opened several new cases and is now closing those that had been pending since as far back as 2023.” While there haven’t been any major legislative changes, she says that “enforcement efforts have intensified.”
“The Commission is currently focused on monitoring price margins in the FMCG sector, following government decisions to cap them as a way to protect consumers,” Pepeljugoska adds. “They also started enforcing the Law on Unfair Trading Practices. In parallel, there are ongoing investigations in the energy and insurance sectors. This is a welcome shift after years of relative inactivity, and the hope is that this new Commission will continue building momentum.”
Additionally, Pepeljugoska highlights the Consumer Protection Law, “which now requires retailers to clearly display product prices, including any increases, discounts, or promotions. This was introduced to curb price manipulation, where sellers would artificially raise prices just before a sale. Unsurprisingly, traders haven’t been too happy with this requirement.” For example, she says, “supermarket chains with 6,000 to 7,000 products now have to regularly update all of those listings, which is quite a task.”
Pepeljugoska also highlights the changes in construction law. “Previously, neighbors could file complaints when nearby construction sites were causing issues, like not disposing of garbage properly, working outside permitted hours, or blocking access roads,” she says, noting that this right has now been revoked in the latest legal amendments.
“In addition, there are announcements suggesting upcoming reforms in the oil and oil derivatives sector, as well as other significant legislative updates that still need to go through the assembly,” Pepeljugoska adds. “Energy law is also being revised. Previously, it was quite vague and fell under the Ministry of Economy, but now a separate ministry has been established to handle energy specifically. We expect further changes to the energy law to make it more precise and aligned with broader policy goals.”
On the IP front, Pepeljugoska emphasizes that a proposed amendment to the copyright law has stirred debate. “It introduces a definition of journalists’ copyright, but it’s vague and controversial. The Ministry of Culture officials expressed concern about its clarity and scope, particularly because it is an isolated change which will also require amendments of several other laws where journalists' works are tackled,” she explains. “Is it also unclear without the appropriate changes and adjustments in the legislation for electronic communications and audio and audiovisual media services, whether online news aggregators fall under the definition of media, and how and if this amendment in the copyright law would apply to them.”
Lastly, Pepeljugoska reports that, unfortunately, “the national strategy for intellectual property still hasn’t been adopted, even though it was once considered a top priority. For now, it’s been put on hold. While many people working in IP, including government officials, are well aware of this gap, the national focus has shifted more toward consumer issues, inflation, and pricing. That said, there is a hope the focus will come back to IP eventually.”
