10
Jan
2024
Legal overview
Banking and financial law
Companies and taxation
Criminal law
International and European law
IT and communication law
Personal data
Public law
2024
Legal overview
Banking and financial law — Companies and taxation — Criminal law — International and European law — IT and communication law — Personal data — Public law
Monthly Legal Overview (December 2023)
Our warmest wishes for 2024!
For us, being at your side means not only advising and defending you, but also keeping you informed about the latest legislative and regulatory developments in the Principality of Monaco that could have an impact on your business or your personal life.
Summary of legal news in Monaco at the end of 2023:
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1. Legislation
◾CRIMINAL•INTERNATIONAL
Law no. 1.553 of 7 December 2023 adapting legislative provisions to combat money laundering, the financing of terrorism and of the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction (Part III)
Law no. 1.553 (JDM no. 8673 of 15 December 2023) is the "Justice, criminal law and criminal procedure" part of the overall legislative reform following the MONEYVAL Committee Report, which recommended making the Monegasque system more effective in terms of investigations and prosecutions - powers of the authorities, confiscation and provisional measures - mutual legal assistance and extradition procedures.
Law no. 1.555 of 14 December 2023 on compensation for victims of sexual offences, crimes against children, domestic violence and other offences against the person
Law no. 1.555 (JDM no. 8675 of 29 December 2023) introduced a system for the compensation of victims by the State of Monaco in order to offset the insolvency of the perpetrators of crimes and offences against the person, acts of terrorism and trafficking in human beings. This compensation may be paid in respect of sentences that become enforceable on or after 30 December 2023.
◾SOCIAL
Law no. 1.552 of 7 December 2023 amending Law no. 1.309 of 29 May 2006 on paternity leave granted to employees
Law no. 1.552 (JDM no. 8673 of 15 December 2023) extended the statutory period of paternity leave for private-law employees to 21 consecutive calendar days in the event of a single birth (compared with 12 days previously), and to 28 consecutive calendar days in the event of multiple births or if the household already has at least 2 dependent children (compared with 19 days previously).
◾PUBLIC
Law no. 1.554 of 14 December 2023 on informing the National Council prior to the disposal of a property requiring its withdrawal from the public domain
Law no. 1.554 (JDM no. 8675 of 29 December 2023) provides for the National Council to be informed in advance of the elements, circumstances and conditions of any project to dispose of a property that has been decommissioned from the public domain (returned to the private domain) of the State or the Commune, in order to better understand its real impact and safeguard the State's financial interests over time, with better consideration of the commercial developments of the operation (i.a. for large-scale property projects).
◾REGULATED PROFESSION
Law no. 1.556 of 14 December 2023 on the practice of veterinary medicine and surgery
Law no. 1.556 (JDM no. 8675 of 29 December 2023) fills a legal vacuum by specifically organising and regulating the profession of veterinary surgeon, including in terms of professional ethics (conditions and rules of practice, administrative and criminal penalties), without however establishing a professional order (at the time the law was passed, four veterinary surgeons were practising in Monaco).
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2. Regulatory and international texts
◾TAX•INTERNATIONAL
Tourist contribution since 1 January 2024
As a reminder, the tourist contribution was introduced with effect from 1 January 2024 by Law n° 1.548 of 6 July 2023 containing various tax provisions. Sovereign Order no. 10.280 of 20 December 2023 and Ministerial Order no. 2023-754 of 20 December 2023 (JDM no. 8674 of 22 December 2023) set out the conditions of application and the amount (depending on the hotel or hotel residence: €5, €10, €13 or €14 per person per night of stay).
Automatic exchange of information (financial accounts): jurisdictions subject to declaration from 1 January 2024
Ministerial Order no. 2023-776 of 26 December 2023 (JDM no. 8675 of 29 December 2023) sets out the list of jurisdictions "subject to declaration" and "partners" from 1 January 2024 for the automatic exchange of information (AEI) relating to financial accounts, in accordance with the Common Reporting Standard (CRS). New jurisdictions are subject to declaration in Monaco: Antigua and Barbuda, Aruba, Ghana, Cook Islands, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Maldives, Pakistan, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Thailand and Turkey.
Convention between the Principality of Monaco and the Principality of Andorra for the elimination of double taxation with respect to taxes on income and on capital and for the prevention of fiscal evasion and avoidance
Sovereign Order no. 10.256 of 7 December 2023 (JDM no. 8673 of 15 December 2023) brought into force the bilateral tax treaty with the Principality of Andorra signed on 1 December 2022. Based on the OECD Model Tax Convention on Income and on Capital, the Convention applies from 1 January 2024 to residents of one or both of the Contracting States, and contains an exchange of information clause.
Read the Convention (French)
◾SOCIAL•PUBLIC
"Caisse Monégasque de Retraite Complémentaire" (CMRC): implementing regulations
The implementing regulations (four Sovereign Orders and three Ministerial Decrees) (JDM no. 8673 of 15 December 2023) set out the Internal Regulations and the rules applicable to the financial and accounting operations of the CMRC (established by Law no. 1. 544 of 20 April 2023 with effect from 1 January 2024), the persons excluded from its scope of application, the reimbursement of contributions generating entitlement for persons who do not meet the conditions for entitlement to a CMRC supplementary retirement pension, early supplementary retirement with concurrent employment.
◾JUDICIAL
Management of seized or confiscated assets: regulatory texts
Sovereign Order no. 10.245 of 7 December 2023 (JDM no. 8673 of 15 December 2023) sets out the organisation and tasks (conservation, disposal, destruction, etc.) of the "Service de gestion des avoirs saisis ou confisqués" (created by Law no. 1.535 of 9 December 2022) which is placed under the authority of the Secretary of State for Justice, Director of Judicial Services.
◾PUBLIC
"Commission Technique d'Hygiène, de Sécurité et de Protection de l'Environnement" : nouvelles attributions
Sovereign Order no. 10.198 of 21 November 2023 (JDM no. 8671 of 1 December 2023) clarified and supplemented the powers: of the "Technical Committee for Health, Safety and Environmental Protection":compulsory powers, other areas of referral, consultation of administrative departments or experts, minutes following on-site visits, power to issue formal notice and recommendations.
◾FINANCIAL
Unit trusts / common funds and investment funds: amendment of the regulations
Sovereign Order no. 10.281 of 20 December 2023 (JDM no. 8674 of 22 December 2023) amended the regulatory provisions concerning accounting and financial rules, and special rules for real estate investment funds.
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3. Parliamentary work
◾SPORTS LAW
Government Bill no. 1088 on sport
Bill no. 1088, which was received by the Parliament on 19 December 2023, establishes a general legal regime for the organisation and administration of sport in Monaco, taking into account the overlap with the French system and the Principality's specific geographical and demographic characteristics: public and private institutional players, elite sport, athletes' health, safety and integrity of sporting activities, sports education, commercial exploitation of sporting events, sports agents, etc.
◾PUBLIC•AI•DATA PROTECTION
Government Bill no. 1087 on the use of remote biometric identification to safeguard national security
Bill no. 1087, which was received by the Parliament on 19 December 2023, establishes a legal framework for the use of remote biometric identification technology by the "Direction de la Sûreté Publique" (Public Security) to automate certain tasks in order to locate wanted persons on an alert list. The planned system will be subject to ordinary personal data protection law, which is currently being reformed.
◾COMPANY•COMMERCIAL
The Government interrupts the legislative procedure for parliamentary draft laws no. 256 and no. 257
On 19 December 2023, the Government decided to interrupt the legislative procedure for draft laws no. 256 and no. 257 (adopted by the Parliament on 15 June 2023) creating two new types of commercial company, the "Société Unipersonnelle à Responsabilité Limitée" (SURL) and the" Société d'Innovation Monégasque par Actions" (SIMA) respectively. However, certain provisions could be incorporated into a broader text aimed at modernising company law, which is currently being drafted.
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