State support of investment activities in Belarus

The state supports investment activities with the view to attract investments in the economy of the Republic of Belarus.

The state support of investment activities is offered in the the following forms:
- Sovereign guarantees of the Republic of Belarus;
- Centralized investment resources.

The state may employ other types of support of investment activities, and establish additional guarantees for investors.

The type, scope and duration of government support provided to organizations implementing new and advanced technologies shall be determined on a case-by-case basis by a decision of the President of the Republic of Belarus.

The guarantees of the Government of the Republic of Belarus shall be provided to lenders with respect to foreign loans or loans from banks of the Republic of Belarus extended to implement investment projects.

Government support in the form of direct allocations from centralized investment resources (financial resources of the state including budget funds) shall be provided on condition that the investor's own funds account for at least 20% of the total investments made under the investment project in question.

Decisions on government support of investment projects implemented using foreign loans or loans of the banks of the Republic of Belarus against the guarantees of the Government of the Republic of Belarus; use of funds of centralized investment resources; government participation in establishing companies with foreign investment; granting tax and customs exemptions on a case-by-case basis shall be made based on the government due diligence of investment projects to be performed by the Ministry of Economy.

The main criteria of investment project evaluation by means of government due diligence are as follows:
- Relevance of the investment project and its appropriateness to the industry development strategy;
- Financial position of investing organization;
- Technical, technological and financial feasibility and expediency of the investment project in the light of the expected conditions for the investment activity;
- Feasibility of investment costs and the expediency of government participation in the investment project;
- Scientific and technological level of technologies involved and/or created;
- Competitiveness of products (work or services) to be sold, the prospects for the market, and the effectiveness of the investor's marketing strategy;
- Comparative analysis of the effectiveness and sustainability of the investment project.

Certain investment projects of special importance to the economy of the Republic of Belarus may be implemented on the basis of investment agreements concluded with the investor.

Such cases include projects involving the creation and development of production facilities based on new and high technologies, increasing the competitiveness of Belarusian products and exports, resolution of social and other issues of relevance for the economy of the Republic of Belarus. In this regard, the amount of contribution of domestic and/or foreign investors in such investment projects shall be at least equivalent of US$5 million.

The signatories to the investment agreement are the Republic of Belarus represented by the Government of the Republic of Belarus or an authorized agency of the republic (state organization subordinate to the Government of the Republic of Belarus) and domestic and/or foreign investors.

Investment activity with regard to the subsoil, bodies of water, forests, lands, and assets that are wholly owned by the Government, as well as activities over which the Government enjoys exclusive rights may be carried out on the basis of concessions.

A concession means an agreement concluded by the Republic of Belarus with an investor (confessionary) envisaging the transfer for a consideration and for a specified period of time of the right to engage in a particular activity within the territory of Belarus, which activity is normally the sole preserve of the Government, or envisaging the transfer of the right to use property owned by the Republic of Belarus.

Concessionaries may include any individuals and legal entities, except for legal entities in which the Republic of Belarus, its administrative and territorial units, or government organizations hold over 25% of the capital.

Concession agreements shall be awarded through tender or auction. Concession agreements shall be concluded without tender or auction only in the following cases: single bid is received; according to the decision of the President of the Republic of Belarus, when conclusion of concession agreement through direct negotiations with specific investor is required for reasons of national security or defense of the Republic of Belarus.