DEDear clients, in the following newsletter we would like to inform you about the most significant changes in the Slovak legislation, which were adopted in May 2020.
- Act no. 129/2020 Coll. amending certain laws within the competence of the Ministry of Culture of the Slovak Republic in connection with COVID-19.
Act no. 129/2020 Coll. reflects the unfavorable situation caused by the viral disease COVID-19, which has caused the cancellation of many cultural events. The legal status, rights and obligations of the event organizer, which was to take place from 10 March 2020 to 31 December 2020, are amended as follows:
- Event organizer is not in arrears with the fulfillment of obligations under the contracts by which the organizer ensured the holding of the event,
- Event organizer is not obliged to satisfy the right to a contractual penalty or other sanction agreed as security of an obligation which the organizer could not fulfill due to non-performance of the event,
- Event organizer is entitled to withdraw from the contract by which the organizer arranged the event, due to the impossibility of performance, unless the parties agree otherwise.
Contracts in this case are contracts concluded by the event organizer to ensure the participation of authors, performers or other performers in the event, technical-organizational staff of the event or organizing services, or other technical or organizational provision of the event, including rental of technical equipment, premises or space.
- Act no. 170/2018 Coll. on tours, related tourism services, certain conditions of business in tourism and on amendments to certain laws as amended by Act no. 119/2019 Coll.
If due to an emergency situation
due to COVID-19 in the Slovak Republic or a similar situation at the travel destination
or at any point of the turist‘s travels, it is not possible to provide the
passenger with the basic features of tourism services under the tour contract,
the travel agency is entitled to:
- Propose a change to the travel contract;
- Send a notice of alternate trip if the passenger does not accept the proposed change to the travel contract in accordance with previous point.
If the price of the original trip and the new replacement trip is different, it is necessary for the travel agency and the passenger to make up the difference between them. The notice of the alternative trip must be in writing and must be delivered on a “durable medium”.
If the passenger who has concluded the trip contract refuses a substitute trip, the travel agency is obliged to return all payments received under the trip contract without payment of severance pay, without delay, but no later than 14 days from the date of delivery of the refusal of the substitute trip. If a passenger who has concluded a travel contract partially refuses a substitute trip in relation to one or more passengers from one travel contract, the travel agency is obliged to return the payments to him within 14 days.
- Amendment to Act no. 305/2013 Coll. on the electronic form of the exercise of powers of public authorities and on the amendment of certain acts (the e-Government Act) as amended, which entered into force on 31 December 2016 and was published in the Collection of Laws of the Slovak Republic under no. 374/2016 Coll.
Dear clients, we would like to draw your attention to the obligation to set up electronic mailboxes for legal entities that are not registered in the Commercial Register (e.g. civic associations, foundations, non-profit organizations).
Activation of electronic mailboxes for the delivery of documents for legal persons who do not have a voluntarily activated electronic mailbox and are not registered in the Commercial Register shall start on June 1st 2020 and end with the authorized person’s first access to the electronic mailbox, but no later than June 11th 2020.
If you are interested, do not hesitate to contact us and we will kindly help you to activate your e-mail box.