| Area | INFORMATION REGARDING RIGHTS, OBLIGATIONS AND RULES |
|---|
J. Starting, running and closing a business | 1. registering, changing the legal form of or closing a business (registration procedures and legal forms for carrying out business) 2. moving a business to another Member State 3. intellectual property rights (applying for a patent, registering a trademark, a drawing or a design, getting a licence for reproduction) 4. fairness and transparency in commercial practices, including consumer rights and guarantees related to selling goods and services 5. offering online facilities for cross-border payments when selling goods and services online 6. rights and obligations arising under contract law, including late payment interests 7. insolvency proceedings and liquidation of companies 8. credit insurance 9. mergers of companies or selling a business 10. civil liability of directors of a company 11. rules and obligations regarding the processing of personal data |
K. Employees | 1. terms of employment stipulated by law or statutory instrument (including working hours, paid leave, holiday entitlements, rights and obligations regarding overtime work, health checks, termination of contracts, dismissals and redundancies) 2. social security rights and obligations in the Union (registering as employer, registering employees, notifying the end of contract of an employee, paying social contributions, rights and obligations related to pensions) 3. employment of workers in other Member States (posting of workers, rules on freedom to provide services, residency requirements for workers) 4. equal treatment (rules prohibiting discrimination in the workplace, rules on equal pay for men and women and equal pay for employees on fixed-term or under permanent employment contracts) 5. rules on staff representation |
L. Taxes | 1. VAT: information on the general rules, rates and exemptions, registering for and paying VAT, obtaining a refund 2. excise duties: information on the general rules, rates and exemptions, registration for excise tax purposes and payment of excise tax, obtaining a refund 3. customs duties and other taxes and duties collected on imports 4. customs procedures for imports and exports under the Union Customs Code 5. other taxes: payment, rates, tax returns |
M. Goods | 1. obtaining CE marking 2. product rules and requirements 3. identifying applicable standards, technical specifications and getting products certified 4. mutual recognition of products not subject to Union specifications 5. requirements regarding classification, labelling and packaging for hazardous chemicals 6. distance/off-premises selling: information to be given to customers in advance, confirmation of the contract in writing, withdrawal from a contract, delivering of the goods, other specific obligations 7. defective products: consumer rights and guarantees, after-sale responsibilities, means of redress for an injured party 8. certification, labels (EMAS, energy labels, Eco-design, EU eco-label) 9. recycling and waste management |
N. Services | 1. acquiring licences, authorisations or permits with a view to starting and operating a business 2. notifying the authorities of cross-border activities 3. recognition of professional qualifications, including vocational education and training |
O. Funding a business | 1. obtaining access to finance at the Union level, including Union funding programmes and business grants 2. obtaining access to finance at national level 3. initiatives addressed to entrepreneurs (exchanges organised for new entrepreneurs, mentoring programmes, etc.) |
P. Public contracts | 1. participating in public tenders: rules and procedures 2. submitting a bid online in response to a public call for tender 3. reporting irregularities in relation to the tender process |
Q. Health and safety at work | 1. health and safety obligations in relation to different types of activity, including risk prevention, information and training |