15 December, 1997 has become an important date for civil society organisations in Hungary: on this day Parliament enacted a Nonprofit Law, the first of its kind in the East Central European region.
It is widely held view that with this move the political significance and economic weight of the rapidly growing nonprofit sector have been recognised and the legal and financial conditions for its further development guaranteed. The law takes into account not only the internationally recognised and advocated legal principles but also addresses questions arising from specific Hungarian circumstances.
In view of the explicit interest shown abroad in this encouraging and positive development, the European House decided to translate the Hungarian Nonprofit Law into English. In order to make its text and content more easily understandable and to put the whole process into a broader perspective, a short review of the development of the Hungarian nonprofit sector and an explanatory introduction to the Nonprofit Law have been prepared.
Very short time has elapsed since 1 January, 1998, when the Law came into force and there is a long way to go in its implementation. The dinamically developing and energetic Hungarian civil society is ready to face this new challenge and make further advances in contributing to the creation of a modern Hungary for the 21st century.
Budapest, April, 1998