Foreign Investment Screening Expert in France | FDI Advisory
Relians – a specialist in foreign investment screening in France
With experience handling more than 150 cases, Relians has developed unique expertise in foreign investment screening in France, advising investors, financial institutions and legal advisors on transactions involving sensitive and strategic sectors.
Relians supports you with the specific requirements of foreign direct investment screening in France
Foreign investment screening has become a key regulatory issue for cross-border transactions involving strategic sectors. In France, the foreign investment control regime requires prior authorization from the Ministry of the Economy for certain investments affecting sensitive activities.
Investors planning acquisitions in France must therefore assess whether their transaction may fall within the scope of foreign investment screening rules, particularly when the target company operates in sensitive technologies, critical infrastructure or strategic industries.
Since its creation, Relians has developed unique expertise in public affairs and institutional advisory applied to foreign investment screening. The firm combines regulatory analysis, institutional insight and strategic advisory to assist investors and financial institutions involved in transactions affecting sensitive sectors.
Relians provides in-depth expertise on the main foreign investment screening mechanisms, including the French foreign investment control regime (IEF), the European Union foreign investment screening framework, and the CFIUS review process in the United States.
Investors frequently raise practical questions when preparing acquisitions involving companies operating in sensitive or strategic sectors. The following articles provide a detailed explanation of the regulatory framework governing foreign investment screening in France.
Mastering institutional uncertainty
In practice, the final decision lies with public authorities, introducing institutional uncertainty into the predictability of outcomes during the review of your transaction. It is therefore essential to anticipate and manage this uncertainty to safeguard your deal and avoid potential roadblocks or disabling outcomes.
This institutional dimension is particularly important due to the interministerial nature of the review process. Parties to the transaction must consider all aspects of this often complex procedure. Political factors may also come into play, especially when government or parliamentary levels have a decisive influence on certain transactions.
Decoding what goes unsaid
Unlike competition regulation practices, foreign direct investment screening procedures are far less transparent. Public authorities have little incentive to disclose the underlying reasons for their decisions to a foreign power.
The main challenge for parties involved in a foreign investment review lies in understanding the underlying dynamics of the interministerial process, as well as in assessing the often subjective sensitivity of the sectoral activity at stake.
Relians offers dedicated services for foreign investment screening
Relians’ services are specifically tailored to meet our clients’ needs in foreign investment transactions involving sensitive sectors.
The three phases of our support
To achieve our objectives, we provide our clients with unique expertise in the field and a deep understanding of institutional and political networks. This combination ensures transaction security by effectively managing institutional uncertainty.
We support a wide range of transactions, including:
Upstream of the transaction
We conduct what we call a strategic and institutional assessment. This in-depth analysis aims to structure the transaction in a way that aligns with public authorities’ expectations. This phase includes lobbying and institutional communication efforts, which we carry out alongside you to present the transaction in the most favorable light.
During the transaction
We maintain continuous institutional dialogue with public authorities—an essential component in securing the transaction. This ongoing engagement helps clarify the commitments required from the foreign investor, and in some cases, jointly with the target entity. It fosters greater understanding and acceptance of the deal by the relevant authorities.
After the transaction
For us, it is essential that you continue to ensure compliance with the commitments made to the authorities, thereby avoiding any risk of future sanctions. Safeguarding your reputation and credibility is also a key part of our mission.
Above all, our command of institutional uncertainty directly supports the valuation of your company—helping to neutralize any deal-breakers or potential barriers to a successful sale.
Three types of specialized services
To help you manage institutional uncertainty, we support you across three key stages: before, during, and after the transaction.
Foreign direct investment screening Diagnostic
Assessing the sensitivity of the foreign investment transaction subject to screening
Structuring the foreign investment transaction
Designing the investment from an institutional standpoint
Managing the review process
Supporting the foreign investment screening of the transaction with public authorities
The tightening of Foreign direct investment screening is impacting your M&A transactions .
At Relians, we understand that Foreign direct investment screening has become a central feature of M&A—and more broadly, of cross-border mergers and acquisitions.
States at the negotiating table
In practice, states are now stepping directly into negotiations between foreign buyers and sellers. Around the world, public authorities are establishing or reinforcing prior authorization procedures that have become essential for any acquisition involving strategic companies, sensitive assets, critical infrastructure, or other key resources. It’s become a non-negotiable step.
A cornerstone of M&A
National security reviews have become a mandatory step—now as critical as antitrust or compliance due diligence.
Under this prior authorization regime, states hold significant powers, including the ability to impose conditions or even block a transaction outright. These enforcement and sanction powers can extend to unwinding or ordering divestment if the rules are not respected. In this way, states have effectively become full-fledged stakeholders in M&A transactions involving foreign investors.
France
In France, the procedure is known as “Investissements Étrangers en France” (IEF). Codified in Article L.151-3 of the Monetary and Financial Code, the framework has undergone significant changes—initially following the 2018 parliamentary inquiry into state decisions on industrial policy, and more substantially with the overhaul brought by the 2019 Pacte Law.
Europe
In Europe, the European Commission oversees a cooperation and alert mechanism among Member States, establishing a framework for screening foreign direct investments within the Union. Nearly all EU Member States have implemented such screening regimes. The United Kingdom, for its part, has introduced its own foreign investment control system through the National Security and Investment Act.
United States
In the United States, foreign investment screening has a long-standing tradition. The Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), established decades ago, was significantly strengthened and modernized by the Foreign Investment Risk Review Modernization Act (FIRRMA) in 2018.
Foreign investment screening now takes place within a broader context of international cooperation, shaped by security alliances and trade dynamics. In some cases, these screening mechanisms can be triggered by transactions taking place outside the reviewing country’s borders. As control regimes tighten worldwide, states are increasingly intervening directly in cross-border deals.
Relians, a recognized Expertise in French FDI Screening (IEF) .
We also place our expertise at the service of public authorities during the development of new regulations. Relians has actively contributed to the revision of the decree on foreign investments in France, as well as to parliamentary work—most notably within the Parliamentary Commission of Inquiry on Industrial Policy.
Lastly, we share our know-how through authoritative publications, including
DUPEYRAT, Pascal — France FDI Screening: Legal and Strategic Framework (English Edition).
Relians, 1st edition.
Print ISBN-13: 978-2-9584520-4-9
Ebook ISBN: 978-2-9584520-6-3
This reference work provides a detailed analysis of the legal and strategic framework governing foreign investment screening in France, including sensitive sectors, regulatory procedures and institutional considerations relevant to international investors and advisors involved in cross-border transactions.
These publications reaffirm our commitment to delivering cutting-edge expertise in a constantly evolving field.
In conclusion, Relians stands as a key partner in navigating the challenges of foreign investment screening—ensuring the security and success of your transactions.
