Belarus updates administrative rules: what franchisees should check

Belarus has updated the rules governing administrative procedures in retail, food service and consumer services. According to the legal information platform Business-Info, the changes are set out in Resolution No. 42 of 30 July 2026, issued by the Ministry of Antimonopoly Regulation and Trade (MART). For franchisors and franchisees, this is a reason to check that the documents and guidance used to prepare new premises and support existing outlets are up to date.

What is known about the MART resolution

The Business-Info summary provided reports specifically on updates to the rules governing administrative procedures. It identifies three sectors: retail, food service and consumer services. However, the brief report does not list the procedures affected, explain the individual changes or state when the resolution takes effect.

This is an important limitation when assessing the news. The published report does not establish that new permits are required to open a shop, café or consumer services outlet, that application processing times have changed, or that fewer supporting documents are needed. Any such conclusions would require a review of the full resolution and the relevant procedural rules.

Nor should the date on which the resolution was adopted automatically be treated as the date when the updated rules start to apply. The available material does not clarify this. Business owners preparing an application to the relevant authority should therefore establish separately which version of the rules applies when they submit their documents.

The confirmed fact, then, is that MART has updated its procedural rules. The practical implications for any particular business still need to be established from the original legal text, rather than the headline.

Why this matters to franchisors and franchisees

The relevance to franchising comes from the sectors listed, not from any reference to a special regime for franchises. The Business-Info report contains no indication that separate requirements have been introduced for franchisors or franchisees. There is no basis for treating the resolution as franchise-specific regulation.

For franchisees operating retail outlets, cafés and consumer services businesses, the useful question is more specific: does the update affect a procedure their outlet will need to follow? The answer depends on the content of the revised rules. Simply operating in one of the sectors named does not establish what action a business owner needs to take.

When preparing to open an outlet, it is sensible to check the administrative steps in the launch plan against current requirements. If the franchisor supplies guidance, application templates or document checklists, these should be checked separately to ensure they remain up to date. This is a recommendation for managing the process, not a new obligation established by the report.

The approach should be just as targeted for an existing outlet. The brief report does not imply that documents must immediately be reissued or that previously completed procedures must be repeated. The first step is to determine whether the changes apply to the particular circumstances.

What to check before your next application

The first step is to find the full text of MART Resolution No. 42 of 30 July 2026 and identify exactly which procedural rules it amends. Check not only the document’s title, but also its commencement provisions and any transitional arrangements.

The second step is to compare the procedures affected with the business’s plans. Rather than asking broadly ‘what has changed for franchises?’, it is more useful to list the administrative steps you expect to take and check each one. This will help distinguish relevant changes from those that do not apply to your outlet.

When comparing the previous and current versions, pay particular attention to:

• who is entitled to apply and which authority receives the application;
• what information and documents are required;
• which submission methods are permitted;
• the applicable time limits and possible outcomes of the procedure;
• any provisions relevant to applications already submitted.

This list is a guide for checking the rules, not a description of confirmed changes. The available report does not say that any of these elements has changed.

If several parties are involved in preparing the documents, it is useful to appoint someone to coordinate the check. The franchisee, brand representative and external adviser can then work from a single verified version of the requirements, rather than different versions of internal guidance.

How to incorporate the review into network operations

After reviewing the resolution, franchisors should consider preparing a short briefing for franchisees explaining which procedure is affected, which outlets it matters to and what needs to change in their working documents. If the update does not affect a particular outlet format, that should also be made clear to avoid unnecessary work.

The briefing should distinguish between binding legal requirements and the brand’s internal recommendations. For example, an additional check of supporting documents before submission may be an internal network procedure, but it should not be presented as a MART requirement without a corresponding legal basis.

Before their next application, franchisees should ask their franchisor whether the guidance supplied has been checked against Resolution No. 42. If this cannot be confirmed, the safer approach is to consult the current procedural rules and seek clarification from the relevant authority on any disputed points.

Practical takeaway: the MART news calls for a targeted review of administrative guidance, not assumptions about new permits or mandatory replacement of documents. Start with the procedure your outlet needs to follow and use the full resolution to establish which changes apply.