Social entrepreneurs are no longer alone.

Companies (Audit, Investigations and Community Enterprise) Act 2004 — Part 2 (CIC)

The 2004 Act introducing the 'Community Interest Company' (CIC), a company type with limited profit distribution and an asset lock, for companies that carry out their activities for the benefit of the community.

2006. évi X. törvény a szövetkezetekről

Act X of 2006 on Cooperatives regulates the social cooperative (szociális szövetkezet), which aims to provide work and better social conditions for its disadvantaged members, and is in force.

사회적기업 육성법 (법률 제8217호)

A special act, in force since 2007, governing the certification of social enterprises by the Ministry of Employment and Labor and state support for them.

Zakon o socialnem podjetništvu (ZSocP), Uradni list RS, št. 20/11

The 2011 Social Entrepreneurship Act (ZSocP) sets out the conditions under which non-profit legal entities may acquire social enterprise status and is in force as amended in 2014 and 2018.

Ley 5/2011, de 29 de marzo, de Economía Social

Framework law defining the concept of the social economy, its guiding principles and social economy entities; extended in 2026 with a definition of social enterprise.

Ley Orgánica de Economía Popular y Solidaria (LOEPS)

The organic law defining, regulating and promoting the popular and solidarity economy, covering the community, associative and cooperative sectors, is in force.

Ley de la Economía Social y Solidaria (LESS)

The federal law regulating the social economy sector under Article 25 of the Constitution and establishing the National Institute of Social Economy (INAES) is in force.

Lei n.º 30/2013 (Lei de Bases da Economia Social)

Social Economy Framework Law No. 30/2013 of 8 May 2013 sets out the definition of the social economy, the entities it covers and its guiding principles, and is in force.

Loi n° 2014-856 du 31 juillet 2014 relative à l'économie sociale et solidaire

Law No. 2014-856 of 31 July 2014 on the Social and Solidarity Economy defines the conditions for enterprises within the ESS and regulates the ESUS (solidarity enterprise of social utility) accreditation; it is in force.

Lov nr. 711 af 25. juni 2014 om registrerede socialøkonomiske virksomheder

Act establishing a voluntary registration scheme and the 'RSV' designation for social-economic enterprises; its repeal was proposed in 2026 but removed from the adopted text.

Legea nr. 219/2015 privind economia socială

Law No. 219/2015 on the social economy regulates the social enterprise certificate and the social mark system for work integration social enterprises; it is in force as amended in 2022.

Loi du 12 décembre 2016 portant création des sociétés d'impact sociétal

The Law of 12 December 2016 defines the principles of the social and solidarity economy and creates the 'societal impact company' (SIS) status, granted by ministerial approval; it is in force.

Ν. 4430/2016 (ΦΕΚ Α΄ 205/31.10.2016) Κοινωνική και Αλληλέγγυα Οικονομία

Law 4430/2016 regulates social and solidarity economy entities and social cooperative enterprises (Κοιν.Σ.Επ.); it is based on registration in the Ministry of Labour's register and is in force as amended.

D.Lgs. 3 luglio 2017, n. 112 (impresa sociale)

The 2017 legislative decree governing the conditions under which private-law entities may qualify as a social enterprise (impresa sociale), the cap on profit distribution and the rules on social inclusion through employment.

Sociālā uzņēmuma likums

Law granting social enterprise status to limited liability companies, prohibiting profit distribution and providing for a register kept by the Ministry of Welfare.

Legea nr. 845/1992 cu privire la antreprenoriat și întreprinderi, cap. VI¹ (introdus prin Legea nr. 223/2017)

Framework, set out in a chapter added to the Entrepreneurship Law in 2017, regulating the social enterprise and social insertion enterprise statuses, to be granted by the National Commission for Social Entrepreneurship.

Zákon č. 112/2018 Z. z. o sociálnej ekonomike a sociálnych podnikoch

Act No. 112/2018 on the Social Economy and Social Enterprises regulates registered social enterprise status and its types, such as the integration enterprise; it is in force with numerous amendments.

Закон за предприятията на социалната и солидарна икономика (ДВ, бр. 91 от 02.11.2018)

The 2018 Social and Solidarity Economy Enterprises Act regulates class A and A+ social enterprises and their registration; it has been in force since 2019.

Ligji Nr. 06/L-022 për Ndërmarrjet Sociale

Law defining social enterprises in categories A and B and setting out the conditions for acquiring and losing that status.

Ley 1901 de 2018 (Sociedades BIC)

The law allowing any commercial company to voluntarily adopt 'Social Benefit and Collective Interest' (BIC) status is in force.

Code des sociétés et des associations (loi du 23 mars 2019), art. 8:4–8:5

Framework under Book 8 of the Code of Companies and Associations governing the 'social enterprise' accreditation (agrément) granted by the Minister of Economy to cooperative companies.

พระราชบัญญัติส่งเสริมวิสาหกิจเพื่อสังคม พ.ศ. ๒๕๖๒

The 2019 special act governing the registration of social enterprises, limits on profit distribution and the Social Enterprise Promotion Office.

Loi n° 2019/004 du 25 avril 2019 régissant l'économie sociale au Cameroun

The framework law governing the general orientations of the social economy, Social Economy Units and the National Social Economy Council is in force.

Luật Doanh nghiệp số 59/2020/QH14 (Điều 10)

Article 10 of Vietnam's Law on Enterprises defines a social enterprise as an enterprise committed to reinvesting at least 51 percent of its profits in social and environmental objectives.

Ley N° 31072, Ley de la Sociedad de Beneficio e Interés Colectivo (Sociedad BIC)

The law governing how companies under Ley 26887 may acquire BIC status by adopting a social and environmental benefit purpose is in force.

Закон РК от 24 июня 2021 года № 52-VII ЗРК (Предпринимательский кодекс, глава 6-1)

Chapter 6-1, added to the Entrepreneurial Code by Law No. 52-VII of 2021, defines social entrepreneurship and regulates its categories and registration in the state register.

Ley N° 19.969 (Sociedades BIC)

The law governing the adoption of social benefit and collective interest (BIC) status by commercial companies, SASs and fideicomisos is in force.

Ustawa z dnia 5 sierpnia 2022 r. o ekonomii społecznej (Dz.U. 2022 poz. 1812)

Law defining social economy entities and setting out the conditions for the 'social enterprise' (przedsiębiorstwo społeczne) status granted by the voivode.

Zakon o socijalnom preduzetništvu ("Sl. glasnik RS", br. 14/2022)

Law governing the acquisition of social entrepreneurship status, the use of profits, reporting and supervision, under which the status is registered upon application to the competent register.

Ley 303 de 31 de mayo de 2022 (empresas de beneficio e interés colectivo)

The law governing how commercial companies may acquire BIC status by operating in at least two impact categories, and their supervision by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, is in force.

Zákon č. 468/2024 Sb., o integračním sociálním podniku

Law governing the granting of 'integration social enterprise' status by the Ministry of Labour to employers who employ people with special needs.

Lei nº 15.068, de 23 de dezembro de 2024 (Lei Paul Singer)

The federal law defining solidarity economy enterprises, regulating the National Solidarity Economy Policy and establishing Sinaes is in force.

Қонуни Ҷумҳурии Тоҷикистон «Дар бораи соҳибкории иҷтимоӣ» аз 2 январи соли 2025, №2119

The 2025 special law governing social entrepreneurship, the concepts of social enterprise and social entrepreneur, and registration in the state register.

L3C (Vermont, 2008; 11 V.S.A. ch. 25) · Benefit Corporation (Maryland, 2010; Corps. & Ass'ns §§ 5-6C-01 vd.)

The US has no federal social enterprise law; at state level, Vermont's low-profit LLC (L3C) and Maryland's benefit corporation rules are pioneering examples.

Community Interest Companies Act, S.N.S. 2012, c. 38

The 2012 Act governing 'community interest companies' (CIC) in Nova Scotia that pursue purposes beneficial to the community, and their dividend limits.

Business Corporations Act, SBC 2002, c. 57, Part 2.2 (Community Contribution Companies)

Part 2.2 of the British Columbia Business Corporations Act regulates the 'community contribution company' (C3), a type with limits on dividends and asset distribution.

Loi sur l'économie sociale, RLRQ c. E-1.1.1 (L.Q. 2013, c. 22)

The 2013 framework act in Québec recognising the contribution of the social economy, defining the social economy enterprise and requiring the government to adopt an action plan.

Zakon o društvenom preduzetništvu Republike Srpske ("Službeni glasnik RS", br. 111/2021)

Regional law governing social entrepreneurship in the Republika Srpska entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina, published in the entity's official gazette in 2021.

Social Enterprise Act, Cap. 630 (Act IX of 2022)

Law governing social enterprise organisations, the regulatory authority and the register; adopted, but its entry-into-force date has not yet been set.

Закон Республики Узбекистан от 17.08.2026 г. № ЗРУ-1168 (ст. 48¹ Закона «О гарантиях свободы предпринимательской деятельности»)

The 2026 law adding an article on state support for social entrepreneurship to the law on guarantees of freedom of entrepreneurial activity will enter into force on 18 November 2026.

Проєкт Закону № 14156 про внесення зміни до Закону України «Про розвиток та державну підтримку малого і середнього підприємництва в Україні» щодо розвитку соціального підприємництва

Draft law, endorsed by the parliamentary committee, providing for the introduction of the concept of 'social entrepreneurship entities' into legislation and the extension of state support for SMEs to them.

Predlog zakona o socijalnoj ekonomiji

Bill adopted by the Government in June 2026 and submitted to Parliament, providing for the first systematic legal framework for the social economy.

Предлог на Закон за социјални претпријатија

Draft law on social enterprises prepared by the Ministry of Social Policy, Demography and Youth, whose harmonised text was opened for public consultation in 2026.

Strategija razvoja društvenog poduzetništva u Republici Hrvatskoj za razdoblje od 2015. do 2020. godine

Strategy for the development of social entrepreneurship for 2015–2020, adopted by the Government in 2015, setting out the criteria for recognising social entrepreneurs.

Trading for Impact: National Social Enterprise Policy 2024-2027

The 2024–2027 national social enterprise policy, successor to the 2019–2022 National Social Enterprise Policy, containing five objectives and 57 actions.

Laki sosiaalisista yrityksistä (1351/2003)

The 2003 Act providing for a register of enterprises employing people with disabilities and the long-term unemployed was repealed on 1 July 2023 as part of the wage subsidy reform, on the grounds that it had not achieved its objectives.

Socialinių įmonių įstatymas Nr. IX-2251

The 2004 Act granting status and state support to enterprises employing people with disabilities and disadvantaged persons was repealed on 1 January 2023 in order to promote the participation of people with disabilities in the open labour market rather than in segregated workplaces.