Following the enlargement of the European Union (EU) and abolition of trade barriers, new opportunities have opened up for enterprises of Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) to internationalise their business. It is believed that small companies are much more flexible and can adapt more quickly to a changed environment, and should use such advantages for internationalising their business. The article analyses cases of internationalising business of Lithuanian, Polish, Czech, Hungarian and Estonian small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and hindrances to internationalisation pointed out by enterprises themselves. The research findings show that enterprises of the said countries are not yet fully prepared to respond to competitive challenges brought about by the expanded and more open European Union and are not ready to make use of all the opportunities. Despite the fact that many enterprises underlined cooperation with foreign partners and knowledge of foreign markets as their key advantage, as well as noted on good foreign language skills and internal capacities of companies, there are still a few factors beyond their control, such as intense competition in foreign markets and bureaucratic obstacles hindering SMEs of this region to avail of all the opportunities. As a result, for countries in transitional stage EU enlargement may create more problems rather than open more opportunities that have been so eagerly awaited for
