The COVID-19 pandemic has severely affected SMEs around the world. Measures to combat the pandemic by blocking and quarantining have led to severe declines in the use of production capacity, with supply chains disrupted, leading to a lack of materials and intermediate goods. As a result, there has been a dramatic and sudden drop in demand and incomes, respectively, which has severely affected the ability of SMEs to operate due to lack of liquidities. In this article, the negative consequences of the pandemic on SMEs were highlighted, both in some EU countries and in the Republic of Moldova. At the same time, was reflected some measures taken by the governments of the respective countries to reduce the negative effects of the pandemic on the business environment.