Legal provisions of COM(2001)439 - Cross-border payments in euro

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dossier COM(2001)439 - Cross-border payments in euro.
document COM(2001)439 EN
date December 19, 2001


Contents

Article 1 - Subject matter and scope

This Regulation lays down rules on cross-border payments in euro in order to ensure that charges for those payments are the same as those for payments in euro within a Member State.

It shall apply to cross-border payments in euro up to EUR 50000 within the Community.

This Regulation shall not apply to cross-border payments made between institutions for their own account.

Article 2 - Definitions

For the purposes of this Regulation, the following definitions shall apply:

(a) 'cross-border payments' means:

(i) 'cross-border credit transfers' being transactions carried out on the initiative of an originator via an institution or its branch in one Member State, with a view to making an amount of money available to a beneficiary at an institution or its branch in another Member State; the originator and the beneficiary may be one and the same person,

(ii) 'cross-border electronic payment transactions' being:

- the cross-border transfers of funds effected by means of an electronic payment instrument, other than those ordered and executed by institutions,

- cross-border cash withdrawals by means of an electronic payment instrument and the loading (and unloading) of an electronic money instrument at cash dispensing machines and automated teller machines at the premises of the issuer or an institution under contract to accept the payment instrument,

(iii) 'cross-border cheques' being those paper cheques defined in the Geneva Convention providing uniform laws for cheques of 19 March 1931 drawn on an institution located within the Community and used for cross-border transactions within the Community;

(b) 'electronic payment instrument' means a remote access payment instrument and electronic money instrument that enables its holder to effect one or more electronic payment transactions;

(c) 'remote access payment instrument' means an instrument enabling a holder to access funds held on his/her account at an institution, whereby payment may be made to a payee and normally requires a personal identification code and/or any other similar proof of identity. The remote access payment instrument includes in particular payment cards (whether credit, debit, deferred debit or charge cards) and cards having phone- and home-banking applications. This definition does not include cross-border credit transfers;

(d) 'electronic money instrument' means a reloadable payment instrument, whether a stored-value card or a computer memory, on which value units are stored electronically;

(e) 'institution' means any natural or legal person which, by way of business, executes cross-border payments;

(f) 'charges levied' means any charge levied by an institution and directly linked to a cross-border payment transaction in euro.

Article 3 - Charges for cross-border electronic payment transactions and credit transfers

1. With effect from 1 July 2002, charges levied by an institution in respect of cross-border electronic payment transactions in euro up to EUR 12500 shall be the same as the charges levied by the same institution in respect of corresponding payments in euro transacted within the Member State in which the establishment of that institution executing the cross-border electronic payment transaction is located.

2. With effect from 1 July 2003 at the latest, charges levied by an institution in respect of cross-border credit transfers in euro up to EUR 12500 shall be the same as the charges levied by the same institution in respect of corresponding credit transfers in euro transacted within the Member State in which the establishment of that institution executing the cross-border transfer is located.

3. With effect from 1 January 2006 the amount EUR 12500 shall be raised to EUR 50000.

Article 4 - Transparency of charges

1. An institution shall make available to its customers in a readily comprehensible form, in writing, including, where appropriate, in accordance with national rules, by electronic means, prior information on the charges levied for cross-border payments and for payments effected within the Member State in which its establishment is located.

Member States may stipulate that a statement warning consumers of the charges relating to the cross-border use of cheques must appear on cheque books.

2. Any modification of the charges shall be communicated in the same way as indicated in paragraph 1 in advance of the date of application.

3. Where institutions levy charges for exchanging currencies into and from euro, institutions shall provide their customers with:

(a) prior information on all the exchange charges which they propose to apply; and

(b) specific information on the various exchange charges which have been applied.

Article 5 - Measures for facilitating cross-border transfers

1. An institution shall, where applicable, communicate to each customer upon request his International Bank Account Number (IBAN) and that institution's Bank Identifier Code (BIC).

2. The customer shall, upon request, communicate to the institution carrying out the transfer the IBAN of the beneficiary and the BIC of the beneficiary's institution. If the customer does not communicate the above information, additional charges may be levied on him by the institution. In this case, the institution must provide customers with information on the additional charges in accordance with Article 4.

3. With effect from 1 July 2003, institutions shall indicate on statements of account of each customer, or in an annex thereto, his IBAN and the institution's BIC.

4. For all cross-border invoicing of goods and services in the Community, a supplier who accepts payment by transfer shall communicate his IBAN and the BIC of his institution to his customers.

Article 6 - Obligations of the Member States

1. Member States shall remove with effect from 1 July 2002 at the latest any national reporting obligations for cross-border payments up to EUR 12500 for balance-of-payment statistics.

2. Member States shall remove with effect from 1 July 2002 at the latest any national obligations as to the minimum information to be provided concerning the beneficiary which prevent automation of payment execution.

Article 7 - Compliance with this Regulation

Compliance with this Regulation shall be guaranteed by effective, proportionate and deterrent sanctions.

Article 8 - Review clause

Not later than 1 July 2004, the Commission shall submit to the European Parliament and to the Council a report on the application of this Regulation, in particular on:

- changes in cross-border payment system infrastructures,

- the advisability of improving consumer services by strengthening the conditions of competition in the provision of cross-border payment services,

- the impact of the application of this Regulation on charges levied for payments made within a Member State,

- the advisability of increasing the amount provided for in Article 6(1) to EUR 50000 as from 1 January 2006, taking into account any consequences for undertakings.

This report shall be accompanied, where appropriate, by proposals for amendments.

Article 9 - Entry into force

This Regulation shall enter into force on the third day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Communities.

This Regulation shall also apply to cross-border payments made in the currency of another Member State when the latter notifies the Commission of its decision to extend the Regulation's application to its currency. The notification shall be published in the Official Journal by the Commission. The extension shall take effect 14 days after the said publication.


This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States.