Enforcement of foreign court orders in Belarus

Enforcement of court orders is the final stage of debt collection in Belarus.

Despite the fact that both the Republic of Belarus and the European countries belong to the same legal system, the procedure for enforcing court orders in Belarus is much longer and more complicated. What are the reasons for these difficulties? Let's find out!

Today in the Republic of Belarus there are two ways to execute a court decision:

1. through a bailiff in the Belarusian state enforcement authorities.

2. through the automated information system of execution of monetary obligations from the debtor's current accounts by the banks (hereinafter referred to as AIS EMO).

Execution of a court decision in Belarus by foreign companies by submitting an application to a court enforcement officer in the compulsory enforcement department.

In Belarus, a specialised state body - the department of compulsory enforcement - has been created for the purpose of carrying out enforcement proceedings. The employees of these departments are bailiffs. Enforcement proceedings are initiated and conducted by them at the location of the debtor or his property (Article 56 of the Law of the Republic of Belarus "On Enforcement Proceedings").

In order to initiate enforcement proceedings in Belarus, the foreign company must send an application for initiation of enforcement proceedings (hereinafter referred to as the application) to the enforcing authorities. In the application, the foreign company shall specify: details of the claimant and the Belarusian debtor, the amount of the existing debt, number and date of the court order, current account to which the funds should be transferred, as well as information on partial repayment of the debt (if any). The amounts of recovered money may be transferred to the account of the Belarusian law firm, which later will transfer them to the foreign debtor.

The application shall be enclosed with:

• the original of the court order
• a document certifying the authority of the person to sign the application.

The execution document may be submitted for execution in Belarus within three years after the relevant court order has come into force. However, the period for enforcement of a court order in Belarus may be interrupted on the following grounds:

• partial fulfilment of obligations by the Belarusian debtor;
• sending payment requests to the Belarusian bank for automated collection through the AIS EMO system;
• sending the enforcement document to the place where the debtor receives his wages and equivalent payments.

After an interruption, the deadline for the enforcement order is restarted. The time that has elapsed is not counted towards the new deadline.

The debtor does not have to pay the Belarusian bailiff for his work. The bailiff independently withholds from the Belarusian debtor an amount of 10% of the recovered debt for its enforced recovery. This 10% is added on top of the amount of the debt and does not affect the foreign debtor.

Recovery through an automated bank service.

The Automated Enforcement Information System is a banking product. Through the system, foreign recoverers can submit payment requests to all open current accounts of the debtor. The foreign recoverers with current accounts in the Republic of Belarus submit a payment request along with a court order. The foreign recoverer files a demand for execution of the court order through his Belarusian bank, which distributes the payment demand among all other banks where the debtor has current accounts. When funds are received in any of the debtor's current accounts - the system automatically debits them and transfers them to the creditor.

This method of enforcing a court decision in Belarus has both advantages and disadvantages. The advantages include:

1. a simplified procedure for filing and withdrawing a payment request;

2. fast deduction of funds;

3. an automated process that excludes human mistakes;

4. The recovered amount from the debtor does not increase by 10%. No need to pay any commission to the bank.

5. instant document flow between the recoverer, the bank and the debtor.

Disadvantages:

• the claims made are exclusively monetary in nature;
• it is not possible to apply provisional measures.

Foreign companies, however, should note that recovery via the automated informational system of execution of monetary obligations is possible only if they have a current account with a Belarusian bank. If the foreign company has a representative office in Belarus, recovery through the AIS EMO becomes possible, as the representative office will have a current account in Belarus.

It is also possible to replace the claimant under the cession agreement with a Belarusian claimant, who will independently issue a claim against the debtor to the banks and enforce the judgment in favour of the foreign company.

As a conclusion, we would like to point out that there are two ways of enforcing court orders in Belarus. Each of them has its own nuances and peculiarities. In order to optimise and facilitate communication, it is important that the lawyer knows the English language. Such company is the Law Firm "Economic disputes". Our lawyers help to enforce court order in favour of foreign companies. Our employees are fluent in English. Therefore, a correct and rational approach to this process - will be the key to recovering the existing debt.