2024-08-28 09:12:30
According to Law No. 41 of 2024, promulgated on August 2, 2024, concerning the amendment of several articles of the Commercial Code, bank account holders who have not made any operations on their accounts for three consecutive months, despite the negative balance, will find that the above accounts have been closed.
According to the new law published in the Official Gazette of the Republic of Tunisia (JORT), the closure of these accounts will take effect three months after receipt of a written notice from the administrator to adjust the debit balance of the account. It should be remembered that this case is the only one in which the consent of both parties is not required to close the account.
If some bank account holders described the new regulation as “positive” because they face high fees for maintaining unused accounts, others expressed fear that their accounts would be lost if money is not received within the bank’s deadline. Under the new regulation, if a current account is fixed for a specific term, the account will be closed on or before the expiration of the contractually stipulated period, by agreement between the parties.
If a current account is open-ended and shows a positive balance, it may be closed at any time at the request of one party, unless the contract provides for a notice period which in no case may exceed twenty days.
Transaction conditions
There were five cases of current accounts being closed under Article 732 of the Commercial Code (New) and special laws. The first case concerned the closure of current accounts determined within a specific period. Upon agreement between the parties, on or before the expiration of the term specified in the contract.
For the second case, the current account of indefinite duration and showing a positive balance, and Closure may be effected at any time at the request of one party, unless the contract provides for a notice period which in any case shall not exceed twenty days.
The new law provides that current accounts must be closed within a maximum of ten days from the date of the closure request or warning, if no deadline has been agreed upon.
If a current account continues indefinitely and shows a negative balance, the account holder may request the closure of the account at any time, but the maximum period shall not exceed three days from the date of the request.
The fifth case concerns an indefinite current account. If the account balance is negative and no transactions have been made for three consecutive months, the account manager shall issue a written notice to the holder, stipulating that the debit balance of the account be normalized and warning that the account will be closed three months after the date of this notice. If necessary, the account manager can prohibit the use of check forms held by the holder or his representative.
Commission Wars
In Tunisia, according to the latest data from the Banking and Finance Council, the number of bank accounts exceeded 10 million by the end of 2022 (the BCT has not yet published its annual report for the 2023 fiscal year). Between 10% and 15% of bank current accounts are not used.
In 2024, the issue of bank commissions resurfaced, especially The BCT issued Notice No. 3 of 2024 regarding the reduction of pricing levels of 6 banking committees. This new special regulation will allow bank customers to benefit from a reduction in standard interest rates and even free multiple services.
Among them, individual customers with a monthly net income of less than or equal to 1,500 DT will receive a national bank card with a balance of no more than 3 dinars per month for free, and the account maintenance fee for individual customers with a monthly net income of less than or equal to 1,500 DT and A 30% discount is offered on commissions for transfers to Tunisia by individual customers. Free of charge also covers dispute operations for any national card, and any request for a new PIN for any type of card is free of charge.
For merchants equipped with POS, national card transaction fees will be reduced, capped at 1.3% of the purchase amount.
The Tunisian Consumer Guidance and the General Directorate of Prudential Control and Adjustment of the BCT recently signed an agreement that provides for a freeze in increases in bank commission rates and an obligation for banks to not approve increases in commission rates from 2025 unless authorized by the BCT. Keep in mind that bank commissions are estimated at 1.44 billion dinars per year, according to the Banking and Finance Commission.
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