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Law of the Republic of Lithuania Amending Articles 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 11, 15, 16, 17, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 27, 28, 29, 31, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 40 of the Law No XI-1253 on Consumer Credit and Amending the Titles of Chapter Three and Five, and Annex


Published: 2015-05-11

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Translated by the Ministry of Finance

 

LAW OF THE REPUBLIC OF LITHUANIA

Amending ARTICLES 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 11, 15, 16, 17, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 27, 28, 29, 31, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 40OF THE LAW NO XI-1253 ON CONSUMER CREDIT AND

Amending THE titles of CHAPTER THREE AND FIVE, and annexes 1 AND 2, AND supplementing articles 111, 141, 211, 221, 222, 231, 251 and CHAPTER 51

 

5 November 2015 No XII-1989

Vilnius

 

 

 

Article 1. Amendment of Article 1

Article 1(1) shall be amended and set forth to read as follows:

1. The Law shall have the purpose of determining the terms of granting of consumer credit and requirements for the provision of information about these terms, the duties and liability of creditors, credit intermediaries, and peer-to-peer lending platform operators in granting consumer credit and assessing the creditworthiness of consumers, the consumers’ right of early repayment and the creditors’ and lenders’ right to compensation for early repayment of consumer credit.”

 

Article 2. Amendment of Article 2

Article 2 shall be amended and set forth to read as follows:

Article 2. Definitions

1. Cooling off period means the period of two calendar days during which the consumer may withdraw from the consumer credit agreement without giving any reason, and repay the total amount of credit granted by the creditor without the payment of interest or any other charges, costs or compensations.

2. Total amount payable by the consumer means the sum of the total amount of the consumer credit and the total cost of the consumer credit to the consumer.

3. Total cost of the credit to the consumer means all the costs, including interest, commissions and any other kind of fees which the consumer is required to pay in connection with the credit agreement and which are known to the creditor or the peer-to-peer lending platform operator, except for notarial costs. The total cost of the credit to the consumer shall also include the costs of maintaining an account recording both payment transactions and drawdowns, unless the opening of an account is optional and the costs of the account have been clearly and separately shown in the credit agreement or in any other agreement concluded with the consumer; the costs of using a means of payment for both payment transactions and drawdowns; any other costs deriving from the payment transactions; costs in respect of ancillary services relating to the credit agreement, in particular insurance premiums, are also included if, in addition, the conclusion of an ancillary service contract relating to the credit agreement is compulsory in order to obtain the credit on the terms and conditions marketed.

4. Total amount of credit means the total sum of credit made available under a credit agreement.

5. Annual percentage rate of charge means the total cost of the credit to the consumer, expressed as an annual percentage.

6. Fixed borrowing rate means that the creditor or lender and the consumer agree in the credit agreement on one borrowing rate for the entire duration of the credit agreement or on several borrowing rates for partial periods using exclusively a fixed specific percentage. If not all borrowing rates are determined in the credit agreement, the borrowing rate shall be deemed to be fixed only for the partial periods for which the borrowing rates are determined exclusively by a fixed specific percentage agreed on the conclusion of the credit agreement.

7. Durable medium means any instrument  (paper, computer disc, write-once compact disc (CD), digital versatile (optical) disc (DVD), the consumer’s computer hard drive containing e-mail, etc., with the exception of websites, unless they comply with characteristics of a durable medium listed in this paragraph) which enables the consumer to access in the future information stored unchanged in it and store information addressed personally to him in a way accessible for future reference for a period of time adequate for the purposes of the information and which allows the unchanged reproduction of the information stored.

8. Supervisory authority means the Bank of Lithuania, which, in accordance with the procedure laid down by this Law and other laws, performs the functions of supervision of activities of creditors, credit intermediaries, and peer-to-peer lending platform operators.

9. Overdraft facility means an explicit credit agreement whereby a creditor makes available to a consumer, in the form of consumer credit, funds which exceed the current balance in the consumer’s current account.

10. Linked credit agreement means a credit agreement where:

1) the credit in question serves exclusively to finance an agreement for the supply of specific goods or the provision of a specific service, and 

2) the agreement for the supply of goods or the provision of services and the credit agreement form a commercial unit. The agreement for the supply of goods or the provision of services and the credit agreement shall be deemed to form a commercial unit where at least one of the following conditions is met: the supplier or service provider himself finances the credit for the consumer or, if it is financed by a third party, where the creditor uses the services of the supplier or service provider in connection with the conclusion or preparation of the credit agreement, or where the specific goods or the provision of a specific service are explicitly specified in the credit agreement.

11. Peer-to-peer lending means an activity where a natural person (hereafter referred to as “creditor”) grants or promises to grant to a consumer credit through a peer-to-peer lending platform.

12. Peer-to-peer lending platform means an information system for peer-to-peer lending administered by the peer-to-peer lending platform operator.

13. Manager of peer-to-peer lending platform operator means a manager, a member of management or another body (with exception to member meeting) specified in the Law regulating the legal form of peer-to-peer lending platform operator.

14. Peer-to-peer lending platform operator means a legal person administering the peer-to-peer lending platform.

15. Third country means a state other than a Member State of the European Union or a state of the European Economic Area (EEA).

16. Member State means a Member State of the European Union as well as a state of the European Economic Area (EEA).

17. Creditor means a person, other than a natural person, who grants or promises to grant credit in the course of his business.

18. Manager of creditor means a manager, a member of management or another body (with exception to member meeting) indicated in the Law regulating the legal form of the creditor.

19. Consumer means a natural person who seeks to conclude or concludes a credit agreement for personal, family or household purposes and who is acting for purposes which are outside his business or profession.

20. Credit borrowing rate means annual interest rate in fixed or variable percentage rate which applies to the paid portion of the credit.

21. Parties to a credit agreement means the creditor or the peer-to-peer lending platform operator and the consumer.

22. Credit agreement means an agreement whereby a creditor or a lender grants or promises to grant to a consumer credit in the form of a deferred payment, loan or other similar financial accommodation, except for agreements for the provision on a continuing basis of services or for the supply of goods of the same kind, where the consumer pays for such services or goods for the duration of their provision by means of instalments.

22. Credit intermediary means a person who is not acting as a creditor or a peer-to-peer lending platform operator, and who, in the course of his business or profession, for a fee performs at least one of the following actions:

1) presents or offers credit agreements to consumers;

2) assists consumers by undertaking preparatory work in respect of credit agreements other than as referred to in point 1 of this paragraph;

3) concludes credit agreements with  consumers on behalf of the creditor or the peer-to-peer lending platform operator.

23. Overrunning means a tacitly accepted overdraft in the credit agreement whereby a creditor makes available to a consumer funds which exceed the current balance in the consumer’s account or the overdraft facility.”

 

Article 3. Amendment of Article 3

1.   Adding point 12 of Article 3(2):

12) credit agreements where a creditor, whose main activity is not the provision of financial services, grants to a consumer credit free of interest or other charges for financing of goods which are necessary to access the services offered by the creditor.”

2.   Amending point 6 of Article 3:

6. Only Articles 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 9 and 10, Article 11(1), points 1 to 9, 11 and 17 of Article 11(2), Article 11(5) and (8) and Articles 12, 14, 17 and 18 to 38 of this Law and the procedure for calculating the annual percentage rate of charge for consumer credit as stipulated by the supervisory authority shall apply to credit agreements which provide for arrangements to be agreed by the creditor, the lender and the consumer in respect of deferred payment or repayment methods, except for the agreements referred to in paragraph 3 of this Article, where the consumer is already in default on the initial credit agreement and where:

1) such arrangements would be likely to avert the possibility of debt recovery proceedings concerning such default;

2) the consumer would not thereby be subject to terms less favourable than those laid down in the initial credit agreement.”

 

Article 4. Amendment of Article 4

Article 4 shall be amended and set forth to read as follows:

1. Any advertising concerning credit agreements which indicates an interest rate or any figures relating to the cost of the credit to the consumer must include the following standard information specified in a clear, concise and prominent way:

1) the borrowing rate, fixed or variable or both, together with particulars of any charges included in the total cost of the credit to the consumer;

2) the total amount of credit;

3) the annual percentage rate of charge;

4) if applicable, the duration of the credit agreement;

5) in the case of a credit in the form of deferred payment for a specific good or service, the cash price and the amount of any advance payment;

6) if applicable, the total amount payable by the consumer and the amount of the instalments.

2. The standard information referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article shall be provided by means of a representative example.

3. The supervisory institution shall have the right to prohibit the dissemination of false, misleading or unclear advertising concerning credit agreements and, if needed, request to clarify and/or deny advertising that has already been disseminated.

4. Where the conclusion of a contract regarding an ancillary service relating to the credit agreement, is compulsory in order to obtain the credit or to obtain it on the terms and conditions marketed, and the cost of that service cannot be determined in advance, the obligation to enter into the contract regarding the ancillary service relating to the credit agreement shall also be stated in a clear and prominent way, together with the annual percentage rate of charge.

5. Provisions of the Republic of Lithuania Law on the Prohibition of Unfair Business-to-Consumer Commercial Practices and the Republic of Lithuania Law on Advertising shall apply to advertising concerning credit agreements to the extent not covered by provisions of this Article.

6. The supervisory institution shall have the right to elaborate on the requirements for advertising concerning credit agreements laid down in this Article.

7. Dissemination of advertising concerning consumer credit is prohibited:

1) in education institutions where persons under 18 years old are educated;

2) in locations where concerts, sport, charity and/or support and other events aimed at persons under 18 years old are held and their advertising;

3) in locations where theatre plays are shown, and cinematographic films or videos are screened aimed at persons under 18 years old and their advertising;

4) in the media aimed at persons under 18 years old and its advertising;

5) in rallies and competitions aimed at persons under 18 years old and their advertising.”

 

Article 5. Amendment of Article 5

1. Point 4 of Article 5(2) shall be amended and set forth to read as follows:

4) the duration of the credit agreement;”

2. Point 7 of Article 5(2) shall be amended and set forth to read as follows:

7) the total amount payable by the consumer and the annual percentage rate of charge, illustrated by means of a representative example mentioning all the assumptions used in order to calculate that rate; if a credit agreement provides different ways of drawdown with different charges or borrowing rates, the creditor must indicate that the different drawdown mechanisms for this type of credit agreement may result in higher annual percentage rates of charge; if the consumer informs the creditor of one or several conditions of credit agreement of his choice, for example, such as the duration of the credit agreement or the total credit amount payable by the consumer, the creditor shall take into account these conditions indicated by the consumer;”.

3.   Point 15 of Article 5(2) shall be amended and set forth to read as follows:

15) the consumer’s right of early repayment and, where applicable, information concerning the creditor’s and the lender’s right to compensation and the way in which that compensation will be determined in accordance with provisions of Article 17 of this Law;”.

4.   Point 16 of Article 5(2) shall be amended and set forth to read as follows:

16) the consumer’s right to be informed immediately and free of charge, in the cases referred to in Article 9(2) of this Law, of the result of consultation carried out in registers and public and other information systems (hereafter – “information systems”) for the purposes of assessing his creditworthiness;”.

 

Article 6. Amendment of Article 6

1. Point 4 of Article 6(2) shall be amended and set forth to read as follows:

4) the duration of the credit agreement;”.

2. Point 6 of Article 6(2) shall be amended and set forth to read as follows:

6) the annual percentage rate of charge, illustrated by means of representative examples mentioning all the assumptions used in order to calculate that rate;”.

3. Point 10 of Article 6(2) shall be amended and set forth to read as follows:

10) the consumer’s right to be informed immediately and free of charge, in the cases referred to in Article 9(2) of this Law, of the result of a consultation of registers and information systems carried out for the purposes of assessing his creditworthiness;”

4. Point 2 of Article 6(3) shall be amended and set forth to read as follows:

2) the customer’s right of early repayment and information concerning the creditor’s and the lender’s right to compensation and the way in which that compensation will be determined in accordance with provisions of Article 17 of this Law.”

 

Article 7. Amending the title of Chapter 3

The title of Chapter 3 shall be amended and set forth to read as follows:

 

CHAPTER THREE

ASSESSMENT OF THE CREDITWORTHINESS OF THE CONSUMER”

 

Article 8. Amendment of Article 8

Article 8 shall be amended and set forth to read as follows:

“Article 8. Obligation to assess the creditworthiness of the consumer 

1. Before the conclusion of the credit agreement, the creditor must, following the principle of responsible lending, assess the consumer’s creditworthiness on the basis of sufficient information obtained from the consumer and on the basis of the consultation of registers and information systems for the assessment of the creditworthiness of the consumer or justify the information supplied by the consumer with other evidence.

2. If the parties to the credit agreement agree to change the total amount of credit after the conclusion of the credit agreement, the creditor shall update the financial information at his disposal concerning the consumer and assess the consumer’s creditworthiness before any significant increase in the total amount of credit.

3. The personal data used to assess the creditworthiness of consumers shall be processed in accordance with the procedure laid down by the Law of the Republic of Lithuania on Legal Protection of Personal Data.

4. The Rules for Assessment of the Creditworthiness of Consumers shall be drawn up in compliance with the following principles of assessment of the creditworthiness of consumers:

1) the purpose of the evaluation of the consumer’s creditworthiness is to assess the ability of the consumer to make a specific financial commitment which the consumer will be able to fulfil with existing financial liabilities;

2) the creditor shall assess all objectively justifiable factors having regard to the information provided by the consumer as well as information on the assessment of the creditworthiness obtained from registers and information systems, and other information available to the creditor which may have an impact on the consumer’s creditworthiness, in particular, information on the sustainable income of the consumer, his credit history, and potential income fluctuations;

3) having regard to the credit history and the economic cyclicality, lending is based on the restriction of average payment size and income ratio on all consumer’s commitments under the consumer credit and other contracts with financial institutions;

4) the assessment of the creditworthiness of the consumer, having regard to the available information, shall be based on the assumption that the consumer will be able to meet the financial liabilities for the whole duration of the credit agreement.

5. The supervisory authority shall elaborate on the requirements referred to in paragraph 4 of this Article.

6. The consumer must supply the information requested by the creditor needed to assess the consumer’s creditworthiness.

7. Interest, penalties and charges in the case of late payments shall not apply to the consumer if the creditor inappropriately assessed the consumer’s creditworthiness not through the consumer’s fault.”

 

Article 9. Amendment of Article 9

Article 9 shall be amended and set forth to read as follows:

Article 9. Registers and information systems

1. Administrators of registers and information systems used by the creditors established in the Republic of Lithuania for assessing the creditworthiness of consumers must ensure access for creditors established in other Member States. The conditions for access shall be non-discriminatory.

2. If the credit application is rejected on the basis of consultation of a register and information system for the purposes of assessing the consumer’s creditworthiness, the creditor shall inform the consumer immediately and without charge of the result of such consultation and of the particulars of the register and information system consulted.

3. The information referred to in paragraph 2 of this Article shall be provided unless the provision of such information is prohibited by other legislation or is contrary to objectives of public policy or public security.

4. Pursuant to legal acts regulating legal protection of personal data the supervisory authority in accordance with their own procedures shall have the right to manage the consumer data. The creditors must facilitate data to the supervisory authority on the consumers and shall have the right to use this data in accordance with the procedure laid down in the legal acts of the supervisory authority.”

 

Article 10. Amendment of Article 11

1.   Point 2 of Article 11(2) shall be amended and set forth to read as follows:

2) the identity and the address of the consumer and, if applicable, the credit intermediary involved; where the credit intermediary is a natural person – his identity and the address of his place of residence; the name and the address of the creditor and the credit intermediary if applicable and the name and the address of the credit intermediary;.

2.   Point 141 shall be included to Article 11(2) as follows:

141) during the cooling off period the recipient of the consumer credit shall have the right of withdrawal, in accordance with the procedure of implementation of this right, as well as the information concerning the obligation of the consumer to pay the capital drawn down and the interest;”.

3.   Point 17 of Article 11(2) shall be amended and set forth to read as follows:

17) The customer’s right of early repayment and the procedure for early repayment, as well as information concerning the creditor’s and the lendor’s right to compensation and the way in which that compensation will be determined in accordance with provisions of Article 17 of this Law;”.

4.   Point 20 of Article 11(2) shall be amended and set forth to read as follows:

20) the name and address of the supervisory authority;”.

5.   Point 8 of Article 11 shall be amended and set forth to read as follows:

8. Penalties applicable to the consumer in the case of late payments may not exceed 0.05 % of the overdue amount for each day of delay. Penalties cannot be calculated for a period exceeding 180 days. No other penalties and charges may be applicable to the consumer for the default on the financial obligations provided for under the credit agreement.”

 

Article 11. Article 111 shall be included to this Law

Point 111 shall be included to this Law as follows:

Article 111. Restrictions of credit agreements

1. Credit agreements may not be concluded with persons under 18 years old.

2. Credit agreements may not be concluded with persons incapacitated in certain areas, partially incapacitated persons in certain areas or persons who make decisions in certain areas with assistance, except where the creditor or credit intermediary holds supporting documents that credit agreements may be concluded by a guardian on behalf of a person incapacitated in certain areas, and partially incapacitated persons in certain areas have their guardian’s consent or persons who make decisions in certain areas with assistance receive assistance in that area when concluding a credit agreement. The creditor and the credit intermediary shall ensure that a person, who wishes to conclude a credit agreement, has not been declared incapacitated in certain areas, partially incapacitated in certain areas or a person who makes decisions in certain areas with assistance.

3. Credit agreements may not be concluded from 22:00 hours to 7:00 hours.”

 

Article 12. Article 141 shall be included to this Law

Point 141 shall be included to this Law as follows:

Article 141. Cooling off period

1. During the cooling off period the consumer may withdraw from the agreement without giving any reason, and repay the total amount of credit granted by the creditor or the lender without the payment of interest or any other charges, costs or compensations. The cooling off period is calculated from the date of the payment of funds to the consumer under the credit agreement.

2. The consumer who wishes to exercise his right of withdrawal from the credit agreement during the cooling off period shall inform the creditor, by the end of this period at the latest, and repay the total amount of credit granted by the creditor or lender. In such case the creditor or lender is not entitled to claim interest or any other charges, costs or compensations.

3. If the consumer decides to exercise his right of withdrawal from the credit agreement during the cooling off period the agreement of ancillary services related to the credit agreement, which are provided by the creditor or a third party under the credit agreement, shall also be terminated without any additional commitments.

4. Sales contract may be terminated in accordance with other legal acts after the withdraw from the credit agreement.

5. Where the consumer withdraws from the credit agreement during the cooling off period, the provisions of the Civil Code of the Republic of Lithuania on the consumer’s right to withdraw from the agreement concluded outside commercial facilities and the provisions of the Civil Code of the Republic of Lithuania on the consumer’s right to withdraw from the financial services agreement concluded by means of distance communication shall not apply.

6. In the case where the consumer shall exercise his right to withdraw from the credit agreement during the cooling off period, the provisions of Article 15 shall not apply.”

 

Article 13. Amendment of Article 15

1.   Point 2 of Article 15(2) shall be amended and set forth to read as follows:

2) pay to the creditor or the lender of the capital and the interest accrued thereon from the date the credit was drawn down until the date the capital is repaid, without any undue delay and no later than within 30 calendar days after the despatch by him to the creditor or the lender of notification of the withdrawal. The interest shall be calculated on the basis of the agreed borrowing rate. The creditor or the lender shall not be entitled to any other compensation from the consumer in the event of withdrawal from the credit agreement, except compensation for any non-returnable charges paid to any public administrative body.”

2.   Article 15(3) shall be amended and set forth to read as follows:

3. If the consumer exercises his right to withdraw from the credit agreement in accordance with this Article, the agreement of ancillary services related to the credit agreement, which are provided by the creditor or a third party under the credit agreement, shall also be terminated without any additional commitments.”

 

Article 14. Amendment of Article 16

1.   The title of Article 16 shall be amended and set forth to read as follows:

Article 16. Linked credit agreements

2.   Article 16(1) shall be amended and set forth to read as follows:

1. Where the consumer has exercised his right of withdrawal concerning a contract for the purchase and sale of goods or a contract for the supply of services, he shall no longer be bound by a linked credit agreement.

3.   Article 16(2) shall be amended and set forth to read as follows:

2. Where a seller or service provider does not supply goods or services or they are supplied only in part or are not in conformity with the contract for the purchase and sale of goods or the contract for the supply of services, the consumer shall have the right:

1) to suspend the discharge of his obligations under a linked credit agreement;

2) to request from the creditor the reimbursement of his payments.”

 

Article 15. Amendment of Article 17

1.   The Article 17(2) shall be amended and set forth to read as follows:

2. In the event of early repayment of credit, the creditor or the lender shall be entitled to fair and objectively justified compensation for potential costs directly linked to early repayment of credit provided that the early repayment falls within a period for which the borrowing rate is fixed. The creditor or the lender may require such compensation only in the case when the credit to be repaid or a part thereof exceeds EUR 2 320 within any twelve-month period.”

2.   The Article 17(3) shall be amended and set forth to read as follows:

3. The compensation for the creditor or the lender as provided for in paragraph 2 of this Article may not exceed 1 % of the amount of credit repaid early, if the period of time between the early repayment and the agreed termination of the credit agreement exceeds one year. In other cases, the compensation for the creditor may not exceed 0.5 % of the amount of credit repaid early.“

3.   The Article 17(5) shall be amended and set forth to read as follows:

5. The creditor or the lender may exceptionally claim higher compensation than the compensation referred to in paragraph 3 of this Article if he can prove that the loss he suffered from early repayment exceeds the amount determined under paragraph 3 of this Article.“

4.   The Article 17(6) shall be amended and set forth to read as follows:

6. If the compensation claimed by the creditor or the lender exceeds the loss actually suffered, the consumer may claim a corresponding reduction. In this case, the loss shall consist of the difference between the initially agreed interest rate and the interest rate at which the creditor or the lender can lend out the credit, or a part thereof, repaid early on the market at the time of early repayment and shall take into account the impact of early repayment on administrative costs.“

5.   The Article 17(7) shall be amended and set forth to read as follows:

7. Any compensation to the creditor or the lender shall not exceed the amount of interest the consumer would have paid in the event of repayment of the credit during the period indicated in the credit agreement.“

 

Article 16. Amendment of Article 20

1.   The Article 20 shall be amended and set forth to read as follows:

Article 20. Use of bills of exchange, cheques and debit notes

1. The creditor or the lender shall be prohibited from accepting payments from consumers in the form of bills of exchange, cheques or debit notes.

2. The creditor or the lender in breach of the prohibition specified in paragraph 1 of this Article must compensate to the consumer for all losses related to the subsequent use of bills of exchange, cheques or debit notes.

3. Without prejudice to the consumer’s rights as established in this Law, the creditor or the lender shall have the right to accept bills of exchange from the consumer and other persons with a view to ensuring discharge of the consumer’s obligations under the credit agreement.”

 

Article 17. Amendment of Article 21

The Article 21 shall be amended and set forth to read as follows:

Article 21. Requirements for the total cost of the credit

1. The total cost of the credit to the consumer must be reasonable and justifiable, comply with the requirements of fair business practices and ensure a balance of interests of the consumer, the creditor and the lender.

2. The total cost of the credit to the consumer shall be deeded not to comply with the requirements set out in paragraph 1 of this Article if at the time of the conclusion of the credit agreement:

1) Interest rate laid down in the credit agreement shall exceed 75 per cent, and any other costs that are included to the calculation of the total cost of the credit, excluding the daily interest, exceed 0,04 per cent of the total cost of the credit;

2) The total cost of the credit shall exceed the total amount of the credit.

3. The court may, upon reviewing the nature of the contractual relationship of the parties, the value of the obligation, the costs borne by the creditor, circumstances of the conclusion of the credit agreement and other relevant factors, reduce the total cost of the credit to the consumer.”

 

Article 18. Article 211 shall be included to this Law

Article 211 shall be included to this Law as follows:

Article 211. Request not to allow or prohibit the conclusion of credit agreements

1. Each natural person (hereafter – “person”) shall have the right to request the supervisory authority not to allow him to conclude credit agreements, and to modify this request or withdraw it. The request not to allow the conclusion of credit agreements shall contain the period of time during which the person is not permitted to conclude mentioned agreements. The supervisory authority shall determine the procedure for submitting, modifying or withdrawing requests not to allow the conclusion of credit agreements.

2. The person who submits a request not to allow him the conclusion of credit agreements shall be immediately added to the List, managed by the authority, of Persons for whom the requests have been submitted not to allow the conclusion of credit agreements (hereafter – “the List”). Upon termination of the period indicated in paragraph 4 of this Article the person who was not allowed to conclude credit agreements is removed from the List.

3. Persons included to the List shall be removed from it in accordance with the procedure set down by the supervisory authority.

4. A person included to the List shall not be allowed to conclude credit agreements for the period of time indicated in the request. Where the application does not specify the period of time during which a person is not allowed to conclude credit agreements, it is considered that the period is 2 years from the date the person was included to the List.

5. A person who shall abuse his right to conclude credit agreements the court may prohibit the conclusion of credit agreements in accordance with procedures established by laws. A spouse of the person, his parents, adult children, care institutions or prosecutors shall have the right to request the prohibition of a person from concluding credit agreements or to request to withdraw the prohibition to conclude credit agreements. The person who was prohibited from concluding credit agreements shall also have the right to go to court requesting to withdraw the prohibition of concluding credit agreements. Requests to prohibit the conclusion of credit agreements for a person who abuses this right or to withdraw the prohibition of concluding credit agreements shall be assessed mutatis mutandis in accordance with the procedure laid down in paragraph V of Chapter XXVIII of the Code of Civil Procedure of the Republic of Lithuania. After a ruling to prohibit a person who abuses his right to conclude credit agreements from exercising this right or after entering into force of the withdrawal of the prohibition to conclude credit agreements, the court must send a copy of the ruling to the supervisory authority. On the basis on the received ruling by the court the supervisory authority shall include or remove the persons to and from the List for the period of time indicated in the mentioned decision.

6. The creditors or the credit intermediaries are prohibited from concluding credit agreements with persons included to the List. The checks if the person is included to the List are performed at the time of the decision on granting of credit. The credit agreement concluded with a person included to the List shall be considered ineffective.

7. The creditors or the credit intermediaries shall have the right to use the data of persons included to the List in accordance with the procedures laid down in the legal acts of the supervisory authority.”

 

Article 19. Amending the title of Chapter 5

The title of Chapter 5 shall be amended and set forth to read as follows:

 

“CHAPTER FIVE

SUPERVISION OF ACTIVITIES OF CREDITORS, CREDIT INTERMEDIARIES AND PEER-TO-PEER LENDING PLATFORM OPERATORS”.

 

Article 20. Amendment of Article 22

The Article 22 shall be amended and set forth to read as follows:

Article 22. Public list of creditors

1. A person shall be granted the right to engage in the activities of granting of consumer credit only after the supervisory authority enters it on a public list of creditors.  Natural persons and non-profit-making persons shall not have the right to engage in the activities of granting of consumer credit.

2. The manager of the creditor, natural or legal person, or a person acting jointly, who, directly or indirectly, owns voting rights or a share capital which is equal to or exceeds 20 per cent or who may exercise, directly or indirectly, decisive influence upon the activities of the creditor as defined in Law on consolidated accounts of groups of undertakings of the Republic of Lithuania, cannot be a person who meets at least one of the following conditions:

1) found guilty of a crime or criminal offence related to money laundering or financing of terrorists, serious or very serious offence or criminal offence against property, property rights and interests, economy and course of business, financial system or equivalent criminal offences according to the criminal laws of other states, where his conviction is outstanding;

2) manages or managed, directly or indirectly, a qualified share capital and/or share of voting rights or a share allowing to exercise decisive influence upon a legal person, or who currently or previously was a manager of a legal person who was excluded from the right of the provision of financial services or if that legal person was found guilty of a crime referred to in paragraph 1 or a criminal offence.

3. Persons acting jointly referred to in paragraph 2 of this Article means two or more persons who, upon an oral or written agreement, expressed or implied, exercise or seek to exercise their rights resulting from a share capital and/or share of voting rights of the creditor as indicated in this paragraph.

4. The creditor must inform the supervisory authority in advance of all changes of persons indicated in paragraph 2 of this Article by providing the information required by the supervisory authority to determine if the newly appointed or proposed managers and/or other persons meet with the requirements laid down in paragraph 2 of this Article. Newly appointed or elected managers of the creditor may take office, and other persons can obtain voting rights of the creditor and a share capital only after the supervisory authority approves their candidatures or acquisition.

5. Approvals by the supervisory authority referred to in paragraph 4 of this Article shall be granted in accordance with the procedures laid down in paragraph 7 of this Article.

6. A person may be entered on the public list of creditors where he meets the requirements of this Law and the legislative requirements of the supervisory authority, and supplies to the supervisory authority the following documents, data and information:

1) an application to be entered on the public list of creditors;

2) information on a public register in which the supervisory authority can verify basic personal data. The supervisory authority, if appropriate, shall have the right to request an extended extract from the public register;

3) information on persons, documents and data indicated in paragraph 2 of this Article certifying that they meet with the requirements laid down in paragraph 2 of this Article;

4) rules for assessing the creditworthiness of consumers;

5) information on registers and information systems to be consulted for the purposes of assessing the creditworthiness of the consumers;

6) a list of credit intermediaries acting on behalf of the creditors, where the person relies on services of the credit intermediaries.

7. Upon examining a person’s application and the documents, data and information supplied, the supervisory authority shall, not later than within 30 working days from the reception of the application, take a decision to enter or refuse to enter the person to the public list of creditors, and inform the applicant of it in written. In case where the supervisory authority shall request additional documents, data and/or information, which are required to make a decision, or these are supplied on his own initiative by the person requesting to be included on the public list of creditors, and/or the supervisory authority shall call upon persons indicated in Article 221 of this Law, the supervisory authority shall take the decision to enter or refuse to enter the person on the public list of creditors not later than within 30 working days from the reception of additional documents, data and/or information.

8. The supervisory authority shall refuse to enter a person on the public list of creditors where the person or the rules of creditworthiness assessment prepared by him do not meet with the requirements established by this Law and detailed legal acts of the supervisory authority, fails to provide the documents, data and/or information referred to in the legal acts, provides not all the documents, data and/or information and during the established period of time fails to supplement documents, data and/or information or provides incorrect documents, data and/or information.

9. The creditor must immediately submit information to the supervisory authority on changes in circumstances prevailing at the time when the person was entered to the public list of creditors and changes of documents, data and/or information referred to in the legal acts, as soon as such changes occur.

10. The creditor shall be removed from the public list of creditors under his own request or on the initiative of the supervisory authority in circumstances established by this Article.

11. The creditor who shall cease to carry out credit-granting activities or who shall not start to carry out these activities 6 months after his inscription to the public list of creditors, shall immediately inform the supervisory authority and provide:

1) a request to be removed from the public list of creditors;

2) information on valid credit agreements, if any;

3) information on assignment of rights and duties under valid credit agreements, if any, to another creditor.

12. On the grounds specified in paragraph 11 of this Law upon a request from the creditor the supervisory authority shall remove the creditor from the public list of creditors, where the creditor does not have any valid credit agreements or rights and duties under valid credit agreements are assigned to another creditor.

13. The supervisory authority shall have the right, by reasoned decision, to remove the creditor from the public list of creditors on the grounds other than the ones specified in paragraph 11 of this Law, if:

1) the creditor is the subject of bankruptcy proceedings, is being liquidated or ceases on other grounds specified by law;

2) on other grounds specified by this Law.

14. The creditor removed from the public list of creditors by a decision of the supervisory authority on the grounds listed in paragraph 11 of this Article, may be re-entered on the public list of creditors in accordance with the procedure laid down in this Law. The creditor removed from the public list of creditors on other grounds specified by this Law may be re-entered on the public list of creditors not earlier than after the lapse of one year following the taking of the decision to remove it from the public list of creditors. Consumer disputes with the creditor removed from the public list of creditors shall be further examined in accordance with the procedure laid down in the Republic of Lithuania Law on the Bank of Lithuania.

15. The supervisory authority shall publish the public list of creditors on the website of the supervisory authority. The public list of creditors shall be managed in accordance with the procedure laid down by legal acts of the supervisory authority.”

 

Article 21. Article 221 shall be included to this Law

Point 221 shall be included to this Law as follows:

Article 221. Assignment of rights and duties under credit agreements

1. The creditor shall have the right to assign the rights and duties under credit agreements only to a person entered on the public list of creditors.

2. The procedure of assignment of rights and duties under credit agreements shall be established by the supervisory authority.”

 

Article 22. Article 222 shall be included to this Law

Point 222 shall be included to this Law as follows:

Article 222. Right to information of the supervisory authority

1. State and municipal institutions and bodies, other natural and legal persons, other organizations and their units, upon a request by the supervisory authority, must present information, including confidential information, data, documents and their copies that are needed to perform its functions and exercise its rights.

2. The supervisory authority shall have the right to contact the competent institutions of other member states or foreign countries, financial and capital market supervisory authorities, authorities responsible for the enforcement of consumer protection laws or other institutions, natural and legal persons, other organizations and their units with a request for information that is needed to perform its functions and exercise its rights.”

Article 23. Amendment of Article 23

The Article 23(1) shall be amended and set forth to read as follows:

“1. Creditors must, at least once a year, provide the supervisory authority with information on the credit-granting activities pursued in accordance with the time limits and the procedure laid down by legal acts of the supervisory authority, including information on the type, number and extent of the consumer credit granted, average amounts of credit, the average annual percentage rate of charge, the annual borrowing rate, means of securing the performance of credit agreements and amounts overdue by consumers. Upon summarising such information, the supervisory authority shall make it public in accordance with the procedure laid down by legal acts of the supervisory authority.”

 

Article 24. Article 231 shall be included to this Law

Point 231 shall be included to this Law as follows:

Article 231. Sets of financial statements of the creditor

1. Pursuant to the Law on Financial Statements of Entities of the Republic of Lithuania, if the creditor shall conclude annual sets of financial statements, they must be audited.

2. The laws of the Republic of Lithuania and other legal acts shall apply to the conclusion of annual sets of financial statements, and to the audit and auditing procedures.”

 

Article 25. Amendment of Article 24

The Article 24 shall be amended and set forth to read as follows:

Article 24. Public list of creditor intermediaries

1. A person shall have the right to engage in the activities of credit intermediaries, acting as an independent credit intermediary, only after the supervisory authority enters him on a public list of independent credit intermediaries.

2. A person shall have the right to engage in the activities of credit intermediaries, acting on behalf of one or several creditors, i. e. as a dependent intermediary, only after the supervisory authority enters him on a public list of intermediaries, acting on behalf of the creditor. Each creditor must manage the public list of credit intermediaries acting on his behalf and ensure that persons acting on his behalf are entered on the public list of credit intermediaries in accordance with the procedure laid down in paragraph 3 of this Article.

3. A person may be entered on the public list of credit intermediaries referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2 of this Article, when he submits the information to the supervisory authority or the creditor on the public register in which the supervisory authority or the creditor can verify basic personal data. The supervisory authority or the creditor shall have the right to request the person to provide an extended extract from the public register. 4. The supervisory authority and the creditors shall publish a notice on the entry of a person on the lists referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2 of this Article and regularly update such information on its websites. The public lists shall be managed in accordance with the procedure laid down by legal acts of the supervisory authority.”

 

Article 26. Article 251 shall be included to this Law

Point 251 shall be included to this Law as follows:

Article 251. Public list of peer-to-peer lending platform operator

1. A person shall be granted the right to engage in the activities of peer-to-peer lending platform operator only after the supervisory authority enters it on the public list of peer-to-peer lending platform operators. Natural persons and non-profit-making persons shall not have the right to engage in the activities of peer-to-peer lending platform operator.

2. The manager of the peer-to-peer lending platform operator, natural or legal person, or a person acting jointly, who, directly or indirectly, owns voting rights or a share capital which is equal to or exceeds 20 per cent or who may exercise, directly and/or indirectly, decisive influence upon the activities of the peer-to-peer lending platform operator as defined in Law on consolidated accounts of groups of undertakings of the Republic of Lithuania, cannot be a person who meets at least one of the following conditions:

1) a person found guilty of a crime or criminal offence related to money laundering or financing of terrorists, serious or very serious offence or criminal offence against property, property rights and interests, economy and course of business, financial system or equivalent criminal offences according to criminal law of other states, where his conviction is outstanding;

2) a person for whom administrative sanctions or other measures established in the laws were applied more than once in a year, in cases where this sanction or other measures were applied for infringement of the requirements of the law or other legal acts regulating the provision of financial services or activities of financial institutions;

3) manages or managed, directly or indirectly, a qualified share capital and/or share of voting rights or a share allowing to exercise decisive influence upon legal person, or currently or previously was a manager of a legal person for whom measures were applied for a serious infringement of the law or other legal acts regulating the provision of financial services or activities of financial institutions or who was excluded from the right of the provision of financial services due to this type of infringement or if that legal person was found guilty of a crime referred to in point 1 of this Article or a criminal offence.

3. Persons acting jointly referred to in paragraph 2 of this Article means two or more persons who, upon an oral or written agreement, expressed or implied, exercise or seek to exercise their rights resulting from a share capital and/or share of voting rights of the peer-to-peer lending platform operator as established in this part.

4. The peer-to-peer lending platform operator must inform the supervisory authority in advance of all changes of persons indicated in paragraph 2 of this Article by providing the information required by the supervisory authority to determine if the newly appointed or proposed managers and/or other persons meet with the requirements laid down in paragraph 2 of this Article. Newly appointed or elected managers of the peer-to-peer lending platform operator can take office, and other persons can obtain voting rights of the peer-to-peer lending platform operator and a share capital only after the supervisory authority approves their candidatures or acquisition.

5. Approvals by the supervisory authority referred to in paragraph 4 of this Article shall be granted in accordance with the procedures laid down in Article 22(7).

6. A person may be entered on the public list of peer-to-peer lending platform operators where it meets the requirements of this Law and the legal acts of the supervisory authority, and supplies to the supervisory authority the following documents, data and information:

1) an application to be entered on the public list of peer-to-peer lending platform operators;

2) information on the public register in which the supervisory authority can verify basic personal data. The supervisory authority, if appropriate, shall have the right to request an extended extract from the public register;

3) information on persons, documents and data indicated in paragraph 2 of this Article certifying that they meet with the requirements laid down in paragraph 2 of this Article;

4) information on meeting with the requirements of the share capital;

5) business continuity plan;

6) rules for assessing the creditworthiness of consumers;

5) information on registers and information systems to be consulted for the purposes of assessing the creditworthiness of the consumers;

6) a list of credit intermediaries acting on behalf of the peer-to-peer lending platform operators, where the person relies on services of the credit intermediaries.”

 

Article 27. Chapter 51 shall be included to this Law

Chapter 51 shall be included to this Law as follows:

 

“CHAPTER FIVE1

PEER-TO-PEER LENDING

Article 252. Requirements for peer-to-peer lending

1. The creditor may grant credit to one consumer not exceeding EUR 500 during a period of twelve months.

2. The total amount of credit granted by the creditor to all consumers shall not exceed EUR 5 000 during a period of twelve months.

3. The peer-to-peer lending platform operator shall ensure that the requirements established by this Article are met.

 

Article 253. Requirements for peer-to-peer lending platform operator

1. All the provisions of this Law and its implementing legal acts of the supervisory authority mutatis mutandis applicable to the creditor shall be applicable to the peer-to-peer lending platform operator, except for the provisions points (1) to (6) of Article 22 of this Law.

2. Other laws regulating the provision of financial services and activities of financial institutions, where the peer-to-peer lending platform operator is a financial institution, and relevant legal forms on which the activities of the peer-to-peer lending platform operator are based shall be applicable to the person, unless the provisions of this Law provide otherwise.

3. The share capital of the peer-to-peer lending platform operator shall be at least EUR 40 000.

4. The peer-to-peer lending platform operator must prepare and approve a business continuity plan which establishes measures and procedures ensuring that the activities of the peer-to-peer lending platform operator are performed permanently and continuously, and which also ensures sound administration of credit agreements and continuous fulfilment of contractual obligations under unforeseen circumstances.

5. The peer-to-peer lending platform operator shall adhere to the following requirements:

1) act honestly, fairly and professionally under optimum conditions for the creditor and the consumer and in their interest; also not to discriminate against the consumers and the creditors;

2) act in a diligent, professional and careful manner;

3) hold and use credible measures and procedures that are necessary for the operation;

4) sufficiently disclose all relevant and necessary information for the creditor and the consumer;

5) implement and apply efficient organizational and administrative measures for preventing conflict of interest that may have a negative impact on the interests of the creditors and the consumers;

6) ensure that the information, data and documents on the creditor, as well as pre-contractual and contractual information, and the correspondence between the peer-to-peer lending platform operator with the creditor and the consumer (consent received from the creditor or the consumer, confirmation or other information related to the implementation of the requirements of this Law or data, documents and information justifying the important information related to granting of credit) is stored for at least 10 years after the conclusion of the credit agreement, unless other legal acts establish a longer period for document storage;

7) follow the instructions of the supervisory authority.

6. Remuneration payable by the creditor and/or consumer to the peer-to-peer lending platform operator shall be calculated only from the repayment of consumer credit to the creditor.

7. The peer-to-peer lending platform operator shall publish the following information on its website:

1) the name, address and contact details of the peer-to-peer lending platform operator;

2) information on organizational and administrative measures for preventing conflict of interests.

3) detailed recovery procedure, in the case when the consumer does not meet the financial commitments laid down in the credit agreement;

4) other information referred to in the legal acts of the supervisory authority.

 

Article 254. Additional information requirements for the conclusion of a credit agreement

1. Before the conclusion of a credit agreement the peer-to-peer lending platform operator shall provide the following information, in addition to information indicated in this Law:

1) fees and other charges applied to the creditor by the peer-to-peer lending platform operator;

2) results of the assessment of creditworthiness of the consumer;

3) detailed recovery procedure, in the case when the consumer does not meet the financial commitments laid down in the credit agreement;

4) information on the business continuity plan of the peer-to-peer lending platform operator;

5) information on the fact if the creditor has the right to assign the whole claim or part of it to another person;

6) other rights and duties of the creditor, the consumer or the peer-to-peer lending platform operator related to peer-to-peer lending.

2. Before the conclusion of a credit agreement the peer-to-peer lending platform operator must inform the creditor of the risk accepted by the creditor (the risk of insolvency of the operator, the risk of withdrawal from business, the risk of conflict of interests, the risk of insolvency of the consumer, the risk of improper implementation of a credit agreement and other type of risks inherent to the specific peer-to-peer lending platform operator and his activities).

3. Before the conclusion of a credit agreement the peer-to-peer lending platform operator shall provide the information to the consumer on the rights and duties between the consumer, the creditor and the peer-to-peer lending platform operator related to the granting of credit, in addition to information indicated in this Law.

4. The supervisory authority shall have the right to elaborate on the operational requirements of the peer-to-peer lending, the peer-to-peer lending platform and the peer-to-peer lending platform operator.”

 

Article 28. Amendment of Article 27

The Article 27(1) shall be amended and set forth to read as follows:

“1. The supervisory authority shall examine infringements of this Law and apply relevant measures.”

 

Article 29. Amendment of Article 28

1.   The Article 28(1) shall be amended and set forth to read as follows:

1) shall supervise if the creditors, credit intermediaries and the peer-to-peer lending platform operator adequately follow the requirements established by this Law and legal acts adopted subsequently on its basis;”.

2.   The Article 28(2) shall be amended and set forth to read as follows:

2) on its own initiative shall examine potential infringements of this Law and legal acts adopted subsequently on its basis;”.

3.   Add point 4 to Article 28:

4) shall conduct controls of operation of the persons, if it is suspected that they  infringe this Law and legal acts adopted subsequently on its basis;”.

4.   Add point 5 to Article 28:

5) shall receive information, data, documents and their copies required for the supervision, and other information, data, documents and their copies from the state and municipal institutions, as well as bodies, registers or information systems, creditors, credit intermediaries and peer-to-peer lending platform operators, other natural and legal persons, and other organizations and their units;”

5.   Add point 6 to Article 28:

6) shall manage the list of persons who have submitted requests not to allow them to conclude credit agreements;”.

6. The former points 4, 5 and 6 of Article 28 shall be deemed points 7, 8 and 9 respectively.

7.   The Article 28(7) shall be amended and set forth to read as follows:

7) shall apply the measures laid down in this Law to the creditors, the credit intermediaries and the peer-to-peer lending platform operators, as well as to other persons who infringe this Law and legal acts adopted subsequently on thitsis basis;”.

 

Article 30. Amendment of Article 29

Point 2 of Article 29(3) shall be amended and set forth to read as follows:

“2) the factual data from the application have already been verified and a resolution (decision) related to them has already been taken by the supervisory authority;”.

 

Article 31. Amendment of Article 31

The Article 31(5) shall be amended and set forth to read as follows:

„5. The supervisory authority shall examine potential infringements of this Law and apply measures within 4 months after the date of the submission of the application to the supervisory authority referred to in Article 29 of this Law or the date of the decision referred to in Article 27(2) of this Law.”

 

Article 32. Amendment of Article 33

The Article 33 shall be amended and set forth to read as follows:

Article 33. Resolution (decision) after examining infringement of this Law

1. The supervisory authority shall, after initiating infringement procedures, make a resolution (decision) which shall include:

1) the name of authority which has adopted the resolution (decision);

2) the date and place of adoption of the resolution (decision);

3) data on the person/collegial body adopting the resolution (decision), the secretary of the meeting, participants in the procedure of examination of the infringement of this Law and other persons concerned attending the meeting;

4) data on the person in respect of acts/omissions whereof the resolution (decision) has been adopted;

5) the content of the application referred to in Article 29 of this Law;

6) the established factual elements of the infringement of provisions of this Law;

7) proof of the fact of infringement underlying the resolution (decision);

8) the relevant article of this Law establishing liability for the infringement;

9) explanations provided by the person in respect of acts/omissions whereof the resolution (decision) has been adopted and assessment thereof;

10) the decision adopted;

11) the procedure for executing the resolution (decision) and the time limit within which the resolution (decision) must be executed;

12) time limits and the procedure for appealing against the resolution (decision).

2. Upon completing the procedure of examination of an infringement of this Law, the supervisory authority shall be entitled to take the following decisions:

1) to oblige the person in breach of requirements of this Law to discontinue unlawful conduct;

2) to impose measures provided for by this Law;

3) temporarily prohibit the creditor or the peer-to-peer lending platform operator from concluding credit agreements;

4) to remove the person from a list of public creditors and a public list of creditor intermediaries;

5) to refrain from imposing measures if no infringement of provisions of this Law is determined.

3. The resolution (decision) of the supervisory authority referred to in this Article shall, within three working days from its adoption, be despatched by registered mail to the applicant and to the person in respect whereof the resolution (decision) has been adopted.”

 

Article 33. Amendment of Article 34

The Article 34 shall be amended and set forth to read as follows:

Article 34. Fines

1. The supervisory authority shall have the right to impose the following fines on persons:

1) For failure to comply with the requirement by the supervisory authority to supply information and documents required for examining an infringement of this Law or for inadequate implementation of this requirement, where the person has been notified on failure to comply with this requirement, the supervisory authority may impose a fine up to EUR 2 896.

2) For orders by the supervisory authority were not followed or followed incorrectly, the supervisory authority may impose a fine up to 1 per cent of total annual income or to EUR 1 448 for each day when the order was not followed or followed incorrectly;

3) for other infringements of this Law and legal acts adopted subsequently on its basis, the supervisory authority may impose a fine on the creditor or the peer-to-peer lending platform operator up to 0.1 per cent of the total annual income of the previous year, and on other persons – up to EUR 2 896 as well as other measures established by this Law.

2. In the event that an infringement for which a fine stipulated by this Law has already been imposed is repeated within one year, the supervisory authority may impose a fine equal to 10 per cent of the total annual income of the previous year.

3. If a legal person belongs to the parent financial institution of the financial group, the total annual income of the previous year determining the amount of fine, is the income listed on the consolidated financial statement of the previous year of the parent financial institution of the financial group.

4. In the case where it is impossible to determine the total annual income of the previous year, the supervisory authority shall have the right to impose a fine on the legal person up to EUR 80,000, instead of the fine referred to in point 1 of paragraph 1 of this Article.

5. Persons undertaking the activities of creditors, credit intermediaries and peer-to-peer lending platform operators but who are not entered on the public list of creditors, public list of independent credit intermediaries or the public list of peer-to-peer lending platform operators, the supervisory authority shall have the right to impose a fine up to EUR 57 924.

6. Where the infringement is minor and no substantial damage to the consumers’ interests protected by this Law is made, the supervisory authority may, in compliance with the criteria of fairness and reasonableness, issue a warning.

7. When imposing a specific fine, the mitigating and aggravating factors referred to in paragraphs 8 and 9 of this Article as well as the nature, duration and extent of an infringement shall be taken into account. The amount of the fine to be imposed shall be determined according to the average of minimum and maximum amounts of the fine taking into account the mitigating or aggravating factors. In the presence of the mitigating factors, the fine shall be reduced from the average to the minimum amount, and in the presence of the aggravating factors, the fine shall be increased from the average up to the maximum amount. In the presence of both mitigating and aggravating factors, the fine shall be imposed taking into account their quantity and significance. Reasons shall be given for any reduction or increase of the fine in a resolution (decision) of the supervisory authority.

8. The fact that, having committed an infringement, a person has voluntarily barred the way of the harmful consequences of the infringement, discontinued the infringement, assisted the supervisory authority in the course of the investigation, compensated for losses and/or eliminated the damage caused shall be deemed to be a mitigating factor. The supervisory authority may also recognise other factors which have not been indicated in this paragraph as mitigating.

9. The fact that, having committed an infringement, a person has impeded the examination of the infringement, concealed the committed infringement, continued the infringement ignoring the injunction to discontinue unlawful conduct shall be deemed to be an aggravating factor.

10. The court hearing an appeal against a resolution (decision) of the supervisory authority on imposition of a fine shall, taking into account mitigating and any other factors (due to which a fine against a person in breach of this Law would be excessive by reason of it being disproportionate to the committed infringement and therefore unfair) and acting in compliance with the criteria of fairness and reasonableness, have the right to impose a fine smaller than the minimum amount of the fine stipulated in this Article or where the infringement is minor and no substantial damage to the consumers’ interests protected by this Law is made, the supervisory authority may, in compliance with the criteria of fairness and reasonableness, issue a warning.”

 

Article 34. Amendment of Article 35

The Article 35 shall be amended and set forth to read as follows:

Article 35. Publication

Upon stating in a resolution (decision) indicated in Article 33 of this Law that a person is in breach of requirements of this Law, the supervisory authority shall make it public on its website 30 calendar days from the adoption of the resolution (decision). Where, within 30 calendar days from the adoption of the resolution (decision), the person in respect of actions whereof the resolution has been adopted appeals against it to court, the supervisory authority shall make such an infringement of provisions of this Law public on its website upon conclusion of court proceedings.”

 

Article 35. Amendment of Article 36

The Article 36 shall be amended and set forth to read as follows:

Article 36. Execution of a resolution (decision) of the supervisory authority

1. A resolution (decision) of the supervisory authority shall be executed not later than within 30 calendar days from service of the resolution upon a person in breach of requirements of this Law. In the event of appeal against a resolution (decision) of the supervisory authority on imposition of a fine, the fine must be paid not later than within 30 calendar days from the coming into effect of a court judgment dismissing the appeal.

2. A resolution (decision) of the supervisory authority shall be an instrument permitting enforcement in accordance with the procedure laid down by the Code of Civil Procedure of the Republic of Lithuania. The resolution (decision) of the supervisory authority may be presented for enforcement not later than within three years from its adoption.”

 

Article 36. Amendment of Article 37

The Article 37 shall be amended and set forth to read as follows:

Article 37. Appeal against a resolution (decision) of the supervisory authority

1. A person who disagrees with a resolution (decision) of the supervisory authority shall have the right to appeal to court against the resolution within 30 calendar days from adoption of the resolution (decision) in accordance with the procedure laid down in the Law of the Republic of Lithuania on Administrative Proceedings.

2. An appeal to court shall suspend execution of a resolution (decision) of the supervisory authority on imposition of a fine.”

 

Article 37. Amendment of Article 38

The Article 38(2) shall be amended and set forth to read as follows:

“2. Disputes of consumers with the creditor, the credit intermediary and peer-to-peer lending platform operator shall be examined in accordance with the procedure laid down by the Law of the Republic of Lithuania on the Bank of Lithuania.”

 

Article 38. Amendment of Article 40

Point 1 of Article 40(1) shall be amended and set forth to read as follows:

“1) that the requests related to infringements of this Law shall be examined by the supervisory authority which also shall impose relevant measures;”.

 

Article 39. Amendment of Annex 1

1.   The point 2.3 of Annex 1 shall be amended and set forth to read as follows:

2.3. The total amount of credit:

Credit interest rate or, if applicable, different credit interest rates

[ %

— fixed or,

— variable (with the index or reference rate applicable to the initial borrowing rate or reference rate of interest),

— periods]

 

Annual Percentage Rate of Charge (APR)

 

This is the total cost expressed as an annual percentage of the total amount of credit.

 

The APR is there to help you compare different offers.

[ % A representative example mentioning all the assumptions used for calculating the rate to be set out here]

 

Is it compulsory, in order to obtain the credit or to obtain it on the terms and conditions marketed, to take out:

– an insurance policy securing the credit, or

 

– another ancillary service contract.

 

If the costs of these services are not known by the creditor they are not included in the APR.

Yes/no [if yes, specify the kind of insurance]

 

Yes/no [if yes, specify the kind of ancillary service]

 

If applicable

 

Maintaining one or more accounts is required for recording both payment transactions and drawdowns

 

If applicable

 

Amount of costs for using a specific means of payment (e.g. a credit card)

 

If applicable

 

Any other costs deriving from the credit agreement

 

If applicable

 

Conditions under which the abovementioned costs related to the credit agreement can be changed

 

If applicable

 

Obligation to pay notarial fees

 

Costs in the case of late payments

 

Missing payments could have severe consequences for you (e.g. forced sale) and make obtaining credit more difficult.

 

 

You will be charged […… (applicable interest rate and arrangements for its adjustment and, where applicable, default charges)] for missing payments.”

 

2.   The point 2.4 of Annex 1 shall be amended and set forth to read as follows:

 

“2.4. Other important legal aspects:

 

Right of withdrawal

 

You have the right to withdraw from the credit agreement within a period of 14 calendar days.

 

Early repayment

 

You have the right to repay the credit early at any time in full or partially.

 

The creditor and the lender is entitled to compensation in the case of early repayment, if applicable.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Determination of the compensation (calculation method) in accordance with the provisions implementing Article 17 of the Law of the Republic of Lithuania on Consumer Credit]

Consultation of registers and information systems on creditworthiness

 

The creditor must inform you immediately and without charge of the result of a consultation of registers and information systems for the purposes of assessing creditworthiness, if a credit application is rejected on the basis of such a consultation. This does not apply if the provision of such information is prohibited by other legal acts or is contrary to objectives of public policy or public security.

 

Right to a draft credit agreement

 

You have the right, upon request, to obtain a copy of the draft credit agreement free of charge. This provision does not apply if the creditor is at the time of the request unwilling to proceed to the conclusion of the credit agreement with you.

 

If applicable

 

Period during which the creditor assumes obligations under  pre-contractual information.

This information is valid from ... to.

 

Article 40. Amendment of Annex 2

1.   The point 2.3 of Annex 2 shall be amended and set forth to read as follows:

“2.3. The total amount of credit:

Credit interest rate or, if applicable, different credit interest rates

[ %

— fixed or,

— variable (with the index or reference rate applicable to the initial borrowing rate or reference rate of interest),

— periods]

 

Annual Percentage Rate of Charge (APR)

 

This is the total cost expressed as an annual percentage of the total amount of credit.

 

The APR is there to help you compare different offers.

[ % A representative example mentioning all the assumptions used for calculating the rate to be set out here]

 

If applicable

 

Charges

 

If applicable

 

Conditions for change of charges

[Costs and applicable charges since the conclusion of the credit agreement]

Costs in the case of late payments

You will be charged […… (applicable interest rate and arrangements for its adjustment and, where applicable, default charges)] for missing payments.”

 

2.   The point 2.4 of Annex 2 shall be amended and set forth to read as follows:

 

“2.4. Other important legal aspects:

 

Right of withdrawal

 

You have the right to withdraw from the credit agreement within a period of 14 calendar days.

[Terms and procedures for withdrawal from the credit agreement]

Consultation of registers and information systems on creditworthiness

 

The creditor must inform you immediately and without charge of the result of a consultation of registers and information systems for the purposes of assessing creditworthiness, if a credit application is rejected on the basis of such a consultation. This does not apply if the provision of such information is prohibited by other legal acts or is contrary to objectives of public policy or public security.

 

If applicable

 

Period during which the creditor assumes obligations under  pre-contractual information.

This information is valid from ... to.“

 

3.   The point 2.5 of Annex 2 shall be amended and set forth to read as follows:

“2.5. If applicable, additional information to be given where the pre-contractual information is provided by a person indicated in Article 3(5) of the Law of the Republic of Lithuania on Consumer Credit or relates to a consumer credit for debt conversion:

Instalments and, where appropriate, the order in which instalments will be allocated

You will have to pay the following:

[Representative example of an instalment table including the amount, number and frequency of payments to be made by the consumer]

The total amount you will have to pay

 

Early repayment

 

You have the right to repay the credit early at any time in full or partially.

 

If applicable

 

The creditor is entitled to compensation in the case of early repayment.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Determination of the compensation (calculation method) in accordance with the provisions implementing Article 17 of the Law of the Republic of Lithuania on Consumer Credit]”

 

Article 41. Entry into force and implementation

1. This Law shall enter into force as of 1 February 2016, with the exception to Article 18.

2. Article 18 of this Law shall enter into force as of 1 November 2016.

3. Persons planning to undertake credit intermediary activities after the entry into force of this Law, acting as independent credit intermediaries, shall submit an application to the supervisory authority within one month after the entry into force of this Law to be included on the public list of independent credit intermediaries referred to in Article 24(1) of Law on Consumer Credit of the Republic of Lithuania laid down in Article 25 of this Law.

4. Persons planning to undertake intermediary activities after the entry into force of this Law, acting as independent credit intermediaries, shall implement the requirements referred to in Article 24(2) of Law on Consumer Credit of the Republic of Lithuania laid down in Article 25 of this Law.

5. Persons entered on the public list of independent credit intermediaries on the day of the entry into force of this Law but who are not entered on the list referred to in Article 24(1) and (2) of Law on Consumer Credit of the Republic of Lithuania laid down in Article 25 of this Law, shall have the right to exercise activities of credit intermediary for a period of one month after the entry into force of this Law. The supervisory authority shall publish the public list of independent credit intermediaries within one month after the entry into force of this Law.

6. Persons entered on the public list of creditors on the day of the entry into force of this Law shall supply documents and data to the supervisory authority justifying compliance with the requirements referred to Article 22(2) of Law on Consumer Credit of the Republic of Lithuania laid down in Article 20 of this Law within a period of 6 months. The supervisory authority shall remove the persons from the public list of creditors in the case where this obligation is not met.

7. Persons who provided documents to the supervisory authority referred to in Article 22(2) of Law on Consumer Credit of the Republic of Lithuania before the entry into force of this Law shall not be entered on the public list of creditors and the supplied documents shall be returned to them within 5 working days.

8. The point 6 of this Article shall not apply to financial market participants supervised by the Bank of Lithuania who are on the public list of creditors and whose impeccable reputation has been assessed by the Bank of Lithuania referred to in Article 22(2) of Law on Consumer Credit of the Republic of Lithuania laid down in Article 20 of this Law.

9. A transitional period shall be set for the requirements established for the share capital referred to in Article 253(3) of Law on Consumer Credit of the Republic of Lithuania laid down in Article 27 of this Law, i. e. until 31 December 2016 the share capital of the peer-to-peer lending platform operator shall be at least EUR 20 000, and as of 1 January 2017 – EUR 40 000.

10. The Bank of Lithuania shall adopt decisions and take actions that are required for the implementation of this Law.

 

I hereby promulgate this Law adopted by the Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania.

PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC              DALIA GRYBAUSKAITĖ