Estonia's Ministry of Finance proposes mandatory credit information register with 24-hour loan reporting and pre-lending checks

Estonia's Ministry of Finance published a draft bill to create a credit information register intended to give lenders a more complete view of borrowers’ existing obligations and help prevent over-indebtedness. The proposal responds to repayment difficulties particularly linked to smaller consumer loans from non-bank credit providers, with around 47,000 contracts past due as of end-2024. Under the draft, all lenders would have to submit information on issued loans to the register, with each new loan and any contract amendment recorded within 24 hours. Before granting a new loan, a lender would be required to query the register to assess repayment capacity using reliable data, while individuals would also be able to use the register to track their own obligations and request that a lending ban be set on their profile. The register would be operated by a privately owned company selected through a competitive process, with each query leaving an electronic audit trail and individuals able to see who has accessed their data.