North Macedonia Ministry of Finance sets new financial leasing rules, boosts user safeguards and raises minimum core capital to MKD 30 million

The North Macedonia Ministry of Finance said Parliament has adopted amendments to the Law on Financial Leasing that tighten the framework for leasing providers and strengthen protections for users. The changes modernize rules on establishment and operations, corporate governance, supervision, transparency and user protection, with the ministry framing them as part of its reform agenda and as an alignment with European standards. The amendments require financial leasing contracts to include mandatory elements and clear disclosure of all related fees. They also allow contracts to be concluded electronically if requirements under electronic documents, electronic identification, trust services, anti-money laundering, personal data protection and other relevant laws are met. Users will be able to repay remaining liabilities in full or in part at any time under the repayment schedule without additional costs, with a corresponding reduction in total costs for the remaining contract term. Providers will be barred from using a leased asset as collateral without the user’s prior written consent, executed before a notary in a separate statement that clearly refers to the legal implications. Leasing companies must publish annual financial statements together with the auditor’s report and opinion on their websites. Supervision is reinforced through stricter misdemeanour provisions, while the minimum core capital requirement for financial leasing providers rises from MKD 6,000,000 to MKD 30,000,000. The amendments also incorporate MONEYVAL recommendations on combating money laundering and terrorist financing, and introduce eligibility and reputation criteria for founders and members of management bodies at financial leasing providers.