Skopje, 6 September 2023

By the end of this month, the National Bank will start publishing comparative data on the type and amount of fees for the most representative services linked to payment accounts, per payment service provider (bank), on its website. These central bank activities tend to strengthen the protection of citizens as consumers of these services and are made possible by the new Law on Payment Services and Payment Systems. This data will allow citizens to compare and decide which services and products best suit their needs. This measure, besides adding to transparency, is also expected to increase the competition between payment service providers, and accordingly, the offer of more favorable conditions.

To this end, the National Bank has prepared a list of 11 most representative services linked to a payment account and will collect regular and uniform data on fees from each payment service provider, which will be available to citizens through a special fee comparison platform developed by the National Bank expert team. The platform will allow citizens to compare fees for a particular product or service in a clear and well-organized form when deciding which provider to use.

The new Law on Payment Services and Payment Systems that entered into force early this year provides a well-based legal framework for protection of the rights of citizens as consumers of payment services. For the first time in the history of the use of payment services in our country, a legal requirement is being introduced that binds the provider to regulate consumer rights and obligations with a standardized framework agreement that includes a mandatory set of information specifying the modification or cancellation terms. The legal obligation for the payment service provider to present the consumer with a fee information document before using payment services and signing the framework agreement is of paramount importance for consumer protection. The fee information document is standardized and aims to provide consumers with comparable information on fees for the most commonly used or the so-called most representative services in the Republic of North Macedonia. The provider is required to report on the fees charged to the consumer, at least once a year.