The draft law amending the provisions of Article 411 of the Commercial Code on penalties for issuing bad cheques has been officially adopted.
The bill aims to reduce the penalties (criminal and financial) for writing bad cheques and provides for the possibility of replacing the prison sentence with an alternative penalty.
It also makes it a criminal offence to accept a guarantee cheque, establishes the principle of cumulation of sentences handed down in the same trial, revises prison sentences handed down by different courts and extends the scope of conciliation procedures to include the enforcement phase.
For observers, this is a legislative revolution in that these new provisions will significantly reduce the prison sentences for those involved in issuing bounced cheques. But what will really change?
Yasser Gourari, Chairman of the General Legislation Committee in the Assembly of People’s Representatives, told AfricanManager that the most important aspect of this new law is the creation of a digital platform for cheque transactions, which the Central Bank will activate within the next six months.
Using a QR code, this platform will allow the recipient of the cheque to check the availability of funds in the account of the owner of the cheque.
He went on to say that the introduction of controls on financial transactions is intended to reduce the circulation of cash and the imaginary financial mass circulating on the market, estimated at 2.9 billion dinars.
These measures are also aimed at establishing an automated and transparent system, according to him.
Creation of an electronic platform
Prior to this amendment, Article 411 of the Commercial Code provided for five years’ imprisonment for each dishonored cheque – the penalties being cumulative – and a fine of 40% of the amount of the cheques.
From now on, the amendment to the Commercial Code reduces the prison sentence to 2 years and a fine estimated at 20% of the amount, and decriminalizes cheques up to 5,000 dinars and limits cheques to 30,000 dinars.
The text also proposes to increase the penalty to 10 years’ imprisonment if it initially exceeds 20 years’ imprisonment and to halve it if it is less than 20 years’ imprisonment.
The penalties will no longer be cumulative. This means that the issuer of twenty bad cheques will receive the same sentence as the issuer of a single cheque. There is also talk of reducing the penalty, which is currently five years’ imprisonment for each wooden cheque issued. It should also be noted that this new provision will benefit people currently in prison, as the new legislation will have retrospective effect.
There will also be a suspension of sentences for prisoners who fulfil their financial obligations while in prison. Finally, the bill will waive fees and penalties for convicted offenders who pay the amount due.
In the future, the new law proposes a mediation mechanism as a means of resolving disputes before criminal proceedings are initiated. In the same vein, legal proceedings are no longer systematically triggered and can now only be initiated by the recipient of the cheque.
Also, under this amendment, the bank issuing the cheque will be held liable and will be jointly and severally liable with the customer at fault. In particular, this amendment provides for the introduction of an electronic platform enabling the beneficiary of the cheque to check immediately whether the issuer’s account balance covers the amount.
The majority of MPs called for the activation of the electronic platform in question, electronic interbank exchanges and the digitalization of bank transfers to be speeded up following the approval of these revisions, in order to avoid a new crisis and give Tunisia a real economic boost.
More than 500 behind bars
Bad cheques are a real problem in Tunisia. According to official figures published at the end of 2002, the situation is alarming: more than 500 people are believed to have been imprisoned for writing bad cheques, and several thousand are believed to be wanted.
The Central Bank of Tunisia recorded more than 400,000 bounced cheques totaling 3.5 billion dinars (around €1 billion) in 2023 alone.
