Czech Republic

Status

No steps taken to implement BNPL-specific legislation. Under the current legislation, BNPL may be covered in a limited capacity by the Consumer Credit Act.

Is the country considering regulation?

No national BNPL-specific regulation is considered, however the new EU Consumer Credit Directive may be implemented in the Czech Republic.

Current state of regulation regarding BNPL?

The Czech law regulates a deferred payment which is a form of a consumer loan under the Act No. 257/2016 Coll., the Consumer Credit Act (“CCA”). If the deferred payment is provided free of charge then only a very limited extent of the CCA rules applies (i.e. rules regarding payment default of the consumer, limitation of payments and change of maturity in such case). The provider of such free deferred payment thus currently does not have to be licensed and meet other obligations applicable to the consumer credit provision.  

Outline the proposals to change regulation?

None. 

What if any will be the consequences of BNPL legislation on merchants, brokers and consumers.

Until new regulation will be adopted, existing requirements will continue to apply.