Montenegro proposes 50 percent increase in court fees

The Ministry of Justice of Montenegro has prepared a draft law on court fees that proposes increasing existing fees by up to 50 percent. The new legal framework aims to improve the collection of court fees, reduce the administrative burden on courts, and increase the efficiency of the judiciary. This move comes as the current tariffs have not been updated for two decades.

A significant change includes the introduction of fees for specific actions within misdemeanor proceedings. Proposed fees include 37 euros for requests for judicial decision-making on misdemeanor orders, requests to repeat misdemeanor proceedings, and first-instance decisions. Appeals against court decisions would cost 15 euros, as would requests for restoration to a previous state.

The draft also establishes a more precise mechanism for the compulsory collection of unpaid debts. According to data from misdemeanor courts in Podgorica, Bijelo Polje, and Budva, the introduction of these fees is expected to increase state budget revenues.