Sometimes the decision on a dispute between companies is made by a foreign commercial arbitration. In this case, it is difficult to execute such a decision in Belarus independently without a representative who knows Belarusian legislation and knows how to execute foreign arbitral awards. In some cases, the enforcement of foreign arbitral awards in Belarus is impossible. Our experienced lawyers are familiar with the issues of enforcement of foreign arbitral awards in Belarus and are ready to assist you on such issues.
When a foreign arbitration award will not be executed in Belarus
Since April 2022, the execution of foreign arbitral awards in favor of residents of foreign states has been suspended, declared unfriendly. The list of unfriendly states was approved by the Government of Belarus. This list includes Australia, the member States of the European Union, Canada, Liechtenstein, Norway, New Zealand, Albania, Iceland, North Macedonia, Great Britain and Northern Ireland, the United States, Montenegro, Switzerland. This means that Belarusian banks will not accept for execution payment documents issued on the basis of foreign arbitral awards in favor of residents of these states.
Enforcement of foreign arbitral awards in favor of natural persons — residents of unfriendly States
The execution of arbitral awards in favor of individuals who are residents of unfriendly States has not been suspended.
Enforcement of arbitral awards of the courts of the Russian Federation
The decisions of the arbitration courts of the Russian Federation are not required to be recognized, they are executed on an equal basis with the Belarusian executive documents.
Documents for the recognition of a foreign arbitral award
Recognition of a foreign arbitration award is giving it legal force on the territory of Belarus. To give legal force to the decision of a foreign arbitration court, you need to take several steps that our lawyers can accompany for you.
Step 1. Apostille or legalization of documents
First of all, documents issued in a foreign country must be apostilled or legalized at the consulate of Belarus in the country where the document was issued.
Step 2. Document Translation
Then the documents are translated into the official language of Belarus: Russian or Belarusian and the translation is notarized.
Step 3. Sending an application to the court for recognition and enforcement of a foreign arbitral award
An application for recognition and enforcement of a foreign arbitral award is submitted to the economic court at the location of the debtor. The application must be accompanied by a decision of a foreign arbitration court or a copy thereof and an agreement on arbitration proceedings or a copy thereof and a certified translation of these documents.
It will be required:
- to pay the state duty — 10 basic units (this is 370 Belarusian rubles),
- attach to the application an extract from the commercial register of the state in which the claimant is located, stating that his company exists in reality.
How to recognize a foreign arbitration award
The court considers an application for recognition of a foreign arbitral award within one month.
The court will refuse to recognize a foreign arbitral award if the debtor proves that the procedure for considering the case by a certain arbitration court has been violated or if the execution of a foreign arbitral award contradicts the execution procedure in force in Belarus.
Based on the results of studying the circumstances, the judge issues a ruling on the recognition and enforcement of a foreign arbitration decision or on the refusal of recognition and enforcement.
How to execute a foreign arbitration award
A foreign arbitral award must be sent for enforcement within 3 years from the date of its entry into force.
Application for initiation of enforcement proceedings
The court’s ruling on the recognition and enforcement of a foreign arbitral award, together with this decision and an application for the initiation of enforcement proceedings, is sent to the enforcement authorities. In the application, you can ask for interim measures to be applied. After accepting the application to the enforcement authorities, the bailiff is engaged in the execution of the foreign arbitral award.
How much money will the claimant receive
The money that the bailiff collects from the debtor is credited to the enforcement authorities’ bank account. From this account, the money that remains after repayment of the execution costs and payment of the compulsory fee is transferred to the recoverer — this is a fee in favor of the enforcement authorities for compulsory execution. Usually, the amount of the compulsory fee is 10% of the amount that is collected by the bailiff or of the value of the debtor’s property that was sold during the enforcement of a foreign arbitration decision.
How we can be useful in the recognition and enforcement of foreign arbitral orders
Our lawyers and attorneys are experienced specialists in the field of recognition and enforcement of foreign arbitral orders and speak English. We can:
- Advise on the issues of registration of documents necessary for the recognition of foreign arbitral orders;
- Advise on the possibility and financial feasibility of the execution of a foreign arbitration order in Belarus;
- Advise on the legalization of foreign documents for the recognition and enforcement of foreign arbitration decisions;
- Make an application to the Belarusian court for recognition and enforcement of a foreign arbitration order;
- By power of attorney, pay the state fee for the court’s consideration of the application;
- Prepare and send to the enforcement authorities documents for the enforcement of a foreign arbitration decision;
- Interact with the bailiff to speed up the execution of a foreign arbitration order.
Contact us
If you have any questions about the recognition and enforcement of a foreign arbitration order, we will be happy to help you! Our long-term experience in the field of arbitration representation and recognition of foreign arbitral orders in Belarus will help you in resolving any disputes in this area.
Phone and email communication options are available for your convenience:
- +375293664477 (WhatsApp/Telegram/Viber);
- info@ambylegal.by.
