With the creation of a unified enforcement service, bailiffs have gained more rights

Since January 1, a separate structure of bailiffs has been operating in Belarus as part of a judicial reform. According to Dmitry Shnyavin, Head of the Compulsory Enforcement Department of the Oktyabrsky District of Vitebsk, the judicial reform necessitated the unification of bailiffs from general and economic courts into a single compulsory enforcement service, subordinate not to the courts, but to compulsory enforcement departments. Currently, the functions of ensuring compulsory enforcement are assigned to the Ministry of Justice and the main justice departments of regional executive committees (Minsk City Executive Committee), within the structures of which relevant divisions already operate.

As the specialist notes, after the reorganization of the bailiff service, their work will become easier – enforcement proceedings will be simplified. For example, if previously decisions to suspend operations on debtors' bank accounts, put them on the wanted list, etc., could only be made by court order, now bailiffs themselves are empowered to do so. Also, based on their own representation to the court, they can now access and inspect debtors' premises even without their consent (of course, with the participation of police officers and witnesses).

The services of employees of the compulsory enforcement service have also become more expensive. Now, enforcement involving a bailiff will cost 10% of the amounts recovered or property (it was 5%). For non-pecuniary enforcement proceedings (e.g., eviction/reinstatement), a fee of 5 basic units is established for individuals and 10 for legal entities. Appeals against decisions, actions (inaction) of bailiffs are now carried out through their higher compulsory enforcement authority (officials), and only then through the court.

Last year, in the Oktyabrsky District Court of Vitebsk alone, bailiffs handled over 47,000 enforcement proceedings. Year after year, the percentage of funds recovered from debtors remains practically at the same level, at about 50-55%.

Alexander Kutynko, "Vitebskiye Vesti"