The Implementation Act stipulates that forms of credit such as Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL), credit cards and authorised overdrafts at banks will fall within the scope of the rules for credit offerors. This means that these forms of credit will also be subject to the legal safeguards that already exist for other types of consumer credit, including the licensing requirement, the obligation to carry out a creditworthiness assessment and affiliation with the BKR for registration and consultation of the credit. In addition, rules will be tightened with regard to the (pre)contractual information provided to consumers and the obligation to identify financial problems among consumers at an early stage.

Scope of application of the CCDII

The Implementation Act lays down a number of important changes to the scope of application:

  • The scope of application is broadened by removing the lower limit included in the CCDI. The CCDI did not apply to consumer credit agreements with a total credit amount of less than EUR 200 or more than EUR 75,000. The upper limit is increased to EUR 100,000.
  • In addition, the bill removes several exceptions from Section 1:20 of the Dutch Act on Financial Supervision (Wet op het financieel toezicht, Wft). These exceptions concern (i) rental or leasing agreements with an option to purchase, (ii) credit agreements granted in the form of a permitted overdraft on an account and which must be repaid within one month, (iii) credit agreements on which no interest or other costs are payable, and (iv) credit agreements whereby the credit must be repaid within three months and for which only insignificant costs are charged.

The Implementation Act stipulates that rental agreements fall outside the scope of application, unless such an agreement includes an option to purchase the item or the intention at the time of entering into the agreement is that the consumer will acquire ownership of the item at some point. For rental agreements without a purchase option ("private lease"), regulation may still follow, as previously consulted by the Minister of Finance, but this falls outside the scope of this bill.

With the expiry of the exception for credit that must be repaid within three months and for which only insignificant costs are charged, 'buy now, pay later' services, or Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL), fall within the scope of the Wft. Offerors of deferred debit cards and authorised overdraft facilities at banks will also fall within the scope of the rules for offering credit. This means that these parties will need a licence as a credit offeror on the basis of Section 2:60 of the Wft and must comply with the rules of conduct set out in the Wft.

Offering deferral of payment remains possible on the basis of a new exception in Section 1:20 Wft. This exception applies if (i) the supplier or service provider of the goods or services in question, which is not a platform, grants a deferral of payment itself (without the involvement of a third party), (ii) no interest or costs are charged, except for limited costs due to late payment, and (iii) payment must be made in full within 50 days. The same conditions apply to large companies, but in that case a payment term of 14 days applies in order to remain within the scope of the exception.

The provision of intermediary services in relation to consumer credit in the form of deferred payment that does not fall under the above exception is subject to a license as a credit intermediary. An example of this would be an (online) retailer using the services of a BNPL offeror. Such an intermediary does not need a license as a credit intermediary if it is an SME that engages a BNPL offeror. For suppliers of movable goods or services who are not SMEs and who, as a secondary activity, act as intermediaries for one or more providers in credit agreements that provide for a deferral of payment of up to three months after the delivery of the goods or services, the obligation has been introduced for the BNPL offeror to register these intermediaries with the AFM.

Creditworthiness and reporting function of the credit offeror

In addition to the changes in the scope of application, there are also a number of other relevant changes based on the CCDII.

The bill amends Section 4:34 of the Wft so that the creditworthiness assessment is based on information about the consumer's financial position that is necessary and proportionate to the nature, duration, value and risks of the credit for the consumer. Further guidelines for creditworthiness assessments may be included in the Implementation Decree for the implementation of the CCDII, which is expected to be published for consultation still in Q4 2025. The question is to what extent this will change current practice, which involves an open standard for compliance with creditworthiness assessment, which is implemented by the lending standards methodology for consumer credit of the Dutch Association of Financing Companies (VFN). The assessment has been supplemented with a new Article 4:34a of the Wft, which stipulates that information required for the credit assessment of consumers may not be obtained from social networks. In addition, in principle, the offeror may not process special categories of personal data within the meaning of the GDPR.

Article 4:34b of the Wft in the Implementation Act introduces a ban on concluding credit agreements with underage consumers, unless consent has been obtained from their legal representative. This exception does not apply to credit agreements in the form of deferred payment (i.e. for BNPL offerors). Credit offerors must have adequate processes in place to determine the age of the consumer.

Based on Article 4:35a of the Financial Supervision Act (Wft), credit offerors now have a new obligation to identify payment problems among consumers at an early stage. If such payment problems arise and a consumer is unable to meet the payment obligations under the credit agreement, credit offerors are obliged to refer them to debt counselling services (see also Section 7:68a of the Dutch Civil Code).

Amendments to Book 7 of the Dutch Civil Code

The Implementation Act also proposes amendments to Title 2a of Book 7 of the Dutch Civil Code (Burgerlijk Wetboek, DCC). The proposed rules relate, on the one hand, to the extension of advertising rules and pre-contractual information obligations and, on the other hand, to respite in the event of payment difficulties on the part of the consumer.

For example, Article 7:60 of the Dutch Civil Code includes a more comprehensive set of rules on information obligations, including the obligation to provide adequate explanations for a proposed credit agreement.

On the basis of Article 7:70a of the Dutch Civil Code, lenders are obliged to give consumers the opportunity to repay the amount withdrawn within a generous period (12 months) before collection or recovery proceedings can be initiated in the event of a reduction or cancellation of the authorised overdraft facility.

Pursuant to Articles 70a and 128aa of Book 7 of the Dutch Civil Code and Article 4:35a Wft the creditor is obliged to take appropriate respite measures in the event of payment arrears on credit agreements, such as a reduction in interest or an extension of the term of the agreement. These articles were inserted with the entry into force of the Implementation Act on Credit Servicers and Credit Purchasers (Implementatiewet kredietservicers en kredietkopers), which implemented the Non Performing Loans Directive.

Article 7:66 DCC extends the consumer's right to terminate the credit agreement. Consumers now have a longer period in which to terminate the agreement if they have not been informed, or have only been partially informed, about the contractual terms and conditions of the credit agreement. In the case of a related agreement, a longer period for termination applies if this related agreement (e.g. for the purchase of goods) can also be terminated during a longer period.

Based on Article 7:60a DCC (new), bundled sales are permitted, but tied sales are prohibited in principle. This means that providers are not permitted to sell or offer credit agreements as part of a package with other financial products or services where the credit agreement is not offered separately. This so-called tying may encourage consumers to enter into credit agreements that are not in their best interests. Under certain conditions, tying is possible in the case of a current or savings account or insurance relating to the credit agreement.

Entry into force

The CCDII must be implemented in national legislation and regulations by 20 November 2025, and its provisions must enter into force by 20 November 2026 at the latest. However, the Implementation Act is currently awaiting advice from the Council of State. It is expected that the draft Implementation Decree for the implementation of the CCDII will be published for consultation in Q4 2025. It is intended that both the Implementation Act and the Implementation Decree will enter into force by 20 November 2026 at the latest. As a result, credit offerors will have very little time to implement and comply with the new rules once they are finalised.  

Contact

We would be happy to assist you in identifying the relevant changes for your organisation and to inform you about the changes based on the Implementation Decree for the implementation of the CCDII, which is still to be consulted.

Do you have any questions about this or other topics related to financial regulation? Please contact our Financial Regulatory Team.