EN ECB -PUBLIC  
 
OPINION OF THE EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK  
of 22 February 2016  
on further amendments with respect to responsible lending requirements  
(CON/2016/ 8) 
 
Introduction and legal basis  
On 23 December 2015, the European Central Bank (ECB) received a request from the Magyar Nemzeti 
Bank (MNB) for an opinion on a draft MNB decree (hereinafter the ‘draft decree’ ) amending MNB 
Decree 32/2014 (IX.10.) regulating the payment -to-income and loan- to-value ratio s permitted in respect of 
consumer credit transactions . 
The ECB’s competence to deliver an opinion is based on Articles 127(4) and 282(5) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union and the sixth indent of Article 2(1) of Council Decision 98/415/EC
1, as 
the draft decree relates to rules applicable to financial institutions insofar as they materially influence the 
stability of financial institutions and markets. In accordance with the first sentence of Article 17.5 of the Rules of P rocedure of the European Central Bank, the Governing Council has adopted this opinion.  
 
1. Purpose of the draft d ecree  
1.1 The draft decree amends MNB Decree 32/2014 regulating the payment -to-income (PTI) and loan-
to-value (LTV) ratios permitted in respect of consumer credit transactions. T he ECB was consulted 
and issued an Opinion on the draft of that decree  on 23 June 2014
2. MNB Decree 32/2014 
introduced caps on the PTI and LTV ratios used to establish the creditworthiness of consumers and 
their capacity to withstand adverse shocks due to exchange and interest rate movements.  
1.2 As noted in the explanatory memorandum, t he draft decree aims to ensure a smoother  lending 
process and eliminate technical difficulties that financial institutions or borrowers might currently 
face. The new measures are expected to enter into force on 1 March 2016. 
1.3 The main changes introduced by the draft decree  concern certain specific exemptions from the use 
of the caps in respect of the PTI and LTV  ratios . In addition, a lower  weighting is proposed for the 
PTI ratio  with respect to the regular instalments of mortgages with longer -term fixed interest rate 
periods . Some technical clarifications on the sources of certified net income and the definition of 
payment accounts  are also made.  
 
                                                 
1  Council Decision 98/415/EC of 29 June 1998 on the consultation of the European Central Bank by national 
authorities regarding draft legislative provisions (OJ L 189, 3.7.1998, p. 42).  
2  Opinion CON/2014/44.  All ECB opinions are published on the ECB’s website at www.ecb.europa.eu.  
ECB -PUBLIC  
2 2. General observations  
From a financial stability perspective,  the ECB welcomes the measures of the draft decree to the extent 
that they aim at promoting responsible borrowing and lending, enforcing market discipline, reducing credit 
risk and increasing the transparency of credit institutions’ activities. T he ECB underlines the importance  of 
a thorough quantitative impact assessment to verify the effect  and appropriateness of  the proposed 
amendments, as well as  the regular review of the PTI and LTV ratios to take into account the implications 
of changes in macroeconomic and financial conditions.  The scale of exemptions from the scope or 
specific provisions of MNB Decree 32/2014 should be proportionate  to the overall objective to be 
achieved,  which is to curb excessive lending to households and prevent over -indebtedness.  
 
This opinion will be published on the ECB’s website.  
 
 
Done at Frankfurt am Main, 22 February  2016 . 
 
[signed]  
 
The President of the ECB  
Mario DRAGHI