Opinion of the European Central Bank of 19 December 2007 at the request of the Slovak Ministry of Finance on a draft law on the introduction of the euro in Slovakia and on amendments to certain laws (CON/2007/43)
Date: 2007-12-19
Institutions: European Central Bank
Subjects: financial stability, legal basis, monetary policy, money

EN 

OPINION OF THE EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK 

of 19 December 2007 

at the request of the Slovak Ministry of Finance 

on a draft law on the introduction of the euro in Slovakia and on amendments to certain laws 

(CON/2007/43) 

Introduction and legal basis 

On  20  July  2007  the  European  Central  Bank  (ECB)  received  a  request  from  the  Slovak  Ministry  of 

Finance for an opinion on a draft law on the introduction of the euro in Slovakia and on amendments to 

certain laws.  On 24 September 2007 the Slovak Ministry of Finance sent the ECB a revised version of 

this law (hereinafter the ‘draft law’) with an urgent request for an opinion. 

The  ECB’s  competence  to  deliver  an  opinion  is  based  on  Article  105(4)  of  the  Treaty  establishing  the 

European Community and the first, second, third, fourth, fifth and sixth indents of Article 2(1) of Council 

Decision  98/415/EC  of  29 June  1998  on  the  consultation  of  the  European  Central  Bank  by  national 
authorities regarding draft legislative provisions1, as  the draft law relates to currency matters,  means of 

payment,  Národná  banka  Slovenska  (NBS),  the  collection,  compilation  and  distribution  of  monetary, 

financial, banking, payment systems and balance of payment statistics, payment and settlement systems 

and  the  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 

Procedure of the European Central Bank, the Governing Council has adopted this opinion. 

1.  

Purpose of the draft law 

The main objective of the draft law is to amend almost all relevant parts of the Slovak legal framework2 

for the introduction of the euro in Slovakia and to ensure the compatibility of Slovak legislation with the 

Treaty  and  the  Statute  of  the  European  System  of  Central  Banks  and  of  the  European  Central  Bank 

(hereinafter  the  ‘ESCB  Statute’).  The  draft  law  contains  three  main  parts:  (i)  the  draft  law  on  the 

introduction of the euro (hereinafter the ‘draft euro law’); (ii) the draft law amending Law No 566/1992 

Coll.  on  Národná  banka  Slovenska,  as  amended  (hereinafter  the  ‘draft  amendments  to  the  NBS  Law’); 

1  
2  

OJ L 189, 3.7.1998, p. 42.  
In  line  with  the  National  Euro  Changeover  Plan  for  Slovakia  adopted  by  the  Resolution  of  the  Slovak  Government 
No 525  of  6  July  2005,  as  amended,  there  are  three  groups  of  legislative  measures  to  be  brought  into  line  with 
Community law and this draft law contains the legislative measures from the first group and several legislative measures 
from the second group. 

 
 
 
 
                                                 
and (iii) amendments to 26 other laws3 to prepare for the introduction of the euro in Slovakia4. 

2. 

General observations 

2.1  The  ECB  welcomes  the  Slovak  Government’s  initiative  to  start  early  preparations  for  the 

introduction of the euro, which should facilitate Slovakia’s smooth changeover to the euro. 

Direct applicability of Community regulations and provisions of primary Community law 

2.2  Certain  provisions  of  the  draft  law  repeat  relevant  provisions  of  Community  regulations.  In  this 

context, the ECB notes that Article 249 of the Treaty provides that a Community regulation ‘shall 

be  binding  in  its  entirety  and  directly  applicable  in  all  Member  States’.  Therefore,  a  Community 

regulation,  as  stated  by  the  Court  of  Justice  of  the  European  Communities,  does  not  need  to  be 
transposed into the domestic law of a Member State5. The same applies to all directly applicable 

provisions of primary Community law. In this light, the ECB recommends deleting those articles of 

the  draft  law  that  repeat  provisions  and  definitions  of  Community  regulations  and  directly 

3 

4  

5  

Law No 39/1993 Coll. on the Supreme Audit Office of Slovakia, as amended, Law No 513/1991 Coll., as amended (the 
Commercial Code), Law No 747/2004 Coll. on financial market supervision (including amendments to certain laws), as 
amended,  Law  No  566/2001  Coll.  on  securities  and  investment  services  (including  amendments  to  certain  laws),  as 
amended, Law No 530/1990 Coll. on bonds, as amended, Law No 191/1950 Coll. on bills of exchange and cheques, Law 
No 594/2003 Coll. on collective investment (including amendments to certain laws), as amended, Law No 483/2001 Coll. 
on banks (including amendments to certain laws), as amended, Law No 310/1992 Coll. on home savings, as amended, 
Law No 118/1996 Coll. on deposit protection (including amendments to certain laws), as amended, Law No 510/2002 
Coll.  on  the  payment  system  (including  amendments  to  certain  laws),  as  amended,  Law  No  202/1995  Coll.  (foreign 
exchange), as amended, Law No 43/2004 Coll. on retirement pension saving (including amendments to certain laws), as 
amended, Law No 650/2004 Coll. on supplementary pension saving (including amendments to certain laws), as amended, 
Law No 461/2003 Coll. on social insurance, as amended, Law No 462/2003 Coll. on compensation of earnings during an 
employee’s  temporary  incapacity  (including  amendments  to  certain  laws),  as  amended,  Law  No  171/2005  Coll.  on 
gambling  games  (including  amendments  to  certain  laws),  as  amended,  Law  No  530/2003  Coll.  on  the  Commercial 
Register  (including  amendments  to  certain  laws),  as  amended,  Law  No  18/1996  Coll.  on  prices,  as  amended,  Law 
No 258/2001 Coll. on consumer loans and on the amendment to Law No 71/1986 Coll. on the Slovak Trade Inspectorate, 
as amended, Law No 63/1993 Coll. on state symbols of Slovakia and on their use, as amended, Law No 231/1999 Coll. 
on  state  aid  as amended,  Law  No  82/1994  Coll. on  state  material  reserves,  as  amended,  Law  No 80/1997  Coll.  on  the 
Export-Import Bank of Slovakia, as amended, Law No 507/2001 Coll. on postal services, as amended, Law No 291/2002 
Coll. on the State Treasury (including amendments to certain laws), as amended. 
For  ease  of  reference,  with  regard  to  Sections  I  and  II  of  the  draft  law,  the  Article  numbers  in  the  text  refer  to  the 
numbering in the underlying legal act (e.g. the draft amendments to the NBS Law). With regard to Sections III to XXX of 
the  draft  law,  the  Article  numbers  refer  to  the  underlying  law  covered  by  each  section  and  there  are  also  footnote 
references to the corresponding Section and Point in the draft law. 
As stated by the Court of Justice of the European Communities in Case 34/73 Fratelli Variola S.p.A v Amministrazione 
italiana delle Finanze [1973] ECR 981: ‘by virtue of the obligations arising from the Treaty and assumed on ratification, 
Member  States  are  under  a  duty  not  to  obstruct  the  direct  applicability  inherent  in  regulations  and  other  rules  of 
Community  law.  Strict  compliance  with  this  obligation  is  an  indispensable  condition  of  simultaneous  and  uniform 
application  of  Community  regulations  throughout  the  Community’.  This  position  was  reiterated  in  Case  50/76 
Amsterdam  Bulb  v  Produktschap  voor  Siergewassen  [1977]  ECR  137.  See  also  ECB  Opinion  CON/2006/10  of 
23 February 2006 at the request of the Central Bank of Malta on a draft law on the adoption of the euro; ECB Opinion 
CON/2006/29 of 12 June 2006 at the request of the Slovenian Ministry of Finance on a draft law on the introduction of 
the euro; and ECB Opinion CON/2007/1 of 15 January 2007 at the request of the Cypriot Ministry of Finance on a draft 
law regulating the adoption of the euro and the currency changeover. 

2 

 
                                                 
applicable  provisions  of  primary  Community  law6,  including  definitions.  The  draft  law  should 
therefore include only those issues relating to the introduction of the euro in Slovakia7 that are not 

regulated by Community legislation. This would also contribute to simplifying the draft law. 

3. 

Specific observations concerning the draft euro law (Section I of the draft law) 

Changeover rules 

Article 3(8)(b)(1) of the draft euro law provides that banks will be required to exchange Slovak currency 

banknotes into euro for a  period of one year from the day the euro is introduced. This one  year period 
applicable to banks goes beyond, but is not inconsistent with what is foreseen in Community law8. 

4. 

Specific  observations  concerning  the  draft  amendments  to  the  NBS  Law  (Section  II  of  the 

draft law)  

NBS’s integration into the Eurosystem 

4.1  The  draft  law  addresses  a  number  of  issues  that  the  ECB  raised  in  its  Convergence  Report  of 
December  20069.  The  ECB  welcomes  the  Slovak  Government’s  efforts  to  achieve  the  required 

level of legal convergence and notes that the legal convergence of the amended NBS Law will be 

also assessed in the ECB’s next Convergence Report. 

4.2  Concerning  the  system  of  sanctions  provided  for  by  Community  law,  the  compatibility  of  the 

amendments  introduced  by  the  draft  law  to  the  NBS  Law  with  such  system  is  important  for  the 

legal  integration  of  NBS  into  the  Eurosystem.  Under  Article  21  of  the  draft  amendments  to  the 

NBS  Law,  NBS  may  impose  and  enforce  sanctions  relating  to  minimum  reserves  or  to  other 
monetary policy operations, in accordance with the rules applicable to the Eurosystem10. The ECB 

assumes that the term ‘other monetary policy operations’ in Article 21 of the draft amendments to 

the NBS Law includes ‘credit operations’ within the meaning of the ESCB Statute. 

6  

7 

8 

9  
10 

If,  in  spite  of  what  has  been  explained,  the  Slovak  authorities  still  intend  to  reproduce  such  primary  and  secondary 
Community law provisions, they should reproduce them precisely without modifying their wording. See Article 1(2)(a) 
of the draft euro law which does not reproduce precisely the provisions of the relevant monetary agreements referred to in 
footnote 3 of the draft euro law. Furthermore, Article 24b of the draft law amending Law No 39/1993 Coll. on the Slovak 
Supreme  Audit  Office  (Section  III),  as  amended,  and  Article  38(2)  of  the  draft  amendments  to  the  NBS  Law  do  not 
reproduce precisely the provisions of Article 27 of the ESCB Statute. 
See, e.g. supervision of compliance with rules and obligations concerning the changeover from the Slovak currency to the 
euro governed by Articles 19 to 22 of the draft euro law or withdrawal of euro coins governed by Article 17c of the draft 
amendments to the NBS Law. 

See Articles 15 and 16 of Council Regulation (EC) No 974/98 of 3 May 1998 on the introduction of the euro (OJ L 139, 
11.5.1998, p. 1). Regulation as last amended by  Regulation (EC) No 835/2007 (OJ L 186, 18.7.2007, p. 1) 
See the ECB’s Convergence Report of December 2006, pp. 21-33 and 230-231. 
See, e.g. Council Regulation (EC) No 2531/98 of 23 November 1998 concerning the application of minimum reserves by 
the  European  Central  Bank  (OJ  L  318,  27.11.1998,  p.1).  Regulation  as  last  amended  by  Council  Regulation  (EC) 
No 134/2002  (OJ  L  24,  26.1.2002,  p.  1),  Council  Regulation  (EC)  No 2532/98  of  23 November  1998  concerning  the 
powers of the European Central Bank to impose sanctions (OJ L 318, 27.11.1998, p. 4); and Regulation ECB/2003/9 of 
12 September 2003 on the application of minimum reserves (OJ L 250, 2.10.2003, p. 10).  

3 

 
 
                                                 
4.3  Article  5  of  Decision  ECB/2003/4  of  20  March  2003  on  the  denominations,  specifications, 
reproduction, exchange and withdrawal of euro banknotes11 provides that the Governing Council is 

to decide on the ‘treatment of euro banknotes presented once the withdrawal period is over and/or 

they have lost their legal tender status’. In order to reflect this provision in the draft law, the ECB 

recommends  adding  the  wording  ‘subject  to  the  rules  applicable  in  the  euro  area’  at  the  end  of 

Article  17a(4)  of  the  draft  amendments  to  the  NBS  Law  and  including  a  reference  to  Decision 

ECB/2003/4 in a footnote. 

4.4  The  ECB  understands  that  Article  17f(2)  of  the  draft  amendments  to  the  NBS  Law  encompasses 
provisions of the Banknote Recycling Framework12, even though footnote 3h) (listing examples of 

rules applicable in the euro area) makes no explicit reference to this Framework. In addition, the 

same approach used in Article 17f(2) should be used in Article 17f(5) of the draft amendments to 

the NBS Law; in particular, the wording ‘provided in a separate legal provision’ at the end of the 

first sentence of Article 17f(5) should be replaced by ‘provided in the rules applicable in the euro 

area to the processing of euro banknotes and euro coins’, together with a corresponding reference 

in footnote 3h). 

4.5  Article  17a(1)  of  the  draft  amendments  to  the  NBS  Law  introduces  a  general  provision  on  legal 

tender, which is to remain in force after the introduction of euro banknotes and coins in Slovakia 

following  the  abrogation  of  the  derogation  by  the  EU  Council.  Article  17a(3)  of  the  draft 

amendments to the NBS Law introduces a specific provision on the status as legal tender of euro 

banknotes  and  coins,  and  in  this  connection  the  ECB  makes  the  following  technical 

recommendations.  

The ECB understands that Article 17a(3) of the draft amendments to the NBS Law is intended to 

designate  the  entities  which  will  be  obliged,  under  the  third  sentence  of  Article  11  of  Council 
Regulation  (EC)  No  974/98  of  3  May  1998  on  the  introduction  of  the  euro13,  to  accept  cash 

payments  in  euro  coins  irrespective  of  the  number  of  coins  involved.  The  purpose  of  the  third 

sentence of Article 11 of Regulation (EC) No 974/98 is to provide for the obligation of the issuing 

authority  to  accept  unlimited  amounts  of  euro  coins  and  to  allow  national  law  to  extend  this 

obligation to other entities. The ECB questions the extensive scope of the entities designated under 
national law to accept euro coins without restrictions14.  

Parties  who  are  not  designated  in  Article  17a(3)  of  the  draft  amendments  to  the  NBS  Law,  are 

entitled to reject payments involving more than 50 euro coins by virtue of the direct application of 

Article 11 of Regulation (EC) No 974/98. Article 17a(3) of the draft amendments to the NBS Law 

11  
12  

13  
14  

OJ L 78, 25.3.2003, p. 16. 
See the ECB document ‘Recycling of euro banknotes: framework for the detection of counterfeits and fitness sorting by 
credit institutions and other professional cash handlers’ (SEC/GovC/04/23/09a.rev-2) that has been agreed by the ECB’s 
Governing Council on 16 December 2004 and is available on the ECB’s website at www.ecb.int. 
 OJ L 139, 11.5.1998, p. 1 
 The ECB notes that the scope of application of the first sentence of Article 17a(3) in relation to coins is in fact limited by 
virtue  of  the  direct  application  of  Article  11  of  the  Regulation  (EC)  No  974/98.  The  reference  to  this  Article  in 
footnote 3d) of the draft amendments to the NBS Law reflects this intended limitation. 

4 

                                                 
also entitles all legal and natural persons other than NBS and banks, to reject payments involving 
Slovak  euro collector  coins15.  In  this  respect  the  ECB  notes  that,  in  accordance  with  the  Council 

Conclusions of 23 November 1998 on euro collector coins, these coins will only be legal tender in 

the country of issue, if necessary through the operation of national law. The Council Conclusions 
should be fully taken into account16 when providing for any limitation to the status as legal tender 

of collector coins such as that provided for in Article 17a(3) of the draft amendments to the NBS 

Law. 

Finally, Article 17a(3) of the draft amendments to the NBS Law is justified to the extent that its 

scope is limited to euro coins in accordance with Article 11 of Regulation (EC) No 974/98, or to 

the need to deal with the status as legal tender of euro collector coins. However, the references in 

Article  17a(3)  of  the  draft  amendments  to  the  NBS  Law  to  the  status  as  legal  tender  of  euro 

banknotes  are  unnecessary  in  view  of  the  direct  applicability  of  Article  10  of  Regulation  (EC) 
No 974/9817.  

5.  

Specific observations concerning the draft amendments (Sections III to XXVIII of the draft 

law) 

Denomination of amounts in legal instruments 

5.1  The currency of a Member State with a derogation is its national currency until the entry into force 

of the Council decision abrogating the derogation under Article 122(2) of the Treaty. In accordance 

with this principle, the entry into force of national law provisions introducing amounts in euro that 

replace  the  national  currency  should  not  take  place  prior  to  the  entry  into  force  of  the  eventual 
Council decision abrogating the Member State’s derogation18. Such entry into force of national law 

provisions containing amounts in euro, other than when the euro is used in the context of the euro 
as  a  foreign  currency19,  is  possible  only  where  it  is  necessary  due  to  the  transposition  of 
Community law provisions20 expressed in euro21. In such latter case, national law could refer to ‘an 

15   

16  

17  

18  

19 

20  

 Article 17a(3) of the draft amendments to the NBS Law does not distinguish between Slovak euro collector coins and 
euro  collector  coins  issued  by  other  Member  States.  However,  since  euro  collector  coins  are  only  legal  tender  in  the 
issuing  Member  State,  in  accordance  with  the  Council  Conclusions  of  23  November  1998  on  euro  collector  coins,  the 
ECB understands that this Article only refers to Slovak euro collector coins. 
The second sentence of Article 17a(3) of the draft amendments to the NBS Law would have to provide a clear reference 
to Article 11 of the Regulation (EC) No 974/98. 
 See paragraph 2.2. of this opinion. If the Slovak authorities still intend to refer to euro banknotes in Article 17a(3) of the 
draft amendments to the NBS Law, a clear reference should be made to Article 10 of Regulation (EC) No 974/98 in the 
first sentence of Article 17a(3) of the draft amendments to the NBS Law. 
Article 123(5) of the Treaty provides that if the Council decides to abrogate the derogation, it ‘shall … adopt the rate at 
which the euro shall be substituted for the currency of the Member State concerned’. See also paragraphs 3.2 and 3.3 of 
ECB Opinion CON/2006/28 of 9 June 2006 at the request of Estonian Ministry of Justice on a draft law amending the 
Commercial Code and some other legislation to facilitate euro introduction.  
This use of the euro in the context of the euro as a foreign currency in national law provisions occurs, for instance, when 
the provisions refer to expenses incurred in a euro area Member State or to loans denominated in euro.    
See,  e.g.  Article  4  of  Directive  97/9/EC  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  of  3  March  1997  on  investor-
compensation schemes (OJ L 84, 26.3.1997, p. 22) and Article 9(2)(b) of the Law No 118/96 Coll. (Section XII, Point 5 
of the draft law) transposing this Directive. 

5 

 
                                                 
 
amount  in  the  national  currency  equivalent  to  “X”  euro’  (including  a  formula  to  be  used  for  the 

calculation  of  such  amounts)  until  the  eventual  Council  decision  that  will  abrogate  the  Member 
State’s  derogation  enters  into  force.  The  draft  law  amends  Law  No  18/1996  Coll.22  as  follows: 

(i) thresholds  expressed  in  the  Slovak  currency  will  be  replaced  by  thresholds  expressed  euro  in 

Article  18(1)(b)  and  18(2);  and  (ii)  a  new  Article  23c  specifies  that  the  euro  foreign  exchange 

reference rate set and published by NBS will be used to calculate in the Slovak currency the actual 

amounts resulting from the said thresholds expressed in euro in Articles 18(1)(b) and 18(2) for the 

period  between  1  January  2008  (the date  the  draft  law  enters  into  force)  and the  date  the euro  is 

introduced in Slovakia. 

Law No 510/2002 Coll. on the payment system (Section XIII) 

5.2  The  existing  Trans-European  Automated  Real-time  Gross  settlement  Express  Transfer  system 

(TARGET) will be replaced by TARGET2 starting from 19 November 2007. Each NCB that is a 

member of the Eurosystem is obliged to migrate to TARGET2 and to bring its respective national 
legislative provisions into line with the TARGET2 Guideline23. Even though this obligation does 

not  yet  apply  to  NBS,  Law  No  510/2002  Coll.  will  need  to  be  amended  before  NBS  becomes  a 

member of the Eurosystem. 

This opinion will be published on the ECB’s website. 

Done at Frankfurt am Main, 19 December 2007. 

[signed] 

The President of the ECB 

Jean-Claude TRICHET 

21  

22  
23 

The national law would have to provide that upon the introduction of the euro such provisions should be read as referring 
to the given amount in euro and not to its equivalent. The ECB notes that a legal technique along these lines is already 
applied in this draft law (see, e.g. the Law No 258/2001 Coll. in Section XXII of the draft law).  
See Section XXI, Point 1 and Point 2 in conjunction with Point 4 of the draft law. 
See  Guideline  ECB/2007/2  of  26  April  2007  on  a  Trans-European  Automated  Real-time  Gross  settlement  Express 
Transfer system (TARGET2), (OJ L 237, 8.9.2007, p. 1). 

6