Changes from plenary report to adopted text

Optional exemptions

1. Member States may exempt, or allow their competent authorities to exempt, natural or legal persons providing payment services as referred to in Annex I, points 1 to 5, or providing electronic money services from the application of all or part of the procedures and conditions set out in Chapter I, Sections 1, 2 and 3, with the exception of Articles 17, 18, 24, 26, 27 and 28, where:

(a) in the case of payment services, the monthly average of the preceding 12 months’ total value of payment transactions executed by the person concerned, including any agent for which the person concerned assumes full responsibility, does not exceed a limit set by the Member State but that, in any event, amounts to no more than EUR 3 million; or

(b) in the case of electronic money services, the total business activities generate an average amount of outstanding electronic money that does not exceed a limit set by the Member State but that, in any event, does not exceed EUR 5 million; and

(c) in the case of payment services and electronic money services, none of the natural persons responsible for the management or operation of the business has been convicted of offences relating to money laundering or terrorist financing or other financial crimes.

(ca) in the case of payment transactions used for the execution of trading and settlement services using electronic money tokens as defined in Article 3(1), point (7), of Regulation (EU) 2023/1114, the payment service provider has already been authorised as a crypto-asset service provider in a Member State for those services under Title V of that Regulation.

For the purposes of the subparagraph, point (a), the assessment of whether the limit has been exceeded shall be based on the projected total amount of payment transactions in its business plan, unless the competent authorities have required an adjustment to that plan.

Where a payment institution providing electronic money services also offers any payment service or any of the activities referred to in Article 10, and the amount of outstanding electronic money is unknown in advance, the competent authorities shall allow that payment institution to apply the first subparagraph point (b), on the basis of a representative portion assumed to be used for the electronic money services, provided that such a representative portion can be reasonably estimated on the basis of historical data and to the satisfaction of the competent authorities. Where a payment institution has not completed a sufficiently long period of business, that requirement shall be assessed on the basis of projected outstanding electronic money evidenced by its business plan subject to any adjustment to that plan required by the competent authorities.

Member States may also provide for the granting of the optional exemptions to be subject to an additional requirement of a maximum storage amount on the payment instrument or payment account of the consumer where the electronic money is stored.

A natural or legal person benefitting from an exemption under paragraph 1, first subparagraph, point (b), may provide payment services not related to electronic money services only in accordance with paragraph 1, first subparagraph, point (a).

2. Member States shall require any natural or legal person exempted from the application of the procedures and conditions referred to in paragraph 1 to register with the competent authority of the home Member State. Member States shall determine the documentation which shall accompany such request for registration, from the elements listed in Article 3(3) points (a) to (s).

3. Member States shall require any natural or legal person registered in accordance with paragraph 2 to have its head office or place of residence in the Member State in which it actually carries out its business.

4. The persons exempted from the application of the procedures and conditions referred to in paragraph 1 shall be treated as payment institutions. Article 13(6) and Articles 30, 31 and 32 shall not apply to those persons.

5. Member States may provide that any natural or legal person registered in accordance with paragraph 2 may engage only in certain activities listed in Article 10.

6. The persons exempted from the application of the procedures and conditions referred to in paragraph 1 shall notify the competent authorities of any change in their situation which is relevant to the conditions specified in that paragraph, and at least annually, on the date specified by the competent authorities, report on the following:

(a) the average of the preceding 12 months’ total value of payment transactions where they provide payment services;

(b) the average outstanding electronic money where they provide electronic money services.

7. Member States shall take the necessary steps to ensure that where the conditions set out in paragraphs 1, 3 or 5 of this Article are no longer met, the persons concerned shall seek authorisation within 30 calendar days in accordance with Article 13. Member States shall ensure that their competent authorities are sufficiently empowered to verify continued compliance with this Article.

8. Paragraphs 1 to 6 of this Article shall be without prejudice to Directive (EU) 2015/849 or of national laws on anti-money laundering or terrorist financing.

Notification and information

A Member State that decides to grant an exemption as referred to in Article 34 shall inform the Commission of all of the following:

(a) its decision to grant such an exemption;

(b) any subsequent change to this exemption;

(c) the number of natural and legal persons concerned;

(d) on an annual basis, the total value of payment transactions executed as of 31 December of each calendar year, as referred to in Article 34(1), point (a), and of the total amount of outstanding electronic money issued, as referred to in Article 34(1), point (b).

Account information service providers

1. By way of derogation from Article 3, natural or legal persons providing only the payment service referred to in Annex I, point (7), shall not be subject to authorisation but shall register with the competent authority of the home Member State before taking up activity.

2. Such registration request shall be accompanied by the information and documentation referred to in Article 3(3), points (a), (b), (e) to (h), (j), (l), (n), (p) and (q).

For the purposes of the documentation referred to in Article 3(3), points (e), (f) and (l), the natural or legal person registering shall provide a description of its audit arrangements and of the organisational arrangements it has set up with a view to taking all reasonable steps to protect the interests of its users and to ensure continuity and reliability in the performance of the payment service as referred to in Annex I, point (7).

3. The security control and mitigation measures referred to in Article 3(3), point (j), shall indicate how the natural or legal person registering will ensure a high level of digital operational resilience in accordance with Chapter II of Regulation (EU) 2022/2554, in particular in relation to technical security and data protection, including for the software and ICT systems used by the natural or legal person registering or the undertakings to which it outsources the whole or part of its operations.

4. Member States shall require persons as referred to in paragraph 1, as a condition of their registration, to hold a professional indemnity insurance covering the territories in which they offer services, or some other comparable guarantee, and that they ensure that:

(a) they can cover their liability vis-à-vis the account servicing payment service provider or the payment service user resulting from non-authorised or fraudulent access to or non-authorised or fraudulent use of payment account information service;

(b) they can cover the value of any excess, threshold or deductible from the insurance or comparable guarantee;

(c) they monitor the coverage of the insurance or comparable guarantee on an ongoing basis.

As an alternative to the requirements set out in points (b) and (c), the legal persons referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article may choose to hold an initial capital of EUR 50 000, which shall be replaced by a professional indemnity insurance or comparable guarantee immediately after those legal persons have commenced their activity as a payment institution.

5. Sections 1 and 2 of Chapter I shall not apply to the persons providing the services referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article. Section 3 of Chapter I shall apply to the persons providing the services referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article, with the exception of Article 25(3).

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6. The persons referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article shall be treated as payment institutions.

Services where cash is provided in retail stores without a purchase

1. Member States shall exempt from the application of this Directive natural or legal persons providing cash in retail stores independently of any purchase provided the following conditions are met:

(a) the service is offered at its premises by a natural or legal person selling goods or services as a regular occupation;

(b) the amount of cash provided does not exceed EUR 100 or the equivalent amount in the currency of the Member State concerned, per withdrawal.

(ba) the client’s withdrawal is non-anonymised and requires the use of customer authentication.

2. This Article shall be without prejudice to Directive (EU) 2015/849 or any other relevant Union or national anti-money-laundering/terrorist financing laws.

Services enabling cash withdrawals offered by ATM deployers not servicing payment accounts

1. By way of derogation from Article 3, natural or legal persons providing cash withdrawal services as referred to Annex I, point 1, and who do not service payment accounts and do not provide other payment services referred to in Annex I, shall not be subject to authorisation but shall register with a competent authority of the home Member State before taking up activity.

2. The registration referred to in paragraph 1 shall be accompanied by the information and documentation referred to in Article 3(3), points (a), (b), (e) to (h), (j), (l), (n), (p) and (q).

For the purposes of the documentation referred to in Article 3(3), points (e) (f) and (l), the natural or legal person registering shall provide a description of its audit arrangements and of the organisational arrangements it has set up to taking all reasonable steps to protect the interests of its users and to ensure continuity and reliability in the performance of the payment service as referred to in point (1) of Annex I.

The security control and mitigation measures referred to in Article 3(3), point (j), shall indicate how the natural or legal person registering will ensure a high level of digital operational resilience in accordance with Chapter II of Regulation (EU) 2022/2554, in particular in relation to technical security and data protection, including for the software and ICT systems used by the natural or legal person registering or the undertakings to which it outsources the whole or part of its operations.

3. Sections 1 and 2 of Chapter 1 shall not apply to the persons providing the services referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article. Section 3 of Chapter 1 shall apply to the persons providing the services referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article, with the exception of Article 25(3).

4. The persons providing the services referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article shall be treated as payment institutions.