The SEPA project represents the next step towards the single European market in which any customer throughout Europe will be able to make non-cash payments in euros in a way just as quick, safe and easy as making domestic payments.

In 2008, in order to develop Latvia's National SEPA Plan, it was decided to establish the National SEPA Working Group and also to include a representative of the Treasury therein. The respective plan describes the roles and tasks of all the parties involved in the SEPA project, and provides a timeline for putting SEPA payments on the Latvian payments market. Within the framework of the project in Latvia, the SEPA credit transfer requirements are attributed solely to credit transfers made in euros. Version 1.0 of Latvia's National SEPA Plan was approved by the Money and Payment Systems Working Group of the Ministry of Finance at the end of 2009.

On 27 January 2009, the Treasury expressed its undertaking to adapt internal payment processing information systems according to the requirements for SEPA compliant Electronic Clearing System of the Bank of Latvia (hereinafter the ECS) which is being realized in line with the deadlines for the ECS Development Plan.

The Treasury sends and receives SEPA credit transfers via the ECS as of 9 November 2010.

The activities taken by the Treasury to provide SEPA credit transfer requirements:

• On 27 January 2009 the Treasury established a working group;
• On 19 October 2009 the Treasury approved the SEPA requirement implementation plan;
• In accordance with the statements of the approved plan the Treasury has commenced:
  • summarising the necessary information (from European Payments Council documents, the ECS functional description, and other related documents) on unified procedures and technical standards;
  • development of software requirement specifications;
  • review and development of the legal requirements of the SEPA adherence agreement;

as well as carrying out the SEPA compliance self-assessment in accordance with the self-assessment form developed by the European Central Bank.

For more information please refer to: www.sepalatvia.lv/legal-framework