Enforcement of national penalties - fines

Albania

Albania - Criminal Code 1995 (2013) EN

1 General Part

CHAPTER V- PUNISHMENTS/SENTENCES

Article 34- Punishment by fines

Fines consist of paying to the state an amount of money within the range provided for by law.

Fines are imposed upon persons who commit an offence or a criminal contravention.

For persons who have committed a crime, the fine ranges from 100 thousand to 10 million lekë.

For persons who commit a criminal contravention, the fine ranges from 50 thousand to 5 million lekë.

For persons who commit crimes with motives of profit of property or gain of any other material profit, if the criminal provision provides only punishment by imprisonment, the court can decide on punishment from 100 thousand to 5 million lekë.

The fine must be paid within the deadline fixed by the court.

The court, while considering the economic status of the defendant, may allow him to pay his fine by installments, fixing their amount and the terms of the payment.

When the fine is not paid in due time, the court decides on replacing the fine with imprisonment, calculating 5 thousand leks per one day of imprisonment.

When the fine is imposed for an offence committed, its replacement with imprisonment cannot exceed three years, whereas when it is imposed for a criminal contravention, the replacement cannot exceed one year of imprisonment, but always without exceeding the maximum of imprisonment provided for by the relevant disposition.

When the person convicted as above pays off his fine during the imprisonment term, the court revokes its sentence, making calculations according paragraph 7 of this Article.

Albania - Criminal Procedure Code 1995 (2017) EN

TITLE VII THE TRIAL
CHAPTER II THE COURT TRIAL
SECTION I GENERAL RULES
Article 341 Directing the hearing
3. When the defendant, the defense lawyer, the victim , the witness, expert or interpreter do not observe the court orders to maintain order and silence, offend the dignity of the court or act in a way that threatens the solemnity of adjudication, the presiding judge shall warn them of the consequences. Where the person continues to break the order and silence and fails to obey, the court may impose him a fine up to 30,000 ALL. The repetition of such breach shall constitute grounds for the removal from the courtroom.

TITLE VII THE TRIAL
CHAPTER II THE COURT TRIAL
SECTION I GENERAL RULES
Article 341 Directing the hearing
8. In case of other participants at a court hearing, who do not obey to court orders for maintaining order and silence or offend the dignity of the court, the presiding judge shall warn them and, if they do not observe the court order, the presiding judge shall order them to leave the hearing and, when he/she deems it necessary, shall impose them a fine up to 30.000 ALL.

TITLE VII THE TRIAL
CHAPTER III THE DECISION
SECTION III CONVICTION DECISION
Article 392 Obligation to pay the fine
1. When the convicted person does not have income or assets that are allowed be sequestered, the court charges the person civilly liable for the defendant’s obligations to pay an amount equal to the fine.

TITLE IX EXECUTION OF DECISIONS
CHAPTER I EXECUTION OF DECISIONS
Article 467 Execution of a fine decision
1. Decisions containing a fine penalty are executed by the bailiff’s office.
2. When it is proven the impossibility to execute a fine penalty, in whole or in part, the prosecutor files a request to the court that has issued the decision to make the conversion. Upon request of the convicted person, the court may postpone the conversion up to six months. Such period is not calculated in the prescription time limits.
3. The decision of conversion is subject to appeal, which suspends its execution.

TITLE IX EXECUTION OF DECISIONS
CHAPTER III EXECUTION OF THE CRIMINAL DECISIONS
SECTION I EXECUTION OF FOREIGN CRIMINAL DECISIONS
Article 516 Determining the sanction
1. When recognising a foreign decision, the court determines the punishment to be served in the Albanian state. It converts the punishment imposed in the foreign decision into one of the punishments provided for the same fact by the Albanian law. This punishment must correspond, by nature, to the one which has been established in the foreign decision. The length of the punishment may not exceed the maximum term provided for the same fact by the Albanian law.
2. When the foreign decision does not specify the length of the punishment, the court establishes it based on the criteria indicated in the Criminal Code. In no case the imposed punishment may be higher than the one imposed by the recognized criminal decision.
3. When the execution of the punishment rendered in a foreign state has been conditionally suspended, the court, with the decision of recognition, in addition to other issues, rules also on the conditional suspension of the punishment. the court does the same when the defendant has been conditionally released in the foreign country.
4. In order to establish a punishment by fine, the amount indicated in the foreign decision shall be converted in equal value into Albanian currency, applying the exchange rate of the day on which the recognition was decided.
5. The decision of recognition regarding the execution of a confiscation shall also order the execution of the confiscation.

Rome Statute

Article 109 Enforcement of fines and forfeiture measures

1. States Parties shall give effect to fines or forfeitures ordered by the Court under Part 7, without prejudice to the rights of bona fide third parties, and in accordance with the procedure of their national law.

2. If a State Party is unable to give effect to an order for forfeiture, it shall take measures to recover the value of the proceeds, property or assets ordered by the Court to be forfeited, without prejudice to the rights of bona fide third parties.

3. Property, or the proceeds of the sale of real property or, where appropriate, the sale of other property, which is obtained by a State Party as a result of its enforcement of a judgement of the Court shall be transferred to the Court.