The Centrale Bank van Aruba (CBA) hereby reminds the public that article 5 of the State Ordinance Regulating Consumer Credit (Landsverordening regeling consumentenkrediet) entered into force on August 1, 2026.
Article 5 and the Ministerial Regulation of July 29, 2026, on maximum compensation and collection costs in connection with consumer loans protect consumers by setting limits on certain costs that may be charged for consumer loans. These maximums apply to new consumer loans and to existing consumer loans that are being refinanced, restructured, or rolled over after August 1, 2026.
What does this mean for you as a consumer?
This means that if you take out a consumer loan, you cannot be charged more than the following maximum costs:
1. Interest and related charges (e.g. closing fees)
You cannot be charged more than 25% per year. This is calculated as the total interest costs and the related charges as a percentage of the total loan amount.
2. Late payment charges
If you fall behind on payments, you cannot be charged more than 2% per month. This percentage is calculated on overdue payments.
3. Early repayments
If you decide to repay your loan in full or make a partial repayment ahead of schedule, you cannot be charged more than 7.5% of the amount repaid early.
4. Extrajudicial collection costs
If your account is sent to collection, you cannot be charged more than the amount allowed under the liquidation tariff applied by the Common Court of Justice of Aruba, Curaçao, Sint Maarten, Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba. *
*This amount is based on 1½ points of the liquidation tariff for proceedings on the merits in first instance and depends on the principal amount of the claim. These costs include, among others, reminder costs, notice costs, and administrative costs.
Consumers are advised to take due notice of these maximums when entering into consumer loans. Note also that the CBA will be entrusted with supervision of the State Ordinance Regulating Consumer Credit (Landsverordening regeling consumentenkrediet) once it enters into force in its entirety, which is currently envisaged for January 1, 2027.