New legal framework for checks: Promoting accountability rather than punishment
Adopted on Thursday, October 09, 2025, by the Government Council, the bill amending the Commercial Code introduces a major overhaul of the handling of check-related incidents.
Until now, non-payment of a check automatically resulted in legal proceedings and a fine of 25% of the check’s value, along with criminal penalties. The new law changes this: payment of the unpaid amount, along with a reduced fine of 2%, will be enough to extinguish the proceedings (Photo. Archives)
By modernizing an outdated legal framework, this reform aims to restore confidence in checks as a payment instrument, while relieving the courts, which are overwhelmed by thousands of unpaid check cases each year.
According to Morocco’s central bank (Bank Al-Maghrib), nearly 30 million checks were issued in 2024, for a total amount of 1.319 billion dirhams (US$ 144 million). However, 972,232 checks were rejected due to insufficient funds.
Between 2022 and the end of June 2025, nearly 180,000 complaints were filed, resulting in more than 58,000 arrests. These figures illustrate the economic and social impact of the phenomenon and explain the urgency of reform. Until now, non-payment of a check automatically led to legal proceedings and a fine of 25% of the value of the check, accompanied by criminal penalties. The new text changes the situation: payment of the unpaid amount, accompanied by a fine reduced to 2%, will be sufficient to settle the proceedings.
The bill also paves the way for conciliation at all stages of the proceedings, including after conviction, and provides for criminal exemption for acts committed between spouses or ascendants. In addition, the public prosecutor’s office will be able to notify the drawer of the check of the need to fund the account within 30 days, extendable with the beneficiary’s agreement, and incarceration may be replaced by judicial supervision.
The reform is part of the strategy to modernize commercial law and aims to reduce incarceration for private debts. The reform also offers individuals subject to banking restrictions the opportunity to normalize their situation through a settlement contribution, which could give a new lease on life to certain vulnerable businesses.
But the text is only one step: restoring confidence in checks will also require collective discipline, prevention, financial education, and effective legal tools. As one business lawyer sums it up, “ this reform is a positive step, but it will only be fully effective if it is accompanied by a solid framework and a truly operational civil justice system”.
F.T.
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