Ombudsperson asks Kosovo Judicial Council to reconsider court fee increases

The Ombudsperson has asked the Kosovo Judicial Council (KJC) to reconsider the court fee system, assessing that their increase could create financial barriers and undermine effective access to justice.

In an opinion published on Thursday, the Ombudsperson examined the impact of Administrative Instruction No. 03/2025 on the Unification of Court Fees on the realization of the right to access justice.

According to the opinion, although the KJC has the authority to approve the unified court fee scheme, the exercise of this authority must comply with constitutional guarantees for effective access to justice and the principle of proportionality.

“Court fees determined by Administrative Instruction No. 03/2025 are paid into the budget of the Republic of Kosovo and not directly into the judicial system’s budget, which weakens the link between the fee increase and the improvement of the judiciary’s functioning. For this reason, the necessity and proportionality of the fee increase must be specifically justified and based on concrete assessments of their impact on effective access to justice,” the Ombudsperson assessed.

The opinion states that the considerable increase in fees, additional payments for exercising legal remedies, and the consequences of non-payment may create disproportionate obstacles, especially for citizens who do not benefit from exemption mechanisms or free legal aid.

Referring to the standards of the European Court of Human Rights, the Ombudsperson assessed that there is a real risk that the provisions of Administrative Instruction No. 03/2025, in its current form, may have disproportionate effects in relation to the right to access justice.

For this reason, the Ombudsperson has requested that the KJC reconsider the court fee system, in order to ensure a balance between the efficient functioning of the judicial system and the guarantee of equal and effective access to justice for all citizens.

At the beginning of this year, the KJC announced the new administrative instruction that increases court fees. This was criticized by justice professionals, as according to them, the fee increase will reduce the initiation of cases in courts.

Until last year, the fee for a lawsuit with a dispute value from 0 to 1,000 euros was 20 euros, while now for values from 0 to 5,000 euros the fee has increased to 60 euros. For disputes from 50,001 to 100,000 euros, the fee has increased from 150 euros to 300 euros. Also, the fee for a lawsuit for possession interference has doubled from 50 to 100 euros, while for a proposal to secure evidence it has increased from 30 euros to 100 euros.

There were also increases at the Commercial Court. For a lawsuit with a dispute value up to 25,000 euros, the new fee is 200 euros, while for disputes from 50,001 to 100,000 euros, the fee has increased to 500 euros.