TABLE OF CONTENTS

This article refers to the following from the FIFA regulations:

  • Sections 4 and 5 of the FIFA Clearing House Regulations (FCHR)
  • FIFA Disciplinary Code

Introduction

To ensure the timely distribution of training rewards, organisations are required to comply with requests from the FIFA Clearing House (FCH) and complete all mandatory steps of the Clearing House process within the established deadlines. Failure to do so will result in the escalation of the Non-Compliant Party by the FCH to the FIFA administration for review.


Organisations may be subject to escalation by the FCH in the following cases:


Compliance assessment failure

Each party involved in a payment order must successfully complete its onboarding and pass the compliance assessment to receive Accreditation by the FCH. Only once they are accredited can an organisation pay or receive training rewards. 


An organisation will fail their compliance assessment if they:

  • fail to register on the FCH Client Portal within 15 days of receiving the email invitation;
  • fail to provide all required documents via the Client Portal within the stipulated timeline provided by the FCH;
  • fail to satisfy regulatory requirements following a compliance risk assessment by the FCH;
  • fail to sign the Terms and Conditions on the Client Portal within 14 days of notification.


In the event of failure, the Non-Compliant Party is notified by email. The case is also escalated to the FIFA administration who may refer the matter to the FIFA Disciplinary Committee for review and decision.


If the Disciplinary Committee finds the organisation responsible for a First Failure of the Compliance assessment, the following sanctions may apply:

  • For the new club, i.e. the paying party, an administrative levy of 2.5% of the requested amount will be charged, payable to each training club via the FCH.
  • For the training club, i.e. the receiving party, a reprimand and/or a fine.


The Non-Compliant Party remains obligated to pass the compliance assessment within six months from the notification of the first failure. 


If the organisation does not pass the subsequent compliance assessment within the deadline, the case is escalated to the FIFA administration who may refer the matter to the FIFA Disciplinary Committee for review and decision.


If the Disciplinary Committee finds the organisation responsible of a Second Failure of the Compliance assessment, the following sanctions may apply:

  • For the new club, i.e. the paying party, a ban on registering any new players, either nationally or internationally, and a fine.
    • If a registration ban is imposed, it will only be lifted by the Disciplinary Committee after:
      • Confirmation by the FCH that the full amount of the RtP has been paid to the banking details provided in the RtP, including the 2.5% administrative levy.
      • Confirmation by the FCH that the Non-Compliant Party has successfully passed a subsequent compliance assessment.
  • For the training club, i.e. the receiving party, all training rewards shall be forfeited to their Member Association until the compliance assessment has been passed. These funds shall be used for the development of football at the national level.

Payment Failure

The payment process begins once the new club and a training club involved in a payment order have each passed the compliance assessment.


The new club will be notified via email that a request to pay (RtP) is available in the Client Portal. The RtP details the amounts payable via the FCH and provides instructions on how to make the payment. The payment of the full amount must be completed by the new club within 30 days from a bank account in the name of the club. 


Clubs should ensure that they follow the instructions provided in the RtP when making the payment, including any required references in the bank transfer details.


If the new club does not make the payment within the 30-day deadline, a new RtP will be notified to the club, with an administrative levy of 2.5% applied to the requested amount. The new club will be given an additional seven-day extension to pay the full amount. 


If the payment is not completed within the extended deadline, the case is escalated to the FIFA administration who may refer the matter to the Disciplinary Committee for review and decision.


If the Disciplinary Committee finds the organisation responsible for a payment failure, the following sanctions may apply:

  • A fine
  • A ban on registering any new players, both nationally and internationally.
    • The transfer ban will only be lifted by the Disciplinary Committee after:
      • Confirmation by the FCH that the full amount in the RtP has been paid to the banking details provided in the RtP, including the 2.5% administrative levy.
      • The club makes a payment of any fines to the banking details shared in the decision of FIFA Disciplinary Committee.

If the FIFA administration refers a compliance or payment failure to the Disciplinary Committee, a case is opened on the FIFA Legal Portal, the platform through which all proceedings before the FIFA judicial bodies must be conducted.


When a case is opened, the failing club is notified via the Legal Portal. A copy of such notification is sent via e-mail to the Member Association concerned. As a courtesy, clubs are also notified by email from the address noreply@legalportal.fifa.org  to the address associated with their Legal Portal account. If the club does not have an account on the Legal Portal, the Disciplinary Committee will use the contact details in their TMS club profile, if available.


To access the FIFA Legal Portal for the first time, parties can self-register on the platform using the email address defined in their TMS club details. Only one Legal Portal account is permitted per organisation. To ensure that the club can always remain up to date on its ongoing cases, the email address used should be an organisational email and not a personal address.


Should the club no longer have access to their existing Legal Portal account, they must first update their TMS details to reflect the new contact address. Once updated, the club can create a new account via the FIFA Legal Portal and submit a support ticket via their Help Centre to restore their access to cases involving the organisation.



Decisions of the FIFA Disciplinary Committee

Decisions made by the FIFA Disciplinary Committee are uploaded and notified exclusively via the FIFA Legal Portal and enter into force immediately upon notification. Member Associations are always notified of decisions involving their affiliated clubs and are instructed to forward the decision to the club. Time limits defined in the FIFA Disciplinary Code start on the day after receipt of the document by the club via the Legal Portal.


Clubs must be sure to always read decisions carefully and in full as they include key information, such as the criteria in order for a registration ban to be lifted, the bank account to which payments must be made and the deadlines for required actions.

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