Notarized deposit: a way to solve problems that you forgot about

What is a notary deposit

The right to use a financial instrument is granted to Russians by Articles 327 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation and 87 Fundamentals No. 4462-1 of 02/11/1993. If for some reason the debtor cannot transfer funds to the creditor, he delegates this task to an independent intermediary. The required amount is credited to a public account upon demand by the recipient. From the moment money or other assets are accepted into the notary's deposit, the obligation is considered fulfilled.

The service involves sending a notification to the creditor about the receipt of payment.
This relieves the debtor of the need to track down the creditor and protects him from accusations of delay. The counterparty cannot charge penalties or interest. Moscow notary Kolganov I.V. comments:
The safety of money in the notary’s deposit is ensured by a special status. The legal description is given in the letter of the Federal Tax Service of the Russian Federation No. 3041/03-16-03 dated July 20, 2018. Valuables are credited to a public account to which escrow rules apply. The servicing credit institution cannot dispose of them. In the event of liquidation or bankruptcy of the bank, the balance is inviolable. Moreover, the deposit is protected in case of financial insolvency of the notary himself. It is prohibited to foreclose on such assets.

Notary deposit, service cost

UPTH is a legal technical work approved by the Moscow City Notary Chamber.

When to apply for a service

The grounds for making a deposit to a notary are listed in Art. 327 Civil Code of the Russian Federation. You can use the tool if:

• the creditor is absent from the place of performance;
• the recipient is declared incompetent, and it is impossible to establish his legal representative;
• a dispute has arisen as to who is the proper creditor of the obligation;
• the other party avoids receiving money or securities.

In addition, the service of a deposit with a notary remains in demand when organizing secure settlements for transactions. The basis is the joint appeal of the partners. Thus, when concluding a contract for the sale of real estate, money is paid to the seller only after successful registration of the buyer’s rights by Rosreestr.

The mechanism is also relevant during bankruptcy. If the payer is afraid of disrupting the order of satisfaction of claims, he can use the mechanism. Fulfillment of an obligation through a notary's deposit reduces the time of liquidation of organizations. Management does not need to wait for a response from creditors. It is enough to deposit the money due to them into a public account.

How to open a deposit through a notary

The service is provided upon application from interested parties. Participants in the procedure must indicate the reasons for the application, as well as document the existence of an obligation. The procedure for accepting funds on deposit by notaries is regulated by Order of the Ministry of Justice of Russia No. 78 dated April 16, 2014.

1. Submitting an application. The document can be drawn up during a preliminary consultation. Samples and forms are provided to clients. Starting from 2021, it is possible to use the service remotely. The remote format is relevant when depositing funds by non-cash method. In this case, the application must be submitted in accordance with Form No. 3 of Order No. 223 of the Ministry of Justice of Russia dated September 30, 2020.
2. Transfer of funds and registration of the transaction. A record of the receipt of money is made in the accounting book. The information is reflected in the UIS. In the deposit file, the notary stores the application, the acceptance certificate, the order to accept valuables into a public account and other documents. The person applying for the service is issued a certificate.
3. Notification to the creditor. The notice is sent to the last known address or place of registration. The law does not impose the obligation to search for the recipient on notaries (Determination of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation No. 5-B12-3 of May 15, 2012). A copy of the letter with the postal receipt is kept on file.
4. Payments through a notary's deposit. The recipient of funds must submit a written request. If the instrument is used as part of a transaction, you will additionally have to confirm the due date and basis for payment.

The maximum period for holding funds in a public account is 10 years. After its expiration, unclaimed assets turn into state income.

Fulfillment of the obligation on deposit with a notary is allowed at the place agreed upon by the contract. Failure to comply with this rule will result in refusal to provide the service.

How to verify that the notary deposit account actually belongs to the notary?

S.A. Tokmina, author of the answer, legal consultant at Askon

QUESTION

How to quickly verify that the notary deposit account actually belongs to the notary? Can a notary arbitrarily dispose of the funds in this account at his own discretion?

ANSWER

The regulations do not provide for the right of a person to promptly verify that the notary's deposit account actually belongs to the notary.

We believe that such information can be obtained from a certificate from the notary himself who accepted the property, including funds, for deposit.

The notary cannot arbitrarily dispose of the funds in this account at his own discretion. The legislation does not grant such a right to a notary.

JUSTIFICATION

The debtor can deposit funds or securities with a notary to transfer them to the creditor if the obligation cannot be fulfilled for the following reasons (clause 1 of article 307, clause 1 of article 327 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation; part 1 of article 87 of the Fundamentals of Legislation Russian Federation about notaries):

1) the absence of the creditor or the person authorized by him to accept performance in the place where the obligation must be fulfilled;

2) the incapacity of the creditor and the absence of a representative;

3) an obvious lack of certainty as to who is the creditor of the obligation, in particular in connection with a dispute on this issue between the creditor and other persons;

4) the creditor’s evasion from accepting performance or other delay on his part.

Depositing a sum of money or securities into a notary's deposit is considered fulfillment of an obligation (Clause 2 of Article 327 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation).

The notary's deposit also includes cash included in the inheritance if the notary takes measures to protect it (clauses 1, 2 of Article 1171, clause 2 of Article 1172 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation).

Cash and securities are accepted for deposit by the notary at the place of fulfillment of the obligation (Part 3 of Article 87, “Fundamentals of the legislation of the Russian Federation on notaries” (approved by the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation on 02/11/1993 N 4462-1))

To deposit funds and securities with a notary, the debtor submits an application to the notary, which indicates, in particular, the following information (Article 316 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation; clauses 10, 13, 87, 88, 90 of the Regulations, approved by Order of the Ministry of Justice Russia dated August 30, 2017 N 156 (hereinafter referred to as the Regulations)):

1) information about yourself (last name, first name, patronymic (if any), date of birth, place of birth, place of residence (place of stay));

2) information about the creditor known to him (including place of residence or location);

3) the grounds for depositing money and securities into the notary’s deposit;

4) place of fulfillment of the obligation.

The application is accompanied by a document certifying the identity of the applicant and a document certifying the authority of the representative, if the application is submitted by a representative (clauses 10, 11, 21 of the Regulations).

To a person who has deposited money and securities, a notary, in confirmation of their deposit, can issue a certificate issued on his personal letterhead, certified by signature and seal with a reproduction of the State Emblem of the Russian Federation (clause 159 of the Rules, approved by Order of the Ministry of Justice of Russia dated 16.04 .2014 N 78).

To accept funds as a deposit, the notary opens a public deposit account (Part 4 of Article 87, “Fundamentals of the legislation of the Russian Federation on notaries” (approved by the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation on 02.11.1993 N 4462-1))

A notary who has accepted cash as a deposit must deposit it into his public deposit account no later than the next business day (Part 5 of Article 87, “Fundamentals of the legislation of the Russian Federation on notaries” (approved by the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation on 02/11/1993 N 4462-1) (ed. dated July 26, 2019))

If a notary accepts non-cash funds as a deposit, he issues an order to the debtor to accept funds into a public deposit account for presentation to the bank (Part 6 of Article 87, “Fundamentals of the legislation of the Russian Federation on notaries” (approved by the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation on 02/11/1993 N 4462-1))

The notary notifies the creditor about the deposit of money and securities. The issuance or transfer to the debtor or creditor of funds located in the public deposit account of the notary, and interest due for the use of these funds, is carried out by the bank by order of the notary (Part 2, 7, Article 87, Article 87, “Fundamentals of the legislation of the Russian Federation on notary" (approved by the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation 02/11/1993 N 4462-1))

According to the totality of the above legal norms, the notary as a subject of notarial law is only the custodian of the specified deposit, a subject of law who only accepts and issues the property accepted for storage, taking into account the specifics of notarial law.

That is why the notary has no right to have any income from placing funds on his deposit account; the notary cannot acquire ownership of this property in the event of unclaimed deposit, regardless of the terms and methods of storage, and also dispose of this property at his own discretion .

According to part eight of Art. 87, “Fundamentals of the legislation of the Russian Federation on notaries”

funds can be kept in a public deposit account for no more than ten years, after which the notary is obliged to transfer them to the treasury of the Russian Federation on the basis of the notary's order.

What documents are needed

The basis is the statement of the interested person. If a deposit is opened with a notary for a transaction, the parties apply for the service jointly. Additionally, the agreement and its annexes are provided. Documentary justification of the obligation is one of the conditions for acceptance of valuables. The mere desire to transfer money is not enough.

You will be required to present identification during service. In the absence of such a document, identification is made using biometric data using a unified state database. If we are talking about a non-cash transfer of funds, you need to submit a payment order or receipt.

(To clarify the list of documents required to receive the service (perform a notarial act), as well as to make an appointment, call 8 (985) 968-48-37.

How to withdraw money from a public account

When paying for a transaction through a notary deposit, you will need to submit an application and provide evidence of execution. Thus, when making payments under a real estate purchase and sale agreement, a sheet of recording about the transfer of rights to the buyer is required. The document is issued by Rosreestr in electronic or paper form.

The creditor of a monetary obligation only needs to come to the notary, confirm his identity and sign a payment application. At any time before the recipient applies, the debtor has the right to withdraw the money. To do this, he needs to contact the notary again and fill out an application for a refund. In this case, the obligation will not be considered fulfilled. The risk of claims and delays will remain.

Notary deposit for real estate transactions

In 2014, a law came into force in the Russian Federation, according to which it is possible to conduct transactions through a notary’s deposit. An alternative has emerged to payments between sellers and buyers of real estate through safe deposit boxes for the purchase and sale of apartments, land plots, residential buildings, as well as any movable and immovable property.

A notary deposit for real estate transactions works as follows:

• the seller and the buyer come to an agreement on the main issues of the transaction, agree on the cost of the object, the terms of the transfer;
• the parties sign an agreement on settlements through a notary's deposit (if necessary);
• At the same time, the purchase and sale agreement is certified;
• the buyer deposits the agreed amount;
• the condition for the transfer of funds to the seller is the transfer of ownership of the property.

Advantages of the described transactions:

• the ability to deposit funds in cash and non-cash form;
• the entire procedure takes place in one place - the notary's office;
• affordable service tariff;
• guarantee of secrecy of notarial acts;
• reduction of negotiation time, the ability to agree on the terms of the transaction in one place;
• preventing fraud in payments.

Important: in our notary office, the transaction and transfer of funds are recorded during the consultation process. The list of required documents can be obtained from the secretary by phone.

Cost of service for opening a deposit with a notary

Applicants are charged a state fee and remuneration for legal and technical support. The payment amount is fixed. Current prices are shown in the table or on the tariffs page.

Debt repayment, bankruptcy, real estate sales and transaction settlements are just a partial list of the possibilities of a notary deposit. The tool is universal. With its help, you can safely and legally solve a number of financial problems. Sign up for a consultation and find out which mechanism to use in your situation.