Financial relations between railway undertakings - Principles and terms of application

IRS 30311 defines the general procedures governing financial relations between UIC Members. Other railways may use the IRS on the basis of a written agreement.

The obligatory / recommended provisions aim to harmonise procedures for accountancy and the payment of mutual services, and are compliant with the Uniform Regulations governing International Carriage by Rail (COTIF 1999), the European Directives to be applied, and other regulations of UIC and the Brussels Clearing Centre (BCC).

The present IRS obliges users to register credits and debts resulting from traffic services brought to account in accordance with IRS 30301 and 30304 in a current account and to clear balances monthly. In as far as the accounting regulations provide for income being collected on foreign routes, companies are obliged to observe a fixed value date, which is used to calculate accounting charges.

For the exchange of other services (non-traffic services), the payment conditions agreed in service contracts will generally apply. Use of the current account system is also recommended in these cases. If such agreements do not exist or are not clearly expressed, recourse can be made to the regulations laid out in IRS 30311.

Financial relations in the sense used in this IRS are subject to risks resulting from fluctuations in currency exchange rates and from accounting and payment procedures.

As in the regulations governing charges, users are offered a uniform reference interest rate (EURIBOR one-month rate), in order to limit the losses to both parties resulting from accounting delays.

The risk of lost income through failure of debtors to pay (long-term debt) has increased for creditors in that the new COTIF no longer provides for referral to OCTI (Central Office for International Carriage by Rail) or the breaking of the transport chain through restrictions on prepayment facilities. In addition to the requirements for guarantees, the UIC protective measures constitute the only safe means of reducing risk.

The appendices serve to implement the principles laid down in the text.