Credit Review Act 2026: what has changed for company borrowers

• A stand-alone statutory body: credit review was previously set up under section 210 of the National Asset Management Agency Act 2009. The new Act repeals that section and establishes the Service in its own right, headed by the Credit Reviewer.
• Statutory reviews: section 26 sets out how a borrower applies and how the Service reviews a credit decision and issues a written decision.
• A duty to respond: under section 26, the lender must give notice to the Service within five working days of receiving its decision. The lender keeps its commercial independence and can decide not to follow a recommendation.
• Wider oversight: the Act provides for review of lenders' lending practices and policies, a Credit Review levy on lenders and accountability to Oireachtas committees.
• Room to expand: the Minister for Finance can extend the Service to non-bank lenders and other regulated providers in future, reflecting SMEs' growing use of alternative funding.

What the Service looks at

Credit Review asks your bank to clarify and explain its decision. A Credit Reviewer then examines the case, including the overall viability of your business and its ability to repay, forms an opinion and makes recommendations. Your bank responds and confirms the next steps. Credit Review says banks must comply with its recommendations or explain why they are not following them.

For a company owner, the practical process on creditreview.ie looks familiar. When we checked on 21 October 2026:

• Lenders covered: AIB, Bank of Ireland and PTSB.
• Amounts: credit facilities from €1,000 to €3 million that have been refused, reduced or withdrawn.
• Order of steps: you must use your bank's internal appeals process first.
• Deadline: your completed application must be received within 30 days of the bank's letter.
• Fee: €100 for amounts up to €100,000, €1 per €1,000 between €100,000 and €250,000, and €250 from €250,000 to €3 million.
• Timing: typically about four weeks from an eligible application to an opinion, though complex cases take longer.

The Service can uphold, overturn or refer back a lender's decision. Applying does not guarantee any outcome.

Some pages on creditreview.ie still refer to the earlier legal basis. Always download the latest application form from the site rather than using an old copy.

The right to a second opinion on a bank refusal is now firmly in statute, and banks have a clear duty to respond. Your bank must also tell you about the Credit Review Service when it refuses an application, under the Central Bank's SME Lending Regulations.

For now, the Service does not cover non-bank lenders. If a non-bank lender declines your company, there is no Credit Review route, although the lender may have its own complaints process.

1. Ask for the reasons in writing and diary the 30-day deadline from the bank's letter.
2. Lodge an internal appeal that answers each reason, with updated accounts and a cash flow forecast. Our document checklist helps.
3. If the appeal fails, apply to the Credit Review Service with the fee.
4. Check your company's Central Credit Register report for errors before you apply anywhere else.
5. Read our step-by-step guide to a refused business loan.

Sole traders and farm enterprises can use Credit Review, but sole traders cannot apply for finance through Welcome Finance. They can contact their Local Enterprise Office, Microfinance Ireland, Enterprise IrelandThe State agency responsible for supporting Irish-owned businesses that are, or plan to be, exporting and scaling internationally, as well as high-potential start-ups. or their bank.

If your bank has said no and Credit Review is not an option, our panel of non-bank lenders can consider unsecured business loans, working capital loans and short-term business loans for limited companies. These usually cost more than bank lending, and approval is never guaranteed. Welcome Finance is a commercial finance broker, not a lender, is not regulated by the Central Bank of IrelandIreland's financial regulator and part of the Eurosystem., and arranges business-purpose finance only for companies registered in Ireland (LTD, DACA type of Irish private company under Part 16 of the Companies Act 2014 that keeps an objects clause in its constitution, limiting what it can do, and uses the suffix DAC., PLCA company type under Part 17 of the Companies Act 2014., ULCA company under Part 19 of the Companies Act 2014 whose members have unlimited liability for its debts.).