(1) At the request of the competition authority of another Member State of the European Union, the Bundeskartellamt shall enforce decisions imposing fines or periodic penalty payments in proceedings concerning the application of Article 101 or Article 102 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, provided that the decision to be enforced is final and the applicant authority, after having made reasonable efforts to enforce the decision in its own territory, has ascertained with certainty that the undertaking or association of undertakings does not have sufficient assets in the Member State of the applicant authority to recover the fine or periodic penalty payment.
(2) At the request of the competition authority of another Member State of the European Union, the Bundeskartellamt may also enforce final decisions imposing fines or periodic penalty payments in proceedings concerning the application of Article 101 or Article 102 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union in other cases not covered by subsection (1). This shall apply, in particular, in cases where the undertaking or association of undertakings against which the decision is enforceable has no place of business in the Member State of the applicant authority.
(3) Section 50b(2) shall apply to requests pursuant to subsections (1) or (2) with the proviso that the document based on which the enforcement is requested replaces the document to be served. In addition to the information specified in Section 50b(2) sentence 2, the uniform instrument shall include the following information:
1. information about the decision permitting enforcement in the Member State of the applicant authority, unless this information was already presented in accordance with Section 50b(2) no 3,
2. the date on which the decision became final,
3. the amount of the fine or periodic penalty payment, and
4. in the case of subsection (1), information demonstrating the reasonable efforts made by the applicant authority to enforce the decision in its own territory.
The enforcement shall be based on the uniform instrument authorising enforcement in the requested Member State, without any act of recognition being required.
(4) In the case of subsection (1), the Bundeskartellamt may refuse the enforcement only if the request does not meet the requirements set out in subsection (3) or the enforcement would be manifestly contrary to public policy. If the Bundeskartellamt intends to refuse the enforcement or if it needs additional information, the Bundeskartellamt shall inform the applicant authority accordingly. Otherwise, the Bundeskartellamt shall initiate the enforcement without undue delay.
(5) Unless otherwise provided for in this Act, the enforcement of fines shall be governed by the provisions set out in Sections 89 et seqq. of the German Administrative Offences Act [Gesetz über Ordnungswidrigkeiten] and the enforcement of periodic penalty payments shall be governed by the provisions of the German Administrative Enforcement Act [Verwaltungsvollstreckungsgesetz]. Fines or periodic penalty payments imposed in a foreign currency shall be converted into Euro by the Bundeskartellamt at the exchange rate applying on the date of the foreign decision. The proceeds from the enforcement shall accrue to the Federal Cash Office [Bundeskasse].
(6) The Bundeskartellamt shall claim the costs incurred in connection with the enforcement pursuant to this provision together with the fine or periodic penalty payment from the undertaking or association of undertakings against which the decision is enforceable. If the enforcement proceeds are not sufficient to cover the costs incurred in connection with the enforcement, the Bundeskartellamt may request that the applicant authority bear the costs remaining after deduction of the enforcement proceeds.
(7) The Bundeskartellamt shall be authorised to request that the competition authority of another Member State of the European Union enforce decisions imposing fines or periodic penalty payments in proceedings concerning the application of Article 101 or Article 102 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union. Section 50b(5) sentences 2 and 3 shall apply mutatis mutandis. The content of the uniform instrument shall also be subject to subsection (3) sentence 2. If the requested authority is not able to recover the costs incurred in connection with the enforcement, including translation, personnel and administrative costs, from the fines or periodic penalty payments collected, these costs shall be reimbursed by the Bundeskartellamt upon application by the requested authority.
(8) Any disputes concerning the lawfulness of a decision issued by the Bundeskartellamt to be enforced in the territory of another competition authority, and any disputes concerning the lawfulness of the uniform instrument authorising the enforcement of a decision in another Member State shall be decided by the court competent pursuant to this Act. The law of the Federal Republic of Germany shall apply. The same shall apply to disputes concerning the execution of an enforcement carried out by the Bundeskartellamt on behalf of the competition authority of another Member State.