SPAK has begun checks following a complaint filed by leaders of the justice system over the blocking of judges’ and prosecutors’ salaries for August 2026, a clash that once again highlights the tension between decisions of justice institutions and their implementation by the state’s financial bodies.
The case was registered after the complaint
According to information reported by journalist Anila Hoxha, citing unofficial sources, after the complaint was received the case was registered and is being verified by the Special Prosecution.
The complaint requests a series of investigative actions to clarify how the deadlock was created that left magistrates’ salaries for August unexecuted.
At the center: the Constitutional Court ruling and the deadline missed by Parliament
According to the circumstances presented in the document, the salary freeze is linked to the Constitutional Court’s decision of February 17, 2026, which struck down the 2023 amendments to the law on the status of judges and prosecutors.
The Constitutional Court had concluded that those amendments had brought about a hidden reduction in magistrates’ pay and had given Parliament until July 31, 2026, to make the necessary legal changes. According to the information presented in the complaint, that deadline was not respected.
Treasury refused payment orders across most of the country
Under these conditions, the High Judicial Council ordered the implementation of the basic reference salary according to the parameters of Council of Ministers Decision No. 325/2023, effective from August 1, 2026.
But according to the complaint, Treasury branches in almost the entire country, with the exception of Kukës and Dibër, refused to implement the payment orders under the new formula. The claim is that this position was supported by an electronic message forwarded by the secretary general of the Ministry of Finance, shifting the debate from an administrative technicality to suspicions of interference in the execution of a decision that was supposed to be implemented.
The Ministry of Finance’s version and the complainants’ objection
In a letter dated September 2 addressed to the two councils, Minister Malaj justified the freeze by citing the need for checks on the legal basis of the payrolls and claimed that payment would be made quickly after Parliament approved the amendments.
The complainants dispute this version. According to them, neither the Ministry of Finance nor the Treasury has the legal authority to unilaterally block the execution of a court decision, even in the event of an administrative dispute. In their interpretation, the only course the state could have followed was to turn to the court, not suspend the payments.
What is being requested for verification
The complaint requests the collection of documentation related to the decisions of the Constitutional Court, the High Judicial Council and the High Prosecutorial Council, as well as correspondence between the Ministry of Finance and Treasury branches.
It also requests verification of the electronic traces of actions in the Treasury system and whether budget funds for the August 2026 salaries were in fact available. These checks are expected to clarify whether this was a freeze supported by a legal basis, as officially claimed, or an administrative intervention beyond the scope of authority.
At this stage, these are preliminary checks, but the case touches on a sensitive issue: how far the financial administration can go when faced with a final decision from justice institutions.
This is precisely the real test of the functioning of the rule of law, not official statements after the conflict has erupted.