Top-Rated Debt Collection Agency in Romania
Fast and reliable debt collection in Romania - no upfront costs, only pay for success. Request a FREE Consultation or upload your claim today.
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Recovering your debt in Romania made easy.
Debitura is a specialist in debt recovery within Romania. Our team of professionals are experienced in various services such as accounts receivables management, debt collection notices, pre-legal and legal debt recovery processes, and enforcement court proceedings. With our extensive knowledge of Romanian debt collection laws and regulations, we provide proficient solutions to assist businesses in reclaiming their overdue debts.
We provide unwavering assistance throughout the entire process.
Tailored debt recovery plan.
We have a team of +500 experts who specialize in international debt collection.
We achieve a success rate of 87% while maintaining the lowest cost.
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We have a valuable experience both in consultancy and court for over 22 years; our activity is oriented towerds foreign citizen
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Hammond and Associates is a multi disciplinery law firm with Foreign and Romnian qualified lawyers with extensive experience in corporate M&A, commercial law and litigation. It has lawyers dealing with recovery of debts and other contentious issues.
International debt collection experts for Romania since 2007. We are a team of Romanian lawyers characterized by experience, efficiency, confidentiality and passion for what we do.
Approach for a lasting collaboration based on trust and fairness in debt recovery procedures, car accidents and representation in litigation.
Law firm- commercial law, contracts, bank contract and issues, trials and recovery
The law company was founded in 2006 and it is specialized in Corporate, Commercial and Intellectual Property Law
EPA was set up in 2018 in Bucharest, when the two founding partners decided to create the Law Firm where clients can find lawyers who think business and who give them applicable leading-edge solutions, in order to ensure businesses move forward with ethics and integrity, while people are safe to enjoy a better future.
Reliable team of legal professionals, with more than 15 years of experience on the Romanian legal market. With a vast cross-disciplinary approach, we have managed to deliver 99% of the assessments, that we usually make prior to accept a mandate, to tangible results.
We are a team of highly experienced legal consultants dealing for more than 15 years in the business advisory legal services & litigation field, especially recovery of debts. Our expertise covers the full range of legal and advisory services for top tier domestic and international clients in a variety of industries.
The ultimate guide about debt collection in Romania
If you have money that you are owed from a business or customer in Romania, then this is the right place for you! We have helped many other businesses get their money back from people who owe them, and we can help you too.
It can seem impossible to collect a debt in Romania. Language and cultural barriers, foreign laws and customs, and sheer distance all make it very difficult.
It is easier to get your money back when you use a collection agency that knows the laws and customs of the country where the person who owes you money lives.
At Debitura, we care about people. We want to help you get your money back while still having a good relationship with the person you lent it to. Our strategies are fair, but we will be firm-ensuring that your reputation is our top priority! If you want to understand the Romanian debt collection process yourself, keep reading this guide. If you would rather work with a local law firm that specializes in debt recovery in Romania, we can help you with that too.
At Debitura, we provide an easy way to collect your debt in Romania and +192 other countries. To get started, upload your claim today. Within 24 hours, we will assess your case and provide you with 3 free quotes from local debt collection lawyers in Romania. Our people-oriented approach combined with the latest tech-driven solutions gets results while preserving customer relationships. In addition, we have a lot of friends who help us with our job. We have friends who help us collect money, friends who are lawyers, and friends who sell us things we need. We like all of these friends and we think they are important.
Upload claim
Begin the process of collecting your debt in Romania today at no cost. Simply sign up for a free account, and file your case in under 2 minutes.
Pre-legal
During the initial 3 months, we will employ our effective pre-legal recovery procedure to try and recover your claim. You don't have to pay us if we are unsuccessful. It's a 100% no-cure-no-pay system.
Legal
In case your claim remains unpaid during the pre-legal phase, we offer you three quotes from our nearby debt collection attorneys.
24/7 updates
You get access to our online portal where you can track your case in real-time
Introduction to collecting debt in Romania
Do you have a hard time getting paid from your Romanian customers? Do not worry; we make it easy for you to collect debt in Romania.
The person who owes money is called the debtor. The person who gave them the money or invoice is called the creditor. If the creditor collects the debt themselves, it's called first-party collection. If they give the process of collecting to someone else, it's third-party collections.
- Romania has stricter rules about late payments than other European countries, but businesses in Romania still have trouble paying on time.
- Legal proceedings can be long and expensive. One way to avoid this is to use arbitration or a foreign European forum instead. This way, the arbitral award or decision rendered in EU countries will be easier to enforce.
- Before you start any legal action, it is important to do a lot of research first. This way, you will have a better chance of getting your money back from the person you lent it to. If you wait too long, the person you lent the money to might not have enough money to pay you back, and then it would be impossible to get your money back.
Days Sales Outstanding (DSO)
Even though it may be explained by a lack of support from the banking sector, the paying behaviour of domestic companies may be problematic. In theory, payment should occur within 30 to 40 days following the invoice remittance, but delays of up to 25 days may be expected. The latest average DSO was indeed round 65 days. The DSO for listed companies is however shorter even if it has shown a trend increase over the past few years.
More and more companies are using promissory notes payable 15 to 30 days after the date of payment as a way to further delay payments.
Common payment types in Romania
There are several ways to pay for something. The most common methods are listed below:
Bank transfers are a type of payment that is used a lot for transactions between countries. They are fast and secure, and there is a good network of banks that support them.
Checks can be used to show that someone owes money. This can be used to start a legal process to get the money back. If the check is not paid, it will be registered with the Centrala Incidentelor de Plăţi. Promissory notes are usually used instead of checks because they have less restrictions. Promissory notes are the safest way to get paid. This is because the company's administrator has to agree to the note, and then they would be held responsible if you don't get paid. It is also a good idea to ask for a down payment or to negotiate payments in advance.
Main corporate structures
Liability for business debts is determined by legal structures, which are described as follows:
- Sole Proprietorship is an option for small businesses that are managed by one person and does not need a commercial structure. This means that the owner is held responsible for all business debts. Two or more people may also decide to share ownership and responsibilities through Partnerships, which would mean that the partners could be held responsible for the actions of the other partners. Limited Liability Partnerships (SCS) offer limited liability to the partners.
- Most businesses in Romania are Limited Liability Companies (societate cu raspundere limitata, Srl) or Joint-Stock Companies (societate pe actiuni, SA). Srl companies don't need a lot of money to start (RON 200=EUR 41), and the partners aren't responsible for more than their contribution. SA Companies are usually used for bigger businesses that want to divide their capital (RON 90,000=EUR 18,287) into shares that people can buy. In these entities, the shareholders aren't responsible for more than the value of their shares.
- Foreign companies may also choose to settle in Romania through Branch Offices. This option does not have any limitations on the foreign parent company's liability. Representative Offices may also be set up, but these cannot generate cash. Joint Ventures may take the form of any legal structure, but incorporation is not necessary. A contract drafted for this purpose would suffice.
The debt collection process in Romania
In Romania, debt collectors usually follow a few steps to get the money people owe. The picture below shows the standard process for collecting debt in Romania:
1 Upload your claim:
If you want someone to help you with your debt, you will start by finding a debt collection partner and uploading your claim to their website. If you use Debitura, we will provide you with 3 quotes from local partners in the European country relevant to your case. This is 100% free - no strings attached.
2 Amicable collection:
The collection process begins with sending reminders to the person who owes you money. This is called a campaign. The reminders go through email, SMS, and other ways to communicate in the debtor's country. The goal is for the debtor to pay or agree that they owe the debt, and then start a plan to pay it back. Debitura offers a solution where you only have to pay a small fee if we are successful in getting the debt repaid. Amicable collections with Debitura are, therefore 100% risk-free!
3 Evaluation:
If the person you lent money to has not paid you back after you talked to them, it is time to decide what to do next. We will look at how much money you are owed, the chance of getting paid back, and other factors to help you decide what to do. There are three typical next steps:
A Surveillance:
If your claim is below 2,000-5,000 euros, it is not usually worth it to take more legal action. In this case, we recommend "debt surveillance." This means that we will keep trying to contact the person you owe money to and try to reach an agreement about how much they will pay you back.
B: Legal collections:
We suggest starting court proceedings for bigger issues. The steps you need to take will vary depending on what you're claiming and how big the claim is. Usually, it takes around a year and a half to finish the whole process.
A legal process is a set of steps that are taken in order to resolve a dispute through the court system. When someone has a bigger claim, it is often recommended that they start a legal process to resolve the dispute. However, different types and sizes of claims will have different processes that need to be followed. This can range from paperwork to court appearances. And it usually takes around 12-18 months for the whole process to be completed from start to finish.
C: Debt enforcement:
If the person you are owed money from has agreed that you are owed money, or if a court has said you are owed money, you can go to the bailiff's court to get the money.
At Debitura, we can help you with all three steps in Romania.
Amicable collection in Romania
At Debitura, we offer a 100% risk-free and very efficient process for Amicable collections. This means that you can submit your claim to us, and we will get started within 24 hours.
We will try to contact your debtor in Romania through different ways, such as email, text messages, letters, phone calls, and social media.
The goal of this process is to either get the debtor to pay the entire amount or get the debtor to agree that they owe the money and start a plan to pay it back.
If the person you are trying to get money from says your claim is not true, you cannot try to work it out amicably. You must go directly to legal collections.
Late Payment Interest
The law in the European Union says that people must pay for things they buy within 60 days. This law was put into effect in Romania on April 5, 2013 by Law 72.
The rules in Romania are stricter than the EU requirements. This means that people usually have to pay for something within 30 days after they get the bill, unless they agree to a different plan with the person they bought it from. If someone has a rule that is unfair, it is not legal. The parties are free to agree on specific late payment interest, which must be calculated on the basis of a legal rate (6% per year), increased by at least 8 percentage points.
Interest starts on the due date. It may go up after 30 days. But sometimes people don't have to pay interest until they go to court or when they sign an agreement that says they will pay.
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amicable debt collection
Upload your claim and get started with our 100% no-cure-no-pay collection solution.
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Legal collection in Romania
If we have not been able to collect your debt during the amicable phase or if the debtor disputes your claim, we will provide you with 3 free quotes from local debt collection attorneys. In the legal phase, our local attorney will reach out to your debtor and try to negotiate a payment. Our partners can also go to court and get a payment order from the legal system in Romania. This payment order can then be used to enforce your claim via enforcement court.
Ordinary proceedings
The law does not require any specific actions before starting legal proceedings. However, it is advisable to begin with a registered summons letter, which reminds the debtor of their obligation to pay the outstanding amount, plus interest, within 15 days. If possible, it is also beneficial to negotiate payment instalments, which would give you the right to take legal action if the agreement is ignored. If the person you owe money to does not pay you back, or if they do not answer your summons letter, and if the debt is certain and undisputed, the creditor may be able to request a fast-track Payment Order from the court. This means that the court can make the debtor company pay you back through compulsory proceedings. If the debtor company has assets in other EU Member States, there is a European Payment Order procedure that may be able to help you get your money back. The person who is asking for money may ask a court to give an order that says the other person has to pay the money. This order can be used in all European Union countries (except Denmark) without having to go through any extra legal proceedings.
If the person who owes money does not agree with the court about how much they owe, the court will not accept the claim and the person who is owed money can start a different legal action. The person who is owed money would file a claim with the appropriate court, which would then tell the person who owes money about the claim. Debtors normally have 25 days to file a defence. If they don't do this, it would be considered as an acknowledgement of the creditor's claim. The debtor would then not be allowed to submit evidence or use procedural exceptions. This means the creditor's request would be judged without the debtor present.
If the debtor files a defence, this means they do not agree with the claim. The court would then look at both sides' arguments and evidence before making a decision. Theoretically, the court should try to encourage both parties to reach a compromise, but this does not seem to happen efficiently.
The Romanian court system would usually award a remedy in the form of compensatory damages or an injunction. Also, if there are procedural delays, the person responsible for the delay will be fined a set amount of money as compensation for any damages that were caused by the delay. The amount of the fine is decided by the civil procedure code and can range from RON 50 to RON 1,000. If someone wants to receive compensation, they will have to prove that they deserve it.
In Romania, the law is based on Civil Law. This means that the rules are written down in a book. The court's decisions usually only have a small effect on the law. Most of the time, businesses that have disagreements go to local courts where the person who bought something lives, or they go to County Courts which can deal with problems that cost more than approx. EUR 40,000. In Romania, a new law called the Civil Procedure Code applies since February 2013. This law changes how trials are done in Romania. The goal of the new law is to make judgments happen faster and to make the civil procedure match up with the substantial law provided by the New Civil Code.
The European Commission said in January 2013 that there was still a lack of trust in the rule of law. This means that businesses might not be able to get fair and equal treatment from the law.
The amount of money you will need to pay a lawyer depends on how difficult your case is and how big it is. To make sure you are getting the best deal, it is a good idea to compare quotes from different lawyers. You can do this easily by using Debitura.
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legal debt collection
Upload your claim and get 3 FREE quotes from our local collection partners.
Debt enforcement in Romania
If you have obtained a written acknowledgement of your claim by the debtor, or court order, you can use the bailiff's court in Romania to enforce your claim in Romania.
In commercial litigation, a court decision may be executed even if it has not yet become final. This means that the decision can be enforced even if it is still being appealed. The civil procedure code lists the following enforcement means: direct execution (forced submission of goods and enforcement of some obligations), execution of the debtor assets (seizure of real estate and collateral, attachment of the bank accounts of the debtor, garnishee orders, liquidation). If the court decides not to enforce a debt because the person who owes the money does not have enough money or assets, the creditor can ask the court to declare the debtor insolvent.
The way to do this and how much it will cost is different for each person. You can tell Debitura your situation, and they will give you 3 different options within 24 hours.
Get started with
debt enforcement
Upload your claim and get 3 FREE quotes from our local collection partners.
Insolvency proceedings in Romania
If your debtor cannot pay back what he owes, you can start an insolvency procedure. This is when we try to get money from the debtor by selling his things. The money will be given to the people he owes in order of importance.
- The Law 85/2014 allows for out-of-court proceedings in order to preserve confidentiality.
- The negotiations may be initiated by the creditors and may not last more than 60 days.
- The compromise must be voted by creditors holding at least 75% of the claims.
- If the reorganization plan is proposed by the debtor, there are additional conditions to be fulfilled: five years before the procedure, the debtor must not have been the subject of another insolvency procedure and its administrators must not have been prosecuted for economic crimes.
- The plan will be voted by the creditors, divided into five debt categories (guaranteed, salary, budgetary, unsecured and subordinate unsecured) and considered when voted by at least half + 1 of th e existing categories.
- Failure to observe t he reorganization plan leads to t he initiation of bankruptcy procedures and t he liquidation of t he debtor company.
European Late Payment Directive in Romania
Romania is a part of the European Union. This means that the Directive 2011/7/EU on combating late payments across Europe in commercial transactions applies to Romania.
The directive includes the following:
- Public authorities cannot require payment terms of more than 30 days.
- Private companies can't require people to pay for something more than 60 days after they get it.
- If the person you lent money to is a business, you can charge them an extra €40 fee for not paying on time.
- If you pay late, the interest rates must be at least 8% higher than the European Central Banks reference rate.
The Danish government cannot make local rules that are less fair to creditors than the EEU-wide rules.
The analysis is concluding that the risk of doing business in Romania is medium-low. Based on this medium-low score, we recommend being careful providing credit and considering charging upfront payment or using credit insurance when trading if you don't know the customer in Romania well. If possible, provide a short credit period or even better upfront payment. The medium-low risk score is based on the following factors:
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The economic risk in Romania
Our analysis shows that the economic risk in Romania is medium-high (4 out of 6). An economic risk of 4 out of 6 is relatively high in Europe.
GDP and economic growth are critical drivers for economic risk.
The GDP of Romania is 284,09 bn. USD (2021), growing by 5,88% per year.
In terms of the size of its economy, Romania ranks #45 out of 183 countries and has a large economy.
In terms of growth rate, it is ranked #61 out of 183 countries and is therefore considered a fast-growing economy.
GDP per capita is 14862 USD, ranking Romania number #53 out of 183 countries. This means the purchasing power of citizens in Romania is high compared to the rest of the world.
You can see a more throughout picture of GDP and economic growth in Romania in the table below:
Another critical driver for the economic risk score is the inflation rate and the interest rates. You can see a more throughout picture of monetary key performance indicators in Romania in the table below:
The inflation in Romania was 5,1% in 2021 which is considered a medium inflation rate.
Looking at the interest rate for businesses, it is 5,61%.
The business environment risk in Romania
Our analysis shows that the business environment risk in Romania is low (2 out of 6), which is a pretty average risk score in Europe.
Economic freedom and rights has a big influence on the business environment risk in a country. You can see the critical facts for Romania in the table below:
As you can see in the table, the property rights index is 69 in Romania, which is considered pretty average in Europe.
The business freedom index is based on 10 indicators, using data from the World Bank’s Doing Business study. The Index is 60 in Romania, a quite low score for a country in Europe.
Romania's overall economic freedom index is 70 out of 100 and is based on factors such as the rule of law, regulatory efficiency, and market openness.
The political risk in Romania
The political risk in Romania is medium, with a score of 3/6. This is a relatively high political risk score in Europe.
The governance and political stability indicators are important drivers for political risk. An overview of Romania can be seen in the data below:
The rule of law index analyses to which extent agents have confidence in and abide by the rules of society, in particular the quality of contract enforcement, property rights, the quality of the courts, and the police's ability to enforce court orders.
When transacting business in a country, the rule of law index is critical as it describes your ability to enforce commercial contracts.
In Romania, the rule of law index is at 0,41 points, with the score going from -2.5 (weak) to 2.5 (strong). Romania has, therefore, a medium rule of law index, which means it should be possible to enforce your contracts. If possible, we still recommend charging payment upfront or working with credit insurance for larger deals.
Other drivers for the medium political risks are the weak control of corruption, the weak political stability index, and the medium-large shadow economy that is 22,94% of Romania's GDP.
The commercial risk in Romania
In Romania, the commercial risk score is 2/4, which in our model is a low score. This low commercial risk score is relatively low compared to the average in Europe.
The commercial risk is relying on a country's international trade relationships. You can see some of the key facts for Romania in the table below:
Romania has a foreign exchange reserve of 51.89 bn. USD.
Romania has a negative trade balance of -5,66% of GDP. This means that Romania imports more goods and services than the country exports.
The annual growth of exports of goods and services has been growing 12,53% annually - now 40,85% of GDP. Import of goods and services represents 46,51% of the GDP in Romania.
The financing risk in Romania
We have calculated the financing risk to be 3/4, which equals a medium risk. A medium financing risk score is relatively high for countries in Europe.
The country's banking system, efficiency, and stability influence the financing risk. Additional facts and info can be found for Romania in the table below:
In Romania, the credit information sharing index is 7 on a scale from 0 (low) to 8 (high). The result of this, is that the access and trustworthiness of the credit information in Romania is medium-high.
This makes it easy for you to understand the credit risk of your counterpart in Romania. Based on this, it should be possible to to find a good local credit rating agency that can help you analyse the creditworthiness of your specific customers.
Your juridical rights as a creditor are 9 out of 12 and, therefore, strong.
The medium financing risk for creditors also impacts the medium interest rate in the private sector of 5,61%.
Debt Collection in Romania: Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
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In Romania, debt collection can be a complex and lengthy process, and legal proceedings can be costly. To avoid this, using arbitration or a foreign European forum may be recommended. It is important to do research and act promptly. Common payment types include bank transfers and promissory notes, while most businesses in Romania are Limited Liability Companies or Joint-Stock Companies. The debt collection process typically involves uploading your claim, amicable collection, and evaluation to decide on the next steps of surveillance, legal collection, or debt enforcement. Debitura offers debt collection services in Romania.
In Romania, debt collectors usually follow a three-step process: pre-legal collection, legal debt collection, and debt enforcement. The pre-legal collection involves sending reminders to the debtor to pay or agree to pay the debt. If that does not work, legal action may follow, which usually takes around 12-18 months. Debt enforcement is the final step, where you can go to the bailiff's court to get the money owed to you. Debitura provides assistance with all three steps in Romania.
Legal options for debt collection in Romania include civil lawsuits for disputed debts, debt enforcement and insolvency proceedings. These legal actions require the assistance of a local lawyer who will negotiate payment with the debtor and seek a payment order from the court. The court may award compensatory damages or an injunction, and fines may be imposed for procedural delays. Insolvency proceedings involve selling the debtor’s assets to pay off creditors in order of importance, and the debtor company may face liquidation if it fails to abide by a reorganization plan.
Debt collection costs in Romania depend on your specific case and desired actions. Debitura offers a no-cure-no-pay model for pre-legal collection with a success fee between 10-20%. For legal actions, we can provide you with 3 quotes from the best debt collection lawyers in Romania. Contact us to discuss your case and get a personalized cost estimate.
The time it takes for debt collection in Romania depends on the debtor and the case. If the case can be solved outside of legal actions, it usually takes 3-6 months. However, if legal action is required, the collection process typically takes 12-18 months.
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