Debt Collection in Europe   No Win-No Fee

Europe’s debt-collection landscape is governed by a blend of EU-wide regulations and national licensing laws. Four frameworks shape every compliant recovery:

1. Late-Payment Directive 2011/7/EU — Sets default payment limits at 30 days for public bodies and 60 days for B2B invoices; lets creditors add a flat €40 compensation and statutory interest at least 8 percentage points above the ECB base rate on every late invoice.
   Source: EUR-Lex
2. GDPR (Regulation 2016/679) — Treats debt data as “personal data”. Collectors must rely on a lawful basis (usually “legitimate interest”) and apply data-minimisation; controllers must log consent for any automated debtor profiling.
   Source: EUR-Lex
3. National Licensing Rules — Most Member States require a local licence or register entry for third-party collections. In Germany, agencies must appear in the Legal Services Register (RDG) before contacting debtors; breaches can void claims and incur fines. Italy obliges collectors to obtain prefectural authorisation, while France applies a statutory code of conduct even without a formal licence. Local compliance is therefore essential.

1. Brussels I Recast (Reg. 1215/2012) — Harmonises jurisdiction rules and makes EU civil judgments automatically enforceable in every Member State without a separate exequatur. Creditors normally sue in the debtor’s domicile unless a contract says otherwise.
   Source: EUR-Lex

Debitura’s platform is built around these rules: every partner is locally licensed, GDPR-vetted, and able to fast-track claims under Brussels I. The result is fully compliant, cross-border recovery—without the legal guesswork.

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Across the EU, creditors are expected to try amicable (pre-legal) recovery before invoking the courts. A short, structured reminder campaign not only speeds payment but is also required in several jurisdictions.

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Why it matters – The EU Late-Payment Observatory reports that 47 % of European businesses still receive invoices late, yet most debtors settle after one written reminder and a follow-up call.

• Standard practice – Creditors issue a formal demand letter that gives the debtor 7–14 days to pay before statutory interest and the €40 surcharge apply. For example, in Germany § 286(1) BGB makes a debtor officially “in default” only after they receive a Mahnung. In France, a judge will grant an order for payment only when amicable efforts have demonstrably failed
• Permitted contact – Each country caps call frequency differently, but written reminders (email, registered letter or local courier) plus one to three phone attempts meet the conduct rules across the EU.
• Cost recovery – Once the debtor is in default, Article 6 of Directive 2011/7/EU allows you to add interest at least 8 percentage points above the ECB rate and a €40 fixed fee (Source: Directive 2011/7/EU) 
• With Debitura’s licensed local partners handling these steps in the debtor’s language and legal context, most debts are cleared before court fees ever arise.

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When amicable efforts fail, creditors can turn to the EU’s harmonised court tools to secure and enforce payment across borders.

• Jurisdiction & free circulation of judgments — Under Brussels I Recast Regulation 1215/2012, creditors generally sue in the debtor’s domicile; the resulting judgment is automatically enforceable in every Member State without exequatur formalities.
  
• European Payment Order (EPO) — For uncontested debts, Regulation 1896/2006 lets you obtain a court-stamped payment order using a single standard form. The court issues the order within about 30 days; if the debtor fails to object within another 30 days, the EPO becomes immediately enforceable EU-wide (except Denmark).
• European Small-Claims Procedure (ESCP) — For contested claims up to €5 000, Regulation 861/2007 (as amended by 2015/2421) provides a written, largely paper-only process. Judgments delivered under ESCP are enforceable in any Member State without further formalities.
  
• National payment-order shortcuts — Many EU countries also run domestic fast-track systems (e.g., Germany’s Mahnbescheid, Spain’s monitorio). These remain useful when both parties are domiciled in the same state and can feed directly into cross-border enforcement under Brussels I.
• Typical timelines & costs — EPO filings cost €40–€80 in court fees and conclude in 60–90 days when uncontested. Small-claims cases average 4–6 months from filing to judgment. Debitura provides fixed-price quotes for each option before you commit.

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Once you hold an enforceable title—whether a domestic judgment, a European Payment Order (EPO) or a European Small-Claims judgment—recovery moves to the enforcement phase, handled by court officers or bailiffs in the debtor’s country.

• ‍Automatic recognition — Thanks to Brussels I Recast, civil judgments issued in one Member State can be enforced in another without exequatur formalities.
• ‍European Enforcement Order (EEO) — For uncontested claims, Regulation 805/2004 lets a creditor convert a domestic judgment into an EEO certificate; enforcement abroad then proceeds exactly like a local judgment.
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• ‍Asset freezing before enforcement — If you fear dissipation of funds, Regulation 655/2014 enables a European Account Preservation Order (EAPO) to freeze a debtor’s bank account in any Member State (except DK) without notice.
• ‍The EU e-Justice Portal — Enforcement of judgments provides country-by-country fee tables; bailiff deposits typically range from €80 to €150, and first actions start within 4–8 weeks of receiving the enforcement application.
  

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If the debtor is insolvent, standard enforcement halts and creditors must join a collective insolvency or restructuring procedure in the debtor’s home country.

• Cross-border coordination — The EU Insolvency Regulation 2015/848 automatically recognises a “main” proceeding opened in the debtor’s COMI (centre of main interests) and any “secondary” cases elsewhere. Court orders and liquidator powers circulate EU-wide without exequatur.
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• Automatic stay & creditor ranking — Opening a main proceeding triggers an immediate stay on new enforcement. Secured creditors are paid first from encumbered assets; employee wages and certain tax claims follow; unsecured trade creditors share the remainder pari passu under national priority rules.
• Proof-of-claim deadlines — Article 55 of the Regulation requires foreign creditors to lodge their claims within one month of the notice published in the EU Insolvency Register; late filings risk exclusion from distributions.
• Preventive restructuring — The Directive 2019/1023 obliges every Member State to offer a pre-insolvency framework that allows viable businesses to restructure and stay operations; a four-month moratorium can be extended to one year with court approval.
  
• Discharge timelines — To promote second chances, the Directive caps entrepreneur debt discharge at three years; Germany already applies a three-year discharge (§ 300 InsO), while France can grant discharge in as little as one year for liquidations.

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