Enforcement proceedings have been started against you: what to do within seven days

When enforcement proceedings are started against you, the enforcement office sends you a payment order. How and within what time you can object depends on the type of proceedings. Because the deadlines are very short, it is crucial to identify the type of proceedings on the day you receive the payment order.

First, identify the type of proceedings

• Ordinary enforcement without a court judgment: proceedings started by a creditor who does not hold a court judgment. This is the most common type.
• Proceedings based on negotiable instruments: a special procedure based on cheques, promissory notes or bills of exchange; the deadlines and the place to object are different.
• Enforcement based on a court judgment: here you receive an enforcement order rather than a payment order, and the grounds for objection are limited.

The type of proceedings is stated at the top of the payment order and in the request for enforcement. For payment orders delivered by electronic notification, service is deemed to have taken place at the end of the fifth day following the day the document reached the electronic address.

How to read a payment order

• Name of the creditor and their lawyer: shows who started the proceedings.
• Items claimed: the principal, accrued interest and costs are listed separately; check the type of interest and its start date.
• Reason for the debt and supporting document: such as an invoice, contract, promissory note or current account; check whether the document relates to you.
• Enforcement office and file number: shows which office and file your objection must be filed with.

The seven-day objection period in ordinary proceedings

In ordinary enforcement without a court judgment, the debtor may object to the debt within seven days of service of the payment order. The objection is made to the enforcement office conducting the proceedings, in writing or orally. The period starts on the day after service; if the last day falls on an official holiday, the period ends on the first working day after the holiday.

• You may object to all or part of the debt; any part you do not accept should be clearly specified.
• If the signature on the document relied on is not yours, you must object to the signature separately and expressly. Otherwise, the signature is deemed accepted.
• An objection made in time automatically suspends the proceedings.

An example of how the period is calculated

If the payment order is served on you on Tuesday, 3 March, the seven-day period starts on 4 March and ends at the close of business on Tuesday, 10 March. If the last day falls on an official holiday, the period is extended to the end of the next working day. With electronic notification, you must first determine the day on which service is deemed to have taken place.

What happens if you do not object?

If no objection is made in time, the proceedings become final. The creditor may then request the attachment of wages, bank accounts, vehicles and real estate. You must also submit a declaration of assets within the period stated in the payment order; failing to do so, or making a false declaration, is subject to sanctions.

The creditor's options after an objection

• Removal of the objection: if the claim is based on a document of the kind listed in the law (for example, a promissory note whose signature has been acknowledged), the creditor may ask the enforcement court to remove the objection within six months of being notified of it.
• Action for annulment of the objection: the creditor may file an action in the general courts within one year of being notified of the objection. For commercial receivables, mediation is mandatory before this action.
• Compensation for unjustified denial: if the court finds the debtor's objection unjustified and the claim is liquidated, it may order the debtor to pay compensation of at least twenty percent of the claim. Objections without a sound basis can therefore cost the debtor more.
• Likewise, a creditor whose enforcement is found to be unjustified and in bad faith may be ordered to pay compensation to the debtor.

Different rules for cheques, promissory notes and bills of exchange

In proceedings based on negotiable instruments, the debtor is given ten days to pay. Objections to the debt, the signature or the negotiable character of the instrument, however, must be made within five days of service of the payment order, directly to the enforcement court rather than the enforcement office. In this procedure, an objection does not automatically suspend the proceedings; a separate decision of the enforcement court is needed. Because the deadlines and formal rules are stricter, it is particularly important to consult a lawyer without delay when you receive such a payment order.

If you have missed the objection period

• If you believe you do not owe the debt, you may file a negative declaratory action in the general courts. If the action is filed before enforcement, a precautionary injunction may be sought to stop the proceedings; if filed after enforcement has started, you may ask, against security, that money paid into the enforcement office is not released to the creditor.
• If you were forced to pay a debt you did not owe because of the proceedings, you may claim the money back through an action for restitution within one year of payment.
• If you believe service was not properly made, you may file a complaint with the enforcement court; in that case, the period runs from the date you learned of the service.

Common mistakes

• Ignoring the payment order and missing the deadline.
• Objecting to the entire debt while accepting part of it; this may increase the risk of compensation for unjustified denial later.
• Not objecting separately to a signature you believe is not yours.
• In proceedings based on negotiable instruments, filing the objection with the enforcement office instead of the enforcement court.

What to do when you receive a payment order

• Note the date of service immediately and identify the type of proceedings.
• Check the amount claimed, the interest rate and the document relied on.
• If you do not accept the debt, file your objection in time, objecting separately to the signature where necessary.
• If you accept part of the debt, consider reducing interest and costs by paying the accepted part or agreeing a restructuring with the creditor.
• If the proceedings are based on a cheque, promissory note or bill of exchange, apply to the enforcement court within the five-day period.

The content and timing of the objection directly affect the outcome of the proceedings and of any subsequent lawsuits. Each case must be assessed according to the document relied on and the circumstances of service.