European payment order

The European Payment Order is a simplified procedure for cross-border monetary claims which are uncontested by the defendant, based on standard forms.

Standard forms have been drawn up for the European Payment Order and are available here in all languages. This link will also provide more information about which courts can issue a European Payment Order and where the application forms should be sent.

To start the procedure, Form A must be filled in, giving all the details of the parties and the nature and amount of the claim. The court will examine the application, and if the form is correctly filled in, the court should issue the European Payment Order within 30 days.

The European Payment Order must then be served on the defendant by the court. S/he can either pay the amount of the claim, or contest it. S/he has 30 days to lodge any statement of opposition to the European Payment Order. If this happens, the case may, subject to a choice of the claimant, either be transferred to the normal civil law courts to be dealt with under national law; or dealt with in accordance with a European Small Claims Procedure, or discontinued.

If there is no statement of opposition by the defendant, the European Payment Order will become automatically enforceable. A copy of the European Payment Order, and if necessary a translation, must be sent to the enforcement authorities of the Member State where it needs to be enforced. Enforcement takes place in accordance with the national rules and procedures of the Member State where the European Payment Order is being enforced. For details on the enforcement, please consult the relevant section.

Please note that the guide does not reflect two amendments that entered into force on 14 July 2017. The first amendment adds an option of continuation of the proceedings in a case of lodging a statement of opposition in accordance with the rules of Regulation (EC) 861/2007 establishing a European Small Claims Procedure. The second amendment extends the application of the European Small Claims Procedure to claims of a value up to 5000 euro.

For further information in this regard please consult the new text of Article 17 of the Regulation as well as Article 2 of Regulation (EC) 861/2007, as amended by Regulation (EU) 2015/2421.

Related link

Practice Guide for the application of the Regulation on the European Order for Payment PDF (5809 Kb) en

European payment order – notifications of the Member States and a search tool helping to identify competent court(s)/authority(ies)

Please note that there are also national order for payment procedures. You can obtain information about such national procedures by selecting the relevant country's flag.

Last update: 16/01/2023

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