Orders for payment in the EU: National procedures and the European Order for Payment

Every year, 1 million small businesses in the EU face problems with collecting cross-border debts, and as much as €600 million in cross-border claims are never satisfied.

Domestic orders for payment are an effective tool for debt collection in the Member States. Although they exist in many Member States, they differ to a great ex tent, and are often not practical for cross-border use.

In order to supplement the existing national order for payment measures, the EU legislature created a European Order for Payment ('EOP') procedure. The procedure is available for cross-border claims for money, mainly those arising from a contract. It is based on standard forms and the claimant does not need to prove the case before an order is issued. Once an EOP is served upon the defendant, they may oppose it. This then makes the EOP unenforceable and the case is moved onto standard civil proceedings.

Although the EOP procedure is an autonomous civil procedure in EU law, several aspects are regulated by national law. These include the designation of the competent authority or court, permissible languages, court fees and detailed rules on service. The Commission is due to report on the practical application of the EOP procedure in December 2013.

ESO: Background information: Proposal for a Regulation Of The European Parliament And Of The Council amending Regulation (EC) No 861/2007 of the European Parliament and the Council of 11 July 2007 establishing a European Small Claims Procedure and Regulation (EC) No 1896/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 December 2006 creating a European order for payment procedure http://www.europeansources.info/record/proposal-for-a-regulation-of-the-european-parliament-and-of-the-council-amending-regulation-ec-no-861-2007-of-the-european-parliament-and-the-council-of-11-july-2007-establishing-a-european-small-cl/

ESO: Background information: Online shopping: cross-border deliveries found reliable but few traders sell abroad in the EU http://www.europeansources.info/record/press-release-online-shopping-cross-border-deliveries-found-reliable-but-few-traders-sell-abroad-in-the-eu/

ESO: Background information: Consumers: 60% of cross border internet shopping orders are refused, says new EU study http://www.europeansources.info/record/press-release-consumers-60-of-cross-border-internet-shopping-orders-are-refused-says-new-eu-study/

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