Unpaid invoice in Slovakia: reminders, late-payment interest, the 40 € fee and a payment order

The due date has passed and the money is not on your account. Between businesses you are entitled, for as long as the delay lasts, to late-payment interest and a one-off 40 € flat compensation for recovery costs, without having to warn the debtor first.^⁠[1]⁠[2]

This guide walks from a polite reminder to a payment order, explains how the interest is set, how long a claim can be pursued, and what happens to the VAT on an unpaid invoice. It covers invoices between businesses; some rules differ when the debtor is a consumer.

The payment term as the first protection

A payment term agreed between businesses must not exceed 60 days from delivery of the invoice, unless the parties expressly agree on a longer one and the agreement is not grossly unfair to the creditor. Where the debtor is a public body, 30 days usually apply.^⁠[1]

A clear due date, the IBAN, a variable symbol and a payment QR code spare you most reminders. With a new client or a large order an advance helps; see Advance invoices in Slovakia.

How the QR code on an invoice works and what goes into it is explained in PAY by square QR payment on an invoice.

Step by step

1. Reminder. A day or two after the due date, send a polite message with the invoice number, amount and payment details; often the e-mail was simply overlooked.
2. Formal reminder. If no payment arrives, send a written reminder with a new deadline and the amount of late-payment interest and the 40 € compensation.
3. Final notice. Before going to court, tell the debtor in writing that you will apply for a payment order once the deadline passes.
4. Payment order. File the application electronically in payment order proceedings.

Keep proof of sending at every step; it will be useful in court.

Late-payment interest and 40 €

When the debtor is late, you are entitled to late-payment interest at the rate agreed in the contract. Without an agreed rate, the rate set by government regulation applies.^⁠[1]

The regulation sets it at the main refinancing rate of the European Central Bank valid on the first day of the relevant calendar half-year of the delay, plus eight percentage points. Instead, you may claim the ECB rate valid on the first day of the delay plus nine percentage points, which then applies for the whole delay.^⁠[2]

The flat compensation for the costs of recovering the claim is 40 € once, regardless of how long the delay lasts. It does not apply where the obligation arose from a consumer contract and the debtor is a consumer.^⁠[2]⁠[1]

The electronic payment order

A monetary claim in euros can be pursued in payment order proceedings (upomínacie konanie). The application for a payment order is filed only electronically, on the prescribed form, into the electronic mailbox of the District Court Banská Bystrica, which has jurisdiction over these proceedings.^⁠[3]

If both you and the debtor keep accounts, it is enough to attach the invoice and declare that you record the claim in your accounts. You need an activated electronic mailbox, and the application is not admissible if the payment order would have to be delivered abroad.^⁠[3]

Once the conditions are met, including payment of the court fee, the court issues the payment order within ten working days. The debtor must pay within 15 days of delivery or lodge a substantiated objection.^⁠[3]

A payment order without an objection has the effects of a final judgment. An objection cancels it; you then have 15 days to propose that the case continue in court, otherwise the proceedings are discontinued.^⁠[3]

Limitation: four years from the due date

Between businesses the general limitation period is four years, and for the right to payment of an invoice it runs from the due date.^⁠[4]

The debtor may extend the limitation period by a written declaration, even repeatedly, but to no more than ten years in total from when it first began. With a client who has not paid for a long time it pays to act well before the deadline.^⁠[4]

VAT on an unpaid invoice

A VAT payer pays the tax even if the client has not paid yet: the tax liability arises on the day of the supply of goods or services, not on the day of payment (the exception is the special cash accounting scheme).^⁠[5]

If the receivable becomes uncollectible, the VAT payer may correct the tax base under the conditions of § 25a with a corrective document, which is not a credit note.^⁠[5] The difference is explained in Credit notes in Slovakia.

Checklist

• The invoice shows a clear due date, the IBAN, a variable symbol and a QR code.
• After the due date you sent a reminder, then a written reminder with a new deadline.
• The written reminder states the late-payment interest and the 40 € compensation.
• You have an activated electronic mailbox for a payment order.
• You keep an eye on the four-year limitation period.

Reminders in vporiadku

You send the client a payment reminder by e-mail with one click straight from the invoice, on every plan including the free Start plan. On the Profi plan you can switch on automatic reminders: vporiadku sends a friendly reminder a chosen number of days before the due date and reminders on the days after it that you set, at most one message a day per invoice.

If your company profile has a bank account, invoices in euros carry a PAY by square QR code with the amount still to be paid. Try invoicing for free or compare the plans; the mandatory details of an invoice are summed up in How to issue an invoice in Slovakia.