How to claim an unpaid invoice in Spain

General information only, not legal advice.

The usual route

For a money debt that is due, certain and supported by documents, the Spanish payment order procedure (proceso monitorio) is normally the fastest court route. There is no maximum amount. The creditor files a short petition and the court orders the debtor to pay within twenty working days or to oppose.

What to prepare

Contract or purchase order, invoices, delivery notes, emails acknowledging the work, a statement of account and the debtor's full address. The more complete the paper trail, the lower the risk of opposition.

Interest and collection costs

Between businesses, late payment interest accrues automatically and a fixed 40 euro compensation applies per invoice under Law 3/2004. Consumers are not covered by that law.

Jurisdiction

The court of the debtor's domicile has exclusive jurisdiction for the payment order. A jurisdiction clause in the contract does not change this.