Netherlands · Unpaid invoice
An unpaid invoice in the Netherlands: put the notice of default in writing
In the Netherlands, the letter that asks for payment usually also puts the debtor in default: the ingebrekestelling. It gives one clear final deadline and, where the rules allow, announces statutory interest and collection costs. You answer the questions and get that letter in Dutch or English, with the dates worked out.
The questions and the documents that come with the letters (checklist, timeline, next steps and memo) are in English. The letters can be written in Dutch or English.
Other languages: Nederlands
The rules your letter follows
From our rules for the Netherlands, checked item by item against the official sources. Interest rates are reset from time to time; the list shows the current ones.
- Final term the letter gives
- 14 days
- You can choose up to 30 days.
- Statutory commercial interest, between businesses
- 10.4%
- Until 31 December 2026. Runs from the day after the payment date, without a separate notice.
- Statutory interest, other debts
- 4%
- Until 31 December 2026. Runs from the date the debtor is in default.
- Collection costs
- €40 to €6,775
- By the statutory scale, depending on the amount. A consumer must first get a reminder with at least 14 days to pay.
- Limitation period
- 5 years
- From the day after the invoice fell due; two years for the price of goods a business sold to a consumer. A written demand interrupts it.
- Court
- Kantonrechter
- Claims up to €25,000, without a lawyer.
- How to send it
- Registered post
- With acknowledgement of receipt (aangetekend met ontvangstbevestiging), and by email.
What the letter does
A Dutch notice of default names the invoice, the amount and a final deadline to pay. If the debtor has not paid when that deadline passes, they are in default. Where a fixed payment date was agreed and has passed, the debtor can be in default without a notice, but a payment term printed only on the invoice does not always count as agreed. So the letter sets a term anyway.
Between businesses, statutory commercial interest runs from the day after the payment date. When the debtor is a private person, statutory interest runs from the moment they are in default.
When the debtor is a consumer
Collection costs can only be claimed from a consumer after a reminder that gives them at least 14 days to pay, counted from the day after they receive it, and that states the costs that will be claimed. A letter that counts the days from its own date does not meet that rule. Our letter counts from receipt and adds time for the post, so the deadline date it prints is later than you might expect.
The costs follow the statutory scale, and a consumer cannot be charged more than it allows.
If they still do not pay
Claims up to €25,000 go to the kantonrechter, where you can act without a lawyer. A bailiff (deurwaarder) serves the summons, and there is a court fee that depends on the amount. The escalation memo in the Complete pack describes these steps; it does not tell you which one to take.
The limitation period is 5 years, or two years for the price of goods a business sold to a consumer, and a written demand such as this letter interrupts it.
Where the rules come from
art. 6:82 BWNotice of default (ingebrekestelling)
checked 7 October 2026
art. 6:83 BWDefault without notice (fixed date passed)
checked 7 October 2026
art. 6:96 BWExtrajudicial collection costs and the consumer 14-day reminder
checked 7 October 2026
art. 6:119a BWStatutory commercial interest
checked 7 October 2026
art. 3:307 BWFive-year limitation for performance claims
checked 7 October 2026
What is in the envelope
Word and PDF files you can change before you send anything.
- 01
Demand letter
The formal letter, in the language you choose. Your amount and payment details, with the deadline and any interest and costs set according to the rules.
- 02
Evidence checklist
What to keep and what to send along, checked against the files you uploaded.
- 03
Timeline
Your dispute as a list of dates, including the ones still to come.
- 04
Next steps
How to send the letter so you can prove it arrived, and what to do with each kind of reply.
- 05
Final demandComplete
A shorter second letter with a last deadline, for when the first one passes.
- 06
Escalation memoComplete
Court, collection agencies and lawyers: what each involves. It describes, it does not recommend.
How it goes
Today
You answer the questions. It takes about ten minutes, and your answers save as you go.
Today
You read the summary and pay. The documents arrive a few minutes later, as Word and PDF.
When you are ready
You sign the letter and send it yourself, so it comes from you.
Questions
Can I have the letter written in English?
Yes. Dutch is the default, and you can choose English instead.
Do I have to send a letter before going to court?
No rule requires one. But without a notice of default the debtor is often not yet in default, and for a consumer the reminder is what makes collection costs payable.
Can I charge collection costs to a business?
Yes. Between businesses at least €40 is due, without a reminder. Above that, the statutory scale is the usual measure unless you agreed something else.
What does it cost?
€49 for the Standard pack and €79 for Complete, including VAT. You pay once.
P.S.
An AI system writes the drafts. Before you see them, our software checks each one for facts you did not give, legal references we have not verified and anything that reads like a threat. No lawyer reads them. They are document drafts and general information, not legal advice. Your answers are deleted 30 days after delivery, or earlier if you ask.
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