Poland · Unpaid invoice
A formal demand for payment (wezwanie do zapłaty) for an unpaid invoice in Poland
Before going to court in Poland, a creditor can send the debtor a formal demand for payment (wezwanie do zapłaty). It names the invoice, gives a clear date to pay and, where the rules allow, claims statutory interest. If you choose court as your next step, the letter is headed as a pre-action demand (przedsądowe wezwanie do zapłaty). You answer the questions and get the letter with the dates worked out. It is in Polish, or in English if your client is not a consumer.
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 Polish or English.
Other languages: Polski
The rules your letter follows
Taken from the official sources listed below. Interest rates change from time to time; these are the current ones.
- Deadline in the letter
- 14 days
- You can choose up to 30 days.
- Statutory interest in commercial transactions, between businesses
- 13.75%
- Until 31 December 2026. Runs from the day after the agreed payment date, without a reminder.
- Statutory interest for delay, when the client is a consumer
- 9.25%
- Until 4 November 2026. Runs from the day after payment fell due.
- Compensation for recovery costs, between businesses
- Set in euro
- Due without a reminder for each transaction paid late. It is converted into złoty at an NBP exchange rate, so the letter reserves the right to it without giving a złoty amount.
- Limitation period
- 2 years
- For sales by a business, professional services and contracts for specific work. Other invoices can have a longer period. The period ends on the last day of a calendar year. A demand letter does not interrupt it.
- Court
- Sąd rejonowy
- The district court, for claims up to PLN 100,000. You do not need a lawyer.
- How to send it
- Registered post
- List polecony za zwrotnym potwierdzeniem odbioru (Poczta Polska). Send it by email too.
What the letter does
A Polish demand for payment names the invoice, the amount and the date it fell due. It gives a clear date to pay and the bank account to pay into. If no payment date was agreed, Polish law makes the money payable without undue delay once the creditor demands it, and this letter is that demand. If a date was agreed and has passed, your client has been late since the day after it, and the deadline in the letter does not change that.
The letter also says that you are open to settling the matter out of court, for example through mediation. If the case goes to court, the statement of claim must say whether you tried this.
Between businesses
When both sides are businesses and the invoice is for goods or services, statutory interest for delay in commercial transactions runs from the day after the agreed payment date, without a reminder. If no payment date was agreed, it runs once 30 days have passed since you supplied the goods or services.
You can also claim fixed compensation for recovery costs for each transaction paid late, again without a reminder. The law sets it in euro, in amounts that rise with the size of the claim, converted into złoty at the NBP rate for the month before payment fell due. As there is no single złoty figure, the letter reserves the right to the compensation without stating an amount. Reasonable recovery costs above it can also be claimed.
When your client is a consumer
Polish law requires Polish in dealings with consumers, so a letter from a business to a consumer is written in Polish only.
Statutory interest for delay runs from the day after payment fell due. A time-barred claim cannot be enforced against a consumer, and the court checks this on its own initiative. So when the invoice fell due more than 2 years ago, the letter to a consumer does not mention going to court.
If they still do not pay
Claims up to PLN 100,000 go to the district court (sąd rejonowy), and larger ones to the regional court (sąd okręgowy). You do not need a lawyer at either. Money claims can also be filed online in the electronic payment order procedure (e-Sąd), where the court fee is lower.
The escalation memo in the Complete pack explains each of these steps, but does not choose one for you.
Where the rules come from
art. 455 Kodeksu cywilnegoPerformance without a fixed date is due without undue delay after the creditor's demand
checked 10 October 2026
art. 481 § 1 i 2 Kodeksu cywilnegoStatutory interest for delay, without proof of loss
checked 10 October 2026
art. 7 ust. 1 ustawy z dnia 8 marca 2013 r. o przeciwdziałaniu nadmiernym opóźnieniom w transakcjach handlowychLate payment in commercial transactions: statutory interest without a reminder
checked 10 October 2026
art. 10 ust. 1 ustawy z dnia 8 marca 2013 r. o przeciwdziałaniu nadmiernym opóźnieniom w transakcjach handlowychLate payment in commercial transactions: fixed compensation for recovery costs without a reminder
checked 10 October 2026
art. 118 Kodeksu cywilnegoLimitation: six years, three for claims connected with a business, ending on the last day of a calendar year
checked 10 October 2026
art. 554 Kodeksu cywilnegoTwo-year limitation for sales made in the course of the seller's business
checked 10 October 2026
What is in the envelope
Word and PDF files you can edit before you send anything.
- 01
Demand letter
The formal letter, in the language you choose, with your amount and payment details. The deadline, and any interest and costs, follow the local rules.
- 02
Evidence checklist
What to keep and what to enclose, checked against the files you uploaded.
- 03
Timeline
Your dispute date by date, including the dates 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 pre-action demand for paymentComplete
A shorter second letter with a last deadline, for when the first one passes.
- 06
Escalation memoComplete
Court, collection agencies and lawyers: what each route involves. It describes the options; it does not choose one for you.
How it works
Today
You answer the questions. It takes about ten minutes, and your answers are saved as you go.
Today
You check the summary and pay. A few minutes later your documents are ready, in 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, unless your client is a consumer: a letter to a consumer is in Polish only. Polish is the default.
Do I have to send a demand before going to court?
No rule says you must. But if no payment date was agreed, it is the demand that makes the money payable. And a client who gave you no reason to sue, and accepts the claim at once, can recover its court costs from you.
Does the letter stop the limitation period?
No. In Poland a demand letter does not interrupt it. Only a court step or your client's acknowledgment of the debt does, and the period then starts again.
Can the letter warn that I will report the debt to a credit information bureau?
No. Such a warning must meet strict legal conditions. Among other things, it must name the bureau and be sent by registered post or delivered in person, and the report can follow only after a waiting period. The letter leaves it out.
What does it cost?
€49 for the Standard pack and €79 for Complete, including VAT. You pay once.
P.S.
Your documents are written by an AI system and checked automatically against your answers and the local rules. No lawyer reviews them. They are document drafts and general information, not legal advice. Your answers are deleted 30 days after delivery, or sooner if you ask.
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