Late payment law: maximum payment terms and interest owed to you

Key rules

• Maximum term: Even by agreement, a business client cannot get more than 60 days to pay you.
• Default interest: Interest starts the day after the due date, with no reminder needed.
• Interest rate: The rate is the European Central Bank rate plus 8 percentage points, reset every half-year.
• Recovery cost: You can add a fixed 40 euros without proving costs, plus further costs you can prove.

What the law gives you

If you invoice a business, you have three rights when it pays late: a legal deadline, automatic interest, and a fixed recovery cost. They apply to freelancers (autónomos) as suppliers.

How long a client can take to pay

Businesses must pay within 30 days of delivery of the work. You can agree a longer term of up to 60 days at most, never more. Even within 60 days, a term that is grossly abusive to you can be challenged.

If you agreed no date, the 30 days run from delivery or from the day the client receives your invoice, whichever is later. If the invoice arrives before the work is delivered, the 30 days run from delivery.

A client may set up an acceptance check of the work. It can last up to 30 days.

Interest you can claim

Late payment earns interest automatically from the day after the due date. You do not need to send a reminder first. The rate is the European Central Bank rate plus 8 percentage points, reset every half-year. The rate for each half-year is published officially, so look up the current figure before you calculate a claim.

You can claim interest only if you did your part of the deal and did not get paid on time. Interest is not owed if the delay is not the client's fault.

A contract clause that waives interest, or sets a rate that is grossly unfair to you, is void. A different rate can be agreed, but only within fair limits.

Recovery costs

When a business pays late you can also claim a fixed 40 euros for recovery costs without proving them. If your real costs were higher, such as lawyer fees that were justified, you can claim those too, but you must prove them.

Who is covered

• Businesses and freelancers invoicing other businesses.
• Public bodies as clients. They have their own payment deadline of 30 days.
• Not covered: private individuals buying as consumers, and debts caught up in insolvency proceedings.
• Foreign clients: the law applies if Spanish law governs the contract. Check the governing-law clause.

The timeline, warnings and questions below cover the order of events and common mistakes.

Timeline and deadlines

• You deliver the work or finish the service: day 0, when the payment period starts

• If the client runs an acceptance check, it can last up to 30 days: after delivery, only if this was set up

• Payment is due if no term was agreed: 30 days from delivery, or from receiving the invoice if that is later: 30 days after delivery or invoice

• Payment is due on the agreed date if you agreed a longer term, never more than 60 days: up to 60 days after delivery

• Public bodies must pay within their own deadline: 30 days

• You can claim the fixed recovery cost together with the interest: once the client is in default

What to watch out for

• Payment terms longer than 60 days: A contract term above 60 days is not allowed, and any term that is grossly abusive to you as the creditor is not valid, even if you signed it. Before signing, check that the payment term is no more than 60 days. If the contract says more, ask for it to be changed and keep the contract.

• Waiving interest or lowering the rate in the contract: A clause that removes your right to interest, or sets a rate that is grossly unfair to you, does not stand up. Clients still sometimes include one. Do not accept it. If it is already signed, you can still claim the legal interest and the 40 euros for recovery costs.

• Using an out-of-date interest rate: The rate is the European Central Bank rate on the first day of the half-year plus 8 percentage points. It is reset every January and July, so last year's figure may be wrong. Look up the rate for the right half-year in the BOE before you write the amount on a claim.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need to send a reminder before I can charge late-payment interest?

No, you do not need to send a reminder before charging late-payment interest, because it starts automatically once the deadline passes. This assumes you delivered your work and the client is the reason for the delay. A reminder is still useful as proof when you chase the invoice.

Can I use the late payment law against a client who is a private individual?

No, the late payment law does not cover private consumers, only payments between businesses or from public bodies. Public bodies are covered as debtors and have their own 30-day payment deadline. A foreign business client is covered if Spanish law governs the contract.

Can I claim lawyer fees on top of the fixed recovery cost?

Yes, you can claim further recovery costs on top of the fixed amount, such as lawyer or procurator (court representative) fees, if you can prove they were justified. Keep the invoices for those costs. The fixed amount needs no proof.

When does the payment period start if the invoice arrives before the work is delivered?

The payment period starts on delivery of the work, not on the invoice date, when the invoice arrives first. If nothing was agreed, it runs from delivery or from receipt of the invoice, whichever is later. A client may set up an acceptance check of up to 30 days.