Debtor in another EU country: European payment order and other routes

If your debtor lives abroad or has its registered office abroad, a Lithuanian court will not examine an application for a court order (teismo įsakymas) (Article 431(2)(3) of the Code of Civil Procedure, CPK). When the debtor is in another EU Member State other than Denmark, you can apply for a European order for payment instead. You apply on a standard form, the debtor may oppose within 30 days of service, and if the debtor does not oppose, the order is declared enforceable and is enforced in the other Member States without a declaration of enforceability. For small amounts there is the European Small Claims Procedure. These routes do not take away the right to file an ordinary claim before a court with jurisdiction.

Debt recovery abroad: why a Lithuanian court order does not work

Article 431(2)(3) CPK provides that an application under the court order procedure is not examined if the debtor lives abroad or has its registered office abroad. This rule stays the same in the CPK version taking effect on 1 January 2027. How a Lithuanian court order works when the debtor is in Lithuania is covered in our article Court order, court fee, interest and bailiff in Lithuania.

EU law offers two simplified routes. The first is set out in Regulation (EC) No 1896/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 December 2006 creating a European order for payment procedure (Regulation No 1896/2006). The second is in Regulation (EC) No 861/2007 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 July 2007 establishing a European Small Claims Procedure (Regulation No 861/2007). Neither takes away your right to use a procedure available under national law (Article 1(2) of Regulation No 1896/2006; Article 1 of Regulation No 861/2007).

When you can apply for a European order for payment

  • A civil or commercial matter in a cross-border case (Article 2(1) of Regulation No 1896/2006). A case is cross-border when at least one party is domiciled or habitually resident in a Member State other than that of the court seised (Article 3(1) of Regulation No 1896/2006).
  • A specific amount of money that has fallen due at the time the application is submitted (Article 4 of Regulation No 1896/2006).
  • Not bankruptcy or the winding-up of an insolvent company (Article 2(2)(b) of Regulation No 1896/2006). For claims arising from non-contractual obligations the Regulation applies only where they were the subject of an agreement between the parties or the debt was admitted, or where they are liquidated debts arising from joint ownership of property (Article 2(2)(d) of Regulation No 1896/2006).
  • Not Denmark. In this Regulation “Member State” means all Member States except Denmark (Article 2(3) of Regulation No 1896/2006).

Which country’s court you apply to is decided by the EU rules on jurisdiction (Article 6(1) of Regulation No 1896/2006). If that requirement is not met, the court rejects the application (Article 11(1)(a) of Regulation No 1896/2006). So apply to a Lithuanian court only where those rules give jurisdiction to the Lithuanian courts. Otherwise the application goes to the courts of the Member State to which those rules give jurisdiction. If the debtor is a consumer and the claim arises from a consumer contract, only the courts of the Member State where the consumer is domiciled have jurisdiction (Article 6(2) of Regulation No 1896/2006). In Lithuania applications are filed under the CPK rules on jurisdiction (Article 20 of the Law Implementing EU and International Legal Acts Governing Civil Procedure, Civilinį procesą reglamentuojančių Europos Sąjungos ir tarptautinės teisės aktų įgyvendinimo įstatymas, CPĮĮ).

The application: form, content and stamp duty

The application is made on standard form A (Article 7(1) of Regulation No 1896/2006). It states (Article 7(2) of Regulation No 1896/2006):

  • the details of the parties and of the court;
  • the amount of the claim: the principal and, where applicable, interest, contractual penalties and costs;
  • if interest is claimed, the rate and the period, unless statutory interest is added automatically under the law of the Member State of origin;
  • the cause of action and the circumstances;
  • a description of the evidence;
  • the grounds for jurisdiction and the cross-border nature of the case.

In the application you declare that the information is true and acknowledge that a deliberate false statement may lead to penalties (Article 7(3) of Regulation No 1896/2006). In an appendix you may indicate how the proceedings should continue if the debtor opposes, or that you do not agree to a transfer to civil proceedings in that event (Article 7(4) of Regulation No 1896/2006). Representation by a lawyer is not mandatory for the application (Article 24 of Regulation No 1896/2006).

In a Lithuanian court the application is subject to the same stamp duty (žyminis mokestis) rules as an application for a court order (Article 21 CPĮĮ). Under Article 434(1) CPK that is a quarter of the amount payable for examining a claim under the general rules of contentious proceedings, but not less than the minimum that part sets, except where you are exempted from the duty or its payment is deferred. If the debtor objects and you then file a claim, this stamp duty is credited towards the duty on the claim (Article 434(2) CPK).

How the court examines the application

The court examines, as soon as possible and on the basis of the application form, whether the requirements of the Regulation are met and whether the claim appears to be founded. This may be done by an automated procedure (Article 8 of Regulation No 1896/2006). If information is missing, the court gives you the opportunity to complete the application using form B (Article 9(1) of Regulation No 1896/2006).

If the requirements are met for only part of the claim, the court proposes an order for that part (Article 10(1) of Regulation No 1896/2006). You must complete the application or answer the proposal (form C) within the time limit the court sets (Article 9(2) of Regulation No 1896/2006). If you accept the proposal, the order is issued for that part (Article 10(2) of Regulation No 1896/2006), and for the remaining part, in Lithuania you can file a claim or a new application once the obstacles are removed (Article 22(1) CPĮĮ). If you do not reply in time or refuse the proposal, the court rejects the application in its entirety (Article 10(3) of Regulation No 1896/2006). There is no appeal against the rejection of an application (Article 11(2) of Regulation No 1896/2006), but rejection does not prevent a new application or another procedure (Article 11(3) of Regulation No 1896/2006).

The order is issued on form E as soon as possible and normally within 30 days of the lodging of the application. Time you take to complete or rectify the application is not counted (Article 12(1) of Regulation No 1896/2006). The order tells the debtor that it was issued solely on the basis of your information, which the court did not verify (Article 12(4)(a) of Regulation No 1896/2006).

Check the debtor’s address in advance. Service without the debtor’s proof of receipt is not admissible if the address is not known with certainty (Article 14(2) of Regulation No 1896/2006).

If the debtor opposes

The statement of opposition must be sent within 30 days of service of the order (Article 16(2) of Regulation No 1896/2006). The debtor does not have to give reasons (Article 16(3) of Regulation No 1896/2006). The proceedings then continue before the courts of the Member State of origin under the European Small Claims Procedure, if applicable, or under an appropriate national procedure, unless you explicitly asked for them to be terminated (Article 17(1) of Regulation No 1896/2006).

In a Lithuanian court the proceedings continue under Article 439(3), (5) and (6) CPK (Article 22(2) CPĮĮ). Once the court notifies you, you have fourteen days from service of the notice to file a claim and pay the missing part of the stamp duty (Article 439(3) CPK). If you do not file a properly drafted claim in time, the application is treated as not filed and returned, and any interim measures are lifted (Article 439(6) CPK). The stamp duty paid is then not refunded (Article 434(3) CPK; Article 21 CPĮĮ). You can still file a claim under the general procedure (Article 439(6) CPK).

If there is no opposition: enforcement

The court declares the order enforceable without delay on form G and verifies the date of service (Article 18(1) of Regulation No 1896/2006). Such an order is recognised and enforced in the other Member States without a declaration of enforceability (Article 19 of Regulation No 1896/2006). Enforcement follows the law of the Member State of enforcement, under the same conditions as a judgment of that state (Article 21(1) of Regulation No 1896/2006). You give the enforcement authorities a copy of the enforceable order and, where necessary, a translation (Article 21(2) of Regulation No 1896/2006).

The order may not be reviewed as to its substance in the Member State of enforcement (Article 22(3) of Regulation No 1896/2006). The debtor may seek a review only in the Member State of origin and only in the exceptional cases the Regulation lists (Article 20 of Regulation No 1896/2006). The court of the enforcing state refuses enforcement at the debtor’s request only where the order is irreconcilable with an earlier decision between the same parties on the same cause of action and the other conditions of Article 22(1) are met, or to the extent the debt has been paid (Article 22(1) and (2) of Regulation No 1896/2006).

If the debtor’s assets are in Lithuania, a European order for payment certified on form G is an enforceable document in Lithuania (Article 24(1) CPĮĮ). How judgments from other EU states are enforced in Lithuania is covered in our article Enforcing a foreign judgment in Lithuania. If the debtor’s bank accounts need to be frozen before judgment, see our article (in Lithuanian) on the European Account Preservation Order.

The European Small Claims Procedure

This procedure applies to civil and commercial matters in cross-border cases where the value of the claim, excluding all interest, expenses and disbursements, does not exceed the limit set in Article 2(1) of Regulation No 861/2007 at the time the court receives the claim form. It does not apply, among others, to bankruptcy, employment law and arbitration (Article 2(2) of Regulation No 861/2007). Unlike the European order for payment, here the court gives a judgment on the dispute (Article 7(1) of Regulation No 861/2007).

  • Start. The claimant fills in claim form A, describes the evidence and attaches documents (Article 4(1) of Regulation No 861/2007).
  • Written procedure. An oral hearing is held only if a judgment cannot be given on the written evidence or a party asks for one; the court may refuse that request (Article 5(1) and (1a) of Regulation No 861/2007).
  • The defendant’s response. The defendant responds within 30 days of service of the claim form and answer form (Article 5(3) of Regulation No 861/2007). If no response arrives, the court gives a judgment (Article 7(3) of Regulation No 861/2007).
  • Representation. A lawyer is not mandatory (Article 10 of Regulation No 861/2007).
  • Judgment and costs. The judgment is enforceable notwithstanding any possible appeal (Article 15(1) of Regulation No 861/2007). The unsuccessful party bears the costs, but costs that were unnecessary or disproportionate to the claim are not awarded (Article 16 of Regulation No 861/2007).
  • Enforcement in another state. The judgment is recognised and enforced without a declaration of enforceability (Article 20(1) of Regulation No 861/2007). At a party’s request the court issues a certificate on form D (Article 20(2) of Regulation No 861/2007).

In Lithuania these cases are heard by the district courts under the CPK rules on territorial jurisdiction (Article 26 CPĮĮ). If the claim falls outside the Regulation, the court notifies you, and you must file a claim that meets the CPK requirements within fourteen days of service of the notice. Otherwise the application is treated as not filed and returned (Article 28(1) and (2) CPĮĮ). The judgment may be appealed (Article 29 CPĮĮ), and a judgment certified on form D is an enforceable document (Article 31(1) CPĮĮ). The Regulation does not apply to Denmark: Denmark “is not bound by it or subject to its application” (recital 38 of Regulation No 861/2007). Against a debtor in Denmark an ordinary claim before a court with jurisdiction remains.

Which route to choose

  • You expect the debtor not to dispute the debt. The European order for payment is designed to simplify and speed up cross-border cases concerning uncontested pecuniary claims (Article 1(1)(a) of Regulation No 1896/2006).
  • The amount is within the limit of Regulation No 861/2007 and a dispute is likely. Choose the European Small Claims Procedure.
  • In other cases file a claim with the court that has jurisdiction under the EU rules.

More on debt recovery

How to start

Send us the contract, invoices, your correspondence with the debtor and the debtor’s address or registration details in the other country. We will assess which country’s courts have jurisdiction and prepare the application or claim.

Phone +370 5 212 1506, email info@linden.lt

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