Dunning procedure
The German order for payment (Mahnbescheid), handled by Fortis.
The judicial dunning procedure is a fast and inexpensive route to an enforcement title – for entrepreneurs and private individuals with undisputed monetary claims.
We are at your side.
If, as an entrepreneur or private individual, you have a monetary claim, the judicial dunning procedure can be a fast and inexpensive way to obtain an enforcement title. It is worth considering insofar as the monetary claim has not been disputed. With the enforcement order, enforcement can take place directly – or within the next 30 years. This long period considerably increases the chance of a successful attachment.
We keep an eye on your debtors and check whether a currently insolvent debtor has liquid funds at a later point in time – for example through an inheritance, a marriage or a new job.
- 1.
We apply for an order for payment at the competent dunning court – most federal states have central dunning courts, and electronic dunning procedures are also possible.
- 2.
The respondent, your debtor, is served with the order for payment. They can lodge an objection.
- 3.
If no objection is lodged, we apply for the enforcement order.
- 4.
Once the enforcement order becomes final, you hold a title in your hands – enforceable immediately and within the next 30 years.
Start of compulsory enforcement.
Often the debtor settles the outstanding claim after being served with the order for payment in order to avoid costly court proceedings – the dunning procedure is then concluded. Lawyer's and court costs are incurred for the order for payment and the enforcement order; you only have to pay the small court costs in advance.
If your debtor lodges an objection.
If your debtor lodges an objection against the order for payment or an appeal against the enforcement order, the claim must be asserted in court proceedings. Our affiliated lawyers advise you and take over the continuation of the debt collection. If your claim is justified, the debtor also bears these costs.
Questions about the Mahnbescheid.
A Mahnbescheid is a court order to pay, issued in the German summary dunning procedure (sections 688 et seq. of the German Code of Civil Procedure, ZPO). The court only checks that the application is complete and admissible, not whether the claim is valid. If the debtor does not object, an enforcement order (Vollstreckungsbescheid) follows on request: a title you can enforce.
The court charges half a fee under the German Court Fees Act. It depends on the amount claimed and is at least EUR 38. You advance these court fees. If the claim is justified, the debtor bears the costs of the procedure in the end; they are claimed in the Mahnbescheid itself.
After service, the debtor has two weeks to object. We then apply for the enforcement order, at the latest within six months. If the debtor does nothing, the title is often available within a few weeks. The exact time depends on service and on the court.
A final enforcement order can be enforced for 30 years (section 197 of the German Civil Code, BGB). If the debtor cannot pay today, the claim stays secured and can be enforced later.
The case is then transferred on request to the competent court and continues as ordinary civil proceedings. Our affiliated lawyers take over. Against an enforcement order, the debtor can still lodge an objection within two weeks.
Yes. A creditor without a seat in Germany applies to the Amtsgericht Wedding in Berlin, which handles all such applications. Fortis files the application electronically for you.
For debtors in another EU member state (except Denmark) there is the European order for payment, which in Germany is issued by the Amtsgericht Wedding. Our international collection page explains how it works.
Get what you're owed.
Submit for free, in three minutes. The initial consultation is non-binding.
Submit a claim