Chasing an unpaid invoice in France, step by step

An invoice past its due date isn't a dispute yet. Most of the time it's an oversight, an approval process that drags on, or tight cash flow. But the longer you wait to chase it, the lower your chances of getting paid. Here is a four-step method for an invoice sent to a business client in France.

Before chasing: the invoice itself

Between businesses in France, the payment term is thirty days after delivery or service if nothing was agreed. An agreed term can't exceed sixty days from the invoice date, or forty-five days end of month (article L441-10 of the French Commercial Code, Code de commerce).

The invoice must state the due date, the late payment interest rate and the fixed €40 recovery fee (indemnité forfaitaire pour frais de recouvrement). These are mandatory. If your invoices don't have them, add them now: they make the next steps easier.

1. The friendly reminder

A few days after the due date, a short, polite email is often enough: the invoice number, the amount, the due date, and the invoice attached. Simply ask whether it was received and when payment is planned.

With no answer, send a second reminder one or two weeks later, more direct, by email and by phone. Note the dates: they'll be useful if the matter goes further.

2. The written reminder, with penalties

If the emails don't work, move to paper. A letter gets more attention, especially if it reaches the accounts department rather than your usual contact. This time, remind the client of what the law provides:

• late payment interest (pénalités de retard), due without any reminder being needed, at the rate set in your terms, at least three times the French statutory interest rate (taux d'intérêt légal); if no rate was set, it's the European Central Bank rate plus ten points;
• the fixed €40 recovery fee, per invoice (article D441-5 of the Commercial Code).

You don't have to claim them, but mentioning them shows you know your rights. A tracked letter, from €4.38, is enough at this stage: you'll know when it was delivered to the mailbox.

3. The mise en demeure (formal notice)

If the invoice is still unpaid, send a mise en demeure by lettre recommandée avec avis de réception (registered letter with proof of receipt). It demands payment within a set time, often eight or fifteen days, and says what you'll do next. It's also the document the judge will want to see. What to put in it, with an example, is in writing a mise en demeure.

4. The injonction de payer (order for payment)

When the debt is clear (an invoice, a signed quote or purchase order, and the reminders), the injonction de payer is the simplest route. You file a request, with no hearing, with the commercial court (tribunal de commerce) if the client is a trader, otherwise with the civil court (tribunal judiciaire). The judge issues an order, which you have served on the client by a commissaire de justice (court officer). The client can object within a month; otherwise it becomes enforceable.

For small amounts, a court conciliator (conciliateur de justice), free of charge, can also unblock the situation before it gets that far.

If the client is an individual

The Commercial Code penalties and the €40 fee only apply between businesses. With an individual, it's statutory interest that runs from the formal notice (article 1344-1 of the Civil Code). The steps stay the same: reminder, formal notice, then order for payment.

Handing reminders to an AI assistant

Chasing invoices is repetitive work: finding the overdue invoices, writing a polite but firm letter in French, sending it to the right department, following up. An AI assistant does it well, as long as you keep control of every letter. With Cachet connected, it writes each letter, shows you the preview and the price, and only sends it once you approve: plain letter from €3.87, tracked from €4.38, registered from €9.99.

If you chase invoices often, a prepaid balance of €50.00 saves you the payment link for each letter: letters you approve go out right away, and a registered letter costs €9.73. The step-by-step is in have ChatGPT or Claude send a postal letter.

Frequently asked questions