What happens if I do not respond to a “monitorio”, the Spanish order for payment procedure?
If you neither pay nor object within the twenty working days, the court brings the order for payment procedure (“monitorio”) to an end and the creditor can, with a simple request, apply for enforcement, which is the procedure for collecting the debt by compulsory means. From then on, your bank accounts, your salary or other assets can be attached for the debt, the interest and the expenses of enforcement. In practice, not responding has the same effect as a judgment ordering you to pay. Moreover, in principle you will no longer be able to dispute whether you owed that amount, either in the enforcement proceedings or later in other proceedings.
Alburquerque Abogados
What the court does
Once the time limit has passed, the court clerk (“letrado de la Administración de Justicia”), the official who manages the case at the court, issues a decree bringing the order for payment procedure to an end. The “Ley de Enjuiciamiento Civil”, Spain's Civil Procedure Act, then allows the creditor to apply for enforcement with a simple request, without filing a new claim or going to trial. The judge grants it by means of an order (“auto”), which is the instruction to proceed with enforcement. The court then attaches your assets up to the amount owed, normally starting with the money in your bank accounts and the part of your salary or pension that can be attached.
What is added to the debt
The following amounts are added to what was claimed in the order for payment procedure:
- The interest that the debt bears from the date enforcement is ordered, which is the statutory interest rate plus two percentage points, unless a different rate had been agreed.
- The costs of enforcement, which are the expenses it generates, such as the fees of the creditor's lawyer and court agent (“procurador”), whose involvement is compulsory when more than 2.000 euros is being enforced. The debtor pays them without the judge having to say so.
What you will no longer be able to do
Once enforcement has been ordered, you have ten days to object to it, but only on very specific grounds, such as having paid after receiving the demand for payment, if you can prove it with documents. In principle, you will no longer be able to argue that the debt did not exist or that it was smaller. Nor will you be able to ask later, in other proceedings, for what has been collected from you to be paid back.
So, if you disagree with what is being claimed from you, the time to say so is in an objection filed within the time limit. If you owe the money but cannot pay it all at once, talk to the creditor before the time limit runs out, because afterwards the debt only grows. Paying within the time limit and proving it to the court also brings the matter to an end and the court closes the case.
If you did not respond because the demand for payment never reached you owing to a defect in the notification, consult a lawyer straight away, because you can ask for what has been done to be annulled.
This answer is provided for educational purposes and offers initial guidance on the question raised. Every matter has its own circumstances and nuances that require individual assessment. For that reason, before taking decisions with significant consequences, it is advisable to consult a professional and not to rely solely on this information. Personalised advice makes it possible to apply these explanations to the specific case and to assess the options available with greater certainty.