How to collect a claim abroad
A Danish reminder letter in a German letterbox does nothing. Here is what works instead.
You know what it takes to collect a claim outside Denmark — and when it is worth leaving it alone.
Step by step
- 01
Establish where the debtor is actually based
Not where the invoice was sent, but where the company is registered and where it holds assets. That determines which country's rules apply, and where a claim can be enforced at all.
- 02
Check what you agreed on jurisdiction and choice of law
Do your terms and conditions state that Danish law applies and that disputes are heard before a Danish court? Then the case is far easier. If they say nothing, the rules decide — and they often point towards the debtor's home country.
This is where it goes wrongJurisdiction and choice of law must be agreed before the deal is struck. Afterwards it is too late, and then it is the debtor's home country that sets the pace.
- 03
Approach the debtor in their own language
An approach from a local party, in the language of the country and referring to that country's rules, gets read. A Danish letter gets set aside. It is the simplest and cheapest difference in the whole case.
- 04
Use the legal shortcuts available within the EU
If the claim is undisputed, cross-border procedures exist — among them the European order for payment — and a judgment handed down in one EU country can be enforced in another without having to be litigated afresh.
- 05
Do the maths before you go beyond the EU
Outside the EU the shortcuts do not exist. The case is run under the rules of the country in question, the road is longer and more expensive, and the costs have to be proportionate to the claim. Get an honest assessment before you spend money.
This is where it most often goes wrong
Not because anyone is careless, but because the mistakes are easy to make and only surface once it is too late.
You send your Danish reminder process abroad
Deadlines, fees and what may be imposed on a debtor at all differ from country to country. At best, the Danish cadence misses the mark — at worst, it damages the case.
You wait too long
Limitation runs under the rules of the debtor's country, not yours. A claim you believe has three years left may have less.
You neglect the documentation
The further afield the case has to travel, the more it depends on the paperwork. The contract, the delivery and the correspondence must be capable of being produced — preferably without having to be excavated from an email thread.