Order for payment
If the debt is on paper, the monitorio is usually the most direct route. We help you use it properly or respond if it is brought against you.
What it involves
The order for payment procedure (proceso monitorio) is a court procedure designed to collect money debts that can be proven with documents: invoices, delivery notes, contracts, messages or certificates of debt from the homeowners' association. The court requires the debtor to pay or explain why they do not owe the money. If they do nothing, enforcement can be requested.
Is this your case?
- You have unpaid invoices from a client who does not respond to your reminders.
- You manage a homeowners' association and an owner has built up unpaid fees.
- You have received a demand for payment under a monitorio and you do not agree with the debt.
- You lent money with a signed document and it has not been paid back.
How we help
If you are the one claiming, we gather the documents that prove the debt, calculate the exact amount and file the initial application. We follow the case until the debtor pays or, if they don't, we apply for enforcement. If you are the one who has received the demand, we review the debt quickly and prepare the statement of opposition, because the deadline to respond is short. We can help you in Spanish, Arabic, Tamazight, French and English, at our offices in Tenerife, Gran Canaria, Málaga and Barcelona or online, wherever you are in Spain.
If the debt is not well documented, we look at another type of debt claim, and if you manage a building, see our page on homeowners' associations.
Frequently asked questions
- What is the difference between a monitorio and an ordinary court case?
- The monitorio is quicker: it starts with a simple application and, if the debtor does not oppose it, there is no trial. If they oppose it, the matter goes to an ordinary or verbal trial (juicio ordinario or juicio verbal), depending on the amount.
- Can I use a monitorio if my client is in another European Union country?
- For debts with companies or people in other EU countries there is a European order for payment procedure, with standard forms. We explain whether it fits your case or whether another route is better.
- I have received a monitorio for a debt I do not recognise. What do I do?
- Do not ignore it: if you do not respond in time, you are taken to accept the debt. It may be an old debt, sold to another company or already paid. Talk to us straight away so we can prepare your opposition.
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A first conversation — confidential and without obligation — to understand whether we can help, and how.
We speak Spanish, Arabic, Tamazight (Berber), French and English.