File for the bankruptcy of a non-paying debtor

Requirements for your bankruptcy petition

To file a bankruptcy petition there must be multiple creditors (also known as plurality of creditors) and the debtor must be in a state of having stopped paying. This must be demonstrated by the petitioner.

Misconceptions about bankruptcy petitions

Many creditors confuse filing for bankruptcy as a collection tool with the consequences of an actual bankruptcy declared by the court.

You may recognise yourself in the following thoughts we often hear from creditors:

"Once the trustee has filled their pockets, there is certainly nothing left"
"VAT may be recoverable, but the actual claim will never be paid".
"The Tax Authorities and the bank take precedence anyway"

But what is the truth?

It is true that the situation for you as a creditor is not very rosy once bankruptcy has been declared.

However: this only applies if the client is actually declared bankrupt.

In most cases it does not go that far, because the debtor does not want to be declared bankrupt. To prevent bankruptcy, the debtor must keep paying.

If they cannot pay your due claim in one go, payment can be made in instalments and the bankruptcy petition can be held during the payment arrangement. This keeps enough pressure on. As soon as your claim has been paid in full, the bankruptcy petition can be withdrawn.

Bankruptcy petition costs

When filing a bankruptcy petition there are four types of costs to take into account: lawyer, court, bailiff and information costs.

Collection specialist costs

Charges costs for drafting the bankruptcy petition and other work such as correspondence with the debtor, court and bailiff.

Court costs

Charges court fees for handling the bankruptcy petition, these are the court fees for the bankruptcy petition.

Bailiff costs

Charges service costs for the summons by which the debtor is called for the oral hearing of the bankruptcy petition.

Information costs

These costs include the costs of debtor extracts, such as a Chamber of Commerce extract or a Personal Records extract.

"In the bankruptcy petition these costs are reimbursed from the bankruptcy estate, provided it is of sufficient value."

Fixed costs of a bankruptcy petition in 2025

So we will go into the details of each cost in 2025.

 
Declaring bankruptcy: bearing all costs

You can easily calculate yourself what filing for bankruptcy in your case costs by adding up the various cost items. Below are some calculation examples:


How does a bankruptcy petition procedure work?

"Did you know that in 2022, 2,144 companies were declared bankrupt?"

Filing a bankruptcy petition follows a set procedure, the step-by-step plan below explains how a bankruptcy petition unfolds.

Debtor opposes the bankruptcy petition

What if the debtor mounts a defence against the bankruptcy petition? They have 14 days to do so.

• Mount a defence: The debtor can give reasons why the petition is not justified.
• Respond: As creditor you must substantiate why the petition is justified with supporting evidence.
• Decision: The court makes the final call.

The debtor receives a bankruptcy judgment: now what?

When your debtor is declared bankrupt, this does not happen automatically. Bankruptcy is only declared when you actually pursue the bankruptcy petition.

It is possible to withdraw the bankruptcy petition at the last moment to prevent bankruptcy. If the debt is not paid, we recommend continuing with the bankruptcy petition. Our experience shows that payments often fail to materialise otherwise.

“If payment is not made under this maximum pressure, it will never be made.”

In this situation it is better to have clarity quickly. This way you know you have done everything possible to get paid and you have made sure that your non-paying client does not harm even more parties.

You have also saved yourself unnecessary costs for other legal measures. Unlike the costs of other legal measures, the costs of the bankruptcy petition are reimbursed from the bankruptcy estate.

Procedural costs of a bankruptcy petition have high priority and even rank above tax debts.

It is important that there is something in the estate to cover these costs, otherwise no reimbursement will follow.

Advantages of filing for the debtor’s bankruptcy

• You put maximum pressure on your non-paying client.
• Short court procedure of 4-6 weeks.
• The costs are reimbursed by the debtor if the estate is sufficient.

Why your debtor pays your claim

When your debtor goes bankrupt, this can have enormous consequences: the company is dissolved, the trustee investigates director liability and the director can be held personally liable. That is why your invoice often gets immediate priority.