Payment Demand Letter: Template with Polish Civil Code (2026)

Someone owes you money — for a service rendered, an unpaid invoice, a loan, or a contract not fulfilled. Deadline after deadline passes. A formal payment demand citing the Polish Civil Code is the first step that separates a polite reminder from a serious legal claim — and it starts the interest clock running.

Art. 455 CC — when a debt becomes due

Art. 455 of the Civil Code: if the time for performance is not specified and does not follow from the nature of the obligation, the debtor must perform promptly after being demanded to do so by the creditor. In other words — if there is no invoice with a payment date, or the date has passed, a formal demand is enough to make the debt immediately due.

From the date the debt is due the debtor is in delay, and you can claim interest.

Statutory interest for delay

Art. 481(1) CC: if a debtor delays payment of a monetary obligation, the creditor may claim interest for the period of delay even if no damage was suffered.

Art. 481(2) CC: statutory interest for delay = current NBP reference rate + 5.5 percentage points. Check the current NBP rate at nbp.pl.

B2B commercial transactions — higher interest and flat-rate costs

When both parties are businesses and the debt arises from a commercial transaction, the Act of 8 March 2013 on Counteracting Excessive Delays in Commercial Transactions (Dz.U. 2023 poz. 1790) applies:

• Interest rate: NBP reference rate + 10 percentage points (Art. 7(1)) — higher than under the Civil Code
• Flat-rate debt recovery costs (Art. 10(1)): €40 for debts up to PLN 5,000; €70 for PLN 5,001–50,000; €100 above PLN 50,000 — due automatically once interest accrues, without proving actual recovery costs

What a formal payment demand achieves

• Establishes the due date (if not previously set)
• Starts interest running from the day after the deadline in the demand
• Serves as evidence in court proceedings
• May prompt the debtor to acknowledge the debt — acknowledgement interrupts the limitation period (Art. 123(1)(2) CC). Note: the letter alone does not interrupt limitation — you need either the debtor's acknowledgement or court proceedings

Limitation periods

General limitation period: 6 years (Art. 118 CC, as amended in 2018), but for claims related to business activity — 3 years. Invoices between businesses: 3 years. Don't wait until the last moment.

If the debtor still doesn't pay

• Order for payment proceedings (postępowanie upominawcze) (Art. 498 et seq. CPC) — the court issues a payment order based on the demand and documents without a hearing. If the debtor does not file an objection within 2 weeks, the order is final and enforceable by a bailiff.
• Writ proceedings (postępowanie nakazowe) (Art. 485 CPC) — when you hold invoices accepted by the debtor or a signed contract. More favourable — the debtor must pay upfront or file a motion with a deposit.