If these are Czech enforcement proceedings in which nothing has been recovered for 6 years, you have 30 days to state whether you agree to their discontinuance. If you do not respond, the enforcement officer will discontinue them. If you disagree and are not exempt from the advance payment, the enforcement officer will request an advance payment for continuing enforcement and will discontinue the proceedings if it is not paid. The advance payment extends enforcement by 3 years and makes sense where there is a realistic prospect of the debtor acquiring assets or income. Slovak law does not provide for this type of request. Enforcement against a debtor without assets is discontinued after the statutory period expires, and the enforcement officer may request an advance payment only for certain enforcement methods.
Enforcement against the debtor has been running for years, nothing has been recovered from bank accounts or wages, and a notice arrives from the enforcement officer. You must either agree to discontinuance or make an advance payment so that enforcement can continue. This procedure is governed by the Czech Enforcement Code. You have a specified period to respond. If you allow it to expire, the enforcement officer will discontinue the proceedings. The Slovak rules operate differently, so we describe the two systems separately.
The notice in Czechia after 6 years without recovery
If, during the last 6 years following the recording of the endorsement on carrying out enforcement (doložka provedení exekuce), there has not even been partial recovery and enforcement is not directed against immovable property, the enforcement officer will ask the enforcement creditor to state within 30 days whether they agree to discontinuance. If the creditor agrees or the period expires without a response, the enforcement officer will discontinue the proceedings (Section 55(7) of Act No. 120/2001 Sb.).
A creditor who disagrees with discontinuance will receive a request for an advance payment for continuing enforcement. It must be paid within 30 days of delivery of the request; otherwise, the enforcement officer will discontinue the proceedings. The amount of the advance payment is set by implementing legislation (Section 55(8)). Creditors pursuing certain claims are exempt from the advance payment by law, for example claims for maintenance for a minor child, claims arising from a tort or claims for unjust enrichment (Section 55(9)). In exceptional cases, the enforcement officer may exempt another creditor for particularly compelling reasons, provided the creditor applies within 10 days of delivery of the request (Section 55(10)).
Payment of the advance extends enforcement by 3 years, after which the procedure may be repeated. However, enforcement without any recovery may not last more than 12 years in total from the recording of the endorsement or the last recovery. If any recovery is made in the meantime, the period starts again (Section 55(11)). These periods do not run where enforcement concerns non-monetary performance, while enforcement is stayed or during proceedings on certain applications by the parties, such as an application for discontinuance (Section 55(12)). Enforcement proceedings commenced before 1. 1. 2022 are subject to a transitional provision under which, in certain circumstances, time before that date also counts towards the period (Article IV, point 11 of Act No. 286/2021 Sb.).
What discontinuance costs you
On discontinuance on these grounds, the costs of unsuccessful enforcement are set at the enforcement officer’s minimum fee and the flat-rate reimbursement of out-of-pocket expenses. They are paid from the advance payment you made, and the enforcement officer’s entitlement to costs exceeding that advance payment is extinguished. Discontinuance does not affect amounts already recovered (Section 55(13)). It does not prevent a new enforcement application for the same claim, but the enforcement officer will then require an advance payment towards enforcement costs (Section 90(3)).
Making the advance payment makes sense where there is a realistic prospect of the debtor acquiring income or assets in the coming years, or where the claim is substantial. Before deciding, ask the enforcement officer for an overview of the findings concerning the debtor’s assets and check the debtor in the relevant registers. For a company, also assess whether its managing director may be liable for its debts.
In Slovakia, enforcement is discontinued after the statutory period expires
The Slovak Enforcement Code (Act No. 233/1995 Z. z.) does not provide for a request for an advance payment to continue enforcement. The enforcement officer will discontinue the proceedings on their own initiative if no assets or income sufficient to cover at least the enforcement officer’s costs have been identified within 30 months for a legal entity or within 5 years for an individual, calculated from the commencement of enforcement or the last enforcement against assets (Section 61n(1), letters c) and d)). Both periods are extended by the duration of any stay of enforcement (Section 61n(7)). Objections to such a notice may be filed within 15 days of its delivery (Section 61n(4)). On discontinuance on these grounds, the enforcement creditor must reimburse the enforcement officer’s expenses, except where enforcement concerns maintenance for a minor child (Section 198(2) and Section 199c(1)).
The enforcement officer may request an advance payment for necessary expenses from the enforcement creditor only where enforcement involves the sale of movable property, immovable property or a business, or non-monetary performance, and may not request it from an individual exempt from court fees (Section 58, paragraphs 1 and 2). The consequence of non-payment is the same as in Czechia:
The following quotation is reproduced in its original language:
Ak oprávnený na výzvu exekútora nezloží preddavok v lehote určenej exekútorom nie kratšej ako 15 dní, exekútor vydá upovedomenie o zastavení exekúcie.
The enforcement officer will account for and return any unused advance payment (Section 58(5)). Enforcement proceedings commenced before 1. 4. 2017 are generally completed under the previous rules, and their termination is also governed by Act No. 233/2019 Z. z. on the Termination of Certain Enforcement Proceedings. The article from a payment order to enforcement explains how enforcement in Slovakia proceeds from the outset. The question tax write-off of an irrecoverable receivable explains when discontinuance permits a tax write-off, but you should discuss the tax consequences with a tax adviser.
How we can help
We will review the enforcement officer’s notice with you, investigate the debtor and recommend whether to make the advance payment, apply for an exemption or agree to discontinuance. For Czech enforcement proceedings, we act through our debt recovery in the Czech Republic service; for Slovak proceedings, through our debt recovery through enforcement service. Send us the notice, the enforceable instrument and the latest statement of account from the enforcement officer.
This answer provides general information on the law as at 3 October 2026. It does not constitute legal services or replace an assessment of an individual case. The details of your situation may differ. Book a consultation to discuss them.
