European Account Preservation Order

It freezes money in the debtor's account in another EU country so that they cannot transfer or withdraw it before the dispute ends. It is a protective measure rather than recovery: the funds stay in the debtor's account and reach you only on the basis of an enforceable title and its enforcement. Its purpose is to prevent a judgment in two years from being uncollectable because the account has meanwhile been emptied. The tool was introduced by Regulation (EU) No 655/2014 and applies in all Union states except Denmark, which does not participate.

No, and that is what makes the tool effective. The Regulation expressly provides that the debtor is neither notified of the application nor heard before the order is issued. They therefore learn of the freeze only once implemented. The creditor pays for this surprise effect elsewhere, through security and liability for damage if the order proves unjustified.

No. An order is available before proceedings on the substance begin, at any time during them, and after you have a judgment, court settlement or authentic instrument. What differs is what must be proved and how quickly the court decides. Without a judgment, you must also satisfy the court that you are likely to succeed on the claim, and the court decides by the end of the 10th working day after filing. If you already have a judgment, that step is unnecessary and the deadline is the end of the 5th working day.

Not necessarily. If you already have an enforceable judgment, court settlement or authentic instrument and reason to believe the debtor has an account in a particular Member State, but know neither the bank nor the IBAN, you can ask the court in the application to request account information from that state's information authority. The request must be justified and the court rejects insufficiently reasoned requests, so this part deserves separate attention. Under certain conditions, this route is also open where the title is not yet enforceable, but the requirements are stricter.

That a protective measure is urgently needed because there is a real risk that, without it, recovery of your claim will be prevented or substantially impeded. Be prepared for a higher threshold than it may seem: non-payment, denial of the debt, multiple creditors or a worsening financial position are not enough on their own. The court examines the debtor's conduct, dealings with assets and circumstances suggesting that assets will be dissipated, concealed or transferred below value.

If you do not yet have a judgment, expect to do so. Before issuing an order in that situation, the court requires sufficient security from the creditor to prevent abuse of the procedure and compensate damage the freeze may cause the debtor; it may dispense with security only exceptionally. If you already have a judgment, security is at the court's discretion. National law determines the form, often a payment into court or a bank guarantee. We discuss an estimated amount before filing.

The creditor is liable for damage caused to the debtor by the order where the creditor is at fault; the debtor bears the burden of proof. However, the Regulation also specifies situations in which the creditor's fault is presumed and the creditor must rebut it, for example where the order was revoked because the creditor did not commence proceedings on the substance. This is the main reason we assess cases strictly and do not recommend this tool to some clients.

Yes, if you obtained the order before commencing proceedings on the substance. You must start those proceedings and prove this to the court within 30 days of filing the preservation application or within 14 days of the order being issued, whichever is later. Otherwise, the court revokes the order or terminates its enforcement. The period may be extended at the debtor's request, for example to allow the parties to settle. We monitor this deadline and continue handling the substantive proceedings.

The Regulation covers monetary claims in civil and commercial cross-border matters. It does not apply to tax, customs or administrative matters, and expressly excludes claims against a debtor already subject to bankruptcy proceedings, as well as arbitration. It also excludes situations where your domicile or registered office, the court and the account are all in the same state; a domestic route applies then. The account's state is determined by the IBAN country code.

After the order is issued, the bank implements it and issues a declaration of the outcome by the end of the 3rd working day after implementation, or exceptionally by the end of the 8th working day. The declaration tells you whether and to what extent funds were preserved. Overall timing is therefore driven mainly by the court's decision deadlines, calculated in working days and very short compared with ordinary court proceedings.

The price depends on whether you already have an enforceable title, whether account information must be requested and how many states are involved. We assess the case and prospects before any costs arise and confirm the price in advance. Prices are final; the firm is not VAT-registered.