Proposal to fine companies that pay suppliers late

Automatic summary, not yet reviewed

1. The bill starts from a serious problem: many companies and public authorities pay their invoices after the agreed deadline. This hurts small and medium-sized businesses and self-employed workers the most, since they have less capacity to withstand late payments.
2. The bill would create a Late Payment Arbitration System: a free, voluntary system for companies to settle disputes over late payments without going to court. Companies that join would receive a quality label and appear in a public registry.
3. It would also create a State Observatory on Late Payment, attached to the Ministry of Finance, to advise, prepare reports and propose measures. Every year it would send the Government and the Autonomous Communities a report on payment periods and the fines imposed.
4. The main novelty is a fine system: exceeding the legal payment period by more than twenty days would be a serious offense, and by more than sixty days, a very serious one. Fines would range from about €60 to nearly €820,000 in the most extreme case.
5. Companies that pay the outstanding debt quickly would see their fine reduced: 70% if they pay within six days, 50% between seven and fourteen days, and 30% between fifteen and twenty-nine days. Micro, small and medium-sized companies could even request a full waiver of the fine if they prove that others owe them more money.
6. To detect late payments, anonymous online reporting channels would be set up, including a 'Buzón de Lucha contra la Morosidad' (Late Payment Reporting Mailbox) run by the Tax Agency. In addition, companies and public authorities would have to publish their average supplier payment periods.

Who it affects

• Companies that invoice other companies or public authorities: They would have to pay within legal deadlines or face fines of up to nearly €820,000.
• Small and medium-sized businesses, microbusinesses and self-employed workers: They could use the free arbitration system, report violations anonymously and benefit from the new transparency measures.
• Public authorities and public companies: They would be subject to quarterly reports on their payments and required to promote arbitration in their contracts.
• Autonomous Communities (regional governments): They would be the ones checking violations and imposing fines.
• Any individual or company: They could anonymously report late payments they become aware of.

Words worth knowing

Morosidad (late payment)

Paying invoices later than the agreed deadline or the legal deadline.

Intereses de demora (default interest)

Extra money the debtor must pay as a penalty for paying late.

Arbitraje (arbitration)

A way to settle a dispute without going to court: a third party decides and both sides accept the decision.

Concurso de acreedores (insolvency proceeding)

The situation of a company that cannot pay its debts and is placed under a special legal procedure.

Pyme (SME)

Small and medium-sized enterprise, based on its size and number of workers.

It summarizes the text as it was introduced. It is written by artificial intelligence and may contain mistakes: the official text is what counts. Read the official text · How we make summaries