Can I charge late payment interest if my contract doesn't mention it?

Yes, for business clients in the EU. The Late Payment Directive gives you statutory interest and the €40 fee automatically. For private consumers the rules are national and usually stricter.

Is the €40 charged per invoice or per client?

Per late invoice. Three late invoices to the same client means up to €120 in fixed recovery fees, plus interest on each.

Which rate applies if payment spans two half-years?

Each part of the overdue period uses the rate for its own half-year. The calculator splits the period and shows each slice separately.

Should I actually charge it?

That's a relationship decision. Many freelancers mention the statutory interest in a reminder as leverage and waive it once the client pays. The reminder text above is worded that way.

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Late payment interest calculator (EU)

Work out the statutory interest and €40 recovery fee a business client owes on a late invoice under the EU Late Payment Directive, with the official rate for each half-year.

LATE PAYMENT INTEREST CALCULATOR

What does a late client owe you?

Statutory interest and the €40 recovery fee for overdue business invoices in the EU, using the official rate for each half-year.

Where you invoice from

Wettelijke handelsrente: ECB rate + 8 points (art. 6:119a BW). Currently 10.4% a year.

Unpaid amount (EUR)

Invoice number

Due date

Paid on (or today)

Include the €40 fixed recovery fee

For invoices to businesses and public bodies only. Interest on invoices to consumers follows national rules instead.

45 days late

EUR 52,82

on top of the EUR 1.000,00 invoice

Period	Days	Rate	Interest
2026-08-20 – 2026-10-03	45	10.4%	EUR 12,82
Fixed recovery fee			EUR 40,00

Simple interest on the amount owed. Rates updated 1 July 2026 (source). This is general guidance, not legal advice.

Payment reminder you can send

Dear client,

Our records show that our invoice for EUR 1.000,00, due on 2026-08-19, is 45 days overdue.

Under the EU Late Payment Directive (2011/7/EU), statutory interest of EUR 12,82 has accrued so far, and a fixed recovery fee of EUR 40,00 applies.
The total amount now due is EUR 1.052,82.

Please arrange payment within 7 days. If you have already paid, please disregard this message.

Kind regards,

Stop chasing late payers by hand

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See at a glance what's overdue and for how long

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If a business client pays you late, EU law entitles you to statutory interest from the day after the due date, plus a fixed €40 recovery fee per late invoice, even if your contract never mentioned either. The calculator above works out both, splitting the overdue period at each half-year so every day uses the rate that was in force at the time.

How it works

The EU Late Payment Directive (2011/7/EU) (opens in a new tab) sets the minimum: the European Central Bank's main refinancing rate on 1 January or 1 July, plus at least 8 percentage points, fixed for that half-year. Several countries go further:

Country	Statutory rate for business invoices
Netherlands	ECB rate + 8 points (wettelijke handelsrente)
Belgium	ECB rate + 8 points, rounded up to the next half point
Germany	Base rate (Basiszinssatz) + 9 points
France	ECB rate + 10 points, unless your terms set another rate
Other EU countries	At least ECB rate + 8 points

Interest is simple interest on the unpaid amount, counted per day over a 365-day year. The €40 is a flat amount per invoice that covers your recovery costs. If those costs are higher, you can usually claim reasonable additional costs too.

When the clock starts

With an agreed due date: from the day after it.
Without one: 30 days after your client received the invoice (or the goods or services, if later).
Payment terms: between businesses, terms over 60 days are only valid if expressly agreed and not grossly unfair to you. Public bodies must generally pay within 30 days.

Read more in should you charge a late fee? and late payment clause wording. If the client still doesn't pay, see what to do when a client isn't paying.

Prevent the late payment in the first place

Most invoices are paid late because they're easy to put off. Billebly sends polite reminders before the due date, on the day, and once it's overdue, each with a payment link so your client can pay in seconds. That works far better than a stern letter three weeks later.

Frequently asked questions

: Yes, for business clients in the EU. The Late Payment Directive gives you statutory interest and the €40 fee automatically. For private consumers the rules are national and usually stricter.
: Per late invoice. Three late invoices to the same client means up to €120 in fixed recovery fees, plus interest on each.
: Each part of the overdue period uses the rate for its own half-year. The calculator splits the period and shows each slice separately.
: That's a relationship decision. Many freelancers mention the statutory interest in a reminder as leverage and waive it once the client pays. The reminder text above is worded that way.

By the Billebly team · Last updated 3 October 2026

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Late payment interest calculator (EU)

What does a late client owe you?

Stop chasing late payers by hand

How it works

When the clock starts

Prevent the late payment in the first place

Frequently asked questions

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