Received an enforcement notice in Bulgaria? What to do next

A notice inviting voluntary payment or compliance (покана за доброволно изпълнение) generally means that enforcement proceedings have already been opened against you. The creditor holds an enforceable title and has asked a private or state enforcement agent for enforcement of the debt.

The notice should not be ignored. Once it has been served, short time limits for an objection, an appeal or another form of defence may begin to run. However, receiving the document does not necessarily mean that all the amounts claimed have been correctly calculated or that every action taken by the enforcement agent is lawful.

What is a notice inviting voluntary payment or compliance?

Through the notice, the enforcement agent notifies the debtor that the case has been opened and gives the debtor a two-week period in which to perform the obligation.

The document usually sets out:

• the creditor;
• the basis of the obligation;
• the principal amount and accrued interest;
• the court and enforcement costs;
• the bank account for payment;
• the attachments imposed on assets and real property;
• the scheduled enforcement actions.

The two-week period does not mean that the enforcement agent cannot take action during it. Even before the notice is served, an attachment of a bank account or of earnings and an attachment of real property may be imposed. The aim is to prevent the debtor from disposing of their property and frustrating the collection.

What should you do immediately?

Keep the complete set of documents, including the envelope and the delivery notice. The date of service is important for calculating the time limits.

Then check:

1. who the enforcement agent is;
2. who the creditor is;
3. on the basis of what instrument the enforcement is being conducted;
4. how the total amount has been calculated;
5. whether attachments have been imposed on assets or real property;
6. whether an order for payment is enclosed;
7. whether a time limit for an objection or an appeal is stated.

The private enforcement agent’s details can be checked through the official register of the Bulgarian Chamber of Private Enforcement Agents. Contact the enforcement agent’s office using its published official contact details, and not only through a telephone number or email address given in an unverified message.

Ask to inspect the enforcement case file

The debtor has the right to review the case file and to obtain copies of the documents. This is necessary because the notice does not always contain all the information on which the defence depends.

The following should be checked:

• the writ of execution;
• the court decision or other enforceable instrument;
• the creditor’s application;
• the actions taken so far;
• the payments received;
• the attachments imposed on assets and real property;
• the fees and costs charged;
• the manner in which the documents have been served.

Only after such a review can it be assessed whether the debt is owed, whether its amount is correct and whether the deadline for the relevant objection, appeal or other remedy has expired.

Can I object that I do not owe the amount?

The enforcement agent does not decide the dispute as to whether the obligation exists. The agent executes the enforceable title that has been presented. A simple letter to the agent saying that “you do not owe the amount” does not, by itself, stop the case.

Your defence depends on the instrument on the basis of which the enforcement was commenced.

If, for the first time, an order for payment is enclosed with the notice, you may have the right to file an objection with the court. The time limit is stated in the order itself and should not be confused with the two-week period for voluntary compliance.

In the case of an order for immediate enforcement, filing an objection does not always automatically stop the enforcement agent’s actions. A separate application to the court for a stay of enforcement may be necessary.

Where the writ of execution has been issued on the basis of a final court judgment, a dispute over matters already decided by the court cannot, as a rule, be examined again. However, subsequent circumstances, such as payment or the expiry of the limitation period, may be relevant.

What happens if you have already paid?

If you performed the obligation before the case was opened, present evidence to the enforcement agent immediately. This may be a bank statement, a payment order, a receipt or written confirmation from the creditor.

If you pay the creditor directly after the case has been opened, the proceedings are not automatically terminated. Fees and costs may remain unpaid. The payment should be reported to the enforcement agent, and the creditor should confirm receipt of it.

Before making a transfer, request an up-to-date statement of the full amount of the debt and use only an officially specified bank account.

Could the debt be time-barred?

It is possible, but the enforcement agent does not apply limitation of their own motion. It is not enough that the debt simply arose many years ago.

The following should be checked:

• the type of claim;
• the date on which the debt fell due;
• the enforceable instrument;
• the enforcement actions taken;
• the actions interrupting the limitation period;
• the existence of previous cases;
• payments made or acknowledgement of the debt.

If, after the enforceable title was issued, facts occurred as a result of which the amount is no longer owed, an action may be brought under Article 439 of the Bulgarian Code of Civil Procedure.

Where the creditor has not requested any enforcement action for two years, the case may be terminated by virtue of Article 433(1), item 8 of the Civil Procedure Code. However, this does not automatically mean that the claim itself has been extinguished. A separate analysis of limitation is required.

What property is protected?

The law does not allow enforcement to deprive the debtor and their family of the most essential means of subsistence.

The following may be protected in full or in part:

• items of ordinary use;
• necessary food and fuel;
• certain items for practising a profession or craft;
• part of wages and pensions;
• welfare payments and certain benefits;
• the debtor’s sole residential property, subject to the statutory conditions and exceptions.

The protection is not absolute. For example, the debtor’s sole residential property is not protected against enforcement by a creditor holding a mortgage over it.

What should you do if your earnings or bank account are attached?

Not all of the wages or pension may be withheld. The permissible deduction depends on net income, the minimum wage, any dependent children and the type of obligation.

If a salary, a pension, a benefit or social assistance is paid into the attached bank account, the protection of these funds is, in principle, preserved within the limits provided for by law.

However, the enforcement agent and the bank may not have sufficient information about the origin of the sums. You should therefore provide, in good time:

• bank statements;
• a certificate from your employer;
• documents from the National Social Security Institute (NSSI);
• evidence of the type of benefit;
• information about your dependent children.

File a written objection and state exactly which sums are exempt from enforcement. An oral conversation is not sufficient.

Can too many assets be attached?

Enforcement measures must be proportionate to the amount of the debt. Where the debt is small, property worth many times more should not be blocked unnecessarily.

The debtor may object under Article 442a of the Civil Procedure Code and request that some of the measures imposed be lifted. It is helpful for the debtor to propose another asset or income sufficient to satisfy the creditor.

However, the existence of more than one attachment is not automatically unlawful. Account is taken of the value and liquidity of the assets, the existence of other creditors and the likelihood that the debt will actually be recovered.

Can the enforcement agent’s actions be appealed?

The debtor may appeal only against the actions expressly listed in Article 435 of the Civil Procedure Code. These include:

• enforcement directed against property exempt from enforcement;
• the seizure of an item or removal from a property without due notification;
• an order imposing a fine;
• a refusal to carry out a new valuation in the prescribed cases;
• a refusal to stay or terminate the case;
• the costs of enforcement;
• the order awarding ownership following a judicial sale, on the grounds permitted by law.

The appeal is lodged through the enforcement agent with the competent court at provincial level (окръжен съд). As a rule, the time limit is two weeks from the action or from its notification.

The notice itself is not usually open to a separate appeal. The specific actions, the costs or the claim itself may be challenged under the appropriate procedure.

Lodging an appeal does not automatically stay enforcement. Where necessary, a stay must be expressly requested.

Can you negotiate payment by instalments?

You may propose payment by instalments, but the enforcement agent cannot unilaterally oblige the creditor to accept it. An agreement with the enforcing creditor is required.

It should deal with:

• the total amount of the debt;
• the amount and timing of the instalments;
• the accrual of interest;
• the fees and costs;
• the retention or lifting of the attachments;
• the consequences of a missed instalment.

Before you sign, check whether the document contains an acknowledgement of the debt or a waiver of objections. This may affect the limitation period and your future defence.

Conclusion

After receiving a notice from an enforcement agent, you should immediately check the basis and the amount of the debt, the actions taken and the time limits for a defence.

Depending on the case, you may file an objection to an order for payment, an appeal against a specific action, an objection that the assets are exempt or that the measures are disproportionate, or a declaratory action to establish that the debt is no longer owed.

If you have received a notice inviting voluntary payment or compliance, we can review the enforcement case file, check the debt and the applicable time limits, and represent you before the enforcement agent and the court.