What is a nakaz zapłaty?
A nakaz zapłaty (payment order) is a court decision ordering you to pay a sum of money, issued without a hearing and without hearing you. It means that someone is asserting a claim against you, but it is not yet a judgment.
How to recognise a nakaz zapłaty
The heading reads "NAKAZ ZAPŁATY", followed by the kind of proceedings. Above it is the sygnatura akt (case number). The order names the court and whether it was issued by a judge (sędzia) or a court official (referendarz sądowy); for how you challenge it, that makes no difference. In the operative part the court orders you to pay the principal, interest and costs within the period stated, or to challenge the order within that same period.
Four kinds of proceedings
- Postępowanie upominawcze (ordinary reminder procedure): issued by a sąd rejonowy (district court), or a sąd okręgowy (regional court) for larger claims; "Nc" in the case number. Remedy: sprzeciw, two weeks, free of charge.
- Elektroniczne postępowanie upominawcze, EPU (electronic reminder procedure): one court for the whole country, the Sąd Rejonowy Lublin-Zachód w Lublinie, VI Wydział Cywilny (the "e-sąd"); case number "VI Nc-e". The order exists only electronically; by post you receive a printout with an access code (kod dostępu) to the case file on e-sad.gov.pl. Remedy: sprzeciw, two weeks, free of charge.
- Postępowanie nakazowe (order-for-payment procedure): only on the claimant's request and only on the basis of certain documents, for example an official document, an invoice accepted by the debtor or a bill of exchange. Remedy: zarzuty, one month, a court fee of three quarters of the full fee, for a consumer at most 750 zł.
- Europejski nakaz zapłaty (European order for payment, form E): objection on form F within 30 days. We do not prepare a document for this case.
How the order reaches you
The order comes by post. If an adult member of your household accepts it for you, it counts as served on you. In the ordinary reminder procedure, if the letter was not collected, the court as a rule does not treat it as served: it asks the claimant to have it served by a komornik (bailiff) (art. 139¹ KPC), and the day of that service counts.
In the EPU it is different. If the letter was not collected after the second notice and was sent to your address in the PESEL register, the order counts as served (art. 505³⁴ § 1 KPC). This is why people often learn about an EPU order only from the komornik. The day the court took as the day of service can be seen in the case file on e-sad.gov.pl.
Your deadline runs from the day of service, not from the date printed on the order. Details and worked examples are on the page Deadline.
Your options
- Pay, if you consider the claim justified, within the period stated in the order.
- Challenge the order: a sprzeciw or zarzuty, depending on the title. You can challenge it in full or only in part; the part you do not challenge becomes final and enforceable.
- Do nothing: the order then has the effect of a final judgment (art. 480² § 4 KPC). You can no longer dispute the claim on the merits, and the limitation period for the confirmed claim becomes, as a rule, six years (art. 125 § 1 KC).
How Catius Documents helps
We take the details from your nakaz zapłaty, show you the deadline and, if you decide so, prepare the sprzeciw (39 zł including VAT) or the zarzuty (39 zł including VAT), one-off.