Unpaid bills and debts
A reminder, a formal notice, a bailiff, a threatened disconnection? You have rights, and free help exists everywhere in Belgium. The sooner you react, the more solutions there are.
Open your post and react right away
Don't leave a reminder unanswered: costs and interest grow, and solutions (payment plan, social tariff, CPAS help) only exist if you ask for them.
- List your debts: who, how much, by when.
- Priority to rent, energy, water and fines: they have the heaviest consequences.
- Don't recognise a debt or amount? Dispute it in writing and keep a copy.
Reminders and costs: what can be charged
Since the law of 4 May 2023 (applying to all contracts since 1 December 2023), when a business chases an unpaid bill from a consumer:
- The first reminder is free. You then have at least 14 days to pay.
- After that, the fixed compensation is capped: €20 for a debt up to €150; €30 + 10% of the part between €150 and €500; above that, €65 + 5% of the part above €500, up to €2,000.
- Late-payment interest may not exceed the reference rate + 8 points.
- A collection agency or a bailiff acting “amicably” may not charge you anything extra. No calls or visits between 10 pm and 8 am.
Debt collection (FPS Economy) ↗
Dispute debt collection costs
[First name Last name] [Address] [Postcode Town] To: [Company / debt collection agency] [Address] [Town], [Date] Subject: Dispute of the costs charged — file no. [Number] Dear Sir or Madam, You are claiming €[total] from me for a principal debt of €[amount], including €[amount] in costs and interest. Since the law of 4 May 2023 (Book XIX of the Code of Economic Law), the first reminder is free, I must be given at least 14 days to pay, and compensation and interest are capped. In amicable debt collection, no costs may be charged to the consumer. Please send me a breakdown of the amounts claimed and correct any amounts above the legal caps. I remain willing to pay the amount due [in one go / under a payment plan]. Yours faithfully, [First name Last name]
Ask for a payment plan
You can always propose to pay in instalments. Offer a realistic monthly amount.
- Energy: in Wallonia you are entitled to a “reasonable payment plan” free of charge; in Brussels, suppliers' collection costs are capped at €55.
- Water: ask your water company or the CPAS for a plan. In Brussels, Vivaqua may only cancel a reasonable plan after 3 missed instalments and a formal notice.
- Telecom: first reminder free, later ones €10 max; before suspension you keep a minimum service (emergency calls, receiving calls).
When a debt mediation service helps you, a request for a plan or mediation suspends amicable collection (45 days max).
Ask for a payment plan
[First name Last name] [Address] [Postcode Town] To: [Company / creditor name] [Creditor's address] [Town], [Date] Subject: Request for a payment plan — customer / invoice no. [Number] Dear Sir or Madam, I have received your [reminder / formal notice] of [date] for an amount of €[amount]. I do not dispute this debt, but my situation does not allow me to pay it in one go. I propose to repay it in [number] monthly instalments of €[amount], starting on [date], by bank transfer. Please suspend any collection procedure while my request is being examined and confirm your agreement in writing. Yours faithfully, [First name Last name]
Check your right to a social tariff Free
- Electricity and gas: the social tariff (the lowest price on the market, the same with every supplier) is usually applied automatically if you or a household member receive CPAS support, the elderly income guarantee, certain disability allowances… Check online.
- Water: in Flanders, an 80% social tariff, usually automatic; in Wallonia and Brussels, help from the social water fund via the CPAS.
- Internet: since 1 March 2024, the “social internet offer” costs at most €20 a month (€42 with another service). Ask your operator.
Threatened disconnection of power, gas or water
- Brussels: no energy disconnection without a decision of the justice of the peace, and none from 1 October to 31 March.
- Wallonia: protected customers keep a minimum electricity supply; gas is maintained from 1 November to 31 March. Cutting off water requires a decision of the justice of the peace.
- Flanders: prepayment meter with emergency credit; disconnection goes through the local advisory committee (LAC) and is banned from 1 December to 1 April.
In every case, contact your CPAS/OCMW as soon as you receive a formal notice.
Free debt mediation Free
An accredited debt mediation service reviews your situation, negotiates with your creditors and sets up a repayment plan. It is free at the CPAS/OCMW and accredited organisations.
- Brussels: the support centre tells you which service has room: 02 217 88 05 (Mon-Fri 9:00-17:00).
- Flanders: OCMW and CAW; CAW 0800 13 500 (free, working days 9:00-17:00).
- Wallonia: the service of your town's CPAS; freephone 1718.
Brussels 02 217 88 05Find my CPAS/OCMW ↗Ask the CPAS for help online ↗
A bailiff writes to you
- On an amicable assignment (simple letter), the bailiff acts as a collection agency: costs are for the creditor, not you.
- After a judgment, costs follow an official scale. Part of your income cannot be seized: nothing up to €1,419 net per month, increased per dependent child.
- A problem with a bailiff? Complain to the National Chamber of Bailiffs, then the Bailiffs' Ombudsman (02 533 97 86).
Amounts exempt from seizure (FR) ↗Bailiffs' Ombudsman (FR) ↗
Too many debts: collective debt settlement
If you can no longer pay your debts in the long term, you can ask the labour court for a collective debt settlement. The application is free (the mediator appointed by the judge is paid through the plan). The judge sets a repayment plan suited to your income, leaving you enough to live on. Talk to a debt mediation service first.
General information checked on 08/10/2026 on official websites (FPS Economy, Regions, energy regulators, National Chamber of Bailiffs). It does not replace personal advice: a debt mediation service helps you for free. Letters to Belgian companies are best sent in French or Dutch.