Work out the interest and compensation the law lets you claim on a late invoice, and get a claim letter ready to send.
| Invoice | Days late | Rate | Interest | Compensation |
|---|
Fill in the names and the letter is ready to print or send.
When the rate changes, each period's rate applies to the days in that period, also on an invoice that was already late.
Interest runs from the day after the due date up to and including the day of payment. The year counts as 360 days.
Interest = amount unpaid × rate × days late ÷ 360
Interest runs on the full amount of the invoice, VAT included.
Until 31 December 2025, while Bulgaria used the lev, the rate was the Bulgarian National Bank's base rate plus 10 points; since Bulgaria adopted the euro it is the ECB rate plus 8.
If recovering the debt costs more, the reasonable difference can be claimed as well.
An invoice of €5,000 due on 1 August 2026 and paid on 30 September 2026 is 60 days late. The interest comes to €86.67 and the fixed compensation to €40: €126.67 in all.
Checked on 26 October 2026 against the official sources below.
| Period | Reference rate | Statutory rate |
|---|---|---|
| 01/07/2026 – 31/12/2026 | 2.40% | 10.40% |
| 01/01/2026 – 30/06/2026 | 2.15% | 10.15% |
| 01/07/2025 – 31/12/2025 | 1.91% | 11.91% |
| 01/01/2025 – 30/06/2025 | 2.95% | 12.95% |
| 01/07/2024 – 31/12/2024 | 3.63% | 13.63% |
| 01/01/2024 – 30/06/2024 | 3.79% | 13.79% |
| 01/07/2023 – 31/12/2023 | 3.12% | 13.12% |
| 01/01/2023 – 30/06/2023 | 1.42% | 11.42% |
| 01/07/2022 – 31/12/2022 | 0.00% | 10.00% |
| 01/01/2022 – 30/06/2022 | 0.00% | 10.00% |
| 01/07/2021 – 31/12/2021 | 0.00% | 10.00% |
| 01/01/2021 – 30/06/2021 | 0.00% | 10.00% |
| 01/07/2020 – 31/12/2020 | 0.00% | 10.00% |
| 01/01/2020 – 30/06/2020 | 0.00% | 10.00% |
Late payment: claim for statutory interest and compensation
Dear ,
The invoice below was not paid by its due date.The invoices below were not paid by their due dates.
Under чл. 309а от Търговския закон, we are entitled to statutory interest on the late amount at a year, and to a fixed sum of compensation for each late invoice.
| Interest | |
| Compensation | |
| Invoice amount still unpaid | |
| Total due |
Please pay the total within 14 days of the date of this letter.
Interest continues to run on the unpaid amount at a day until it is paid.
Yours sincerely,
Interest calculated with the free late payment calculator at gocons.eu
The law that governs the contract. Most contracts choose it; when yours does not, a contract for services is usually governed by the law of the supplier's country, under the EU's Rome I Regulation and similar rules elsewhere. Choose that country in the calculator.
Not in the European Union, the United Kingdom and many other countries: the law adds interest, and usually a fixed sum of compensation, to every late invoice between businesses. In others, such as the United States, Canada and Australia, there is no statutory rate for business invoices: you charge the rate your contract sets, and without one only a court can award interest. The calculator then asks for your contract's rate.
Yes, where the law sets one. Under the EU Late Payment Directive and the UK Late Payment Act, the fixed sum is owed for each late invoice on top of the interest, and reasonable recovery costs above it can usually be claimed too. The calculator adds the amount the chosen country sets.
It depends on the country. Most of the EU applies each half-year's rate to the days in that half-year, while the UK keeps the rate in force when interest started until the debt is paid. The calculator follows the rule of the country you choose and shows the rates it used.
The rates are updated when central banks and governments publish them, usually for 1 January and 1 July. Until a new rate is in, the calculator says so rather than work with an old one.
No. The calculation and the letter are made in your browser. When you change country, the page only downloads that country's rules; your amounts, dates and names are never sent.
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