How do European customers pay?
Payment risk in Europe, for Turkish exporters: which markets pay on time, how an unpaid claim is pursued from one country to the next, and how to spot a customer who was never real. A summary of public sources, updated quarterly.
Key figures
Six numbers that sum up the risk.
Turkish exports
The payment climate in Europe all customers; not specific to Turkish exports
How Turkish exports actually get paid
The share of each payment method in 2025 exports. Open account means delivery first, payment later: two thirds of all goods leave before any money has been received.
There is a striking contrast on the other side of the trade: Turkish importers increasingly pay their own suppliers in advance (23.7% of imports).
Source: TurkStat data, via Ekonomim, 23.06.2026. The source gives the letter-of-credit share as "approximately 3%", so the residual "other" category is our own calculation.
Big markets, different payment habits
The EU-27 took $105.9bn of Turkish exports in 2025; with the UK, Switzerland and Norway the total comes to $122.4bn. 166,985 companies in the EU import from Türkiye, and that number is rising fast. The largest markets are not always the safest ones.
| Country | Turkish exports 2025 | Paying on time | Affected by late payment | Insolvencies 2026 | TR fraud warning |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Germany | $19.8bn (+9.7%) | 63.8% | 43% | +6.9% | — |
| United Kingdom | $14.2bn (+11.8%) | 60.5% | — | — | 2019 |
| Italy | $12.4bn (+3.0%) | 43.4% | 48% | −3.2% | 2022 |
| France | $10.5bn (+11.2%) | 46.5% | 64% | +4.4% | 2021 · 2023 · 2025 |
| Spain | $10.1bn (+10.4%) | 45.9% | 46% | −7.8% | — |
| Romania | $7.9bn (+5.0%) | 12.0% | — | −1.7% | — |
| Netherlands | $7.2bn (−7.1%) | 74.7% | 31% | −12.0% | — |
| Poland | $6.2bn (+1.2%) | 86.6% | 72% | +4.5% | 2020 |
| Belgium | $4.8bn (+17.4%) | 47.3% | 51% | +1.1% | — |
| Bulgaria | $4.7bn (+6.8%) | 19.2% | 35% | −17.7% | — |
| Greece | $3.5bn (+4.5%) | 34.1% | 64% | +45.5%* | — |
| Slovenia | $3.2bn (+27.7%) | 53.3% | 50% | — | — |
| Czechia | $2.1bn (+5.2%) | 63.8% | 69% | +0.7% | — |
| Austria | $1.9bn (+16.5%) | — | 45% | −3.0% | — |
| Slovakia | $1.8bn (+62.2%) | 60.2% | 56% | −41.8% | — |
Sources: TİM 2025 (exports); Dun & Bradstreet / CRIBIS Payment Study 2026, end of 2025 (paying on time; Romania is absent from this edition, so its figure is from end-2024); EU Payment Observatory annual report 2025, 2024 survey data (affected; EU average 52%; no comparable figure for the UK and Austria); Eurostat insolvency index (2021=100), change in Q2 2026 against the same quarter a year earlier; the UK is not part of that statistic. Orange: below 35%. * The rise in Greece is largely down to a simplified procedure introduced for small insolvencies.
Large and relatively safe
Germany: $19.8bn of exports, 31,297 importers and the cheapest payment order procedure in Europe. The value sits mainly with large groups.
Where payment terms should differ
France, Italy and Romania take $30.7bn of exports between them, and all three are weak payers. This is where advance payment, credit insurance or a letter of credit earns its keep.
More importers every year
Since 2019 the number of importers has risen by 58% in France and 53% in Portugal. More, smaller and newer buyers — which means more counterparties whose creditworthiness is unknown.
Europe's best and worst payers
The sources measure different things, but the picture is consistent: in northern Europe roughly 64% of companies pay on time, against about 31% in southern and eastern Europe (our own unweighted average of the country figures). Türkiye sits between the two at 46.4%.
Best: Denmark (94.9%, the shortest payment terms in the EU), Poland, Hungary, the Netherlands, Switzerland and Germany.
Weakest: Romania (12%), Portugal, Bulgaria (the highest share of delays beyond 90 days), Greece (86 days to collect), Italy and France.
Poland, with a caveat: 86.6% pay on time, yet Polish companies report the highest rate of being hit by late payment themselves (72%).
Dun & Bradstreet / CRIBIS Payment Study 2026 (end of 2025; transaction data, not a survey). ¹ End-2024 figure: Romania does not appear in the 2026 edition. Italy is measured with a different indicator (CRIBIS ITP) and is not directly comparable. ★ significant Turkish export market. Orange: below 35%. D&B/CRIBIS looks at actual payments while the EU survey records how companies feel, which is why the two can diverge for a given country.
What EU law gives you against late payment
If your contract is governed by the law of an EU member state, the Late Payment Directive (2011/7/EU) gives the creditor real rights. They are far easier to enforce when they are spelled out on the invoice and in the contract.
Statutory interest: the ECB reference rate plus at least eight percentage points, running automatically without any reminder.
Fixed collection compensation: a statutory minimum for every overdue invoice, on top of any further reasonable costs you incur.
Payment terms: as a rule no more than 60 calendar days between businesses; longer terms only if expressly agreed and not grossly unfair to the creditor. Both the interest rate and the fixed compensation are minimums — member states may set more.
On the table: the EU proposal for a hard 30-day limit is still sitting with the Council.
How it goes wrong in practice
The three reasons most often given when a European customer pays late or never pays at all.
The customer goes under
The biggest risk in selling on credit. In an insolvency your claim is usually an ordinary unsecured one. When Mexx failed in 2014, more than 25 Turkish apparel suppliers lost at least € 10 million between them, on the industry body's first estimate (TGSD statement, December 2014).
Payment withheld over a quality dispute
The customer disputes quality or quantity and holds payment. While the dispute runs, a credit insurer will usually decline the claim as well. Technical specifications, proof of delivery and written agreements matter as much as the insurance does.
Delay with an excuse attached
Payments are postponed with geopolitical tension given as the reason — including by customers in countries that are not affected by it at all (Turkish machinery manufacturer, İHA/Habertürk, May 2026).
Many exporters never pursue their smaller claims at all. The reasons given: legal costs, unfamiliar foreign legal systems, the absence of a written contract, and the fear of losing the customer (YTSO, 2011; still widely cited). How many exporters currently hold overdue foreign receivables is not tracked anywhere.
Prevention first, collection second
Figures are for 2025–2026.
Before the shipment: prevention
| Instrument | In practice |
|---|---|
| Türk Eximbank short-term credit insurance | Cover for up to 90% of the invoice, terms up to 360 days. 7,617 companies and $22.8bn of insured exports: only around 8% of total exports. Claims paid in 2025 came to $20.8m; 42% of the insured volume is EU. |
| Private credit insurers | Coface, Allianz Trade, Atradius. A small market; premiums are typically below 1% of turnover. An Eximbank policy runs about 30% cheaper. |
| An independent risk report | An independent report showing your customer's ability to pay, the limit set by the source and any risk signals, together with an analysis of what it actually means. The quickest and cheapest protection there is, for new and existing customers alike. Company Risk Report → |
| Export factoring | Cross-border factoring (export and import) stood at TRY 99.6bn at the end of 2024, across 14 factoring companies (BDDK data). |
| An arbitration clause | ISTAC, İTOTAM or the ICC. Arbitral awards are recognised throughout the EU under the New York Convention — but the clause has to be in the contract before the dispute arises. |
After the fact: the payment order route, country by country
Most European countries have a fast-track payment order procedure. The real questions are whether a Turkish company can use it directly, whether a lawyer is compulsory, and whether the court can demand security for costs.
| Country | Procedure | Lawyer | Security | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Germany | Mahnverfahren | No | No | Open to creditors abroad; the competent court is AG Wedding in Berlin |
| France | Injonction de payer | No | No | Repeated fraud warnings |
| Italy | Decreto ingiuntivo | Yes | No | The fee scales with the amount claimed |
| Spain | Proceso monitorio | No | No | No lawyer or procurador needed to file |
| Romania | Ordonanța de plată | No | No | — |
| Netherlands | Subdistrict court (no payment order procedure) | Above € 25,000 | No | No lawyer needed up to € 25,000 |
| Belgium | Dagvaarding (writ) | No | No | The digital IOS procedure is closed to Turkish companies |
| Poland | EPU / postępowanie upominawcze | In practice yes | No | A Polish identifier for the debtor is required; EPU is unavailable if service abroad is needed, and the claim must have fallen due within the past three years |
| Czechia | Platební rozkaz | No | No | — |
| Slovakia | Upomínacie konanie | In practice yes | No | A Slovak electronic ID is required |
| Hungary | Fizetési meghagyás (notary) | No | No | Compulsory route up to HUF 3 million |
| Bulgaria | Заповедно производство | No | Waived by treaty | Not a party to the 1954 Hague Convention; covered by the 1975 bilateral treaty |
| Austria | Mahnklage | Above € 5,000 | No | — |
| Portugal | Injunção | No | No | — |
| Greece | Διαταγή πληρωμής | Yes | At the judge’s discretion | Security is not automatic; a judge may order it where recovery of costs looks doubtful |
| Ireland | Summary summons | Usually yes | Risk | No true payment order procedure exists |
| United Kingdom | County Court (N1) | No | Risk | The online route requires the parties to have an address in England or Wales |
| Denmark | Betalingspåkrav | No | No | Simplified procedure up to DKK 100,000; new form since 2026 |
| Sweden | Betalningsföreläggande | No | No | The debtor must be located in Sweden |
| Finland | Suppea haastehakemus | No | No | — |
| Switzerland | Betreibung | No | No | Provisional enforcement requires a signed acknowledgement of debt |
| Norway | Forliksrådet / utlegg | No | No | Utlegg allows an invoice to be enforced without a court case |
The table applies to a simple, undisputed claim; if the debtor objects, the case moves into ordinary proceedings. Source: official court and justice sources per country (2026). Court fees, service, translation, lawyers and collection work vary by country and by case, which is why we give no figures here. You receive a written cost estimate for your own case after the first assessment.
Where it is straightforward
In Germany, France, Romania, Sweden and Finland a Turkish supplier can apply for a payment order without a lawyer; in Germany the competent court for creditors abroad is in Berlin (AG Wedding). Spain needs no lawyer to file either. In Norway the utlegg route makes an unpaid invoice enforceable without a court case at all.
Four practical obstacles
Belgium: the digital IOS procedure requires both parties to be on the Belgian register. United Kingdom: the cheap online route requires an address in England or Wales. Poland: the electronic procedure (EPU) cannot be used if the debtor has to be served abroad. Slovakia: the e-filing system asks for local identification. In these countries you need a local partner.
Security for costs: four countries to watch
Türkiye has been a party to the 1954 Hague Convention since 1972 (in force 1973), so most of the countries covered here cannot require a Turkish claimant to put up security for costs. The exceptions are Greece, Bulgaria, Ireland and the UK. For Bulgaria the 1975 bilateral treaty solves it; in Greece security is not automatic but at the judge's discretion; in the UK and Ireland the test is the claimant's residence rather than nationality.
Recognition of Turkish court judgments in Europe varies by country and usually requires separate recognition and enforcement proceedings, which is why an arbitration clause, or proceeding directly in the debtor's country, is often faster. Knowing the procedure, the language and the right local partner makes a visible difference to how quickly you are paid. Our debt collection service →
The customer who never existed
The official Turkish warnings all concern fraudsters impersonating well-known Western European companies. France is the only country to appear repeatedly. On Allianz Trade's Benelux figures, fake-buyer fraud accounts for 24% of all corporate fraud.
| Date | Country | Method | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 2025 | France | Fake orders placed through fake websites, email and WhatsApp in the names of Carrefour, Lidl and E.Leclerc | Ministry of Trade / Commercial Counsellor Paris; AA, 25.12.2025 |
| 2021 and 2023 | France | Fake customers impersonating well-known retail chains | Commercial Counsellors Lyon and Paris, chamber and association circulars |
| Jan 2022 | Italy | Transport documents intercepted; goods cleared from customs without payment (hazelnuts) | Ministry of Trade letter, 07.01.2022; trade press |
| 2019 | United Kingdom | Email account compromised, followed by a request to pay into a "new IBAN" | Ministry of Trade |
| 2019 | United Kingdom | Fake employees of large companies requesting passport details and "visa fees" (apparel, confectionery) | İHKİB / Commercial Counsellor London |
No official Turkish warning was found for Germany, Belgium, Greece, Bulgaria, Romania or the Netherlands in the 2019–2026 period. That does not mean there is no risk there.
Warning signs
Know your customer before you ship
Find out how the European customers you sell to on open account are actually doing, with an independent risk report. And if an invoice is already overdue, send us the case.
Request a risk report →Sources and limitations
- TurkStat data on export payment methods 2025 — Ekonomim, 23.06.2026
- TİM, exports by country 2025 and 2026 (August)
- Eurostat, Trade by Enterprise Characteristics (ext_tec10), Türkiye, 2019–2024; Eurostat insolvency index, Q2 2026
- Dun & Bradstreet / CRIBIS Payment Study 2026 (end of 2025; partly end of 2024)
- EU Payment Observatory, annual report 2025
- Intrum European Payment Report 2026
- Atradius Payment Practices Barometer 2026 (Western Europe and Central and Eastern Europe)
- Allianz Trade Global Insolvency Outlook, April 2026 and country notes December 2025; share of fake-buyer fraud: Allianz Trade Benelux fraud pages
- Türk Eximbank, Annual Report 2025 (credit insurance, claims paid); Ministry of Trade, Foreign Trade Data Bulletin December 2025
- Factoring: BDDK data, Turkrating Factoring Sector Report July 2025
- Payment order procedures: official court and justice sources per country (2026)
- HCCH, list of parties to the 1954 Hague Convention; Turkish Ministry of Justice
- EU Late Payment Directive 2011/7/EU; Regulations (EC) 1896/2006 and 861/2007
- Ministry of Trade, commercial counsellors (Paris, London, Rome), İHKİB and İMMİB circulars, 2019–2025; AA, 25.12.2025
- İHA/Habertürk, 10.05.2026; Hürriyet, 26.12.2014 (TGSD statement, Mexx); YTSO, 13.07.2011