Enforce claims digitally from October 2026

Since 1 October 2026, businesses have been able to enforce claims digitally. For electronic applications concerning outstanding monetary claims, enforceable titles, enforcement clauses and other supporting documents may also be submitted electronically. In many cases, it is no longer necessary to send additional paper copies. However, the process is not completely paperless, as the court bailiff may request further documents or originals if there are any doubts.

What is changing in digital enforcement proceedings?

The electronic enforcement application can now be submitted digitally together with the required documents. This reduces the work involved in making copies, sending letters and processing paper documents in parallel.

The legal basis is the Gesetz zur weiteren Digitalisierung der Zwangsvollstreckung (Act on the Further Digitalisation of Enforcement Proceedings) of 20 May 2026. It was published as BGBl. 2026 I No. 152 and its main provisions came into force on 1 October 2026.

According to the Bundesregierung (German federal government) information on the digitalisation of enforcement proceedings, enforceable titles, enforcement clauses and other supporting documents may now also be submitted electronically for electronic applications concerning monetary claims. An enforceable title provides the legal basis for state enforcement action. Examples include an enforcement order or a final court judgment.

For a medium-sized business, this does not mean that every outstanding invoice can immediately be enforced digitally. The claim must still be enforceable and the statutory requirements must be met. The main change concerns how the application and documents reach the court bailiff or enforcement court.

Which documents may be submitted electronically?

In particular, the enforceable title, enforcement clause and other required supporting documents may be submitted electronically. The person or organisation submitting the application must confirm that they match the original documents.

According to the IHK Köln (Cologne Chamber of Industry and Commerce) guidance on enforcement proceedings, the applicant must declare in text form that the electronic documents visually match the originals and contain the same information. The applicant must also confirm that the claim remains outstanding in the amount stated in the application.

This second confirmation is important in day-to-day business. The debtor may have made a partial payment between the issue of an enforcement order and the instruction of the court bailiff. Credit notes, offsets or subsequent agreements may also change the outstanding amount.

Before submitting the application, the accounts team should therefore check at least the following information:

• the original principal claim,
• partial payments and credit notes received,
• interest and costs already calculated,
• the current balance on the date of application,
• the allocation of the correct enforceable title.

Original documents should remain properly organised and available at short notice. According to IHK Köln, the court bailiff may request additional electronic or paper documents if there are any doubts.

How can businesses enforce claims digitally?

In practice, the business will usually provide the verified data and documents to a law firm or registered debt collection service. The service provider prepares the electronic application, provides the required confirmations and submits the documents through the designated secure channel.

The digital process therefore begins before the application is sent to the court bailiff. Invoices, payment reminders, incoming payments and enforceable titles must first be clearly linked. If this information is spread across several folders, spreadsheets and inboxes, electronic submission will still involve a great deal of manual work.

A suitable process might look like this:

1. The accounts team identifies a claim that is due and remains unpaid.
2. The current amount of the claim is checked against payments and credit notes.
3. The relevant enforceable title is clearly assigned and recorded digitally.
4. The lawyer or debt collection service receives the documents and current balance.
5. Any subsequent payments are reported to the service provider immediately.
6. The status and outcome are recorded in the accounting system.

According to IHK Köln, subsequent changes must be reported without delay. This is particularly important for payments received after the application has been submitted. Without a clear reporting process, there is a risk that enforcement will continue for an amount that is no longer outstanding.

When digitalising processes and replacing paper and Excel, businesses should therefore consider more than how documents are sent. A reliable connection between the accounting system, document storage and the appointed service provider is essential.

What applies to attachments and electronic forms?

Since 1 October 2026, digital submission has also been possible for applications to attach and transfer monetary claims under section 829a of the Zivilprozessordnung (German Code of Civil Procedure). From 1 January 2027, prescribed electronic enforcement forms can be submitted as PDFs or structured XML datasets.

An attachment and transfer order may, for example, apply to funds in a bank account or to a claim that the debtor has against a third party. The appointed lawyer or debt collection service should assess whether this measure is permissible and economically appropriate in the specific case.

XML is a machine-readable data format. Unlike a standard PDF, individual details are stored in defined data fields. This can make it easier to transfer names, amounts, case references and claim data automatically, provided that the software being used supports the specified format.

Law firms and legal departments should therefore check whether their specialist software supports both submission methods. For larger numbers of cases, structured data transfer can reduce errors caused by manual data entry. The section on legal technology for law firms and legal departments also provides information on the technical design of such processes.

What should businesses check now?

Businesses should establish whether their lawyer or debt collection service uses the new digital options and what data is required. It is equally important to define clear responsibilities for checking the outstanding balance and reporting new payments without delay.

A short discussion with the service provider can cover the following questions:

• Are enforceable titles and supporting documents already being submitted electronically?
• In which file format should documents be provided?
• Who confirms that the documents match the originals?
• How is the current outstanding balance checked before submission?
• How are subsequent payments reported?
• Will the software being used support PDF and XML from 1 January 2027?

The business should also specify who is responsible for keeping original enforceable titles and who may access them. A digital copy does not remove the need for organised storage while further documents may still be requested.

ibx company advises small and medium-sized businesses in Hannover and the surrounding region on reviewing and digitalising such processes. This does not include a legal assessment of enforcement action. The focus is on data flows, responsibilities, interfaces and transparent document storage.

If you would like to review the technical aspects of your claims management, you can arrange a no-obligation initial consultation with ibx company. Together, we can identify where paper documents, duplicate data entry or unclear handovers are making the current process more difficult.