Alimony recovery: how to recover unpaid debts effectively?

Every month in Belgium, thousands of maintenance creditors wait in vain for the payment of a pension which does not come, despite a court decision in their favor. If you are one of these people faced with non-payment of alimony, know that solutions exist to obtain recovery of these amounts. Faced with this delicate situation which affects many families, it is essential to know your rights and the procedures available to you. Based in Brussels, the firm of Maître Innocent TWAGIRAMUNGU has been supporting creditors in their recovery efforts since 2005, with an approach that is both rigorous and human.

• Check the validity of your enforceable title(judgment or notarial deed) and precisely calculate the arrears taking into account the five-year limitation period which limits your claims to the last 5 years
• Systematically send a formal notice by registered mailbefore any procedure: it interrupts the prescription and can resolve the situation (15 to 30 days delay)
• SECAL can intervene free of chargeif you have at least 2 unpaid monthly payments in the last 12 months, with the possibility of advances of up to €175/month per child (subject to resource conditions)
• Alimony benefits from a privileged regime: full seizure of salary, unemployment benefits, mutual benefits, vacation pay and end-of-year bonus possible

Understand your rights and assess your situation for successful alimony recovery

Before starting any recovery procedure, it is essential to check the validity of your enforceable title. This document, whether it is a judgment rendered by the family court or a notarial deed, constitutesthe essential legal basisfor any recovery action. Without this precious sesame, no procedure will be successful.

Accurately calculating arrears is a crucial step. Please note, the law requiresfive-year prescription: you will only be able to claim the unpaid monthly payments from the last five years. For example, if your ex-spouse owes you 300 euros per month since September 2018, you will only be able to claim in December 2024 the amounts owed since December 2019, i.e. a maximum of 18,000 euros.

Identifying the debtor’s seizable income and assets will allow you to assess your chances of recovery. Unlike ordinary debts,alimony benefits from a privileged regime: the entire salary can be seized, without limitation. This specificity also applies to unemployment benefits, mutual insurance benefits, social integration income, as well as vacation pay and the end-of-year bonus. For modest incomes (between 1,235.01 and 1,362 euros net), the seizure remains limited to approximately 38 euros plus 71 euros per dependent child for maintenance debts.

Meticulously gather all proof of non-payment: bank statements, unanswered letters, reminder SMS. These elements will constitute your basic file for any subsequent procedure and will allow the prescription to be interrupted.

The obligatory preliminary steps before any recovery procedure

The recommended formal notice: essential first step

Before any legal action, sending a registered letter to the debtor is required. This formal notice must precisely detail the amounts due, month by month, including late payment interest calculated at the legal rate. Set a reasonable payment deadline, generally between 15 and 30 days, clearly mentioning the consequences of failure to respond.

Keep the acknowledgment of receipt of this letter carefully:he interrupts the prescriptionand constitutes proof of your amicable approach. A Brussels creditor was thus able to recover 12,000 euros in arrears thanks to this simple precaution, whereas without this interruption, part of the sums would have been prescribed. Other acts can also interrupt the limitation period: written acknowledgment of debt by the debtor, partial voluntary payment, order to pay served by a bailiff, notification of a seizure or summons to court.

The attempt at amicable negotiation to avoid costs

If the debtor shows a desire to regularize his situation without immediately having the means, propose a suitable timetable. A bailiff can assist you in this negotiation, providing an official framework without initiating a coercive procedure.

Obtaining a written commitment remains essential: a simple verbal agreement will have no legal value in the event of another payment default. Systematically document all exchanges, whether telephone, electronic or physical, to build a solid file.

Concrete example:A creditor from Etterbeek negotiated with her ex-spouse, a business manager temporarily in difficulty, a 24-month settlement plan including the 8,400 euros in arrears plus current monthly payments. Thanks to a memorandum of understanding drawn up by her lawyer and signed before a bailiff, she was able to recover her entire debt without legal proceedings costs. The agreement included a term forfeiture clause in the event of late payment, allowing for immediate seizures if necessary.

SECAL: free solution for alimony recovery

Check the eligibility conditions for the Maintenance Claims Service

The SECAL represents a particularly interesting option for creditors domiciled in Belgium. To benefit from it, you must have a valid enforceable title and prove at leasttwo unpaid monthly payments in the last 12 months, whether consecutive or not. Compliance with the 5-year limitation period remains imperative for periodic debts (monthly pensions), this period being extended to 10 years for pensions granted in capital by judicial decision.

A mother of two living in Ixelles was able to recover 8,500 euros in arrears thanks to SECAL, while benefiting from monthly advances during the recovery procedure.

Submit the request online: detailed instructions

The procedure is carried out exclusively via the finances.belgium.be website, requiring authentication by electronic identity card. The online form requires an accurate accounting of arrears, limited to the last five years. Please attachthe original enforceable title: a simple copy or a judgment without a specific amount will result in the rejection of your request.

Your file is monitored directly via the platform, allowing you to consult the progress of the procedures and any payments recovered.

Please note:Once the formal notice has been sent by SECAL, the debtor only has 15 days to contest the validity of the title or prove his payments with supporting documents. After this very short period, he will no longer be able to oppose the recovery procedures initiated by the service, which constitutes a considerable advantage compared to traditional procedures.

Benefit from advances and recovery by SECAL

Subject to resource conditions (1,344 euros net monthly plus 64 euros per dependent child), you can receive advances capped at175 euros per month per child. These advances, granted for six months and renewable, immediately relieve your financial situation.

SECAL takes care of all procedures: negotiations with the debtor, seizure of wages or property. The 13% operating fee is only billed to the debtor for requests submitted after January 2015. Please note, however: immediately inform the service of any payment received directly from the debtor to avoid administrative complications. If the debtor pays consecutively for 6 months, SECAL partially interrupts its intervention for current monthly payments but remains seized of the file to recover the arrears.

Alternative legal procedures for effective alimony recovery

Recovery by bailiff: prices and procedures

Since October 2024, bailiffs’ rates have been simplified according to a progressive scale: Class A (125 euros) for debts up to 2,000 euros, Class B (175 euros) for debts between 2,000.01 and 5,000 euros, and Class C (250 euros) for debts greater than 5,000.01 euros. Administrative fees of 50 euros are systematically added for opening the file, and these rates are doubled for urgent procedures (weekends or public holidays). It is important to note that you will have to advance these procedural costs, but the bailiff will recover them from the debtor if he is solvent.

• Wage garnishment allows sums owed to be directly recovered from the employer, without limitation of the amount for maintenance claims.
• Precautionary seizures on movable and immovable property secure recovery in the event of sale or concealment of assets
• The delegation of sums, provided for by article 203 ter of the Civil Code, offers a less stigmatizing alternative allowing the pension to be collected directly from the employer or the unemployment fund.

The employer who receives an act of seizure has 15 days to make his declaration of garnishment by registered mail to the creditor. His silence or refusal to collaborate exposes him to becoming personally debtor of the sums due, which constitutes an additional guarantee for the creditor.

Practical advice:To optimize your chances of rapid recovery, favor wage garnishment when the debtor is an employee with stable employment. This procedure, although requiring an advance fee of around 300-400 euros depending on the complexity, guarantees automatic and regular recovery directly from the source. Employers, fearing personal liability, generally cooperate effectively with bailiffs. If you are unsure about the strategy to adopt, do not hesitate to consult afamily law lawyer in Brusselsto evaluate the solution best suited to your situation.

Criminal sanctions: the ultimate weapon against bad payers

Article 391bis of the Penal Code qualifies voluntary non-payment for more than two months as an offense of family abandonment. A complaint can be filed with the King’s Prosecutor, but direct summons to the Criminal Court allows the initiative to be taken without waiting for the decision of the public prosecutor’s office.

The penalties incurred includeimprisonment and fines, doubled in the event of a recurrence within five years. A father convicted in Brussels received a six-month suspended prison sentence and a 2,000 euro fine for voluntarily stopping all payments for 18 months. In certain exceptional cases, the judge can theoretically order a withdrawal of the driving license as an alternative punishment, although this sanction remains very rarely applied in practice in alimony cases.

The combination of civil and criminal procedures maximizes your chances of recovery: the psychological pressure of criminal proceedings often encourages the debtor to quickly find a payment solution.

Faced with the complexity of alimony recovery procedures and the multiplicity of options available, the support of a legal professional is invaluable. The office of Maître Innocent TWAGIRAMUNGU, with nearly 20 years of experience in family law, guides you at each stage of your recovery process. Based in Brussels, the firm offers a personalized approach combining legal expertise and human dimension, particularly important in these delicate situations. If you are faced with non-payment of alimony in the Brussels region, do not hesitate to request a consultation to evaluate the strategy best suited to your situation and maximize your chances of recovering the amounts owed to you.