Introduction
Late payments in commercial transactions have multiple damaging effects, particularly amongst SMEs, causing one out of four bankruptcies in the European Union. The Late Payment Directive, which is currently under review, aims to address this issue and improve B2B and B2C payment culture. One of the main problems identified since its adoption in 2011 is the lack of monitoring tools, which has hampered a more effective implementation of the Directive and its enforcement.
The EU Observatory of Payments in Commercial Transactions (EU Payment Observatory) purpose is to fill that gap.
What are our objectives?
The Observatory has three main objectives:
- The collection, validation and consolidation of data on payments in commercial transactions, specifically B2B (business to business) and G2B (government to business).
- The mapping of documents and policy measures and any other relevant initiatives put in place by public authorities or other entities to combat late payments in commercial transactions and, more generally, to promote a prompt payment culture in the business environment.
- The analysis and dissemination of the data and information collected and their dissemination through the publication of annual and thematic reports, as well as the organisation of events.
Informal group that gives operational support and advice to the EU Payment Observatory.
Resource library of initiatives and policy documents on payment performance in the European Economic Area and the UK.
Provides all analytical documents produced by the Observatory including Thematic and Annual Reports.
Our newsletter with the latest news and publications on payment performance and the work of the Observatory.
A data visualization of payment performance in commercial transactions in the European Economic Area (EEA)
Details and recordings of the main events of the Observatory including webinars and annual event.
Legal framework
Late Payments are addressed at European level by the Directive 2011/7/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 February 2011 on combating late payment in commercial transactions. For further information please see the Late Payment Directive dedicated webpage.
In September 2023 the European Commission proposed a Regulation on combatting late payments.
