Payment Deadlines in Morocco 2026: Caps, Penalties and Remedies

The tax penalty must be distinguished from the supplier’s claim. Law No. 69-21 provides for a financial penalty payable to the Treasury where a business subject to the scheme exceeds the deadlines and does not qualify for an exclusion. This amount is not transferred to the creditor. The creditor must claim the principal, contractual interest and, where applicable, damages before the competent court. A business may therefore be penalized by the DGI while remaining legally indebted to its supplier.

For the first month of delay, the penalty is calculated on the basis of Bank Al-Maghrib’s key interest rate applicable under the temporal rules of the legislation. It then increases by 0.85% for each further month or part of a month. As of the date this guide was updated in 2026, the benchmark used is a key interest rate of 2.25%, but this monetary policy rate may be changed at a meeting of the Council of Bank Al-Maghrib. The calculation must always be adjusted according to the official decision published on bkam.ma.

For an invoice of 100,000 DH, a first-month rate of 2.25% represents, for illustrative purposes, 2,250 DH. An increase of 850 DH then corresponds to 0.85% for each further month or part of a month included in the statutory calculation. This example is not a liquidation assessment: the due date, partial payments, periods used and any exclusions must be checked. Using the rate known on the date of calculation instead of the legally relevant rate may produce an incorrect amount.

The supplier should not copy foreign standard terms providing for automatic statutory compensation of 40 euros or a fixed payment of 400 DH. No general Moroccan mechanism of this kind applies to all invoices between businesses. The parties may provide for a penalty clause or reasonable recovery costs, but the court may review their legal basis and amount. Article 264 of the Code of Obligations and Contracts notably allows the court to assess the penalty clause in accordance with the conditions laid down by that provision.

For interest payable to the creditor, the analysis begins with the contract and the date on which the debtor was placed in default. Articles 254 et seq. of the Code of Obligations and Contracts govern the consequences of non-performance and formal notice. The creditor may also seek compensation for separate loss, such as bank charges, working-capital credit necessitated by the delay or proven operating losses. An undocumented overall estimate is rarely sufficient: bank statements and accounting records must accompany the claim.

Public procurement is governed by a regime distinct from that applying to private transactions. The central instrument is Decree No. 2-16-344 of 17 Shawwal 1437, corresponding to 22 July 2016, establishing payment deadlines and default interest relating to public procurement. The date of 8 July 2016, which is sometimes cited, corresponds to the meeting of the Government Council that considered or adopted the draft; it does not replace the official date stated in the Decree. The instrument must be read together with Decree No. 2-22-431 of 8 March 2023 on public procurement.

The overall period commonly applied is 60 days where the deliverables have been completed, completion of the service has been certified and the payment file has been duly submitted. This period results from the sequence of steps involving the contracting authority or authorizing officer and the public accountant. It does not always begin on the date simply printed on the invoice. The special specifications, acceptance rules and nature of the public body must be checked before calculating a delay or submitting a claim.

The supplier must compile a traceable file containing the invoice, purchase order or contract, progress records, statement of account, acceptance report and proof of completed service. Each submission must be assigned a registry office number or receive a dated electronic acknowledgement. An invoice handed directly to the project manager without evidence that it was transmitted to the competent department creates an avoidable dispute. If the authorities request a correction, both the request and the supplier’s response must also be dated.

Where the regulatory deadline is exceeded, default interest may be payable under the Decree and the applicable financial rules. It is distinct from both the tax penalty under Law No. 69-21 and a private commercial clause. The supplier must request its assessment in writing and verify the dates used by the authorizing officer and public accountant. Payment of the principal does not necessarily extinguish interest already accrued, but the claim for such interest must comply with the contract and the applicable time limits for bringing a claim.

In the event of an impasse, the first step is to contact the contracting authority, authorizing officer or public institution designated in the contract. The contractor then submits the statement or claim required by the specifications, together with an itemized calculation. If the dispute arises from an administrative contract, proceedings are normally brought before the Administrative Court with territorial jurisdiction. Particular attention must be paid to clauses requiring a prior claim or imposing a time limit for objections: waiting several months for an informal response may jeopardize the admissibility of a claim.

The order for payment in Morocco is not governed by a single regime. Before the ordinary courts, it is organised by Articles 155 to 165 of the Code of Civil Procedure, with Article 155 establishing the point of entry. Before commercial courts, Articles 22 to 25 of Law No. 53-95 establishing those courts provide a special mechanism for claims meeting the conditions of the text. Mixing these two regimes easily leads to citing the wrong deadline or seizing the wrong court.

For a commercial debt falling within its jurisdiction, the application is submitted to the president of the commercial court at the debtor's domicile or registered office, unless a valid jurisdiction clause exists between traders or a special rule applies. The claim must be monetary, due and payable, and supported by a document or acknowledgement meeting the requirements of the invoked regime. If the file concerns defects, a termination, or a complex breakdown of accounts, the president may consider that the simplified procedure is not appropriate and leave the creditor to bring a full action on the merits.

The file contains the commercial register details, the contract or accepted quotation, the orders, the invoices, the delivery notes, the acceptance reports, the formal notice, and exchanges acknowledging the balance. Partial payments and credit notes must appear in a legible breakdown. A document in a foreign language may require translation by a sworn translator. Before the commercial court, Article 13 of Law No. 53-95 establishes as a principle representation by a member of the Bar, subject to the exceptions provided for by law.

The president examines the application without first summoning the debtor. If the application appears well-founded, an order is issued which must be served in accordance with the statutory formalities. Under the commercial regime, Article 25 of Law No. 53-95 provides that the debtor has eight days from service to lodge the remedy organised by that article. This period must not be transposed to the ordinary regime under Article 155 of the Code of Civil Procedure, whose rules on remedies must be read separately.

An order may be obtained within a few days or several weeks depending on the court, the workload of the registry, and the quality of the documents. No practical deadline can be guaranteed. Where the debtor lodges a remedy and raises a serious challenge, the case becomes adversarial and may last several months. After obtaining an enforceable title, the bailiff proceeds with the formal demand and the authorised enforcement measures. Before incurring these costs, a check of the debtor's apparent solvency remains essential.

Costs vary according to the amount, the court, and the number of acts. An order for payment entails fees assessed by the registry, copying costs, service by a bailiff, and sometimes a translation or an address search. A straightforward bailiff's act often amounts to a few hundred dirhams, but the cost increases with travel, repeated attempts, attachments, and notifications. The registry and the bailiff must provide the calculation applicable to the file; a general estimate does not replace a schedule of costs.

In 2026, observed practices often place the fees for a straightforward order for payment between 3,000 and 8,000 MAD excluding tax and disbursements. Full proceedings may fall between 10,000 and 30,000 MAD, or more where an expert report, an appeal, or a high-value dispute is involved. These amounts constitute neither a statutory scale nor a fee schedule imposed by a Bar. They must be reviewed annually and confirmed by a fee agreement or a quotation taking into account the practices of the relevant Bar.

The most frequent evidential error is to produce an invoice alone. Article 334 of the Commercial Code provides that regularly kept accounting records may be admitted by the court as evidence between traders for commercial matters. It must therefore not be presented in isolation as a general formula allowing any proof without conditions. The flexibility of commercial evidence results from a combined reading of the Commercial Code, the Code of Obligations and Contracts, and case law, with the court retaining its power of assessment.

In practical terms, the file must tell a continuous story: accepted offer, order, delivery, acceptance, invoice, due date, reminders, and balance. General terms and conditions printed for the first time on the back of the invoice are not necessarily enforceable, as they must have been communicated and accepted at the time the contract was formed. It is also important to avoid delay. Personnel change, archives disappear, limitation periods advance, and assets may be transferred well before proceedings are initiated.

The lawyer checks the commercial or civil nature of the parties, the competent court, the limitation period, and the value of the written evidence. The lawyer may draft the formal notice, negotiate an acknowledgement of debt, review an arbitration clause, and then choose between an order for payment, summary proceedings, full proceedings on the merits, and attachment. For an international contract, the lawyer examines the applicable law, the jurisdiction clause, service abroad, and the recognition of a foreign judgment. Legal assistance does not guarantee payment, but it reduces the risk of initiating an inappropriate procedure or one that is out of time.