Can a company send my debt to collection in Denmark?
Yes — but first you must receive a demand letter with at least 10 days' deadline. Under the Debt Collection Act the creditor must send a demand with a deadline of at least 10 days before adding collection costs — if the costs turn up without a demand, they have been charged wrongly. A reminder fee is at most 100 kr, and at most 3 reminders may be sent at least 10 days apart, plus a collection fee of at most 100 kr. The collection charge follows a fixed scale. The credit blacklist (RKI) requires undisputed debt over 1,000 kr, with 4 weeks' warning. That is the key people miss: a disputed debt cannot be registered at all — the creditor must go to court.
📋 The rules
- First a demand with at least 10 days' deadline
- Reminder fee at most 100 kr
- At most 3 reminders at least 10 days apart
- The collection charge follows a fixed scale
- The credit blacklist needs undisputed debt over 1,000 kr
🔓 Exceptions
- Disputed debt cannot go to the blacklist or fast-track — it must go to court
- Public debt on the blacklist needs over 7,500 kr and 4 weeks' written notice
- Business claims have a fixed 310 kr compensation that does not apply to consumers
⚠️ Penalties & fines
The biggest cost is rarely the debt itself but what is stacked on top: up to 3 reminders at 100 kr each, a collection fee of at most 100 kr, and a collection charge that grows with the size of the debt on a fixed scale. If no demand with at least a 10-day deadline was sent first, those costs have been charged wrongly. What people do not see coming is the credit blacklist: dispute the debt and it cannot be registered, because an entry requires undisputed debt over 1,000 kr. Wrongly registered, you can complain free to the Data Protection Authority.
📎 Official sources
- Debt Collection Act §10 · Retsinformation →
- Collection costs regulation · Retsinformation →
- Forbrug.dk · Debt collection →
❓ Frequently asked
Can my debt go to collection?
Yes, but only after a demand letter with a deadline of at least 10 days. If collection costs are added without a demand, they have been charged wrongly, and that is worth checking before you pay the bill.
How much can a reminder fee be?
At most 100 kr per reminder, and at most 3 reminders may be sent at least 10 days apart. On top of that can come a collection fee of at most 100 kr and a collection charge on a fixed scale that rises with the debt.
When can I be put on the credit blacklist?
When the debt is undisputed and over 1,000 kr to the same creditor, and you have been warned within 4 weeks. For public debt the threshold is over 7,500 kr, with 4 weeks' written notice.
What if I dispute the debt?
If the debt is disputed, it can go neither to the blacklist nor to fast-track collection. The creditor must go to court instead, so an objection is the strongest tool you have against an entry.
What if I am wrongly on the blacklist?
You can complain free to the Data Protection Authority, which can order the entry deleted. The collection firm also needs authorisation from the police and can lose it for breaching good collection practice.
🔎 Common searches
What people search to land here:
- “can debt go to collection denmark”
- “demand 10 day deadline”
- “reminder fee 100 kr”
- “credit blacklist 1000 kr”
- “disputed debt collection”
- “debt collection act rules”