Filing a claim in the insolvency (insinuazione al passivo): how to recover a receivable from a client in compulsory liquidation

In short: if your client is in compulsory liquidation (the former bankruptcy, fallimento), the receivable is not recovered through reminders or payment orders: you must file the application for admission to the liabilities, with the petition sent by PEC to the receiver at least 30 days before the hearing for the verification of the statement of liabilities (art. 201 CCII). If you arrive later, the application is late and you can file it within 6 months from the filing of the decree making the statement of liabilities enforceable (art. 208 CCII). VAT on unpaid invoices is recovered with a credit note.

How do I find out that my client is in compulsory liquidation?

The receiver should write to you. Art. 200 of the Business Crisis Code (CCII) provides that the receiver send a notice to creditors and to holders of rights over the debtor's assets, based on the documents it has and the information collected. The communication uses the electronic methods of art. 10, para. 1 (PEC), and in all other cases registered letter. The notice tells you that you can take part in the procedure with the application under art. 201, even without a lawyer, the date, time and place of the hearing for the examination of the statement of liabilities, the deadline for filing the application and the digital domicile of the procedure.

Do not wait to receive it. If a client stops paying or responding, check for yourself whether a procedure appears: the opening judgment is entered in the Registro Imprese and the company extract shows the type of procedure, the opening date and the receiver. How to do this is explained in how to know whether a company has gone bankrupt. If your PEC address is not the one registered, the receiver's notice may not reach you: keep your digital domicile up to date.

By when must I file the application?

The application must be transmitted at least 30 days before the hearing set for the examination of the statement of liabilities (art. 201, para. 1). The term is peremptory, but an application sent late is not inadmissible: it becomes a late claim. For this reason the date of the hearing matters, which you will find in the receiver's notice or in the opening judgment.

Para. 10 of art. 201 applies the suspension of time limits during the summer holidays. For the deadlines in your case, have the dates confirmed by the receiver or your lawyer.

How is the application for admission to the liabilities filed?

With a petition sent by PEC to the receiver's address indicated in the notice, together with the attached documents (art. 201, para. 2). It may also be signed personally by the party: a lawyer is not needed to file it. The petition must contain (para. 3):

• the procedure, your details and tax code;
• the amount you ask to be admitted to the liabilities;
• a succinct statement of the facts and of the legal elements on which the application is based;
• any priority claim (titolo di prelazione: privilege, pledge, mortgage) and, if special, the asset on which it is exercised;
• your PEC address for communications, to be updated if it changes;
• the bank details (a letter added by Legislative Decree 136/2024, according to Brocardi).

Mind the requirements: the application is inadmissible if the indication of the amount, the procedure or the facts is missing or absolutely uncertain. If the indication of the priority claim is missing or uncertain, the receivable is treated as unsecured (chirografario) (art. 201, para. 4). If you claim a privilege, state it explicitly.

Which documents do I attach?

Para. 6 of art. 201 requires the documents proving the right asserted. For a supplier, in practice:

1. the unpaid invoices, with due dates and amounts;
2. the signed transport documents or proof of delivery and of performance of the service;
3. the contract, order or order confirmation;
4. an extract of the accounting records with the client's balance (if you attach it, have your accountant prepare it);
5. any correspondence proving reminders and acknowledgement of the debt;
6. if the receivable is documented by a negotiable instrument, the original must be deposited at the court registry (art. 201, para. 2).

If you supplied made-to-order goods or a work in progress, also read client gone bankrupt: made-to-order order, goods and work in progress, what happens to the receivable.

Is my receivable privileged or unsecured?

As a rule you are unsecured (chirografario): if the estate remains active, you receive a pro rata share, after the creditors with priority. A privilege exists only if the law provides for it. An example is art. 2751-bis, no. 5, of the Civil Code: a general privilege over movable assets for the receivables of craft enterprises, and of production and labour cooperatives, for the consideration of services rendered and of the sale of manufactured goods. If you are a non-craft supplier of simple resale of goods, this privilege is not automatic: ask for an opinion on your case. Remember that, if you claim a privilege, you must request it in the application (art. 201, para. 3, letter d).

What do I do about the VAT on unpaid invoices?

You can recover it with a credit note reducing the taxable amount under art. 26 of Presidential Decree 633/1972. After Decree-Law 73/2021, for procedures opened from 26 May 2021, you no longer need to wait for the procedure to close: according to Agenzia delle entrate circular 20/E of 29 December 2021, the note can be issued from the opening date (for bankruptcy, the declaratory judgment) and it is no longer necessary to file a claim in the insolvency in order to issue it. The circular indicates that the issue takes place by the deadline for filing the VAT return for the year in which the procedure is opened. If you later collect anything, you must issue a credit note increasing the taxable amount (art. 26, para. 5-bis).

The circular refers to bankruptcy; for compulsory liquidation check with your accountant how it applies to your case. An Agenzia delle entrate ruling (no. 126/2024) recalls the same rule: the reduction is admitted from the date on which the client is subject to an insolvency procedure.

What happens next: statement of liabilities and opposition

The delegated judge forms the statement of liabilities and makes it enforceable by decree; the receiver communicates the outcome to you (arts. 204-205). If your application is rejected or accepted only in part, you can file an opposition: a petition, to be filed within the peremptory term of 30 days from the communication (arts. 206-207), against the receiver. The petition must indicate the court, the delegated judge and the procedure, the grounds and the conclusions, and an election of domicile in the municipality where the court is seated. At this point you need a lawyer: do not wait until the deadline.

As for the timing of collection, the law gives no dates: distributions arrive when the receiver has liquidated the assets. For this reason it is best to understand early what the estate contains: see how to check the debtor's assets before debt recovery.

Checklist: what to do, in order

1. Check the procedure in the company extract (visura camerale): type, opening date, court, receiver.
2. Stop unpaid deliveries and work, and do not accept payments outside the procedure.
3. Find in the receiver's notice (art. 200) the hearing date and the PEC address of the procedure.
4. Calculate the deadline: at least 30 days before the hearing (art. 201).
5. Prepare invoices, transport documents, contract/order, extract of the accounting records.
6. Write the petition with the contents of art. 201, para. 3, indicating any priority claim.
7. Send it by PEC to the receiver with the attachments and keep the acceptance and delivery receipts.
8. Issue the VAT credit note, with your accountant.
9. Read the communication of the outcome: opposition within 30 days if you are excluded or reduced.
10. If you miss the deadlines, consider the late claim (art. 208).

For accountants. When a client tells you that a counterparty is in compulsory liquidation, you quickly need a picture of the procedure, protests and assets. With Veryfy you pay for the single check, without subscription and without registration: Negative records and insolvency procedures at 5.90€ for the procedure and protests, the Decision report at 49€ for properties and financial statements.

Sources

• Brocardi.it, art. 200 CCII, Notice to creditors and other interested parties (accessed 11/11/2026)
• Brocardi.it, art. 201 CCII, Application for admission to the liabilities (accessed 11/11/2026)
• Brocardi.it, art. 206 CCII, Challenges and art. 207, Procedure (accessed 11/11/2026)
• Brocardi.it, art. 208 CCII, Late claims (accessed 11/11/2026)
• Brocardi.it, art. 2751-bis Civil Code (accessed 11/11/2026)
• Agenzia delle entrate, Ruling no. 126/2024 (accessed 11/11/2026)
• Agenzia delle entrate, Circular 20/E of 29 December 2021 (copy published by dirittobancario.it) (accessed 11/11/2026)

The texts of the CCII and of the Civil Code are read on Brocardi.it, not on the official Gazzetta Ufficiale website: always check the text in force. This guide is not legal advice: for your case, consult a lawyer. Veryfy is not affiliated with the sites cited.