Clawback of payments: can the receiver ask you to return what the bankrupt client paid you?

In short: yes, the receiver of a client in compulsory liquidation can ask for the return of payments you received before the opening of the procedure (clawback action, revocatoria, art. 166 CCII). For payments of overdue and liquid debts the suspect period is 6 months, and the receiver must prove that you knew of the state of insolvency. Excluded from clawback are payments for goods and services made in the course of business activity on customary terms (art. 166, para. 3, letter a). This guide is not legal advice: for your case you need a lawyer.

What is the bankruptcy clawback and why does it concern a supplier?

In the period before a procedure is opened, a company in difficulty may pay some creditors and not others. The Business Crisis Code (CCII) allows the receiver to render some of these acts ineffective, in order to bring the money back into the estate to be distributed among all creditors. The supplier that collected an invoice a few months earlier is the typical recipient: the receiver asks for the return of what you received, and you can then file a claim in the insolvency for the receivable that is revived. If you are interested in the other side, the application for admission, read filing a claim in the insolvency: how to recover the receivable.

What are the suspect periods (6 months and 1 year)?

It depends on the type of act, according to art. 166. The period is counted backwards from the filing of the application that was followed by the opening of compulsory liquidation: acts performed after that filing are also revocable.

For the supplier that collects an ordinary overdue invoice by bank transfer, the relevant rule is usually para. 2: six months and the burden of proof on the receiver. The table summarises the text of art. 166 as reported by Brocardi.it and miolegale.it: for your act, check the text in force.

What the receiver must prove: knowledge of the state of insolvency

For payments under para. 2, clawback is possible only if the receiver proves that the counterparty knew of the debtor's state of insolvency. In the cases of para. 1, by contrast, the act is revocable unless it is the counterparty that proves it did not know. For this reason, in your defence, what matters is what you knew and when you knew it, and what you can demonstrate you checked.

A paradox to handle with care arises here. The rule looks at knowledge of insolvency: if in the suspect period you had in hand elements that made it knowable, your position weakens. This does not mean it is better not to check: a documented check carried out before supply, with a regular outcome, is evidence of what you knew at that moment. Which signals emerge before non-payment: signs of a client's insolvency before non-payment. If you see serious signals, consult a lawyer before accepting unusual payments.

Which payments are not revocable?

Art. 166, para. 3 excludes from clawback, among others:

• payments for goods and services made in the course of business activity on customary terms (letter a);
• remittances on the bank current account that did not durably reduce the debtor's exposure to the bank (letter b);
• payments of wages to employees and collaborators (letter f);
• acts, payments and guarantees executed under attested plans, composition agreements (concordati), restructuring agreements and similar, within the terms provided (letters d and e).

For the supplier, letter a matters: the payment for a supply, within business activity, according to the usual times and methods of the sector and of the relationship. If you collected late on an agreed due date, or by an unusual method, the exemption is less certain. What "customary terms" means in your case is assessed by the judge on the concrete relationship.

Within what time can the receiver act?

Art. 170 CCII sets two limits: the receiver may not bring clawback and ineffectiveness actions after three years from the opening of compulsory liquidation, and in any case the actions are time-barred five years after the act was performed. If the application for access to a crisis resolution tool is followed by the opening of compulsory liquidation, the suspect periods of art. 166, paras. 1 and 2, run from the date of publication of the application (art. 170, para. 2). A payment collected years ago is therefore not automatically safe, but the limits exist.

And the ordinary clawback (art. 2901 Civil Code)?

It is the action that any creditor can bring to render ineffective, as against it, the acts by which the debtor prejudices its rights. It presupposes an act of disposal, a prejudice to the creditor and the debtor's knowledge of the prejudice; for onerous acts the participation of the third party is also required. Art. 2901, para. 3, however, excludes from clawback the performance of a debt that is due: a normal payment does not, in itself, fall within this action. It is an issue that emerges mainly if the client has transferred assets to you or granted you guarantees.

What to keep to defend yourself

1. Contracts, orders, payment terms and price lists: they show what the customary terms in the relationship were.
2. History of invoices and collections, to show that the payment was part of the usual rhythm.
3. The check carried out on the client before supply, with date and source.
4. Communications with the client: reminders, requests for instalments, replies.
5. Proof of when you learned of protests, procedures or other signals, if there were any.
6. The payment method received (bank transfer, RiBa, cheque): an unusual method carries weight.

For a broader comparison on the debtor's assets and on recovery, see how to check the debtor's assets before debt recovery.

For accountants. For a client that is assessing whether a collection is at risk, or that wants to document the check carried out on a new client, Veryfy works without a subscription and without registration: you pay for the single check, for example the Verification report at 19€, and file it in the client file.

Sources

• Brocardi.it, art. 166 CCII, Onerous acts, payments, guarantees (accessed 11/11/2026)
• miolegale.it, art. 166 CCII (accessed 11/11/2026)
• Brocardi.it, art. 170 CCII, Time limits for clawback actions (accessed 11/11/2026)
• Brocardi.it, art. 2901 Civil Code, Conditions for the clawback action (accessed 11/11/2026)

The texts of the laws are read on Brocardi.it and miolegale.it, not on the Gazzetta Ufficiale: always check the text in force. Veryfy is not affiliated with the sites cited.