According to the law of 2 August 2002 on late payment in commercial transactions, the payment period between companies is standardly set at 30 calendar days. Companies can however always contractually derogate from this by agreeing on the term of their choice. 
 
However, following the law of 14 August 2021, this period may no longer exceed 60 calendar days, regardless of the size of the companies involved in the transaction. Any contractual clause providing for a longer term will be deemed unwritten.
 
In order to ensure that this 60-day limitation cannot be circumvented, the time that the parties may provide for the acceptance or verification of the conformity of the goods or services must now be included in this 60-day maximum payment term.
 
The same law also provides that the date of receipt of the invoice can no longer be fixed by agreement. Only the actual date of receipt counts.

These provisions will come into force on 1 February 2022. Professionals therefore have until that date to adapt their contractual payment clauses if necessary.
 
For more information on this subject, please feel free to contact Didier CHAVAL.
 
Best regards.
The Cairn Legal team