Debt Collection in the Philippines
Do you need help with debt collection in the Philippines? We can quickly, easily, and efficiently help you get paid by companies in the Philippines. Read on to see how!
Debt Collection in Manila
Understanding the unique financial landscape of the Philippines, including Manila and other major cities, enables local expertise to handle your debt recovery efficiently. Our dedicated team and intuitive platform ensure a smooth process, helping you recover debts swiftly while keeping you well-informed every step of the way. We prioritize maintaining positive relationships and protecting your reputation throughout the recovery process. With our comprehensive support, you can focus on your core business while we manage the complexities of debt collection.
How can Oddcoll help me effectively with my Filipino debtors?
We help companies with international customer bases get paid no matter where their customers are located. This is done through our international debt collection platform, which brings together the best national debt collection agencies and law firms worldwide. This means that a local expert is always working on your claims. Just by creating an account and uploading your claim, you put our selected Philippine debt collection agency to work.
Our local debt collection agency in the Philippines will immediately initiate collection actions on the spot:
We are pleased to announce that Upper Class Collections will be our debt collection partner in the Philippines. They will immediately start collection actions in the Philippines when you start a case.
The debt collection process in the Philippines
The debt collection process in the Philippines starts when an invoice falls due to a Filipino debtor. The debt recovery attempts begin with reminders and persuasion. In some cases, legal debt collection may become necessary in the Philippines when a debtor resists payment.
Out-of-court debt collection in the Philippines
When a debt collection agency handles the case, the aim is to get the debtor to pay without having to escalate it further to the courts in the Philippines. This is done at the so-called extrajudicial collection stage in the Philippines.
For collection attempts to be effective at this stage, it is necessary to use a local collection agency in the Philippines where the debtor is domiciled. This is because at this stage, it is made clear to a debtor that the case may be escalated to legal action if payment is not received. A debtor is then intimidated and wants to avoid the risk of paying additional high costs. But for this pressure to be adequate, it needs to come from someone in the same country as the debtor. Then the debtor knows it is for real.
Persuasion at this stage of the debt collection process is done by letter, telephone, electronically, and sometimes in person. In addition to the above-mentioned threat of legal action by a local debt collection agency in the Philippines, other factors crucial to success at this stage include negotiation skills, knowledge of local customs, etc.
Judicial debt collection in the Philippines
The legal system
The Philippine legal system is a mix of legal systems, including common law, Roman civil law, and Anglo-American common law. Civil law applies to areas such as family relations, property, inheritance, contracts, and criminal law. Laws and principles of common law origin are instead evident in areas such as procedural law, company law, taxation, insurance, industrial relations, banking, and foreign exchange. In some southern parts of the islands, Islamic law is applied. The Philippines’ mixed legal system is a result of the immigration of Muslim Malays in the fourteenth century and the subsequent colonisation of the islands by Spain and the United States.
The court structure
The Philippines’ legal system consists of a hierarchy of courts with the Supreme Court as the highest court. The Supreme Court has expansive powers, can overturn political and administrative decisions, and can make rules and laws without precedent. It also sets procedural rules for lower courts, and its members sit on electoral tribunals. The Supreme Court exercises appellate jurisdiction over judgments of the Court of Appeals and the Court of Tax Appeals. Under the Supreme Court, there are three levels of courts:
- Court of Appeals (CA)
- Regional courts
- Metropolitan and Municipal Trial Courts
The Court of Appeals hears appeals from the regional courts. It is the second-highest court, and its decisions can be appealed only to the Supreme Court. And then only on questions of law that the Supreme Court wishes to address.
The regional courts are spread throughout the judicially divided regions of the Philippines. Some of these courts are specialised to handle certain types of cases. In some instances, these courts have exclusive jurisdiction. This means that people go directly to this court to have their case heard.
Below the regional courts is the first level, which is the Metropolitan and Municipal Trial Courts. These are located in cities and towns throughout the country. Alongside the regular court system, special courts have been established to handle specific cases. E.g., the Court of Tax Appeals and the Sandiganbayan. In some parts of the country, Sharia courts have been established. In addition, the Philippines has a collegiate anti-fraud court called the Sandiganbayan.
So, which court is appropriate to take your civil debt collection case to?
If you have a civil claim against a debtor in the Philippines, which court is the appropriate one to take your collection case to? Determining the first instance of legal debt collection in the Philippines depends on the details of the case. For those cases where a foreign company has a commercial claim against a debtor in the Philippines, the regional court is the proper forum to start in:
- Where the subject of the dispute is not in a position to make a financial assessment.
- Where the total amount of the claim exceeds P200,000 or, if the case is being handled in the Metropolitan Region of Manila, where the claim exceeds P400,000.
Metropolitan and Municipal Trial Courts are the proper forum to start in, then:
- When the total amount of the claim is less than 200,000 pesetas (400,000 pesetas in metropolitan Manila).
The regional court hears an appeal from the Metropolitan and Municipal Trial Courts as the next instance.
The court process
A creditor brings a civil action by filing a writ of summons with the appropriate court and paying the court fees. The court then issues a summons informing the defendant of the action brought against them. Where the defendant is a company, service may be made on the chairman, managing partner, chief executive, company secretary, treasurer, or company lawyer.
The Philippine judiciary actively promotes amicable settlements to resolve civil disputes. Before going to court, civil cases are referred to mediation conducted by accredited mediators from the Philippine Mediation Centre. If mediation fails, there is a second chance to reach an amicable settlement through judicial dispute resolution under a judge’s guidance. If conciliation fails again and the trial continues until the civil case is fully resolved, a third attempt at mediation may be made at the next level if the case is appealed.
How are the costs of a trial divided between the parties?
The courts can decide that one party should pay the costs or that they should be shared. Costs are calculated in accordance with the Supreme Court’s guidelines. Costs are generally awarded to the prevailing party. However, the court may order either party to pay or share the costs, provided the reasons given are valid and reasonable.
Enforcement of claims in the Philippines
As a final step in the legal debt collection process in the Philippines, you may need to seek the assistance of the court to enforce your claim. In short, this means that you have gone through the legal process in the Philippines and have a judgment or similar enforcement document that proves that the debtor owes you money. However, non-payment by the debtor continues even after the verdict has been rendered. You can then turn to the court in the Philippines for help in transferring the debt from the debtor to yourself.