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Debt collection and executive proceedings in Uruguay

Last verified: 2026-10-27 · Status: Stable

A creditor holding an executive title (signed cheque, promissory note, notarized or certified private document, signed invoice, unapproved settlement) can sue in executive proceedings: the court orders an attachment and payment at once, without hearing the debtor first. The debtor then has 10 days to raise defences; if it raises none, the case goes straight to enforcement and auction, and the debtor pays the costs and fees of the proceeding. Judgments, arbitral awards, court approved settlements and registered mortgages and pledges go directly to enforcement (vía de apremio), with attachment, auction without a reserve price and a deposit of at least 10 percent from the winning bidder.

USD figures use UYU 40.214 per US dollar, the BCU quotation for DLS. USA BILLETE on 26 October 2026, retrieved from the BCU quotations service on 27 October 2026. Amounts set in UR use UYU 1,940.77, the latest published UR value (September 2026, Decreto 229/026, IMPO values table); amounts in UI use UYU 6.6792 per UI (BCU, 27 October 2026). Conversions are rounded and for orientation only.

Key facts

Term for the debtor to raise defences in executive proceedings	10 daysCGP art. 355.1, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Prior payment demand where there is no recognition or protest	3 daysCGP art. 354.5, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Term to start the later ordinary case	90 daysCGP art. 361.3, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Minimum deposit of the winning bidder at a judicial auction	10 %CGP art. 387.2, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Maximum attachable share of salaries for tax or alimony debts	33.3 %CGP art. 381, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Prescription of cheque actions against drawer and endorsers	6 monthsDecreto Ley 14.412 art. 68, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Signed invoice payable if no term is stated	10 daysCGP art. 353 numeral 5, as of 2026-10-27 · in force

The rule

1. Executive proceedings are available when one of the following titles shows a liquid or easily liquidated and due money obligation: a settlement not approved by a court; public instruments signed by the debtor; private instruments signed by the debtor and recognized before the court or with signatures certified by a notary, including documents signed with advanced electronic signature; bank cheques, bills of exchange, vales, promissory notes and conformes; signed invoices for the sale of goods with recognized or certified signatures, including electronic invoices and delivery notes signed with advanced electronic signature (by signing, the debtor is presumed to accept the debt and the delivery, and payment is due in 10 days if the invoice says nothing); and any other title a law declares executive.
Cost to do it: Notary certification of the debtor's signature when the contract is signed is the low cost way to create an executive title; notary fees are private and not set in the CGP.
Example: A Montevideo wholesaler that has its customer sign each invoice with certified signature can collect UYU 2,000,000 of unpaid invoices by executive proceedings. / A foreign lender that has the Uruguayan borrower sign the loan agreement before a Uruguayan notary, or sign a promissory note, gets an executive title for a US$500,000 (about UYU 20,107,000) loan.Código General del Proceso (Ley Nº 15.982), wording by Ley Nº 19.090 and later laws, art. 352 and 353, 2013-06-14 official text · verified 2026-10-27

2. On an executive claim the court immediately orders an attachment and condemns the debtor to pay the amount claimed, interest, costs and fees, without hearing the debtor; if the document is insufficient it rejects the executive route. Where there was no judicial recognition or protest, the creditor must first demand payment with three days to pay, which may be done by certified telegram with proof of receipt. The same order summons the debtor to raise defences.
Cost to do it: Certified telegram for the prior demand; counsel for the claim. No pre suit conciliation is needed (CGP art. 294.1).
Example: A supplier sends a certified telegram demanding payment of UYU 2,000,000 within three days, then files an executive claim and obtains an attachment of the debtor's bank account. / A foreign holder of a US$50,000 promissory note obtains an attachment order on the day the court reviews the claim, before the debtor is heard.Código General del Proceso, wording by Ley Nº 19.090, art. 354, 2013-06-14 official text · verified 2026-10-27

3. The debtor has 10 days from service, extendable for distance, to raise all defences in a single brief with all documents and offered evidence. Where special laws list the admissible defences, others are rejected without hearing, and partial payment is not a defence but is credited at the liquidation stage. The creditor answers within 6 days, then a hearing is held; if the debtor does not attend without justification, its defences are deemed withdrawn. If no defences are raised, the case goes directly to enforcement without a new demand.
Cost to do it: Hearing attendance with counsel; documentary evidence must be filed with the defences.
Example: A debtor who claims it paid half of a UYU 2,000,000 note cannot block the case on that ground; the payment is deducted when the debt is liquidated. / A foreign creditor must be ready for a hearing within weeks if the Uruguayan debtor raises defences such as forgery or lack of standing.Código General del Proceso, wording by Ley Nº 19.090, art. 354.4, 355, 356 and 357, 2013-06-14 official text · verified 2026-10-27

4. In executive proceedings the defendant bears the costs, fees and other justified expenses, and the claimant bears those caused by its rejected claims, though the court may depart from this with reasons. Appeals are limited to listed decisions, including the final judgment with suspensive effect; other decisions only admit reconsideration. Defences that the law does not allow in executive proceedings may be raised in a later ordinary case, which must be filed within 90 days after the executive judgment becomes final.
Cost to do it: Unlike ordinary cases, the losing debtor pays the creditor's legal fees as a rule (art. 358.4).
Example: A distributor that loses an executive case over UYU 2,000,000 pays the supplier's lawyers as well as court costs. / A debtor wishing to reopen issues not allowed in the executive case has only 90 days after the judgment becomes final to start an ordinary case.Código General del Proceso, wording by Ley Nº 19.090, art. 358.4, 360 and 361, 2013-06-14 official text · verified 2026-10-27

5. Enforcement (vía de apremio) proceeds directly on: a final judgment; a registered mortgage where the debtor waived executive proceedings in the deed; a registered pledge; an arbitral award not subject to a pending annulment action; a court approved settlement; and an agreement reached at judicial conciliation or equivalent administrative conciliation, such as in labour and consumer matters. Enforcement is preceded by a demand to pay within three days, except for judgments obtained in monitory proceedings. Decisions in enforcement are not appealable unless the law says otherwise, and the court may impose daily monetary penalties to force compliance.
Cost to do it: Court ordered daily penalties are set by the judge considering the amount and the debtor's means (art. 374.2).
Example: A bank with a registered mortgage over a Montevideo warehouse, where the debtor waived executive proceedings, goes straight to auction after the three day demand. / A domestic arbitral award for US$1,000,000 (about UYU 40,214,000) is enforced by the vía de apremio once no annulment action is pending (art. 377 numeral 4).Código General del Proceso, wording by Ley Nº 19.090, art. 372, 373, 374 and 377, 2013-06-14 official text · verified 2026-10-27

6. Attachment is decreed by the court and carried out by the court officer; attachments of real estate, vehicles, ships, aircraft and other registered assets, of credits and general attachments take effect with the order and are perfected by registration, credits by notice to the debtor's debtor. The default order is movables, real estate, credits and then a general attachment, unless there are mortgaged or pledged assets. Salaries, pensions and similar income cannot be attached, except up to one third for tax debts or court ordered alimony, or where a law allows retention. The auction is announced once in the Diario Oficial, on the Judiciary's website and in a local newspaper, is held without a reserve price to the highest bidder, and the winner must deposit at least 10 percent of the bid.
Cost to do it: Registry fees for registering attachments; auctioneer's commission and taxes payable by the buyer as stated in the auction notice (art. 387.2).
Example: A creditor attaches a debtor's car and apartment; the attachments are perfected by registration and the apartment is later auctioned without a reserve price. / A bidder at a judicial auction for a property worth about US$250,000 must deposit at least US$25,000 (10 percent of its bid) on the spot.Código General del Proceso, wording by Ley Nº 19.090, art. 380, 381 and 387, 2013-06-14 official text · verified 2026-10-27

7. A cheque drawn in Uruguay in local currency must be presented for payment within 15 days if drawn on a bank in the same place and 30 days if drawn from one place to another in Uruguay; cheques drawn abroad in local currency on a Uruguayan bank within 60 days; and cheques in foreign currency on a Uruguayan bank within 120 days of issue. The holder's actions against the drawer and endorsers prescribe six months after the presentation period ends. A cheque is a title for executive proceedings.
Cost to do it: Bank protest or certification costs are set by the bank; legal costs as for any executive case.
Example: A bounced UYU 150,000 cheque drawn on a Montevideo bank in favour of a Montevideo supplier must have been presented within 15 days; the supplier then has six months to sue. / A US$30,000 cheque in dollars drawn on a Uruguayan bank must be presented within 120 days of issue; after that the creditor must rely on the underlying debt.Decreto Ley Nº 14.412 (Cheques); Código General del Proceso art. 353 numeral 4, DL 14.412 art. 29 and 68; CGP art. 353.4, 1975-08-08 official text · verified 2026-10-27

Title	Route	Source
Cheque, promissory note, bill of exchange, vale, conforme	Executive proceedings	CGP art. 353.4
Private document with recognized or notarized signature	Executive proceedings	CGP art. 353.3
Signed invoice for goods (incl. electronic with advanced signature)	Executive proceedings	CGP art. 353.5
Settlement not approved by a court	Executive proceedings	CGP art. 353.1
Final judgment, arbitral award, approved settlement, conciliation agreement	Vía de apremio	CGP art. 377
Registered mortgage with waiver, registered pledge	Vía de apremio	CGP art. 377.2 and 377.3

Executive proceedings or direct enforcement

Worked example

A Uruguayan importer issues a promissory note for UYU 2,000,000 (about US$49,734) to a Chilean supplier. After the maturity date, the supplier sends a certified telegram demanding payment within three days (CGP art. 354.5), then files an executive claim. The court orders an attachment of the importer's bank balances and condemns it to pay, interest and costs (art. 354.1). The importer has 10 days to raise defences (art. 355); it raises none, so the case goes to enforcement and the attached funds are paid out. The importer bears the supplier's legal fees (art. 358.4).

Step by step

At contract stage, secure an executive title: promissory note, notarized signatures or signed invoices (CGP art. 353).
On default, send a certified telegram demanding payment within three days if there is no recognition or protest (art. 354.5).
File the executive claim and identify assets for attachment; register attachments over registered assets (art. 380).
Answer any defences within 6 days and attend the hearing (art. 356 and 357).
Proceed to auction or collection of attached funds; for awards and judgments use the vía de apremio (art. 377).

Common traps

An unsigned invoice or one without recognized or certified signature is not an executive title (CGP art. 353.5).
Cheque presentation periods are short; late presentation weakens cheque actions (DL 14.412 art. 29 and 68).
Salaries and pensions are mostly exempt from attachment (CGP art. 381).
A debtor's later ordinary case must be filed within 90 days, and cannot reopen defences that could have been raised (art. 361).
Once insolvency proceedings open, new executions are barred and pending ones suspended (Ley 18.387 art. 60).

Sources

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