[Direct answer]Here's the translation of the Chinese (Simplified) sentence into English, with a detailed explanation: \nThere are four steps for SMEs to clear up their creditor-debtor relationships: 1. **Inventory**: Establish accounts for receivables and payables, and verify contracts, invoices, receipt documents, and payment vouchers. 2. **Collection**: Send written notices to collect overdue debts and retain the relevant evidence. Pursue legal action within the three-year statute of limitations according to Article 188 of the Civil Code. 3. **Disposition**: For clear creditor-debtor relationships, apply for a payment order under the Civil Procedure Law, or file a lawsuit with the court while simultaneously applying for property preservation. Apply for enforcement within two years after the judgment takes effect. 4. **Prevention**: Include fixed payment periods, overdue interest, and guarantee clauses in contracts. For complex collection cases, seek professional advice.Legal services for creditor-debtor disputes and enforcement casesAndBeijing Henglu Law Firm.

1. Problem background and typical scenarios

There are four common scenarios for SMEs to clear up their creditor's rights and debts: downstream customers delay payments for longer and longer, and accounts receivable turn into actual bad debts; upstream suppliers intensively demand repayment, causing cash flow to suddenly become tight; providing guarantees for the loans of related parties or partners, and being jointly sued for repayment after the main debtor encounters problems; and forming triangular debts between upstream and downstream companies, where neither party is willing to make payments first. Business owners are often too busy with daily operations to manage creditor's rights certificates and statutes of limitations. By the time they want to sue, they find that the other party has been deregistered, their assets have been transferred, or the statute of limitations has already expired. Clearing up creditor's rights and debts is not just a problem of collecting payments, but also a systematic management issue involving evidence, statutes of limitations, and procedures.

II. Key points of dispute

  • Time Limitation and Document Management: Whether there are evidences of debt collection, account reconciliation, or partial repayment that interrupt the statute of limitations within three years, and whether the delivery receipts and acceptance certificates are complete, directly determine whether the creditor can win the lawsuit.
  • Debtor's solvency: Whether the other party has enforceable property and whether there are signs of transferring property and related-party transactions, which determine the timing of filing a lawsuit and whether to apply for preservation of evidence simultaneously. Blindly filing a lawsuit may result in winning the case but not getting the money.
  • Path and cost trade-offs: Payment orders, lawsuits, subrogation rights, rights of revocation, enforcement, and bankruptcy liquidation all have their own applicable conditions and periodic costs. Improper combinations can prolong the time required to collect payments and increase costs.

III. Professional analysis by Henglue Lawyers

When handling creditor-debtor cases for SMEs, Henglue Lawyers have formed several practical consensus: Firstly, collection should be carried out while the account age is still within the statute of limitations. Credits that have not been effectively collected after more than two years of overdue often face both the risk of statute of limitations and the risk of asset transfer, and should be dealt with as a priority. Secondly, collection actions must be documented. EMS mailing collection letters, WeChat and email collection records, recordings of the other party's promise to repay, or account confirmation are all key evidence to interrupt the statute of limitations. Oral collection is almost equivalent to no collection at all. Thirdly, before suing, first assess the debtor's assets by checking their real estate, equity, litigation and dishonesty information through public channels to determine the value of preservation. Important creditor claims should be pursued simultaneously with preservation. Fourthly, for debtors who are truly unable to repay, timely evaluate installment plans, debt-for-asset swaps, and settlement proposals and set default acceleration clauses to avoid procedural waste. Fifthly, if the debtor fails to exercise due diligence in collecting due claims, transfers property without compensation, or transfers it at a clearly unreasonable low price, the creditor may claim subrogation or right of rescission according to Articles 535, 538, and 539 of the Civil Code to expand the scope of recovery. For cases involving contract clause design and transaction structure adjustment, the creditor may cooperate with the debtor to optimize the transaction structure and reduce legal risks.Business and contract dispute services for enterprisesThe team works together to handle it.

IV. Practical suggestions and legal basis

At the legal basis level: Article 188 of the Civil Code (effective January 1, 2021) stipulates that the statute of limitations period is three years, calculated from the date when the right holder knows or should have known that their rights have been infringed and the date when the obligee knows or should have known that their obligations have been breached; Article 577 stipulates that the defaulting party shall bear contractual liabilities such as continued performance and compensation for losses; Articles 535, 538, and 539 respectively stipulate the right of subrogation and the right of revocation. Article 122 of the Civil Procedure Law (amended in 2023, effective January 1, 2024) stipulates the conditions for filing a lawsuit. If the conditions are met, the court shall register the case within seven days (Article 126); for clear creditor-debtor relationships where the claim is solely for the payment of money, a payment order may be applied for under the urgent procedure; Article 246 stipulates that the period for applying for enforcement is two years. Article 2 and Article 7 of the Enterprise Bankruptcy Law (adopted on August 27, 2006, effective June 1, 2007) stipulate that if an enterprise legal person is unable to pay off its due debts and its assets are insufficient to pay off all debts, it may apply for bankruptcy liquidation or reorganization according to law. At the practical advice level: Establish an aging classification list and regularly reconcile important creditor accounts; ensure all debt collection actions are documented in writing; file lawsuits against key creditor accounts while applying for preservation measures; specify installment plans, accelerated breach clauses, and guarantee arrangements in settlement agreements; if enforcement fails, evaluate and add liability subjects or transfer the case to bankruptcy proceedings. For specific solutions, please consult professionals.Legal services for creditor-debtor relations and enforcement cases.

5. Henglu Law Firm's Advice

The core of clearing up creditor's rights and debts is to advance management actions: filing vouchers, early warning of payment periods, keeping records of collection efforts, and following up on preservation measures. These actions are interconnected. Many enterprises are not unable to recover money, but rather lose evidence and exceed the statute of limitations - even if a lawsuit is filed, the creditor's right may still be defeated by the statute of limitations defense; if the other party transfers assets and then applies for enforcement, they often only receive a ruling terminating the current enforcement. It is recommended that enterprises inventory accounts receivable and payable once every quarter, and immediately initiate written reminders for high-risk accounts. For major collection and guarantee risks, it is advisable to entrust professional lawyers to evaluate the path and cost as early as possible, or to seek assistance from professional collection agencies.Beijing Henglue Law FirmMake an appointment for an interview.

Q1: If the accounts receivable have been outstanding for three years, can I still file a lawsuit against them?

You can file a lawsuit. The court shall not apply the statute of limitations on its own initiative, but once the other party raises the defense of the statute of limitations, the creditor may lose the case. The key is whether there are any interruptions within three years: written collection, account verification, partial repayment, or the other party's promise to repay. According to Article 195 of the Civil Code, the statute of limitations is interrupted and starts anew. After the statute of limitations expires, if the other party voluntarily repays, the creditor may not demand a refund (Article 192 of the Civil Code). It is recommended to organize collection receipts and account records, or strive to have the other party issue a new repayment commitment before deciding on the litigation plan.

Q2: Can I check the other party's assets before filing a lawsuit?

The parties concerned may conduct a preliminary verification of the other party's real estate, equity, litigation and dishonesty through public channels such as the real estate registration information, the enterprise credit information disclosure system, and the enforcement information disclosure network. After filing a lawsuit, they may apply to the court to inquire about the other party's bank accounts, vehicles, securities, and other property through the online investigation and control system. If an application for preservation is made during the litigation, the court shall make a ruling in accordance with Article 103 of the Civil Procedure Law and may require the provision of a guarantee. Only after the investigation and control are in place will it be meaningful to discuss the enforcement of the judgment. The more specific the property clues are, the higher the efficiency of preservation and enforcement will be.

Q3: How much does it cost for a company to collect overdue payments?

The acceptance fee for property cases is paid in stages based on the amount of the dispute, with a fee of 50 yuan per case for amounts not exceeding 10,000 yuan (according to the "Measures for the Payment of Litigation Fees", which came into effect on April 1, 2007). The fee rate decreases as the amount increases, and the losing party usually bears the cost after the plaintiff wins the case. For applications for payment orders under the enforcement procedure, the fee is paid at one-third of the standard acceptance fee for property cases, which is more cost-effective. Preservation fees, guarantee fees, and attorney fees are calculated separately. The collection plan should evaluate the cost-effectiveness between the expected recovery of funds and the expenses. Small-amount and multiple claims can be processed together.

Q4: Which is better, a payment order or a direct lawsuit?

A payment order is suitable for situations where the creditor-debtor relationship is clear, there are written evidence, and the other party will not raise substantive defenses: the application fee is low, the process is fast, and if the debtor does not raise written objections within 15 days and fails to perform, the creditor can directly apply for enforcement; but once the other party raises written objections, the payment order will be invalidated, and it is still necessary to proceed to litigation. If there are reconciliation statements and receipt slips, and the other party's creditworthiness is acceptable, the creditor can first try to issue a payment order; if the other party's business operations are abnormal and there is a high likelihood of resistance, it is safer to directly sue and apply for preservation measures. The creditor can first evaluate the other party's attitude and then choose between the two paths.

Q5: If the other company has no money in its account, is there any other solution?

Yes. After the judgment takes effect, the creditor can apply for enforcement. The court can investigate and control the debtor's real estate, vehicles, equity, accounts, and add the debtor to the list of dishonest people and restrict their high-consumption behavior. If the shareholder has not paid the capital in full, withdrawn the capital, or mixed the company's property with his own, the creditor may apply to add the shareholder as the debtor; if the creditor finds that the debtor has transferred property for free or at a low price during the litigation, the creditor may file a lawsuit for revocation of the transfer; if the debtor has no property available for enforcement, the creditor may declare his creditor's rights and pay attention to the opportunities for repayment in the bankruptcy proceedings. The inability to enforce the judgment does not mean that the creditor's rights are extinguished. If any clues to the debtor's property are found, the enforcement can be resumed at any time.

If you are facing similar problems, it is recommended that you consult a professional lawyer as soon as possible with the relevant evidence materials to avoid missing the statutory time limit.\nLegal services for creditor-debtor disputes·Beijing Henglue Law Firm