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Article L441-10 of the French Commercial code

I.-Unless otherwise provided for in the terms and conditions of sale or agreed between the parties, the period for payment of sums due may not exceed thirty days after the date of receipt of the goods or performance of the service requested. The period agreed between the parties for payment of sums due may not exceed sixty days after the date of issue of the invoice. By way of derogation,…

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Article L441-11 of the French Commercial code

I.-The professionals in a sector, customers and suppliers, may jointly decide to reduce the maximum payment period set in the second, third and fourth paragraphs of I of Article L. 441-10. They may also propose to use the date of receipt of the goods or performance of the requested service as the starting point for this period. Agreements may be concluded to this effect by their professional organisations. A decree…

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Article L441-12 of the French Commercial code

Parrogation au I de l’article L. 441-10, le délai convenu entre les parties pour le paiement des achats effectués en franchise de la taxe sur la valeur ajoutée, en application de l’article 275 of the General Tax Code, of goods intended to be delivered as such outside the European Union may not exceed ninety days after the date of issue of the invoice. The period agreed between the parties shall…

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Article L441-13 of the French Commercial code

For deliveries of goods that are imported into the tax territory of the departments of Guadeloupe, Martinique, French Guiana, Réunion and Mayotte and the overseas collectivities of Saint-Barthélemy, Saint-Martin, the Wallis and Futuna Islands and Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon, the payment periods provided for in I of Article L. 441-10 and 1° to 4° of II of Article L. 441-11 shall only be counted from the date of customs clearance of the goods…

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Article L441-14 of the French Commercial code

Companies whose annual accounts are certified by a statutory auditor provide information on the payment terms of their suppliers and customers in accordance with procedures defined by decree. This information is the subject of an attestation by the statutory auditor, under conditions set by the same decree. Where the company concerned is a large company or an intermediate-sized company, within the meaning of the article 51 of Law no. 2008-776…

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Article L441-15 of the French Commercial code

I.-Any professional operating in an economic sector mentioned in III may ask the administrative authority responsible for competition and consumer affairs to take a formal position on compliance with the second, third and fourth paragraphs of I of Article L. 441-10 of the arrangements for calculating the payment periods that it plans to introduce. The purpose of this formal position is to protect this professional from a change in assessment…

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Article L441-16 of the French Commercial code

An administrative fine of up to €75,000 for a natural person and up to €2 million for a legal entity shall be imposed for: a) Failing to comply with the payment deadlines provided for in I of Article L. 441-10, II of Article L. 441-11, Article L. 441-12 and Article L. 441-13; b) Not indicating, in the terms of payment set out in I of Article L. 441-1, the information…

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Article L441-17 of the French Commercial code

I.-The contract may provide for penalties to be imposed on the supplier in the event of non-performance of contractual commitments. It must allow for a sufficient margin of error in relation to the volume of deliveries provided for in the contract. Sufficient time must be allowed to inform the other party in the event of a contingency. The penalties imposed on the supplier by the distributor are proportionate to the…

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Article L441-18 of the French Commercial code

If the distributor fails to fulfil a contractual commitment, the supplier may impose penalties. These penalties are proportionate to the damage suffered as a result of the non-performance of contractual commitments, up to a ceiling equivalent to 2% of the value, within the order, of the category of products ordered concerned by the non-performance of the said commitments. Proof of breach must be provided by the supplier by any means….

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Article L441-19 of the French Commercial code

For the application of articles L. 441-17 and L. 441-18, a guide to good practice is published and updated regularly. Each distributor shall communicate to the Director General of Competition, Consumer Affairs and Fraud Control or his named representative, by 31 December each year at the latest, the amounts of the logistical penalties it has imposed on its suppliers over the last twelve months as well as the amounts actually…

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