I received a garnishment on my Dutch account 🔎

bunq

Hey bunqers 🌈

What's a garnishment?

If you have an outstanding debt to an individual, institution, or entity (also known as a creditor), they may obtain a court order to recover the money you owe. This process is called garnishment. The creditor or a bailiff acting on their behalf can use garnishment to retrieve the outstanding costs. Remember, we're here to help you navigate through this process if it happens.

Who can place a garnishment on my account?

Each institution with the relevant court order in their favor can place a garnishment on your account. Some of the most common ones are the Tax Authority, the Unemployment Benefit Agency, and the Central Judicial Collection Agency.

A bailiff can also place a garnishment on your account. Court order in favor of the creditor is needed so they can reach out to the bailiff. This court order is delivered to bunq by the bailiff. A judge can rule that the money on your account must be used to pay off your debt. bunq is obliged to comply with their request through a garnishment process. Garnishments are lifted by the bailiff only, not by bunq.

What happens if your Dutch account received a garnishment?

Step 1. Seizure

First, we must have received a garnishment request by the institution or the bailiff accompanied with the court order. While we’re processing the garnishment, we temporarily freeze your monetary account(s). That’s only until we transfer the funds into a special bunq intermediary account where they will be reserved for the bailiff. Once this is done, we will reactivate your monetary account(s) and you can use your bunq account as usual. We will not seize any funds that came in the account(s) after that.

We transfer all your funds to this internal account unless the garnishment order states that there is a garnishment free feet. A garnishment free feet is the unseizable amount which is defined by law as the minimum necessary funds for living and it’s based on your family composition:

€1.661,40 for a single person,
€1.779,52 for a single parent,
€2.199,34 for a married couple without children,
€2.317,54 for a married couple with children.

Step 2. Statement

Once we seize the funds to the intermediary account, we inform the institution or the bailiff about the amount(s) available. We do that by providing them with a third-party statement which includes this information.

Step 3. Transfer

Based on the third-party statement, the institution or the bailiff will send us a letter with instructions whether and what amount of funds should be transferred to them.

Is there an administration fee for a garnishment?

By Dutch law, bunq is required to process every garnishment. For each garnishment we process, an administrative fee of €80 is applied.

Can a bailiff ask for information about my bank account prior to a garnishment?

Before a bailiff places a garnishment on your bank account, the bailiff is allowed to ask whether you have a bunq account. This is by law, according to article 475aa Rv, we as a bank are required to answer this question.

I have another question about a garnishment placed on my account. Who do I contact?

We've shared the available details about the garnishment, including the file number and the creditor's name, in the garnishment announcement. For more specific advice and assistance, it would be best to reach out to the bailiff directly. They'll be able to provide you with more detailed information.

When will my garnishment be lifted?

The garnishment on your account will be lifted once we receive a court order stating that the garnishment proceedings have been finalized.

Why are the assets of my minor also frozen?

Your kid is a minor, therefore their funds are your responsibility and included in the garnishment

How can I appeal?

As a third-party, we don't handle objections or other requests related to the garnishment. These matters are managed by the institution or the bailiff who placed the garnishment. If you have any further questions, it’ll be best to contact the bailiff about them.

I paid the bailiff from another bank, what should I do?

We're able to act based on the instructions we receive from the bailiff. If your debt has been settled through another account, the bailiff should inform us about this update. To expedite the process, you might want to confirm with your bailiff that they've contacted us. Please note that we'll need some time to process this information.