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What are the legal interest rates applicable during the first half of 2026?
Publié le 29 décembre 2025 - Entreprendre Public Service / Directorate of Legal and Administrative Information (Prime Minister)
Legal interest rates are used to calculate the amount of penalties for late payment to a creditor. The rates applicable during the first half of 2026 were set by an order published in Official Journal of 26 December 2025. They shall apply from 1er January 2026.
Legal interest rates are discounted every semester.
The first rate, the highest, relates to cases where a sum of money is owed to an individual (i.e. the creditor is a natural person not acting for business purposes); the second rate applies to other creditors (including business creditors).
Debtor (the one who owes money) | Creditor (the one to whom the money is due) | Rate (1er semester 2026) | Rate (2d semester 2025) |
|---|---|---|---|
Individual | Individual | 6.67% | 6.65% |
Professional | Individual | 6.67% | 6.65% |
Individual | Professional | 2.62% | 2.76% |
Professional | Professional | 2.62% | 2.76% |
The statutory interest rate is used to calculate the interest on the sums of money owed to a creditor in the event of late payment, particularly in banking matters, over-indebtedness, credit, divorce or between professionals. For example, in the case of a commercial dispute or a court decision requiring you to pay a sum of money, if you pay this amount late, you must pay additional legal interest.
To calculate the amount of this interest, the amount due must be multiplied by the number of days late and by the legal interest rate applicable during the period in question. The result should then be divided by the number of days in a year (365). This corresponds to the following formula: (sum due x days late x legal interest rate) / 365.
365 should also be used in this calculation for a leap year.
Please note
The statutory interest rate increased now stands at 7.62% if the creditor is a professional and 11.67% if the creditor is an individual. This rate applies when the debtor has not paid the amount due within 2 months.
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