Business Contracts

Under the terms of Article 1343-4 of the Civil Code, the place of payment of an obligation to pay a sum of money is the creditor's domicile. It has thus been ruled that, in the absence of an agreement on the place of payment, payment must be made at the domicile of the seller, the creditor of the sum of money . However, in the case of a sale, the parties have complete freedom to determine the place of payment, since, in accordance with Article 1650 of the Civil Code, payment is made “at the place determined by the sale” . In the absence of a place of payment agreed between the parties at the time of the sale, Article 1651 designates the place of delivery . On the other hand, when the debt is to be collected i.e. when the place of payment is indeterminate, Article 1342-6 of the Civil Code fixes the debtor's domicile as the place of payment.

The draft reform of the law of special contracts adopts a slightly different wording to that of current Articles 1650 and 1651. It first specifies that the buyer's obligations must be performed at the place and time agreed by the parties, and then adds that, if the contract is silent, they must be performed at the place and time of delivery, after the latter has been performed (Art. 1665).

The place of payment may be decisive for the currency of exchange. In effect, in France, under Article 1343-3 of the Civil Code, payment is made in euros. It may, however, be made in another currency when the obligation arises from an international transaction or a foreign court ruling, or in the case of transactions between professionals where the use of a foreign currency is commonly accepted for this type of transaction.

CA Lyon, 9 July 1987, LawLex202300008944JBJ.

CA Riom, 13 March 2017, LawLex202300008945JBJ.

CA Toulouse, 3 December 2007, LawLex202300008946JBJ.

154. Place of payment