Recovering a debt in Mali: enforcement, astreinte, set-off and limitation periods
The rules on enforcing and extinguishing claims in Mali under the 1987 General Law of Obligations: enforceable title, astreinte, indirect and Pauline actions, set-off, merger, impossibility of performance, limitation of 20 years, 5 years or 1 year, interruption, suspension and forfeiture.
A customer who does not pay, rent left unpaid, a debtor who sells assets to escape creditors: what can a person owed money do, and how long do they have to act? In Mali the answer is in Title IV of the General Law of Obligations (1987), articles 215 to 261. This page summarises forced enforcement, other ways a debt ends and above all the limitation periods.
Please note: these are general rules, applicable "unless the law provides otherwise" (article 254). Wage debts, commercial paper and commercial claims under OHADA law also have their own rules. Have your deadlines checked by a lawyer or a judicial officer before acting.
Key points (text checked on 19 October 2026)
- To enforce by force, the creditor needs a title bearing the enforcement formula; there is no forced enforcement against the State or public bodies (articles 220 and 222).
- The general limitation period is twenty years; rents, interest and maintenance payments are time-barred after five years per instalment; wages, fees and supplies to non-traders after one year (articles 254 to 256).
- A court claim, a payment demand or a payment, even partial, interrupts limitation: the period starts again from zero (articles 248 and 249).
- A forfeiture (forclusion) deadline can be neither interrupted nor suspended, except by legal provision or force majeure (articles 260 and 261).
Forced enforcement
| Point | Rule (articles 220 to 222) |
|---|---|
| Principle | any debtor served with notice who does not perform can be compelled by legal means |
| State and public bodies | no forced enforcement against the State and public bodies |
| Collection orders | where the law provides, those of the administration are enforceable in themselves |
| Means | seizure, under the code of civil procedure, without prejudice to protective measures provided by law or authorised by the judge |
| Condition | hold a title bearing the enforcement formula granting the help of the police power |
The astreinte
The astreinte is a provisional civil sanction imposed by the judge on a recalcitrant debtor to push them to perform in kind: a sum per day of delay (or other period), payable until complete performance (article 223). After performance, the judge settles it according to the circumstances (article 224). The judge may also impose a final astreinte straight away. It comes on top of damages, whether compensatory or for delay (article 225).
Acting when the debtor does nothing, or cheats
| Action | When | Conditions |
|---|---|---|
| Direct action | in cases provided by law, the creditor exercises their debtor's action in their own name (article 226) | a creditor with a privilege over their debtor's claim is not exposed to defences available against the debtor |
| Indirect action (action oblique) | the debtor neglects to act: the creditor exercises their rights in their place, except those attached to the person (article 227) | personal interest, claim certain, liquid and due, debtor brought into the case; no preferential right over recovered assets (articles 228 and 229) |
| Pauline action | the debtor made fraudulent acts after the claim arose, harming the creditor (article 230) | claim liquid, certain and due; against a buyer for value, it must be shown they knew of the fraud (article 231); the judge declares the act unenforceable against the acting creditor alone (article 232) |
| Sham transactions | simulated acts likely to harm the creditor, even earlier than their claim (article 233) | any creditor may act |
Other ways a debt ends
| Mode | Rule |
|---|---|
| Set-off | two people who are each other's creditor and debtor: the debts are extinguished automatically, up to the smaller (articles 234 and 235). Conditions: money or fungible things, debts certain, liquid, due and seizable, same parties (article 236). A grace period does not prevent it (article 237); the judge may order it if one debt is not liquid but they can liquidate it (article 238) |
| Exceptions to set-off | return of a thing from which the owner was unjustly deprived, return of a deposit, unseizable maintenance (article 235); not to the detriment of a third party's acquired rights (article 240) |
| Merger (confusion) | the roles of creditor and debtor come together in one person: the obligation is extinguished (article 242), only for the part transferred if partial (article 244) |
| Impossibility | the obligation is extinguished, provisionally or finally, if the specific item owed perishes without the debtor's fault, or if the promised act becomes unlawful after the agreement (article 246) |
Assignment of assets
A debtor unable to pay may abandon all their assets to their creditors. The assignment is voluntary if the creditors accept it (article 216) or judicial for the benefit of an "unfortunate debtor acting in good faith" (article 217). It does not give creditors ownership, only the right to sell the assets for their benefit, and releases the debtor only up to the value of the assets abandoned; if others come to them, they must abandon them until paid in full (articles 218 and 219).
Limitation: how long you have to act
Limitation results from the creditor's inaction for a period set by law, which releases the debtor. It is counted by day; the period runs from the day after the obligation becomes due (article 247).
| Claim | Period | Article |
|---|---|---|
| General law | twenty years | 254 |
| Annuities, rents, maintenance payments, interest on loans | five years, per instalment | 255 |
| Wages, emoluments, fees, board and hotel costs, supplies to non-traders | one year | 256 |
For the one-year limitation: after an interrupting act, the general period starts to run again (article 257); the creditor may put the debtor on oath as to whether the sum was paid, and if the oath is not taken the period is twenty years (article 258); it runs even against minors and persons under guardianship, subject to their recourse against their guardians (article 259). For wages, see also paying employees and payslips, which gives the Labour Code period.
Interrupting or suspending
- Interruption: judicial admission, a court claim, a payment demand, total or partial performance, voluntary or forced. The time already run is cancelled and the full period starts again from the act (articles 248 and 249).
- Suspension: court action, time granted by the judge, the law or the creditor, legal incapacity, impossibility of acting. The time already run is kept and resumes afterwards (articles 250 and 251).
- Waiver: the debtor cannot waive limitation in advance; they may waive it, even tacitly, once the period has expired (article 252).
- Who may invoke it: the debtor, their other creditors or anyone with an interest, at any stage, even on appeal, even if the debtor waives it (article 253).
Forfeiture
When the law requires action within a fixed (préfix) deadline, it can be neither interrupted nor suspended, unless the law says otherwise (article 260). It can only be temporarily suspended in case of force majeure (article 261).
Going further
- Payment rules: paying a debt, receipts and grace periods.
- Enforcement channels: the judicial officer and debt recovery.
- Damages: civil liability.
Frequently asked questions
How long do I have to claim unpaid rent?
Five years, instalment by instalment, under the general rule in article 255.
How can I stop a claim becoming time-barred?
Interrupt the period: a court claim, a payment demand or a payment, even partial, starts a full period again.
Can State assets be seized?
No: the General Law of Obligations excludes any forced enforcement against the State and public bodies.
My debtor is selling assets to avoid paying. What can I do?
You may bring the Pauline action against fraudulent acts made after your claim arose, provided it is liquid, certain and due.
Official source (checked on 19 October 2026)
- General Secretariat of the Government of Mali, General Law of Obligations, law of 29 August 1987 (French), articles 215 to 261.