Step 1: Get your documents in order (day 1)
- Invoice(s) with GSTIN and due date
- Purchase order, email or message confirming the order
- Delivery challan, e-way bill, lorry receipt or acceptance of service
- Ledger statement and every message about the payment
- Udyam certificate if you are a micro or small enterprise
- Cheque and bank return memo if a cheque bounced
Step 2: Send a written reminder with a statement of account (days 1–7)
Email and WhatsApp a polite but formal reminder with the statement attached and a clear date. Keep it short. This creates a record; many buyers pay here.
Step 3: Call the decision-maker, not the clerk (days 7–14)
Speak to the owner or finance head. Ask for a date and confirm it in writing afterwards. If you are an MSME, mention that interest at three times the bank rate is accruing under the MSMED Act.
Step 4: Legal notice (day 15 onwards, or day 1 if a cheque bounced)
A notice from an advocate puts the buyer on record and starts statutory timelines. For a bounced cheque it is mandatory within 30 days of the return memo. FundRaksha sends it within 24 hours of your documents, at no upfront cost.
Step 5: Choose the legal route if the notice is ignored
| Situation | Route | Where, for Chennai |
|---|---|---|
| Udyam-registered supplier, payment over 45 days late | MSME Samadhaan | Tamil Nadu Micro and Small Enterprises Facilitation Council |
| Cheque bounced | Section 138 complaint | Metropolitan Magistrate courts at Egmore, George Town, Saidapet and Alandur for Section 138 |
| Invoice or contract dues, no real dispute | Summary suit | City Civil Court and the Madras High Court Commercial Division for recovery suits. |
| Contract with arbitration clause | Arbitration | Tribunal per the clause |
Recovering B2B dues in Chennai: what is specific here
Chennai’s auto cluster in Oragadam, Sriperumbudur and Ambattur means thousands of tier-2 and tier-3 component suppliers waiting on large buyers, often beyond the MSME Act’s 45-day limit. Leather exporters in Pallavaram and engineering job-workers in Guindy face similar delays. MSME Samadhaan before the Tamil Nadu Facilitation Council is a strong route for Udyam-registered units here.
Main industries: automobile and auto components, IT and BPO services, leather and footwear, engineering and pharmaceuticals.
Courts: Metropolitan Magistrate courts at Egmore, George Town, Saidapet and Alandur for Section 138; City Civil Court and the Madras High Court Commercial Division for recovery suits.
MSME claims: Udyam-registered micro and small suppliers in Chennai file on MSME Samadhaan, heard by the Tamil Nadu Micro and Small Enterprises Facilitation Council (Commissionerate of Industries and Commerce (MSME Department), Government of Tamil Nadu, Chennai). The Council sits where the supplier is, so a Chennai supplier can pursue a buyer in another state from home.
Step 6: Secure the settlement
Get any payment plan in writing with dates and post-dated cheques or a mandate. A missed instalment then has its own remedy.