Civil Online Simple Procedure Scotland

What Civil Online Does

Civil Online is the Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service (SCTS) digital portal for managing Simple Procedure cases. If you filed your claim online, your case documents live here — including the Decision Form you need to start enforcement.

The portal handles both the filing stage and certain post-decision steps. For enforcement purposes, the key functions are accessing your Decision Form, tracking case status, and submitting specific applications if the debtor tries to challenge or vary the decree.

Accessing Your Decision Form

After the sheriff decides your case, the Decision Form (Form 13A) appears in your Civil Online account. This is the document that serves as both the decree and the warrant for enforcement — under Simple Procedure, there is no separate "extract decree" to apply for.

You can print or download the Decision Form directly. When you instruct a Sheriff Officer, they will need the certified copy. If the original is lost or damaged, request a replacement from the Sheriff Clerk (a prescribed fee applies under the Sheriff Court Fees Order 2026).

Post-Decision Applications Through Civil Online

Two post-decision applications relevant to enforcement can be submitted through the portal:

Form 13B — Application to Recall. For a dismissed claim, a party may apply within two weeks of dismissal. For another decision made in a party's absence, they can apply any time before the decision is fully implemented. If a Charge for Payment or arrestment has been executed, that period ends 14 days after the first such execution. The Sheriff Clerk checks whether it is the first recall application; if so, the sheriff must issue Standard Order SO13 arranging a discussion. If you are sent the application, you must not enforce the decision until the sheriff decides whether to recall it.

Form 15B — Alternative Decision Application. If the original decision ordered the debtor to deliver property or perform a specific act, included an alternative order to pay money, and the debtor has not complied, you can apply through Civil Online for the sheriff to make the alternative monetary decision. The sheriff may grant this, refuse it, or order a discussion.

Form 13B is subject to the recall timing rules above. Monitor your Civil Online account for applications and court notices. If you are sent a Form 13B, you must not enforce the decision until the sheriff decides whether to recall it.

What Civil Online Does Not Do

Civil Online is an administrative portal. It does not enforce your decision. The court cannot instruct Sheriff Officers, freeze bank accounts, or deduct wages on your behalf. Once you have the Decision Form, enforcement is your responsibility.

The portal also does not provide guidance on which enforcement tool to use, how to instruct a Sheriff Officer, or how to trace a debtor's assets. Those operational steps sit outside what SCTS offers.

Using Civil Online Alongside Enforcement

Think of Civil Online as your case file, not your enforcement engine. Check it to confirm no recall or appeal has been lodged before instructing a Sheriff Officer (any pending application pauses enforcement). Use it to access your Decision Form and track any further court communications.

For the actual enforcement steps — serving a Charge for Payment, choosing between bank arrestment and earnings arrestment, tracing assets, and tracking recovered amounts — the enforcement guide covers the full workflow from the moment the four-week wait expires.

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