Plazos

Plazos is a Spanish term that refers to a period of time with a defined start and end during which a particular action should take place, an obligation must be fulfilled, or a constraint remains in effect. The concept is used across fields such as accounting, commerce, law, and finance, and its specific meaning can vary depending on the context.

In everyday usage, a plazo commonly denotes a deadline or a date by which something must be completed, such as submitting documents, filing petitions, or complying with contractual duties. In legal contexts, many jurisdictions establish procedural plazos that set how long parties have to perform certain actions in court. In contractual and financial contexts, a plazo can also signify the duration of a contract or the term of a loan, which affects repayment schedules, interest, and amortization.

In commercial transactions, plazos de pago specify when payments are due, often stated as numbers of days (for example, 30, 60, or 90). There are also plazos de gracia, periods after due dates during which late charges or penalties may be waived. Financial products may use the term plazo si refers to investments or deposits with fixed terms (depósito a plazo). The distinction between corto plazo (short term) and largo plazo (long term) is commonly used to categorize the duration of obligations, agreements, or investments. While usage and rules can vary by country, the core idea of plazo remains the same: to delimit a temporal span for a particular action or effect.