Some of you may be aware that yesterday (22nd November, 2015) saw the introduction of new SEPA Rulebook for both the SEPA Credit Transfer and for the SEPA Direct Debit scheme. The new SEPA Rulebook changes have caused some people to panic, and others to go into denial. I’m exaggerating of course! But the new SEPA rulebook’s have caused some people a bit of worry because they weren’t aware of the SEPA Rulebook changes and don’t know what the changes mean for them. That is where this post will help – in plain and simple English you will know what to do next…..
1. Keep Reading SEPA for Corporates
I summarised these changes relating to the SEPA Rulebook in December 2014 in the appropriately named post – SEPA Rulebooks 2015 – 5 Things You Need to Know. If i can say so myself, I think this was a really important post because it highlights:
- The purpose of the SEPA Rulebook
- Why the European Payments Council publish and update the SEPA Rulebook for both SEPA Payments and SEPA Direct Debit’s
- An overview of the SEPA Rulebook changes
- The effective date of the SEPA Rulebook for SEPA payments and SEPA direct debit collections
2. Take me to the latest SEPA Rulebook
Okay, there are 3 SEPA Rulebooks. All of the below were effective as of yesterday:
- SEPA Credit Transfer Rulebook version 8.1
- SEPA Direct Debit CORE Rulebook version 8.1
- SEPA Direct Debit B2B (Business to Business) Rulebook version 6.1
3. SEPA Rulebook changes 2015 – Don’t Panic!
Actually nothing of significance really changed this year (November 2015).
The SEPA Credit Transfer and SEPA Direct Debit schemes will continue more or less to run as they did previously. But please don’t take my word for it, double check anything that you’re not sure about with your bank and / or payment service provider. That’s what they are there for.
4. Phew – I can forget about the SEPA Rulebook, right?
Wrong! This year (November 2015 – November 2016) the SEPA Rulebook for payments and direct debits is not changing much. But next year (from November 2016) there are a few subtle changes.
5. Ok, What is changing in the SEPA Rulebook in 2016?
The main changes you need to be aware of relate to the SEPA direct debit scheme. The below changes become effective from November 2016:
- The following change is applicable to both the SEPA CORE and SEPA B2B Schemes –
- Companies no longer need to indicate FRST for the first collection you make in a recurrent series. The first collection in a series can be indicated with a sequence type of RCUR (Recurring)
- This is applicable to the CORE scheme only –
- First (FRST) and one off (OOFF) collections can be submitted to the bank 1 day before the due date (Note – this is currently 5 days prior to the due date for FRST and OOFF collections)
- The ability to use a mandate electronically – i.e. an e-mandate — more on this soon….!
6. Do i need to worry about February 2016…?
Yessss…! With only a little over 2 months to go, you really need to ensure that you’re ready for the upcoming February 2016 deadline. This is REALLY important. Your euro payments and euro direct debit collections may not get processed after February 2016.
Read the post SEPA Deadline: 1st February 2016 – The Countdown Begins to know if you’re impacted and what to do next….
Hope that helps, folks!