ING currently offers SEPA Credit Transfer initiation in 19 countries in the SEPA area and SEPA Credit Transfer can be received in all SEPA countries. SEPA Credit Transfer offers companies the option of using a limited number of accounts and a standardised format for the initiation of credit transfers across the SEPA area. The initiation countries are: the Netherlands, Belgium, France, Spain, Portugal, Luxembourg, United Kingdom, Ireland, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Italy, Poland, Slovakia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Bulgaria, Romania, and Poland.
ING offers different types of SEPA Credit Transfer. Although the products for the initiation of payments within the SEPA area are harmonised, there are still some country specifics in cut-off times and processing differences to consider.
Almost every bank within SEPA is a participant and is therefore reachable for SEPA Credit Transfers. If a bank within SEPA does not participate in SEPA Credit Transfers, ING will ensure payments are received by that bank. All payments must be processed within two business days and will reach the beneficiary on the same day or the following business day.
SEPA Credit Transfer
A SEPA Credit Transfer is the standard single payment to a beneficiary within the SEPA area. The receiving bank will receive the SEPA Credit Transfer on the same day if payment is initiated before the cut-off time, except when the payment is initiated in Slovakia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Romania and Poland. When a SEPA Credit Transfer is initiated from an account in one of these countries ‘priority high’ needs to be selected in order to be processed on the same business day. The transfer will result in an account statement where transactions are displayed as single debits. For reconciliation or accountancy purposes, companies can choose to use an account statement with single debits.
SEPA Credit Transfers in euros to and from non-Eurozone countries in the SEPA area such as Poland, the United Kingdom and Norway can be carried out. Euro payments to a non- SEPA country will not be processed under SEPA conditions. These payments will be processed as International Credit Transfer.
A number of payment references can be delivered with a SEPA Credit Transfer. The SEPA format for transactions contains different fields where it is possible to add transaction information to SEPA Credit Transfer. The SEPA rulebook requires that these references are delivered in the end-to-end chain. These references improve reconciliation in business administration.
The following references can be added to the format of the SEPA Credit Transfer:
- Payment description: 140 characters
- Payment reference: 25 characters
- End-to-end id: 35 characters
SEPA Credit Transfer Instant
A SEPA Credit Transfer Instant ('instant payment') is a single payment which is credited to the beneficiary account within seconds, 24/7. For instant payments there is no cut-off time, only a day-time shift at 00:00. Instant payments have recently been introduced as an additional product type within the SEPA area. For an overview of the product’s features, roll-out and reachability of banks, visit our instant payments page.
SEPA Credit Transfer Intra-Company
If you want to make a credit transfer between two accounts that belong to the same economic group of your company and both accounts are held within ING, you can opt for the SEPA Credit Transfer Intra-Company.
SEPA Credit Transfer ING In-house
If you make or receive a SEPA Credit Transfer between two accounts that are held at ING, the payment will be processed as a SEPA Credit Transfer ING In-house. The receiving bank will be credited as soon as possible.
Euro Credit Transfer Real Time
If you want to initiate a high value EUR payment as late (last minute) as possible, you can choose for the Euro Credit Transfer Real Time. The Euro Credit Transfer Real Time will be processed with a cut-off time near the end of the business day.
SEPA Credit Transfer Batch
SEPA Credit Transfer Batch allows you to send a large number of payments simultaneously. With a SEPA Credit Transfer Batch, a file can be created that includes multiple payments to all banks within the SEPA area. For the account statement, you can choose whether it should have the multiple SEPA Credit Transfer presented as a global debit or as a multiple debit.
SEPA Credit Transfer Batch Salary
The SEPA Credit Transfer Batch Salary is intended for salary payments. If the cut-off time is respected, all payments in the batch are processed on the same day and all beneficiaries will receive their salary on the same day. If the cut-off time is missed, the entire batch must be processed on the next target day (D+1).
SEPA Standing Orders
SEPA Standing Order is intended for transactions that are initiated regularly, such as weekly or monthly. You can save time and reduce the risk of delayed payments by creating a standard order for recurrent payments. Several interactive ING channels provide the option of entering standing orders manually.
Initiation formats SEPA Credit Transfer
Although the initiation XML format for the SEPA Credit Transfer is a standardised format, the formats of XML initiation files for SEPA Credit Transfer can differ between countries and between banks. Each country has its own specific guideline for SEPA Credit Transfer initiation formats. In most countries a specific ING appendix also exists for the SEPA Credit Transfer format file.
Recall of a SEPA Credit Transfer (including Instant)
A request to recall a specific SEPA Credit Transfer for a reason other than duplicate sending, technical problems resulting in an erroneous SEPA Credit Transfer, and a fraudulently originated SEPA Credit Transfer can be initiated.
This recall of a SEPA Credit Transfer may be requested up to 13 months after the book date of the original transaction and must include a comprehensible reason, that will be submitted to the beneficiary for its consideration (e.g. incorrect beneficiary or amount). Note that ING cannot guarantee that the requester will effectively receive back the funds of the initial SEPA Credit Transfer since consent of the beneficiary and the beneficiary bank is needed.
In addition to the fee payable to ING to process the recall request, the beneficiary bank may charge a return fee in cases of a successful recall, which can be deducted by the beneficiary bank from the amount of the initial SEPA Credit Transfer before returning the recalled funds to the requester.
Closing days
TARGET2 is open for the processing of payments every working day from 07:00 to 18:00 CET. The system is closed on the following days:
- 1 January (New Year's Day)
- Good Friday
- Easter Monday
- 1 May (Labour Day)
- 25 December (Christmas Day)
- 26 December
