SEPA Direct Debit

The standard method for collecting Euro-denominated recurring payments, from regular subscription payments and monthly donations, to one-click payments or paying in instalments.

Currently, 36 countries use the SEPA Direct Debit system which makes SEPA Direct Debit incredibly powerful for Europe-wide expansion of subscription services.

How it works

Key information


Available country codes	EU countries: `AT, BE, BG, HR, CY, CZ, DK, EE, FI, FR, DE, GR, HU, IE, IT, LV, LT, LU, MT, NL, PL, PT, RO, SK, SI, ES, SE` EEA Countries: `IS, LI, NO` Countries that have bilateral agreements with EU: `AD, SM, MC, VA`
Supported merchant locations	`European Economic Area (EEA)`, `United Kingdom`, `Switzerland`
Supported currencies	`EUR`
API method name	`directdebit`
Supported API	Payments API , Orders API
Minimum transaction amount	0.01 EUR
Maximum transaction amount	1,000.00 EUR (Default Limit)
Session timeout	60 minutes / 15 minutes
Supported operations	Auto-Capture Full refund Partial refunds
Refund validity	365 days
Recurring	Yes
Settlement delay	9 business days
Chargeback risk	Yes
Chargeback period	Within 8 weeks. If this period is over, the customer can choose to do an unauthorized Direct debit report with the bank within 13 months of payment.
Resource pack	Available here

First Payment Authorisation

In order to get started with recurring payments you require the customer’s consent. This can be done via a first payment. It’s similar to a regular payment, but the customer is shown information about your organization, and the customer needs to complete the payment with the account that will be used for recurring charges in the future. After the first payment is completed successfully, the customer’s account will immediately be chargeable on-demand, or periodically through subscriptions.

The following methods support first payments for SEPA Direct Debit

Bancontact
Belfius
EPS
iDEAL
KBC Payment Button
MyBank
Trustly