SEPA Instant Credit Transfer

Introduction to SEPA Instant Credit Transfer

Introduced in 2017, SEPA Instant Credit Transfer (SCT Inst) is designed to make real-time payments a reality throughout the SEPA zone. SCT Inst payments are a push payment, meaning they’re initiated by the debtor. SCT Inst offers improved settlement speed and availability relative to the SEPA Credit Transfer scheme, making them more suitable for ecommerce purchases, QR code payments, and other types of consumer payments.

To learn more, our guide to SEPA payments covers the SEPA zone and its various payment schemes in greater detail.

• Year introduced: 2017
• ‍Operated by: European Payments Council
• ‍Participation: 2,360 PSPs as of July 2022 (61%)
• ‍Availability: 24/7, 365 days a year
• ‍Settlement: Real time (less than 10 seconds)
• Maximum amount: €100,000
• ‍Fee per payment: €0.20 (approx.)

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How SEPA Instant Credit Transfer works

In order to make a SCT Inst payment, the debtor must specify the recipient's IBAN, name, and the amount. The maximum transaction amount was raised to €100,000 in 2020, increasing the system's utility for both businesses and individuals. As with standard credit transfers, SCT Inst payments can be recalled for up to ten business days in the case of errors and senders can request a refund for up to 13 months in the event of suspected fraud.

Banks and PSPs currently set their own fees for processing SEPA Instant Credit Transfers. The per-transaction cost is supposed to be similar to that of standard transfers, around €0.20, but there are examples of several PSPs setting higher fees.

Usage of SCT Inst is increasing faster than that of any other SEPA scheme, but coverage has been far from complete since its launch because banks and PSPs have not been required to support it until now. As of January 2023, 2323 institutions across 29 countries have joined the SCT Inst scheme, which amounts to 61% of financial institutions within the SEPA zone.

In 2023 it was announced that by October 2024 all eurozone PSPs must be able to support outgoing instant payments and that, by April 2026, PSPs outside the eurozone must be able to receive euro-denominated instant payments. All PSPs will need to comply with uniform pricing requirements by that time too.

What is the availability of SCT?

SCT Inst targets a maximum execution time of 10 seconds to complete a transaction with the funds arriving immediately in the recipient’s account. This applies 24/7, 365 days a year. According to data from the European Payments Council, over 99% of SCT Inst transactions are completed within less than five seconds.

How does SCT remittance information work?

Debtors can append a reference to individual SCT Inst payments. As with SCT payments, SCT Inst allows for up to 140 characters of unstructured remittance information per transaction. The reference field should include relevant information about the transaction that helps the recipient recognize the transaction, such as invoice numbers and other identifiers.

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Benefits and drawbacks of SEPA Instant Credit Transfer

SCT Inst enables instantaneous transfer of funds between bank accounts within SEPA, with the recipient receiving the money within 10 seconds. This is significantly faster than a standard SEPA credit transfer, which can take up to two business days. Additionally, SCT Inst offers 24/7 availability, including on weekends and holidays. The speed and continuous availability of SCT Inst makes it convenient for urgent payments and use cases requiring immediate access to funds.

The main drawback of SCT Inst currently is its patchy adoption. Until 2023, the European Central Bank did not mandate banks to support or connect to the SCT Inst scheme, limiting its reach. Bank participation in SCT Inst is expected to increase throughout 2024 as the deadline to support the sending and receiving of SCT Inst payments approaches.