You can use a SEPA Direct Debit to collect amounts from your customers' payment accounts on either a one-off or a recurrent basis. The payment is made at the time you have agreed with your customer. The initiative for the payment lies with you. A SEPA Direct Debit (SDD) is also known as a European Direct Debit and, in the Netherlands, as a 'SEPA-incasso'.

You can choose from two types of direct debit:

• SEPA Direct Debit Core Scheme (one-off or recurrent) For payments by your private and business customers. The payer has the possibility of claiming a refund within 8 weeks starting from the date on which the account was debited.
• SEPA Direct Debit B2B Scheme (one-off or recurrent) For payments by your business customers. The payer cannot claim a refund of the direct debit.

Compare the two types of SEPA Direct Debit

A direct debit means you can make one-off or recurrent collections from your customers' current accounts. We decide, in consultation with you, which type of direct debit is suitable for your business and the amounts that you can collect. Please call your contact if you would like to apply for a direct debit contract.

Find your contact

You can make direct debits from customers in all SEPA countries.

Countries where you can make a direct debit

Timelines have been agreed for direct debits, for example, when you have to tell your customer that you will be collecting a direct debit or the last day on which your customer can arrange a refund of a direct debit.

View the timelines for SEPA direct debits

You can deliver a direct debit in various ways. If you already know when you want to collect a direct debit from your customer, check when you have to deliver the instruction to us. SEPA Direct Debit batches must be delivered in the file format PAIN.008 (XML).

Delivering SEPA direct debit instructions
The timelines for delivery
File format and sample files

SEPA direct debits can be revoked, refused or refunded on the initiative of the debtor or the creditor.

More about revocations, refusals and refunds

Before you can collect amounts from your customers they must first give you a mandate. For this purpose you can use either paper mandate forms or e-mandates.

You can design paper mandate forms yourself. Such forms must meet a number of requirements. Alternatively, you can use standard mandate forms.

Read more about mandate forms.

Do you wish to use the SEPA Direct Debit Business to Business (B2B) Scheme? If so, your debtors must not only sign a mandate and send it to you, but must also register the mandate with their own bank using a registration form. Please note that you can collect only when the registration procedure has been completed at the debtor's bank.

Find out what you need to do as creditor.

E-mandates save you a lot of paperwork. You receive the e-mandate almost immediately. And the registration of the mandate at your debtor's bank takes place automatically in the case of SEPA B2B Direct Debit.

Read more about e-mandates.

Would you like to start and use SEPA Direct Debit? Download the pdf and read what to do.

Quick start guide to SEPA Direct Debit (pdf, 59kB)

There are a number of important points if money is taken automatically from your account by direct debit. For example, you need to know that money can be collected from your account from any SEPA country if you have given permission by signing a mandate.

More information for debtors

A digital direct debit mandate (e-mandate) provides you with a safe way of giving a mandate to the creditor. On the creditor's website you choose the payment method known as 'Incassomachtigen via uw bank' and then select ABN AMRO. You now find yourself in the familiar environment of Internet Banking. Simply follow the instructions and send the e-mandate using your e.dentifier.

Do you wish to amend or cancel an e-mandate? If so, please also do this on the creditor's website.

As the debtor, you always have to sign a new mandate for a SEPA B2B direct debit. By doing so you state that you unconditionally waive your right to get a refund of a direct debit that has been collected.

If you sign an e-mandate for the SEPA B2B direct debit Scheme, the mandate information will be automatically registered at ABN AMRO.

What you need to do as debtor

You can refund a SEPA Core direct debit within 8 weeks after collection. You can submit a request for refund yourself through your online banking channel, Internet Banking or Access Online. A SEPA B2B direct debit cannot be refunded.

Direct Debit refund
The timelines for refunds