EN ECB -PUBLIC  
 
OPINION OF THE EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK  
of 16 March 2016  
on mandatory requirements for credit transfers and direct debits  
(CON/2016/ 13) 
 
Introduction and legal basis  
On 3 February 2016 the European Central Bank (ECB) received a request from Banca Naţională a 
României (BNR)  for an opinion on a draft regulation on cr edit transf er and direct de bit transactions  
(herein after the ‘draft regulation’ ). 
The ECB’s competence to deliver an opinion is based on Articles 127(4) and 282(5) of the Treaty on the 
Functioning of  the European Union and the second and fifth indents  of Article  2(1) of Council Decision 
98/415/EC1, as the draft regulation relates to means of payment and payment systems . In accordance 
with the first sentence of Article 17.5 of the Rules of Procedure of  the European Central Bank, the 
Governing Council has adopted this opinion.  
 
1.  Purpos e of the draft regulation  
1.1 The purpose of the draft regulation is to recast and update the national legal framework governing 
payment orders used in credit transfer operations and direct debits executed through the 
automated clearing house2, by establishing minimum mandatory requirements for credit transfers 
and direct debits processed in Romania.  
1.2 The draft regulation covers  certain technical requirements which are also addressed in Regulation 
(EU) No 260/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council3 (hereinafter , the ‘SEPA 
Regulation ’), which has  been implemented into Romanian law by Law No 231/2015 on setting out 
measures to implement the SEPA Regulation4. In addition, the draft regulation relates to certain 
provisions of Directive 2007/64/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council5 (hereinafter , the 
                                                 
1  Council Decision 98/415/EC of 29 June 1998 on the consultation of the European Central Bank by national 
authorities regarding draft legislative provisions ( OJ L 189, 3.7.1998, p. 42) . 
2  See BNR’s Regulations No 2/2005 and 3/2005,  which will be repealed once the draft regulation enters into force.  
3  Regulation (EU) No 260/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 14 March 2012 establishing 
technical and business requi rements for credit transfers and direct debits in euro and amending Regulation (EC) No 
924/2009 (OJ L 94, 30.3.2012, p. 22).   
4  Law no. 231/2015 on setting out measures to implement Regulation (EU) No 260/2012 of the European Parliament 
and of the Counci l of 14 March 2012 establishing technical and business requirements for credit transfers and direct 
debits in euro and amending Regulation (EC) No 924/2009, published in Monitorul Oficial al României , Part I, No 758 
of 10  October 2015 . The law designates B NR as the competent authority for ensuring compliance with the SEPA 
Regulation in which respect BNR is entitled to issue regulations.  
5  Directive 2007/64/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 November 2007 on payment services in the internal market amending Directives 97/7/EC, 2002/65/EC, 2005/60/EC and 2006/48/EC and repealing Directive 
97/5/EC (OJ L 319, 5.12.2007, p. 1).  
ECB -PUBLIC  
2 ‘Payment Services Directive ’), which has  been transposed into Romanian law by Government 
Emergency Ordinance No 113/2009 on payment services6.   
1.3 Under the draft regulation, a credit transfer instruction shall include the following mandatory data 
elements : (a) the identification as a credit transfer instruction; (b) the payer’s name and the unique 
identi fier of its payment account; (c) the payee’s name and the unique identifier of its payment 
account; (d) the amount and currency of the credit transfer; (e) the elements allowing the 
verification of the authentic ity of the credit transfer instruction, as determined by the payer’s 
institution according to a pre- agreed security procedure7.  
 In addition to the requirements outlined above , the payer and the payer’s institution may agree that 
the payer shall additionally provide, for example, the following elements:  (a) the amount of the 
credit  transfer spelled in letters; ( b) the execution date for the credit transfer; and (c) details on the 
economic content of the transaction that determined the initiation of the credit transfer instruction8. 
For State Treasury -related payments certain specific additional elements , such as fiscal identifiers , 
are to be required for credit transfers9.  
1.4 The mandatory data elements for a direct debit instruction are as follows: (a)  the identification as a 
direct debit instructi on; (b) the amount of the direct debit ; (c) the name and/or BIC code of the 
payer’s institution; (d) the name and/or BIC code of the payee’s institution; (e) the holder’s name 
and the unique identifier of the payment account  to be debited; (f)  the holder’s  name and the 
unique identifier of the payment account  to be credited; (g)  the elements allowing the authentication 
of the payee by the payee’s institution10. In addition, mandatory data elements are prescribed for 
direct debit mandates and commitments11.    
1.5 Following the liability regime laid down in the Payment Services Directive, the draft regulation 
prescribes no liability for the payee’s institution where the credit transfer transaction was carried out in accordance with the payee’s unique identifier s
12. According to the draft regulation the payee’s 
institution shall only take into consideration as unique identifiers the payee’s unique identification 
code and/or the BIC code13. Further rules are laid down in the draft regulation with regard to the 
State  Treasury’s liability in relation to credit transfer instructions received by it as the payee’s 
institution14.   
 
2. General observations  
The draft regulation aims to standardi se current practices with regard to credit transfers and direct 
debit  operations in Romania, while at the same time simplifying the requirements laid down in the 
                                                 
6  Published in Monitorul Oficial al României , Part I, No 685 of 12 October 2009.  
7  See Article 3(1) of the draft r egulation.  
8  See Article 3(2) of the draft regulation.  
9  See Article 3(3) of the draft regulation.  
10  See Article 5(2) of the draft regulation.  
11  See Article 5(1) and (3)  of the draft regulation,  respectively.  A direct debit commitment is defined in Article 2(1) of the 
draft regulation as an agreement between the payee and the payee’s institution which relates,  inter alia, to  the 
consent given by the payee’s institution regarding the use of direct debit instruc tions by the payee.  
12  See Article 4(2) of the draft regulation and Article 74 of Directive 2007/64/EC . 
13  See Article 4(1) of the draft regulation.  
14  See Article 4 (5) to (8) of the draft regulation.  
ECB -PUBLIC  
3 currently applicable national legal framework.  Harmonised r ules and common standards are 
welcome as a means  of generat ing benefits  and increas ing efficiency  for the electronic  payments 
market. Although Union law only regulates the technical and business requirements for euro-
denominated credit transfers and direct debits, the ECB welcomes the alignment of national 
standards for payment transactions denominated in Romanian lei with established Union  
standards . To further support integration and harmonisation, an even higher degree of alignment 
with relevant  EU legislation could be considered, for example by relying on existing definitions 
contained in  Union  law.   
 
3. Specific ob servations  
3.1 With a view to enhancing legal certainty, it would be desirable to specify the scope of the draft 
regulation in terms of whether it applies to:  (a) payment transactions carried out between and within 
payment service providers ; (b) transactions processed and settled through large- value payment 
systems ; and (c) other means of payment.  
3.2 The subject matter of the draft regulation would also benefit from further clarification to the effect 
that it covers only transactions denominated in Romani an lei, since the SEPA Regulation is to 
apply , as of 31 October 2016,  to euro- denominated credit transfers and direct debit transactions  
also in Member States  whose currency is not the euro.  
 
This opinion will be published on the ECB’s website.  
 
 
Done at F rankfurt am Main, 16 March 2016.  
 
[signed]  
 The President of the ECB  
Mario DRAGHI