Standards/sepa-request-to-pay

SEPA Request-to-Pay

TypePayment request scheme

Completeness75%high

Overview

SEPA Request-to-Pay (SRTP) is a messaging scheme operated by the European Payments Council (EPC) that lets a Payee request the initiation of a payment from a Payer across a wide range of physical and online use cases [2]2. Crucially, SRTP is not a payment means or payment instrument — it is a messaging functionality, a standardised way to request a payment initiation; the actual money movement happens over a separate rail, normally a SEPA Credit Transfer (SCT) or SEPA Instant Credit Transfer (SCT Inst) [2][2][3]3.

The scheme defines four roles — Payee, Payer, the Payee's SRTP Service Provider and the Payer's SRTP Service Provider — operating in a four-corner model, plus the EPC Directory Service (EDS) that makes participants reachable to one another [2]2. SRTP Service Providers need not be banks: PSPs, e-invoicing service providers and commerce service providers can all adhere [2]2.

The current rulebook is EPC014-20 v4.0, issued 29 November 2024 and effective from 5 October 2025 (03:30 CET) [2]2.

History

SRTP versions, all approved by the EPC Board [2]2:

Version	Date	Note
v1.0	30 November 2020	First rulebook
v2.0	30 November 2021	Major revision
v2.1	30 June 2022	Added date when APIs become mandatory in the inter-SP space
v3.0	24 November 2022	Major revision
v3.1	23 May 2023	New Redirect option datasets; market-API clarifications
v3.2	December 2023	Alignment with Implementation Guidelines
v4.0	November 2024	Current rulebook, effective 5 October 2025

The scheme launched / entered into force on 15 June 2021, when all SEPA countries introduced it [3][3][7]7. It originates from the specifications of the RTP Multi-Stakeholder Group (MSG RTP) [2]2.

What v4.0 changed. Version 4.0 focuses on simplifying and clarifying the scheme while keeping it stable: it adds complementary reason codes, defines a number of options, makes registration in the EPC Directory Service (EDS) mandatory for participants, adds sealing requirements for security in the API specifications, and simplifies the homologation (conformance) process [1]1.

Technical specification

Process model. An SRTP sits between an underlying transaction and the payment itself. The scheme covers two of the four end-to-end stages — "Request-to-Pay" and "Acceptance/Refusal"; the underlying transaction and the actual payment execution are out of scope [2]2. After acceptance, the assumed payment instrument is a Credit Transfer [2]2.

ISO 20022 messages. SRTP messages are based on the ISO 20022 standard. The processing flow uses [2]2:

pain.013 — Creditor Payment Activation Request (the Request-to-Pay itself)
pain.014 — Creditor Payment Activation Request Status Report (acceptance/refusal/status)

The SRTP Implementation Guidelines (EPC258-22) set the rules for implementing these ISO 20022 XML messages and are a binding supplement to the rulebook, as are the EPC default inter-SRTP-SP API specifications [2][2][5]5. Since 30 November 2023, SRTP Service Providers must at minimum exchange SRTP messages based on these standards [2]2.

Four-corner flow. In a generic four-corner ecosystem the message flow is: (1) identification between Payer and Payee; (2) Payee sends the RTP to the Payee's SRTP SP; (3) RTP routed across to the Payer's SRTP SP; (4) RTP delivered to the Payer; (5) status reports flow back along the chain [2]2. The scheme is channel-agnostic: the RTP can also reach the Payer directly via proximity technologies, messaging apps, dedicated APIs, etc. [2]2.

Lifecycle and options. The most important attribute is the Expiry Date/Time — the deadline by which the Payer must accept or refuse; beyond it the SRTP becomes void. The default maximum is up to three months (extendable by bilateral agreement) [2]2. Combined with timing, this expresses Pay now / Pay later and the combinations Accept now/Pay now, Accept now/Pay later, Accept later/Pay later [2]2. Other datasets include a request for payment guarantee and instalment amounts; reject/refusal/negative-response messages carry reason codes (e.g. AT-R004) [2]2.

EPC Directory Service (EDS). The EDS stores all required operational data about participants — adherence data, supported options, API endpoints — to enable reachability and interoperability between Payers' and Payees' SRTP Service Providers. Registration into the EDS is mandatory (subject to an adherence agreement), and participants must keep their data current and remain reachable on their registered reachability paths [2]2.

Relationship to the wider euro-payments stack. SRTP is the standardised "ask" layer that pairs naturally with SCT Inst as the instant settlement layer and is positioned as a building block alongside Verification of Payee (VoP) and the Wero wallet (European Payments Initiative) for a pan-European account-to-account payment experience [3][3][4]4. (SRTP itself is messaging-only; VoP and Wero are separate but complementary schemes/solutions.)

Use cases

The rulebook lists physical/online retail commerce, P2P, and E-Invoice Presentment and Payment (EIPP) at B2C, B2B and B2G levels [2]2. Commonly cited use cases include [2][2][3]3:

E-invoicing — an alternative to SEPA Direct Debit, letting a biller request payment with rich remittance data the Payer can reconcile.
POS / point-of-interaction — merchant requests payment, settled by SCT Inst.
E-commerce / m-commerce — account-to-account checkout.
P2P — one person requests money from another.
Recurring and "pay later" — deferred acceptance/payment models.

SRTP is frequently described as "the missing piece in the instant payment puzzle" because it supplies the structured request that triggers an SCT Inst, improving reconciliation and Payee/Payer identification [3]3.

Implementations

EBA CLEARING R2P Service and Iberpay launched two interoperable SRTP-compliant infrastructure services on 15 June 2021, the scheme's entry date; EBA CLEARING's service was built with support from 27 payment service providers across 11 European countries [6][6][8]8.
June 2023 — frontrunner banks among EBA CLEARING's R2P funding institutions — including BBVA, BNP Paribas, CaixaBank, Commerzbank and Deutsche Bank — kicked off a pan-European request-to-pay proof of concept [8]8.
6 May 2024 — EBA CLEARING reported a pan-European PoC showcasing R2P value, with participants including BBVA, BNP Paribas, CaixaBank, Commerzbank, Crédit Agricole, Deutsche Bank and DZ BANK [8]8.

Adoption remains non-mandatory; the sources note ongoing discussion about whether SRTP could become mandatory in future [3][3][7]7.

Comparison

vs SEPA Direct Debit: With direct debit the Payee pulls funds under a mandate; with SRTP the Payee merely requests, and the Payer affirmatively accepts and pushes a credit transfer — improving payer control and reducing unauthorised-pull/chargeback exposure [3]3.
vs card "request to pay" / card rails: SRTP rides account-to-account credit-transfer rails (SCT / SCT Inst) rather than card networks, avoiding interchange and card-scheme dependency; it is messaging-only and instrument-agnostic at the request layer [2][2][3]3.
vs EN 18184 / QR codes: SRTP is a messaging scheme (ISO 20022 message exchange between service providers), not a QR symbology; a QR code (e.g. EN 18184) can be one channel to present an SRTP to the Payer, but the two operate at different layers [2]2.

Status

The SRTP scheme is live across SEPA since 15 June 2021, with rulebook v4.0 effective 5 October 2025 making EDS registration mandatory and tightening security and conformance [1][1][2]2. It is supported by live interoperable infrastructure (EBA CLEARING R2P, Iberpay) and ISO 20022 Implementation Guidelines and API specifications [5][5][6]6. Participation is still voluntary, and broad end-user volume is nascent compared with SCT Inst itself [3][3][7]7.

Sources

1 The SEPA Request-to-Pay scheme rulebook version v4.0 — European Payments Council, 2024 2 EPC014-20 v4.0 — SEPA Request-To-Pay (SRTP) Scheme Rulebook (PDF) — European Payments Council, 2024 3 The SEPA Request-to-Pay scheme explained — Redbridge, 2023 4 Comprendre l'initiation de paiement, le SEPA request to pay et Wero — AFTE, 2024 5 SEPA Request-to-Pay Implementation Guidelines Version 4.0 — European Payments Council, 2025 6 EBA CLEARING and IBERPAY launch interoperable SEPA Request-to-Pay services — EBA CLEARING, 2021 7 SEPA Request-to-Pay — scheme overview — European Payments Council, 2024 8 Pan-European proof of concept showcases value of request to pay — EBA CLEARING, 2024

Deployments

No country reports mention this standard by name.