After the introducing of the Euro-cash money in 2002, there have been plans for a standardisation of cash-less payment transactions in Europe. All payments are expected to be treated like inland payments.

Prior to SEPA, all communities and member states of the European Union processed transactions in their own manner which resulted in numerous variations of payment systems all over Europe. To standardise transaction processing, the new SEPA rulebooks and formats have to be implemented. Only by realizing SEPA, credit transfers, direct debit and card transactions will be processed the same way in every member state of the European Union. Therefore it is necessary to effectuate all standards/rules which are commited to the European area in Austria.

You will find the following information on our website:

• SEPA
• Credit Transfer
• Direct Debit
• IBAN/BIC
• Standard Transfer
• QR-Code
• Payment references
• Printing files for "Zahlungsanweisungen"

Important facts for payment transactions:

• The SEPA Migration is obliged to happen until 31st July 2014. (change to SEPA Credit Transfer/SEPA Direct Debit).
• Replacement of receipts of payment to "Zahlungsanweisungen"
• Replacement of account number/BLZ to IBAN/BIC. As of february 2014, payments with "IBAN Only" can be assigned in Austria (only throughout Austria), as of 2016 it is also possible throughout Europe.

In the context of SEPA all companies are obliged to change their payment transactions to XML.

QR-Code Generator

The QR-Code (=Quick Response) is a two-dimensional code – similar to the customary barcode. It can only used for the initiation of the "Zahlungsanweisung". Further information is available in the  folder download area or here.

XML Checker

In cooperation with the company GEFEG, PSA offered the possibility to check XML files on their validity (in the fashion of Austrian financial institutes demanding them from their customers).

They are not only examined on their syntax, but also the dependencies, prerequisites and restrictions which are necessary for the applications are taken into account.

These testings enable the facilitation and the expediting of the following required tests by credit institutes.

Attention, important instructions:

• Registration with user name and pass word for upload and testing
• Your personal area is only visible for you
• File size smaller than 20 kB

IBAN Check

The IBAN consists of the ISO-country code, a two-digit check digit, bank informations and the account number. The length of the IBAN can contain up to 34 digits because of country-specific conditions. In Austria the IBAN contains 20 digits.

With the Check-Script you can check the formal correctness of an IBAN.

Payment references

For the transmission of as many informations as possible in the "Verwendungszweck" in a "Zahlungsanweisung", special patternings were developed.

For tax payments/post bar and EACT respectively, a standardised payment reference is required. 140 characters are valid for unstructured references and 35 characters for structured references.

Because joint forwardings of the payment reference (former client data fields) and the "Verwendungszweck" (a line of a maximum of 140 characters, line breaks are invalid) are not possible anymore, the following structures are determined for special cases:

• Tax payment
  Thus you complete your tax remittance correctly.
  pdf Here (431 KB) are special rules for the "Verwendungszweck" for tax payments.

• Post bar-payment
  Thus you send money to a beneficiary without an acount by use of the post-service.
  pdf Here (467 KB) are special rules for the "Verwendungszweck" for post bar-payments.
  
  
• EACT
  Possibility for the structuring of payment information.
  Structure for the "Verwendungszweck" of EACT are available pdf here (770 KB) .

PSA aims to pass on knowledge about payment transfer in Austria to its audience.

We offer our clients workshops and training courses concerning "SEPA in companies" and "XML in payment transactions".
If there are any questions, PSA will support you with its expertise.

Payment transfer consists of a variety of standard methods. For that reason, PSA offers some tools:

• IBAN Checker: Verifies the format of the IBAN
• QR-Code Generator: Tool to generate a QR-code for a "Zahlungsanweisung"
• XML Checker: Verifies the format of XML files according to the currently valid rulebook
• Payment references (Tax payment, Postbar, EACT): These tools will help you with creating and checking payment rerferences
• and many more

You will find these on the right side.

SEPA Migration

SEPA is the acronym for Single EURO Payment Area and is aimed at aligned processing and agreed standards for EURO payments across the EU and all countries that opted in. Every single transaction within these countries shall be treated exactly like traditional domestic payments, forming a new understanding of the domestic zone. Additionally, all market participants will work with identical SEPA formats and procedures for transactions, debits and card payments.

The domestic transfers and direct debits will be replaced by SEPA as of February 2014 according to EU-Regulation 260/2012.

The regulation requires a clear bank account number "IBAN" and the Business Identifier Code "BIC".

STUZZA (Studiengesellschaft für Zusammenarbeit im Zahlungsverkehr GmbH) was established in the autumn of 1991 as a joint venture company of the Austrian banks. The objective since then has been the reduction of the costs of payment transfers by increasing the application of automation whilst improving the services for the customers.

Besides legal aspects and profitability, organisation, technical detail specifications and prototyping count as our tasks. Certainly our corporate philosophy consists of having all the appropriate answers to all questions in payment transactions. We develop harmonised systems which enable smooth payment transactions.

STUZZA is the service contractor for the world of finance in the region of Austrian payment transactions.

Another essential task entails sharing knowledge about payment transactions in Austria such as consulting banks and companies. That ensures that for instance legal guidelines and agreements which were reached at European level are adapted and effectuated to the demands of the Austrian market.
If you require further information about consulting, do not hesitate to contact us.