When a SEPA Direct Debit fails, or is taken back after it has been paid, it returns to the creditor with a four-character code that gives the reason: MD01, AM04, AC04 and so on. This page lists every one of these codes, with what it means, when it arrives, what usually causes it and what follows.
All Codes at a Glance
Section titled “All Codes at a Glance”For Rejects by the clearing system or the debtor’s bank, and for Returns, Refunds and Reversals, the SEPA Direct Debit rules set out a closed list of reasons, which the guidance of the EPC (European Payments Council, the European body that writes these rules) maps to 25 codes. The reasons for a Reject by the creditor’s bank or payment provider, on the other hand, are left to the agreement between the creditor and its bank (SDD Core rulebook, section 4.8.39), so other codes from the ISO 20022 standard can turn up.
The table brings both kinds of code together, in alphabetical order. Only the codes in the EPC guidance have a detailed entry; the meaning of the others is the one given in the ISO list of status reasons (ExternalStatusReason1Code). The “Who acts” column shows whom the next step depends on: the debtor, meaning the customer being debited; the creditor, meaning the business collecting the debit; or their banks.
| Code | ISO name | Meaning | EPC guidance | Who acts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AC01 | Incorrect Account Number (IncorrectAccountNumber) |
Incorrect IBAN | Yes | Debtor |
| AC02 | Invalid Debtor Account Number (InvalidDebtorAccountNumber) |
Debtor account number invalid or missing | No | — |
| AC03 | Invalid Creditor Account Number (InvalidCreditorAccountNumber) |
Creditor account number invalid or missing | No | — |
| AC04 | Closed Account Number (ClosedAccountNumber) |
Closed account | Yes | Debtor |
| AC05 | Closed Debtor Account Number (ClosedDebtorAccountNumber) |
Debtor account closed | No | — |
| AC06 | Blocked Account (BlockedAccount) |
Blocked account | Yes | Debtor |
| AC13 | Invalid Debtor Account Type (InvalidDebtorAccountType) |
Consumer account on a B2B debit | Yes | Debtor |
| AG01 | Transaction Forbidden (TransactionForbidden) |
Direct debit forbidden on the account | Yes | Debtor |
| AG02 | Invalid Bank Operation Code (InvalidBankOperationCode) |
Wrong operation code or sequence type | Yes | Creditor |
| AM01 | Zero Amount (ZeroAmount) |
Amount equal to zero | No | — |
| AM02 | Not Allowed Amount (NotAllowedAmount) |
Amount above the allowed maximum | No | — |
| AM03 | Not Allowed Currency (NotAllowedCurrency) |
Currency that cannot be processed under the existing agreement | No | — |
| AM04 | Insufficient Funds (InsufficientFunds) |
Insufficient funds | Yes | Debtor |
| AM05 | Duplication (Duplication) |
Duplicate collection | Yes | Creditor |
| AM06 | Too Low Amount (TooLowAmount) |
Amount below the agreed minimum | No | — |
| AM07 | Blocked Amount (BlockedAmount) |
Amount blocked by regulatory authorities | No | — |
| AM09 | Wrong Amount (WrongAmount) |
Amount received differs from the amount agreed or expected | No | — |
| AM10 | Invalid Control Sum (InvalidControlSum) |
Sum of the amounts differs from the control sum | No | — |
| BE01 | Inconsistent With End Customer (InconsistentWithEndCustomer) |
End customer’s identification inconsistent with the account number | No | — |
| BE04 | Missing Creditor Address (MissingCreditorAddress) |
Creditor address missing or incorrect | No | — |
| BE05 | Unrecognised Initiating Party (UnrecognisedInitiatingParty) |
Incorrect creditor identifier | Yes | Creditor |
| BE06 | Unknown End Customer (UnknownEndCustomer) |
End customer unknown at the bank stated, or no longer in its books | No | — |
| BE07 | Missing Debtor Address (MissingDebtorAddress) |
Debtor address missing or incorrect | No | — |
| CNOR | Creditor Bank Is Not Registered (CreditorBankIsNotRegistered) |
Creditor’s bank not registered | Yes | Creditor’s bank |
| DNOR | Debtor Bank Is Not Registered (DebtorBankIsNotRegistered) |
Debtor’s bank not registered | Yes | Creditor’s bank |
| DT01 | Invalid Date (InvalidDate) |
Invalid date, such as a wrong or missing settlement date | No | — |
| ED01 | Correspondent Bank Not Possible (CorrespondentBankNotPossible) |
Routing through a correspondent bank not possible | No | — |
| ED03 | Balance Info Request (BalanceInfoRequest) |
Additional balance-of-payments information requested | No | — |
| ED05 | Settlement Failed (SettlementFailed) |
Settlement failed | Yes | Banks |
| FF01 | Invalid File Format (InvalidFileFormat) |
Invalid file format | Yes | Creditor |
| FF05 | Invalid Local Instrument Code (InvalidLocalInstrumentCode) |
Local instrument code missing or invalid | No | — |
| FOCR | Following Cancellation Request (FollowingCancellationRequest) |
Return following a cancellation request | No | — |
| MD01 | No Mandate (NoMandate) |
No valid mandate | Yes | Creditor or debtor |
| MD02 | Missing Mandatory Mandate Information in Mandate (MissingMandatoryInformationInMandate) |
Missing or incorrect mandate data | Yes | Creditor |
| MD05 | Collection Not Due (CollectionNotDue) |
Debit the creditor or its bank should not have collected | No | — |
| MD06 | Refund Request By End Customer (RefundRequestByEndCustomer) |
Refund requested by the debtor | Yes | Debtor |
| MD07 | End Customer Deceased (EndCustomerDeceased) |
Debtor deceased | Yes | Creditor |
| MS02 | Not Specified Reason Customer Generated (NotSpecifiedReasonCustomerGenerated) |
Refused by the debtor | Yes | Debtor |
| MS03 | Not Specified Reason Agent Generated (NotSpecifiedReasonAgentGenerated) |
Reason not specified | Yes | Debtor |
| NARR | Narrative (Narrative) |
Reason given as free text in the additional information | No | — |
| RC01 | Bank Identifier Incorrect (BankIdentifierIncorrect) |
Incorrect BIC | Yes | Debtor or creditor’s bank |
| RF01 | Not Unique Transaction Reference (NotUniqueTransactionReference) |
Transaction reference not unique within the message | No | — |
| RR01 | Missing Debtor Account Or Identification (MissingDebtorAccountOrIdentification) |
Missing debtor account or identification | Yes | Creditor |
| RR02 | Missing Debtor Name Or Address (MissingDebtorNameOrAddress) |
Missing debtor name or address | Yes | Creditor |
| RR03 | Missing Creditor Name Or Address (MissingCreditorNameOrAddress) |
Missing creditor name or address | Yes | Creditor |
| RR04 | Regulatory Reason (RegulatoryReason) |
Regulatory reason | Yes | Creditor’s bank |
| SL01 | Specific Service Offered By Debtor Agent (SpecificServiceOfferedByDebtorAgent) |
Specific service of the debtor’s bank | Yes | Debtor |
| TM01 | Invalid Cut Off Time (InvalidCutOffTime) |
Message received after the agreed processing cut-off time | No | — |
What a SEPA Reason Code Is
Section titled “What a SEPA Reason Code Is”SEPA Direct Debit runs on rules shared by every country in the SEPA area, which the EPC publishes in two rulebooks: SEPA Direct Debit Core, open to every debtor, and SEPA Direct Debit B2B, which only debtors who are not consumers can sign up to.
A debit that leaves the normal flow gives rise to an exception transaction, which the rulebooks call an R-transaction, since each of its types starts with an R: Reject, Refusal, Return, Refund, Reversal. Every R-transaction carries a reason code in the ISO 20022 format, the international standard for financial messages. The EPC sets out how those codes are used in a dedicated guidance document (version 8.0, November 2024), which settles on 25 of them.
A code always comes with a debit: the rules provide none for a mandate on its own. Several codes do mean that the mandate can no longer be used, such as MD01 for a missing or cancelled mandate, or AC04 for a closed account, and a code received on the first debit under a new mandate can lead the payment provider to refuse that mandate. The checks a payment provider runs when a mandate is registered are its own business: their errors are not SEPA codes.
Two more points:
- In some countries, data-protection law forbids stating certain reasons. The debtor’s bank then sends
MS03, reason not specified, in place ofAC04,AM04,MD07,RR01,RR02,RR03orRR04. - A payment provider may show the code with its own wording, which sometimes describes only the consequence, such as the bank refusing the debit. The SEPA code is what gives the reason.
When a Code Arrives
Section titled “When a Code Arrives”Before interbank settlement, the debit is stopped on its way; after it, the debit is taken back once the funds have already moved between the banks. The time limits are those of the SEPA Direct Debit Core rulebook (sections 4.3 and 4.4).
| Type | Timing | Initiated by | Time limit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reject | Before settlement | The creditor’s bank, the clearing system or the debtor’s bank | — |
| Refusal | Before settlement | The debtor | Under the debtor’s bank’s terms; after settlement, it becomes a Return |
| Return | After settlement | The debtor’s bank | 5 interbank business days after the settlement date |
| Refund | After settlement | The debtor | 8 weeks after the debit; 13 months for an unauthorised debit |
| Reversal | After settlement | The creditor or its bank | 5 interbank business days after the due date of the debit |
A Refund is granted with no reason needed for 8 weeks, then only for an unauthorised debit, up to 13 months; the EPC guidance provides these refunds, under MD06 and MD01, for SEPA Direct Debit Core only. A Reversal lets the creditor pay back a debit collected in error.
Each Code in Detail
Section titled “Each Code in Detail”The 25 codes in the EPC guidance on reason codes are described according to that guidance: the reason first, then what it leads to and what follows. The ISO name is given in both of its forms, the EPC’s and the identifier used in the ISO 20022 lists.
AC01 — Incorrect IBAN
Section titled “AC01 — Incorrect IBAN”ISO name: Incorrect Account Number (IncorrectAccountNumber). Reject or Return.
The debtor’s IBAN is invalid: its format is wrong, or it matches no account at the debtor’s bank. The error comes from a typing mistake by the debtor, an IBAN copied wrongly into the creditor’s data, or a technical incident when the debit was issued.
What follows is getting the correct IBAN from the debtor. If the mandate has just been amended, the new details the debtor supplied are the ones to check.
AC04 — Closed Account
Section titled “AC04 — Closed Account”ISO name: Closed Account Number (ClosedAccountNumber). Reject or Return.
The debtor has closed the account since the creditor last presented a debit on it. The mandate can no longer be used on that account.
What follows is asking the debtor for new bank details. Where data-protection law forbids this reason, the bank sends MS03 instead.
AC06 — Blocked Account
Section titled “AC06 — Blocked Account”ISO name: Blocked Account (BlockedAccount). Reject or Return.
The debtor’s account is blocked for every transaction, by a court order or by the debtor’s bank, on suspicion of misuse or at the debtor’s request. As long as the block lasts, no debit goes through on that account.
What follows is agreeing another account or another way to pay with the debtor.
AC13 — Consumer Account on a B2B Debit
Section titled “AC13 — Consumer Account on a B2B Debit”ISO name: Invalid Debtor Account Type (InvalidDebtorAccountType). Reject or Return, for SEPA Direct Debit B2B only.
A B2B debit was presented on a consumer’s account, or on an account type meant for consumers only. Either the debtor, a consumer, did not know that only non-consumers can sign a B2B mandate; or the account type does not support B2B debits; or the debtor gave the details of a different account.
What follows is clearing the matter up with the debtor and agreeing another means of payment, or signing a SEPA Direct Debit Core mandate with them.
AG01 — Direct Debit Forbidden on the Account
Section titled “AG01 — Direct Debit Forbidden on the Account”ISO name: Transaction Forbidden (TransactionForbidden). Reject or Return.
The account type does not accept direct debits, for regulatory reasons: a savings account, for instance. The debtor gave the details of an account that no debit can be collected from. This code does not cover a B2B debit presented on a consumer account, which falls under AC13.
What follows is agreeing another account or another means of payment with the debtor.
AG02 — Wrong Operation Code or Sequence Type
Section titled “AG02 — Wrong Operation Code or Sequence Type”ISO name: Invalid Bank Operation Code (InvalidBankOperationCode). Reject or Return.
The debit carries a wrong sequence type or operation code: a recurrent debit presented after a one-off, a one-off presented after a recurrent one, or a wrong scheme identifier in the message (service level or local instrument). The error lies with the creditor, from a technical incident or from the way it issues debits.
What follows is correcting the information at fault.
AM04 — Insufficient Funds
Section titled “AM04 — Insufficient Funds”ISO name: Insufficient Funds (InsufficientFunds). Reject or Return.
The debtor’s account does not hold enough funds to cover the full amount of the debit. The EPC also names a cause on the creditor’s side: a missing or late pre-notification, which did not announce the date and amount of the debit in time. The mandate itself remains valid.
What follows is making sure with the debtor that the account will be funded. Where data-protection law forbids this reason, the bank sends MS03 instead.
AM05 — Duplicate Collection
Section titled “AM05 — Duplicate Collection”ISO name: Duplication (Duplication). Reject, Return or Reversal.
The clearing system or the debtor’s bank considers that an identical debit has just been sent or processed. The error, technical or human, lies with the creditor or its bank.
What follows is checking whether the debit really is a duplicate.
BE05 — Incorrect Creditor Identifier
Section titled “BE05 — Incorrect Creditor Identifier”ISO name: Unrecognised Initiating Party (UnrecognisedInitiatingParty). Reject or Return.
The SEPA creditor identifier (CI) carried by the debit is wrong, or it changed without the amendment being reported.
What follows is correcting the creditor identifier.
CNOR — Creditor’s Bank Not Registered
Section titled “CNOR — Creditor’s Bank Not Registered”ISO name: Creditor Bank Is Not Registered (CreditorBankIsNotRegistered). Reject.
The creditor’s bank is not, or no longer, registered as a scheme participant under that BIC with the clearing system.
What follows is contacting the creditor’s bank.
DNOR — Debtor’s Bank Not Registered
Section titled “DNOR — Debtor’s Bank Not Registered”ISO name: Debtor Bank Is Not Registered (DebtorBankIsNotRegistered). Reject.
The debtor’s bank is not, or no longer, registered as a scheme participant under that BIC with the clearing system: whether it could be reached was not checked before sending.
What follows is asking the creditor’s bank to check that the debtor’s bank can be reached, and agreeing another means of payment with the debtor.
ED05 — Settlement Failed
Section titled “ED05 — Settlement Failed”ISO name: Settlement Failed (SettlementFailed). Reject.
Interbank settlement of the debit failed, because the debtor’s bank lacked the interbank funding to settle it.
What follows depends on the agreement between the debtor’s bank and the clearing system.
FF01 — Invalid File Format
Section titled “FF01 — Invalid File Format”ISO name: Invalid File Format (InvalidFileFormat). Reject.
The XML file of the debit is filled in wrongly or contains a syntax error, or it was not checked against its XSD schema before being submitted. The error may lie with the creditor, its bank or the clearing system.
What follows is repairing the XML file.
MD01 — No Valid Mandate
Section titled “MD01 — No Valid Mandate”ISO name: No Mandate (NoMandate). Reject, Return or Refund.
No valid mandate covers the debit. The possible causes are these:
- no mandate exists;
- the debtor has cancelled the mandate;
- the mandate has fallen under the 36-month rule: a creditor that presents no debit under a mandate for 36 months, counted from the last debit presented, even one that was rejected, must cancel it, and a new mandate is then needed (SDD Core rulebook, section 4.2); the debtor’s bank may also treat such a mandate as cancelled;
- for SEPA Direct Debit B2B, the debtor has not yet confirmed the mandate to their bank;
- the unique mandate reference (UMR) is missing, or does not match the mandate data.
For SEPA Direct Debit Core, MD01 also arrives as a Refund: the debtor disputes a debit they never authorised, up to 13 months after it.
A new debit only goes through with a valid, correctly referenced mandate. What follows is analysing the debit concerned, and contacting the debtor if it is a Refund.
MD02 — Missing or Incorrect Mandate Data
Section titled “MD02 — Missing or Incorrect Mandate Data”ISO name: Missing Mandatory Mandate Information in Mandate (MissingMandatoryInformationInMandate). Reject.
The mandate data carried by the debit does not match the mandate: an amendment to the mandate was not passed on, the data differs from the version already received for the same UMR, or a reported amendment carries the same IBAN as the original. The amendment did not follow the procedure the scheme’s rules set out, or the amended data is wrong.
What follows is correcting the way the mandate was amended, or the amended data.
MD06 — Refund Requested by the Debtor
Section titled “MD06 — Refund Requested by the Debtor”ISO name: Refund Request By End Customer (RefundRequestByEndCustomer). Refund, for SEPA Direct Debit Core only.
The debtor has had a debit they authorised refunded. It is an unconditional right, which the Payment Services Directive grants for 8 weeks after the debit; the request may also stem from a gap between the amount announced in the pre-notification and the amount collected.
What follows is contacting the debtor.
MD07 — Debtor Deceased
Section titled “MD07 — Debtor Deceased”ISO name: End Customer Deceased (EndCustomerDeceased). Reject or Return.
The holder of the debited account has died.
What follows is closing the agreement with the deceased debtor. Where data-protection law forbids this reason, the bank sends MS03 instead.
MS02 — Refused by the Debtor
Section titled “MS02 — Refused by the Debtor”ISO name: Not Specified Reason Customer Generated (NotSpecifiedReasonCustomerGenerated). Reject, Return, Reversal or Refusal.
The debtor refused the debit after receiving its pre-notification. Depending on whether the debtor’s bank handles that refusal before or after interbank settlement, the debit comes back as a Reject or as a Return.
What follows is contacting the debtor.
MS03 — Reason Not Specified
Section titled “MS03 — Reason Not Specified”ISO name: Not Specified Reason Agent Generated (NotSpecifiedReasonAgentGenerated). Reject, Return or Reversal.
The bank does not state the reason. The code may only be used where national law, data-protection law in particular, forbids AC04, AM04, MD07, RR01, RR02, RR03 and RR04, and the EPC asks banks to keep its use to a minimum.
What follows is contacting the debtor.
RC01 — Incorrect BIC
Section titled “RC01 — Incorrect BIC”ISO name: Bank Identifier Incorrect (BankIdentifierIncorrect). Reject or Return.
The bank’s BIC is incorrect: for a debit involving a SEPA country outside the European Economic Area (EEA), the creditor supplied an incomplete BIC, eight characters instead of eleven; or the BIC in the message between the banks is not in the BIC directory. As a consequence, the bank refuses to process the debit, and with it the mandate it was collected under.
What follows is asking the debtor for the exact BIC on a non-EEA debit, or asking the creditor’s bank to provide the complete and correct BIC of the debtor’s bank.
RR01 — Missing Debtor Account or Identification
Section titled “RR01 — Missing Debtor Account or Identification”ISO name: Missing Debtor Account Or Identification (MissingDebtorAccountOrIdentification). Reject or Return.
The debtor’s IBAN or identification that regulation requires is missing or insufficient.
What follows is completing the debtor’s account information in the debit, and contacting the creditor’s bank. Where data-protection law forbids this reason, the bank sends MS03 instead.
RR02 — Missing Debtor Name or Address
Section titled “RR02 — Missing Debtor Name or Address”ISO name: Missing Debtor Name Or Address (MissingDebtorNameOrAddress). Reject or Return.
The debtor’s name or address that regulation requires is missing or insufficient. There are three cases:
- the debtor’s name is missing;
- the debtor’s address is missing, although it is mandatory as soon as the creditor’s bank or the debtor’s bank is in a SEPA country outside the EEA;
- the debtor’s address is in a format that is no longer allowed.
From 15 November 2026, only structured or hybrid addresses are allowed: an unstructured address is no longer accepted (SDD Core rulebook, section 4.8), and the EPC guidance provides RR02 to report it.
What follows is completing the debtor’s name and address, and contacting the creditor’s bank. Where data-protection law forbids this reason, the bank sends MS03 instead.
RR03 — Missing Creditor Name or Address
Section titled “RR03 — Missing Creditor Name or Address”ISO name: Missing Creditor Name Or Address (MissingCreditorNameOrAddress). Reject or Return.
The creditor’s name that regulation requires is missing, or the creditor’s address is in a format that is no longer allowed, such as an unstructured address from 15 November 2026.
What follows is completing the creditor’s name, putting its address into the right format where needed, and contacting the creditor’s bank. Where data-protection law forbids this reason, the bank sends MS03 instead.
RR04 — Regulatory Reason
Section titled “RR04 — Regulatory Reason”ISO name: Regulatory Reason (RegulatoryReason). Reject or Return.
The debit is stopped for a regulatory reason other than those of RR01, RR02 and RR03.
What follows is contacting the creditor’s bank. Where data-protection law forbids this reason, the bank sends MS03 instead.
SL01 — Specific Service of the Debtor’s Bank
Section titled “SL01 — Specific Service of the Debtor’s Bank”ISO name: Specific Service Offered By Debtor Agent (SpecificServiceOfferedByDebtorAgent). Reject or Return.
The debtor is entitled to have every direct debit on their account blocked, or some of them limited, and their bank must offer these services (SDD Core rulebook, section 4.2). SL01 reports that the debit ran into one of them, such as a blocked creditor, an amount cap or a frequency limit, or into another service of the debtor’s bank.
What follows is contacting the debtor.
Reject Fees
Section titled “Reject Fees”The SEPA Direct Debit rules set no amount for reject fees: any fees are charged to the creditor by its bank or payment provider, and to the debtor by their bank, each on its own terms (SDD Core rulebook, section 4.3.5).
Presenting a debit again after a reject for AC04, MD07, or MD01 where the mandate is missing or cancelled, only leads to another reject and further fees: the cause, a closed account, a deceased debtor, a mandate that no longer exists, has not gone away.