SEPA Return & Reject Code Lookup
Look up any SEPA R-transaction reason code — meaning, which rulebook(s) it applies to (SCT, SCT Inst, SDD Core, SDD B2B), who generates it, and what to do next. 44 codes total across account, amount, mandate, agent/format, regulatory, infrastructure, and recall categories.
SCT Inst Infrastructure
Timeout at creditor agent
The beneficiary bank failed to respond within the 10-second SCT Inst window.
SCT Inst Infrastructure
Timeout at instructed agent
An intermediate agent failed to respond within the 10-second SCT Inst window.
SCT Inst Infrastructure
Agent offline
A participating bank was unreachable at the time of the transaction.
SCT Inst Infrastructure
Creditor agent offline
The beneficiary bank's system was down at the time of the transaction.
Account
Incorrect account number
IBAN format is invalid, the check digit fails, or the account does not exist. Usually a mandate-capture or payment-initiation data-entry error.
Account
Wrong IBAN (creditor)
The creditor IBAN entered on the credit transfer does not match the intended beneficiary, or the customer realizes after sending that they used the wrong IBAN.
Account
Closed account number
For SDD, the debtor closed their account since the mandate was created. For SCT/SCT Inst, the creditor account was closed before the credit transfer settled, or before a recall could be honored.
Account
Blocked account
Account frozen by the account holder, a legal/bankruptcy order, or a bank-side risk restriction.
Account
Debtor account type invalid
The debtor's account type does not permit direct debits — for example, a savings account that cannot be collected against under SEPA rules.
Agent & Format
Transaction forbidden
The account does not accept direct debits at all — a regulatory restriction or an account type that excludes SDD.
Agent & Format
Invalid bank operation code
Message structure error — the local instrument code or bank operation code in the collection is invalid for the receiving bank.
SCT Inst Infrastructure
Payment not received by creditor agent
The creditor bank did not receive the payment within the mandatory 10-second SCT Inst execution window.
SCT Inst Infrastructure
Agent suspended from instant scheme
A bank in the payment chain has been excluded from the SCT Inst network, generically (could be either side).
SCT Inst Infrastructure
Creditor agent suspended
Specifically the beneficiary's bank has been suspended from the SCT Inst network.
Amount & Funds
Amount exceeds agreed limit
An older or provider-specific amount-limit response. The 2025 SCT Inst implementation guidelines removed AM02 from negative confirmations, and current EPC inter-PSP guidance does not list it.
Amount & Funds
Insufficient funds
Insufficient funds for the transaction. Under the EPC SDD guidance, MS03 may substitute for AM04 where national law restricts disclosure; MS03 alone does not establish insufficient funds.
Amount & Funds
Duplicate payment / collection
The same debit or credit transfer was submitted more than once — usually a file-resubmission or integration retry bug on the originator side.
Amount & Funds
Wrong amount
The customer identifies that an incorrect amount was sent on a completed SCT/SCT Inst payment.
Amount & Funds
Amount exceeds settlement limit
The originator PSP has insufficient prefunded inter-PSP settlement guarantees for this SCT Inst transaction.
Response
Already returned
The funds referenced in the recall/RFRO were already reversed through a separate process before the recall request arrived.
Agent & Format
Party who initiated the message is not recognised by the end customer
In SEPA operator usage this most commonly reflects an incorrect or unregistered Creditor Identifier — the Creditor ID in the collection message does not match a registered creditor. A common failure during new SDD program setup.
Account
Creditor bank not registered
The beneficiary bank BIC/routing data does not match a registered participant in the clearing system used for the transfer.
Recall / RFRO
Customer request (RFRO)
The customer asks for recovery — commonly a wrong beneficiary or a duplicate the customer identified themselves — after the payment has already settled.
Account
Debtor bank not registered
The originator's bank BIC/routing data does not match a registered participant in the clearing system.
Recall / RFRO
Duplicate payment (Recall)
Two identical pacs.008 messages were submitted; the originator bank initiates recovery of one via camt.056.
Agent & Format
Invalid file format
The message does not conform to the ISO 20022 schema — malformed XML, invalid mandate reference format, or a missing mandatory field.
Agent & Format
Local instrument code invalid
The LocalInstrument field (CORE or B2B) does not match the account's registered capabilities — for example, sending a B2B-flagged collection against an account only enrolled for SDD Core.
Response
Return following cancellation request
The beneficiary bank agrees to the Recall or RFRO and returns the funds via pacs.004.
Recall / RFRO
Fraudulent origin (Recall)
Suspected fraud on the sending side of an SCT/SCT Inst payment.
Response
Legal decision prevents return
A legal proceeding, court order, or regulatory action in the beneficiary jurisdiction prevents the bank from returning the funds.
Mandate
No mandate
No valid mandate on file, the mandate was cancelled, the SequenceType (FRST/RCUR/FNAL) does not match, or — for SDD B2B — the mandate was never pre-registered at the debtor bank before the first collection.
Mandate
Mandate data missing or incorrect
Mandatory mandate fields — mandate reference, signature date, creditor identifier — are absent or malformed in the collection message.
Mandate
Refund request by end customer
The debtor exercises the SDD Core 8-week no-questions-asked refund right on an authorized collection.
Mandate
End customer deceased
The account holder has died.
Debtor Refusal & Unspecified
Not specified — customer-generated
The debtor has told their bank not to honor this specific collection, with no further reason given.
Debtor Refusal & Unspecified
Not specified — agent-generated
The agent has not specified the underlying reason. EPC173-14 v8.1 permits MS03 to substitute for AC04, AM04, MD07 or RR01–RR04 where national law restricts disclosure. The code does not identify which reason was masked or whether a retry is safe.
Response
Original SCT never received
The funds referenced in the recall/RFRO never actually arrived at the beneficiary bank.
Account
Incorrect BIC
The BIC submitted with the credit transfer is malformed or does not match the IBAN provided.
Regulatory
Missing debtor account or identification
A regulatory requirement for debtor account identification was not met in the payment message.
Regulatory
Missing debtor name or address
Required debtor name or address is absent or invalid under the applicable scheme rules. The EPC removed the superseded 15 November 2026 unstructured-address end date from its September 2026 guidance; check current implementation requirements rather than assuming that date applies.
Regulatory
Missing creditor name or address
Required creditor name or address is absent or invalid under the applicable scheme rules; the code alone does not establish that an unstructured address is now prohibited.
Regulatory
Regulatory reason
A regulatory reason other than the missing details covered by RR01–RR03. The code alone does not identify an AML or sanctions finding, a particular party, or misconduct.
Debtor Refusal & Unspecified
Specific debtor bank service
The creditor is not on the debtor's whitelist, or the collection exceeds a limit the debtor configured with their bank (a common SDD B2B mandate-limit control).
Recall / RFRO
Technical problem (Recall)
A processing error on the originator side generated an erroneous transaction.
Want the full picture, not just one code?
This tool targets "look up this code right now." For the narrative explanation of the six R-transaction types, the scheme applicability matrix, timing windows, and the Recall/RFRO recovery procedures, read the full reference article.
Reason-code definitions and timing windows come from EPC scheme rulebooks and guidance documents — verify against your bank or PSP before acting on a specific case.