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Friendly Reminder: EU Law Mandates Migration to SEPA by February 2014 in Euro Area. Recommendation is to Rely on EU Legislator (Not on Speculations Regarding the Impact of the Euro Debt Crisis on SEPA) when Planning Migration. The Time to Act is Now. Viewed 3331 times
23-08-2012
For the purposes of this blog it is necessary to repeat the obvious: the European Union (EU) Regulation No. 260/2012 establishing technical and business requirements for credit transfers and direct debits in euro and amending Regulation EC No. 924/2009 (the Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA) Regulation) stipulates the mandatory deadlines for compliance with its rules for credit transfer and direct debit transactions. Article 6 (1) and (2) of the SEPA Regulation mandate that credit transfers and direct debits shall be carried out in accordance with the relevant requirements set out in Article 5 and in the Annex to the Regulation by 1 February 2014, subject to certain limited exemptions mentioned in the Regulation. Effectively, this means that as of this date, existing national euro credit transfer and direct debit schemes will be replaced by SEPA Credit Transfer and SEPA Direct Debit. Article 16 (8) clarifies that non-euro countries will have to make the transition to SEPA by 31 October 2016.
Recent public debate regarding the SEPA project seems to increasingly entertain the idea that the deadlines for compliance with the SEPA Regulation (see ‘related links' below), might not apply due to the ongoing euro debt crisis. To give just one example of many: on 2 August 2012, journalist Michiel Willems blogged an interview with Dr Nathalie Moreno (see ‘related links' below) who stated: "It is hard to see the deadline of spring 2014 not being moved. The euro crisis is developing at such a rate in 2012 that nobody can predict what will happen, and the impacts of increased lending and bailouts to keep the euro afloat will surely affect the ability of these economies to make a certain decision on the future of SEPA. SEPA's focus is on payment harmonisation and modernisation but with all the turmoil of the Eurozone as a whole it is difficult to see how this can be kept a reality without the need for new and added thoughts on SEPA's development process which keep up with key market developments."
In light of such comments, it appears that some clarification is required. Firstly and most importantly, the legal obligation to comply with the 1 February 2014 deadline; i.e. Article 6 (1) and (2) of the SEPA Regulation, is not subject to the "ability" of individual "economies to make a certain decision on the future of SEPA." The decision on the future of SEPA was made by the EU legislator - that is the Council of the EU representing the 27 EU Member States and the European Parliament. The European Parliament adopted the SEPA Regulation on 14 February 2012; the Council of the EU adopted this legislative act on 28 February 2012. Under the ordinary legislative procedure (formerly known as co-decision), EU legislation is adopted by the Council of the EU and the European Parliament. The SEPA Regulation was published in the Official Journal of the EU on 30 March 2012 and came into force on 31 March 2012.
Consequently, the only party empowered to amend the SEPA Regulation is the EU legislator. The question is whether there are any indications that the EU legislator intends to change Article 6 (1) and (2) of the SEPA Regulation as a result of the euro debt crisis at this stage in the process. In asking this question, the following should be considered: the euro debt crisis has evolved since late 2009. The European Commission (the Commission) tabled a first discussion paper detailing, among other things, the option to establish mandatory deadlines for migration to harmonised SEPA payment instruments through EU regulation in March 2010. The Commission introduced its proposal for the SEPA Regulation in December 2010. This proposal was then considered by the Council of the EU and the European Parliament throughout 2011. As mentioned above, both EU legislative bodies adopted the SEPA Regulation in February 2012. In other words, the determination of EU lawmakers to establish a timely deadline for compliance with the SEPA Regulation was not deterred at any stage in the legislative process which evolved in parallel with the deepening of the euro debt crisis.
In a press release published on 28 February 2012 (see ‘related links' below), the Council of the EU reiterated that the SEPA Regulation establishes deadlines for compliance with "common standards and general technical requirements", aimed at the "simplification of payment processes. For consumers, standardised cross-border payments will remove the need to maintain accounts in different countries. For payment service providers and payment processors, economies of scale and common standards will make payments more efficient." Article 5 of the SEPA Regulation details the technical and business requirements that should be observed when carrying out credit transfer and direct debit transactions. These requirements relate to, among other things, the use of the International Bank Account Number (IBAN) and the ISO 20022 XML message standards. Article 5 also references the data elements detailed in the Annex to the Regulation that should be provided with a credit transfer and a direct debit payment. Last but not least, Article 5 sets out the rights of consumers with regard to direct debit collections, which are also relevant for payees (billers). Establishing these requirements serves the purpose of harmonising the way electronic payments are carried out in the EU. There does not appear to be any dependency between the euro debt crisis and the use of, for example, the IBAN by payment service providers and payment service users in accordance with the provisions - and deadlines - established with the SEPA Regulation.
The European authorities driving forward the SEPA programme frequently pointed out that the integration of the euro payments market strengthens the euro currency and the EU internal market. Commenting on the agreement of the 1 February 2014 deadline to be established with the SEPA Regulation, Member of the European Parliament Sari Essayah, rapporteur for this legislative act, said: "SEPA is a fundamental element of the internal market. The internal market cannot function well without SEPA. Moreover SEPA will provide the basis for other developments in the single market." Sharon Bowles, Chair of the Parliament's Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee, confirmed that the agreement on this deadline demonstrates that "even as we grapple with the crisis, the EU institutions continue to work diligently to deepen the internal market in financial services, with the euro at its core. This agreement is a vote of confidence in the euro, and I am convinced that it will be a good deal for consumers and businesses." (See press release of the European Parliament of 20 December 2011 under ‘related links' below).
As communicated already in the EPC's online media briefing held in October 2011 (see ‘related links' below), the EPC shares the opinion that SEPA contributes towards a solution for the current euro crisis. In line with statements from other market participants, the EPC believes that the current situation reinforces the need for swift migration to harmonised SEPA payment schemes. It is therefore positive that the European legislator established clear deadlines for migration to SEPA. It is the view of the EPC that the 1 February 2014 deadline for migration in the euro area mandated with the SEPA Regulation should not be delayed.
Clearly, the euro crisis impacts the economic actors in the internal market. This is however no reason to procrastinate the actions required to achieving compliance with the SEPA Regulation. Unless the EU legislator would decide otherwise, payment service providers and payment service users such as business and public entities in the euro area must comply with the SEPA Regulation by 1 February 2014.
Consequently, the EPC maintains that payment service providers and payment service users need to evaluate the impact of the SEPA Regulation on their day-to-day operations. The EPC also reiterates that the experience of early movers handling major payment volumes indicates that migration to SEPA Schemes and technical standards is beneficial but requires careful planning. The relevant actions and resources should be identified as soon as possible.
The time to act is now.
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Previous entries
08.05.13If You Have not Migrated to SEPA Yet – Act Now!
06.11.12New Rulebook Versions and Associated Implementation Guidelines Take Effect on 17 November 2012
25.10.12To Anyone Who Has Not Yet Started the Process of Getting Ready for SEPA by 1.2.2014: Act Now!
10.09.12Let´s Talk About SEPA Direct Debit: Migration is Manageable. The Time to Act is Now