What are SEPA Instant Payments?
While standard SEPA payments can take between one and two business days to reach the payee, SEPA Instant payments allow money to be transferred from one payment account e.g. savings plus account to another, in euro, within 10 seconds, 24 hours a day, any day of the year, including bank holidays and weekends*. You will also get confirmation within 10 seconds of making a payment that it has been received by the payee. *There are a few exceptions to this. For example, times when the Credit Union’s or payment service provider’s system might be unavailable due to planned maintenance. You will be notified of any scheduled downtime in advance.
Is there a fee to use SEPA Instant?
There are no fees for this service with Premier Credit Union
Do I need to register to use SEPA Instant?
Registration is not required. The ability to send and receive individual SEPA Instant payments is available automatically to all our members through any of the Premier Credit Union branches, or via our app
How can I send a SEPA Instant payment?
SEPA Instant payments can be made in any one of our offices (Thurles, Roscrea, Killenaule or Urlingford) or via our app.
Which accounts can I use for SEPA Instant payments
SEPA instant payments can be made from any regular or special share account, using funds not held as collateral for a loan, or using a savings plus account. Please note that transfers cannot be made from shares using the app if there is an open loan balance on the account.
Verification of Payee (VOP)
VOP is a new added layer of security being introduced. VOP works by checking the payee name entered for a payment against the name associated with recipient’s account. This provides greater assurance that the recipient is who you think they are. VOP is about giving customers greater control and confidence when making payments and it adds an extra layer of protection. VOP is a mandatory requirement for euro payments in the eurozone from 9th October 2025 and will apply to both standard SEPA payments and SEPA Instant payments
What is Verification of Payee (VOP)?
Previously, if you wanted to make a payment you would provide your Credit Union or bank with all the payee’s details, including the IBAN (International Bank Account Number) together with the name of the person or business that you intended to pay. However, there was no facility to check and confirm the name of the account being paid into. it is always good practice to verify the IBAN details with your payee via a verified channel (such as calling a known and trusted number) before making a payment to ensure that the payment is genuine and details are correct.
Which payments can be checked with this new Verification of Payee (VOP) feature?
All standard SEPA payments and SEPA Instant payments within the eurozone are included regardless of the channel used (online banking, mobile banking, in branches etc.). A VOP check will be completed for Standing Orders when they are set up initially and for in-branch paper payments at the time of being processed.
Which names should I enter when transferring money to a joint account holder?
You will need to enter one full name (first name and surname) of any account holder. For legal entities or businesses, use the official registered name.
Will others see my name when they make a payment to my account
Your name will only be shown when it has been detected that the person sending you the payment has entered a slightly different or incorrect name i.e. a close match. Otherwise, your name is not disclosed.
Which payments cannot be checked with this new Verification of Payee (VOP) feature
§ Payments in other currencies § Card payments § Direct debits § Paper payments where the member is not present i.e. received by pos
How does Verification of Payee (VOP) work?
Match: If the account name and IBAN match, you will see a message on screen (or will be notified in your branch) confirming this and you may be reminded to check with the payee to ensure the request is genuine. You will be provided with an option to either proceed with or cancel the payment. · No match: If the account name does not match the IBAN, you will get a message to advise that the payee name does not match. You will be provided with an option to either proceed with, amend or cancel the payment. You may have keyed a wrong IBAN, or you may have saved this payee name as ‘rent’ for example rather than the actual payee account name. · Close or partial match: If the account name is a close or partial match to the name on the account, but not exactly the same, you will be advised that the payee name does not match exactly. You will be provided with the correct name associated with the account and you will be provided with an option to either proceed with, amend or cancel the payment. You may have input a nickname, an abbreviation such as Ellie instead of Ellen or there may be a typo. Check the name with the payee via a channel you can trust, before amending and continuing with the payment. · Service unavailable: If you receive a response saying the VOP service is unavailable or not possible, this may mean that your Credit Union or bank is unable to confirm the payee account name with the payee’s bank or payment service provider. This could be due to a technical error, or perhaps you are trying to verify an IBAN that is not in scope for VOP. We recommend that you verify the account details with your payee to ensure that the payment details are correct and that the request for payment is genuine before continuing. In some cases, due to a technical issue, you may have to retry later when the VOP service is available.
Can a Verification of Payee (VOP) check stop a payment from being processed?
No. If a VOP check is not possible or identifies a difference between the name provided and that of the actual account holder, you (the payer) must decide whether to proceed with the payment. We advise that you check the name and IBAN with the payee before continuing with the payment to ensure that the payment is genuine and to avoid paying into the wrong account.
