Verification of Payee (VoP)

Verification of Payee (VoP) is a mandatory account name-check service that payment service providers (PSPs) in the EU must offer before a euro credit transfer is authorised. This was introduced by Instant Payments Regulation EU 2024/886 and European Payments Council (EPC) provides the rules and standards to support its implementation. 

What is Verification of Payee (VoP)?

VoP is an IBAN-to-name consistency check. Before authorizing a credit transfer, the payment service provider (PSP) sends the payee’s name and IBAN to the Payee’s PSP, which returns with one of four results: match, close match, no match, or verification check not possible. PSP shows the result before authorizing the transfer, which helps in spotting incorrect recipient details before sending money. It also helps in reducing payment errors and Authorized Push Payment (APP) Fraud, where the victim is tricked into sending money to an account they believe belongs to someone else.

Under the Euro Instant Payments Regulation, VoP is required by both standard and instant credit transfers in euros. The European Central Bank confirms that payers receive a discrepancy result before initiating the payments. Every PSP that offers Euro credit transfers must provide the service free of charge, including banks, payment institutions, and electronic money institutions. The compliance deadline was 9 October 2025 for PSPs in euro-area EU countries and is 9 July 2027 for those in non-euro EU countries. Non-consumer payers can opt out when submitting multiple payment orders as a package, but must be allowed to opt back in at any time. 

How does VoP work across SEPA?

The European Payments Council (EPC) VoP scheme sets common rules for participating payment service providers (PSPs) to exchange verification requests and responses under the Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA). Its technical specifications use Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) using ISO 20022 elements. These standards are what let the bank in one member state check a name against an account held at a bank in another, without having any kind of bilateral agreement between them. 

Verification of Payee and Instant Payments Regulation:

VoP is one of the key requirements introduced by the Instant Payments Regulation (Regulation (EU) 2024/886). This regulation also mandates instant euro credit transfers, price parity between instant and standard transfers, and also the daily sanctions screening. A common misreading is that VoP applies only to instant payments. It does not. The obligation covers all euro credit transfers, instant and standard alike. 

SEPA Credit Transfer Name Check:

SEPA credit transfer name check is the same as the description of what Verification of Payee (VoP) does. It checks whether the payee name provided by the payer matches the account information associated with the IBAN held by the payee’s PSP. Before a SEPA credit transfer is authorised, the payer receives a result such as a match, close match, no match, or verification check not possible. 

How Shufti Helps

The name-to-IBAN match at the core of VoP is exactly what a bank account verification system is built to run. Shufti verifies the account and confirms the holder’s name across account linking, payouts, withdrawals, direct debits, and beneficiary changes, which is the exact point VoP is meant to protect.