To collect school fees by SEPA Direct Debit Core, you need a signed mandate, a pre-notification sent to the parent before the due date, and a collection that reaches the parent's bank at least one business day before that date (1).
Start with the groundwork in our earlier article: How to manage recurring payment mandates for digital content creators
How do I run school fee collections with SEPA mandates and pre-notifications?
First, the parent signs a mandate that carries the mandatory legal wording and data set, and the Unique Mandate Reference must reach the parent before your first collection (1). Second, you send a pre-notification of the amount and due date (2). Third, once you hold the signed mandate, you can initiate collections, and the parent's bank must receive each one at least one inter-PSP business day before the due date (1).
Later instalments are collected under the same mandate (1). Once you present no collection under a mandate for 36 months, you must cancel it and obtain a new mandate before you collect again.
Fee-cycle control table for SEPA Core school collections
Step | Rule or figure it rests on | How to verify |
|---|---|---|
Get the mandate signed before the first collection | Mandate must carry the mandatory legal wording and data set; the UMR must reach the parent before the first collection if it was not available at signing | Each family's file holds a signed mandate with the mandatory data, and a record that the UMR reached the parent before the first collection |
Send the pre-notification | By default at the latest 14 calendar days before the due date, unless another timeline is agreed | The notice (schedule, invoice or advice) shows the amount and due date, and its send date is at least 14 calendar days before the due date unless a different timeline was agreed |
Get the collection to the parent's bank in time | The debtor's bank must receive the collection at least one inter-PSP business day (D-1) before the due date | The collection is scheduled so that the parent's bank receives it at least one inter-PSP business day before the due date |
Do not collect too early | A collection must be received not earlier than 14 calendar days before the due date | The collection is scheduled so that the parent's bank receives it not earlier than 14 calendar days before the due date |
Retire unused mandates | Cancel the mandate if no collection is presented for 36 months from the latest one presented, even if rejected, returned or refunded | Check the date of the latest collection presented per mandate against the 36-month period |
What can a school use as a pre-notification, and what if the notice is late or improper?
A pre-notification is the creditor's notice to the parent of the amount and time schedule before the debits are collected, and it can be a separate notice or part of a regular statement, bill or invoice (3). A schedule of repetitive debits for an agreed period of time, the invoice itself, an individual advice for a specified due date, or any other document giving the amount and due date all qualify, and any electronic means agreed with the parent also works (2).
By default, the school as Creditor must send the pre-notification to the parent at the latest 14 calendar days before the due date, but the school and the parent are free to agree another timeline (2). If a shorter timeline is agreed, it is recommended that the parent still has enough time to provide the required funds in the account. A pre-notification not carried out properly may result in a Return or a Refund (4).
How do I keep mandates correct when a parent changes bank account, or when fees end?
Each party is responsible for amending the mandate characteristics it owns, so if the school changes its name, Creditor Identifier or mandate reference, the mandate must be amended (1). If a parent moves to another account, the same mandate continues, and the collection carries the amendment indicator set to true with the original debtor account set to SMNDA (2). Within the same bank the code IBAN is allowed.
When a Creditor Identifier or Unique Mandate Reference changes, the amendment indicator must be set to true and the original value stated (4). For the first collection under a mandate you may use FRST or RCUR, and you use LAST to mark the final collection in a series when the final instalment is due (2).
Sources
- 2025 SEPA Direct Debit Core Scheme Rulebook 2025 Version 1.2, European Payments Council, 30 September 2026
- CLARIFICATION PAPER ON SEPA DIRECT DEBIT CORE AND SEPA DIRECT DEBIT BUSINESS-TO-BUSINESS SCHEME RULEBOOKS, European Payments Council AISBL, 5 October 2025
- SEPA Direct Debit Core Scheme Rulebook, European Payments Council, Date issued: 05 October 2025
- CLARIFICATION PAPER, European Payments Council AISBL, 28 November 2024