VOP: Final stretch for Payment Service Providers
The deadline is approaching: by October 9, 2025, Payment Service Providers (PSPs) that are SEPA members and established within the eurozone must be able to initiate instant credit transfers, and also verify the identity of beneficiaries for all transfers – whether instant or not. This requirement, known as Verification of Payee (VOP), was introduced in the Instant Payments Regulation (IPR). With less than three months to go, are PSPs ready? How can they achieve compliance quickly, avoiding significant fraud risks and potential sanctions?
VOP in Brief
IPR requires PSPs to verify, in real time and at no additional cost, that the recipient’s name matches their account identifier. This check must be completed before the Payer is offered the option to authorize the payment. Four outcomes are possible when the recipient is identified by name: MATCH, CLOSE MATCH, NO MATCH, or VERIFICATION CHECK NOT POSSIBLE.
Failure to comply with this requirement could expose PSPs to administrative penalties – particularly financial – as well as increased legal liability toward their customers. This is a major challenge for PSPs, and time is running out. To perform this verification effectively, they may need to be able to connect with approximately 3,000 banks and payment institutions and e-money institutions, mobilize teams – including business, IT, and legal departments – to address this regulatory challenge, and, of course, implement a reliable service that ensures payee verification.
Relying on an RVM to Accelerate Compliance
Specialized entities known as RVMs (Routing and/or Verification Mechanisms) can support PSPs at various levels, helping them meet their VOP obligations more easily. One area of support is with the formal steps required for enrolling in the EPC (European Payments Council) VOP Scheme, which RVMs typically assist their clients with.
This Scheme defines all the rules and standards necessary for interoperability and accessibility among actors in the VOP chain. Registration in the participant directory is essential for operating under the scheme. The first two enrollment phases have already closed, so PSPs who haven’t yet begun the process are strongly encouraged to do so as soon as possible—with the support of their RVM, if applicable.