Glossary of Autogiro terms
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Last editedMay 2022
| Term | Meaning | More details |
|---|---|---|
| Advance notice | Notice that must be given, under the Scheme rules, to customers before a payment leaves their account. | Taking Autogiro payments |
| Bankgiro number (Bankgironummer) | An identifier that points to a bank account. Organisations collecting payment using Autogiro must have a Bankgirot number. | Bankgiro numbers |
| Bankgirot | The clearing system that administers the Autogiro scheme - all Autogiro communications go through Bankgirot. | Autogiro introduction |
| Balance Check Inquiry | A check carried out by Bankgirot early in the morning on the payment due date. This verifies whether there are sufficient funds in the payer's account to complete the transaction. | Bankgirot reports |
| Bank day | Submissions to Bankgirot can only take place on Bank Days. These are defined by Bankgirot and exclude weekends and public holidays. | Autogiro timings |
| Comment code | Comment codes are used in conjuction with information codes within Bankgirot's reports. They specify the reason for mandate information actions. | Bankgirot reports |
| Communication Solution (or Method) | The method a company uses to send files to and retrieve files from Bankgirot. The service provided by Bankgirot is called Bankgiro Link. | Accessing Autogiro |
| Direct Debit | Used in this guide to refer to Autogiro's equivalents in other countries. Examples include Bacs Direct Debit in the UK and SEPA Direct Debit in the Eurozone. | Autogiro introduction |
| Due date | The date a payment is due to be debited from a payer's account. | Autogiro timings |
| Information code | Information codes provide information on the status of mandates lodged with Bankgirot. | Bankgirot reports |
| Mandate (Medgivande) | An authorisation from your customer to collect future payments automatically. To set up a mandate your customers must complete a standardised form. | Autogiro mandates |
| Mandate advice file | The file received from Bankgirot containing notifications about submitted mandates. | Bankgirot reports |
| Mandate form | The form used to register a new mandate. This includes paper-based forms and electronic forms. | Autogiro mandates |
| Mandate via form | A paper-based mandate form. This is the only type of mandate that can be signed with a Bankgiro number, rather than an account number. | Autogiro mandates |
| Mandate via electronic mandate form (Medgivande via elekroniskt medgivandeformulär) | A customised electronic mandate form that has been approved by the payee's sponsor bank. GoCardless provides an optimised custom mandate form to its customers, including the company's logo. GoCardless Pro users can also build their own mandate form into their website. | Autogiro mandates |
| Mandate via Internet Bank (Medgivande via Internetbank) | An electronic mandate form signed by the payer after logging in to their online banking portal. | Autogiro mandates |
| Mandate via web page (Medgivande via Hemsida) | An electronic mandate form hosted by Bankgirot. A company can link to this form from its website. | Autogiro mandates |
| Payment initiation | The file the company sends to Bankgirot containing the payments to be made. Bankgirot currently operates old and new layouts for this - only the new layout allows full reconciliation of payments. | Bankgirot submissions |
| Payment instructions | The payments Bankgirot accepts and processes. | Bankgirot submissions |
| Payments Specification report | The report from Bankgirot containing updates on payments, including any payments stopped in the balance check inquiry. | Bankgirot reports |
| (Pre-)Notifications | An alternative term for messages providing the Advance Notice required under the Scheme rules. | Sending pre-notifications |
| Unauthorised Transaction | A transaction is unauthorised if an Autogiro mandate was never signed or if the mandate was cancelled before the payment was made. | Customer protection |
