Verifying Recipient Names for Instant Payments

Verification of recipients’ names for instant payments

Starting 9 October 2025, new rules will come into effect for instant SEPA payments. One of the key changes is the Verification of Payee (VoP), which provides additional protection for transfers/payments.

What will change?

The payer’s bank will check whether the recipient’s name matches their bank account number (IBAN). If the data does not match, the payer will be warned that making such a payment could result in the funds not being received by the intended/correct recipient. The payer will then decide whether to proceed with the payment.

What does this mean for you?

If the name of your company, as used on invoices, your website, or in communication with clients, does not fully match the official record in public registers (e.g. AJPES), the payment might not be processed.

What can you do?

To ensure smooth payment processing, by 1 October 2025, you should:

• check that the company name used on invoices and other payment documents matches the name published in official registers (e.g. AJPES);
• update all documents and channels where your company name and IBAN are stated, if you find a deviation from the official title;
• inform your clients to use the exact official name of your company when making payments.

Why is this important?

This new service reduces the risk of errors and fraud by providing the payer with greater certainty about the recipient, and contributing to the smooth execution of payments.

For more information, please check the FAQs below or the website of the Bank Association of Slovenia.

1. What is the Instant Payments Regulation?

This is a new EU Regulation that requires all payment service providers (banks, savings banks, etc.) to offer instant SEPA credit payments in euros across all distribution channels where they currently offer non-instant (standard) payments to users. The EU regulation stipulates that an instant payment must be executed within 10 seconds.

The regulation introduces the following:

• Verification of Payee (VoP): A service that checks the match between the recipient’s name and IBAN, thus giving the payer greater certainty that the funds are being sent to the correct/intended recipient.
• Payment limit management by clients: The payer determines the maximum amount for instant payments – either per transaction (transaction limit) or per day (daily limit). More information on managing payment limits will be provided in the next notice.
• Obligation for banks to properly notify payers: Banks must inform payers whether the instant payment was successfully executed (i.e., the funds are available to the recipient) or rejected, along with the reason for rejection.

These provisions of the EU Regulation will enter into force on 9 October 2025.

2. What is an “instant payment”?

An instant payment is a domestic or cross-border credit payment in euros that is settled and credited to the recipient’s account immediately via online or mobile bank, or at a bank counter (during business hours). It is executed in no more than 10 seconds, every day of the week, regardless of the time.

3. What is Verification of Payee (VoP)?

VoP is a security feature that checks whether the name and surname / company name of the recipient entered by the payer when making a payment matches the name as listed in publicly available registers (e.g., AJPES).

4. What notifications does the payer receive during VoP and when?

When the payer enters the recipient’s IBAN, they will receive a notification about the result of the name-IBAN match (VoP). This notification is shown before the payment is confirmed (authorised). The payer will receive one of the following messages:

• The name and IBAN match.
• The name and IBAN do not match.
• The name and IBAN partially match.
• Verification not possible.

If the data does not match, the payer’s bank will warn the payer that there is a risk of misdirected payment, for which the bank does not take responsibility. The payer will then decide whether to proceed with the payment.

If the message says “The name and IBAN partially match”, the bank will inform the payer of the recipient’s correct name, which the payer can use to complete the payment.

The result “verification not possible” means that the recipient’s bank is not yet part of the VoP scheme (which allows the provision of this service) or was unavailable at the time of the query.

5. For which payments is the VoP service used?

The VoP service is applied to SEPA credit payments in EUR. It is not used for international (non-SEPA) payments.

6. Is the VoP service used for all electronic and paper-based transfers?

The VoP service is used for all electronic and mobile payments, as well as payments made at the bank counter.

7. How will VoP affect the business operations of companies?

• Companies must remind their payers to always use the official company names (as published in registers) when making payments.
• Companies must include their official names when generating QR codes for payments.
• A mismatch in the recipient’s name may result in the payer choosing not to complete the payment after receiving a warning.
• As payers, companies will have greater certainty that their payments are being sent to the correct/intended recipient by using the VoP service.

8. Will VoP be applied only to individual payments or also to bulk payments (e.g., salary transfers)?

VoP will always be applied to individual payments. However, in the case of bulk/batch payments, the payer will have the option to decide whether or not they would like to use the VoP service.

9. What should your company do regarding the VoP service?

Compare the official company name of the company as registered in the business register with the name you use on:

• invoices,
• QR code generation,
• contracts,
• your website, and
• email signatures.

If needed, align the company name across all documents and communication channels.

Inform your clients and business partners to use your company’s official name when making payments to your company.

10. Can we use abbreviated names on invoices?

The Verification of Payee function works based on an exact match of the official name as listed in the business register. Using abbreviated names may result in payment rejection, as Slovenian banks, for ease of data entry, pre-fill the recipient name field based on the IBAN using data from official registers only.

11. What happens if the name is not entered correctly?

If the company name is incomplete or not fully correct, the payer will receive a notification of a partial match. The payer will also be shown the correct/official company name.

12. What should we do if we receive a warning about a mismatched/incorrect name?

If you are the payer:

• Check with the payment recipient to confirm their official company name.
• Correct the entry and repeat the transaction.

If your payers inform you that they received a partial or no match warning during VoP:

• Notify your business partners of your exact company name.
• Verify and update your company information if necessary.

13. Does the bank have the same company data in its records as those published in the AJPES register?

The bank holds the company data/names that were provided when the business account was opened. These details are also forwarded to AJPES for inclusion in the official register.

14. Is the VoP service charged?

No, the VoP service is free of charge for users.

15. Where can we get more information?

You can get more information by calling 01 477 2000, contacting your account manager, or visiting the website of the Bank Association of Slovenia.