Local banking and payment formats: inventory, set-up and reconciliation
A new country usually means a new bank, and a new bank means new files. Your ERP has to send payment instructions in a format the bank accepts, read the statements the bank sends back and turn them into postings that reconcile. Most of this work is not tax. It still decides whether suppliers are paid on time and whether the month-end bank reconciliation closes.
This guide gives you a format inventory, a set-up checklist and a worked reconciliation that includes a bank fee and an exchange difference. It names message types from the international standard but does not describe any bank's or country's own rules; use the bank's implementation guide for those.
Know the main message types
Many banks now use ISO 20022 XML messages for corporate payments and reporting. The standard's catalogue lists, among others, these message definitions (ISO 20022 message catalogue):
| Purpose | ISO 20022 message | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Send payments | pain.001 Customer Credit Transfer Initiation | You instruct the bank to pay suppliers, salaries or tax |
| Collect by direct debit | pain.008 Customer Direct Debit Initiation | You instruct the bank to collect from customers |
| Payment status | pain.002 Customer Payment Status Report | The bank accepts or rejects your instruction |
| Intraday report | camt.052 Bank to Customer Account Report | Movements during the day |
| End-of-day statement | camt.053 Bank to Customer Statement | The statement you reconcile |
| Single movement notice | camt.054 Bank to Customer Debit Credit Notification | Details of individual debits or credits, often batch details |
The catalogue holds several versions of each message. Banks support particular versions and add their own usage rules, so "we support pain.001" is never enough; ask which version and which implementation guide. Some banks and countries still use older or domestic formats alongside ISO 20022. List them too.
Build the format inventory
For each bank account, record what goes in each direction:
| Bank and account | Direction | Purpose | Format and version | Bank's guide (version, date) | Channel | ERP component | Tested |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bank X, operating EUR | Out | Supplier payments | pain.001, version per bank guide | v3, May | host-to-host | payment module | Yes |
| Bank X, operating EUR | In | Statement | camt.053 | v3, May | host-to-host | statement import | Yes |
| Bank X, operating EUR | In | Status | pain.002 | v3, May | host-to-host | payment module | No |
| Bank Y, payroll | Out | Salaries | domestic format, per bank | — | portal upload | payroll export | No |
Include the channel (portal upload, host-to-host or a connectivity provider) and who holds the signing rights. If tax or salary payments use a separate route, list it separately.
Set up and test
- Bank master data. Account numbers, IBAN or local equivalents, bank identifiers, currency and the GL account for each bank account.
- Supplier and employee bank data. Validate formats on entry. Changes to supplier bank details need a second-person check against fraud.
- Payment methods. Map each method in the ERP (domestic transfer, foreign transfer, urgent, salary, tax) to the bank's service codes.
- Character set and remittance text. Some banks restrict characters or field lengths. Test names with local characters.
- Statement import rules. Map transaction codes to posting rules: customer receipt, supplier payment, fee, interest, tax.
- Tests. Send a test file to the bank's test environment if it has one. Then make a small live payment and import the statement that shows it.
Reconcile receipts with fees and exchange differences
Statements show what the bank actually credited. That is often different from the invoice amount: the bank deducts a fee, or converts a foreign-currency payment at the day's rate. Your posting rules must split the difference instead of leaving it on the receivable.
Worked example
The amounts and the exchange rates are illustrative. A company keeps its books in EUR. It invoiced a customer USD 1,000 when the booked rate gave EUR 900. The customer pays USD 1,000. The bank converts it to EUR 880 at the payment-date rate and deducts a EUR 5 fee, so the statement shows a credit of EUR 875.
| Account | Debit | Credit | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bank | 875.00 | statement credit | |
| Bank charges | 5.00 | ||
| Realised exchange loss | 20.00 | 900 − 880 | |
| Trade receivables | 900.00 | invoice at booked rate | |
| Total | 900.00 | 900.00 |
The receivable is cleared in full, the bank account agrees with the statement, and the fee and the exchange loss each have their own account. If your ERP posts the receipt at 875 against the invoice and leaves 25 open, the customer appears to owe money they do not owe.
Reconciliation steps
- Import the statement and auto-match by reference, amount and date.
- Apply posting rules for fees, interest and known charges.
- Review unmatched items daily in the first weeks after go-live.
- At month end, agree the bank GL balance to the statement closing balance. List reconciling items with ages and owners.
- Never post a balancing entry to force agreement.
Worksheet
Use the bank format inventory and reconciliation checklist.
Worksheet: Bank format inventory and reconciliation checklist
Copy this worksheet for each case. It records decisions and evidence; it does not determine the tax or legal treatment.
Show the worksheet
Use with the banking and payment formats guide.
Format inventory
| Bank and account | Direction | Purpose | Format and version | Bank's guide (version, date) | Channel | ERP component | Tested |
|---|
Set-up
- ☐ Bank accounts and GL accounts created
- ☐ Supplier and employee bank data validated; changes need a second check
- ☐ Payment methods mapped to the bank's service codes
- ☐ Character set and field lengths tested
- ☐ Statement transaction codes mapped to posting rules (receipts, payments, fees, interest, tax)
- ☐ Test file accepted in the bank's test environment
- ☐ Small live payment sent and its statement imported
- ☐ Signing rights and channel credentials documented
Month-end reconciliation
| Item | Amount | Date | Reason | Owner | Cleared |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Statement closing balance | |||||
| GL bank balance | |||||
| Reconciling items |
Sources checked: 27 October 2026. ISO 20022 message names from the ISO 20022 message catalogue. Bank-specific versions, usage rules and any domestic formats come from each bank's implementation guide and are not stated here.
Related guides and data
- How to separate invoice, tax, ledger and reporting currencies
- Withholding tax on supplier and customer payments in your ERP
- Go-live and hypercare for a new country: the first 30 to 90 days
Data on this site: Country pages with sourced key facts
In Accounting and reporting: previous Hand records to an external accountant without losing control · next Chart of accounts, statutory journals and document numbering for a new country · Guides by task · All guides
Vendor documentation is cited only as an example of the level of evidence to ask for; it is not a recommendation or a ranking. This guide is general information, not tax or legal advice. Checked 2026-10-27.
Related: Glossary – abbreviations and terms used in these guides (SAF-T, Peppol, CTC, EN 16931, IFRS and more).
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