Have you heard that Telepay is being shelved for good? And do you know what this means for you and your business?
Let's take the basics first: Telepay is a standard file format for transferring payment information between, for example, your payroll and ERP system and your bank. The file format, which was developed in the late 1980s, has historically been the most widely used payment format in Norway, both for national and international payments.
But now it's over. Telepay is being replaced by a new international standard, SEPA. SEPA stands for Single Euro Payments Area, and is a common payment method that will make it easier to do business across EU/EEA countries. ISO 20022 XML is the new format for submitting payment files to be used for payments in euro within SEPA and has been in use since October 31, 2016.
Until now, it has been possible to use Telepay, but by 2024 this will be over for most banks. Telepay will be fully replaced by SEPA's standard payment file; ISO20022 XML. The new file format will be the new standard for file-based payment orders and information transfer in the customer/bank interface, and eventually also in the entire value chain from payer to payee.
What does this mean for you?
In short: You and your company must switch to SEPA and adopt ISO20022XML before your bank stops accepting Telepay. If not, you will not be able to pay payroll to your employees.
Fortunately, there is help available. Sariba, have already helped several of our customers set up payment files from SAP based on SEPA's new file format, and we are now ready to help you. We set up the new format according to your bank's criteria, and we work closely with both you and your bank throughout the project. If you wish, we are happy to help you change the master data for payment information per employee, so that this is updated and correct when the new files are sent.
Where do you store your payment files?
In connection with the change to SEPA, our clear recommendation is that you make a thorough assessment of where you store your payment files. Are they stored locally? And if so, have you thought about what this could lead to? Locally stored files can be exposed to both hacking and manipulation, and are not a secure enough solution. The files should therefore be sent directly from SAP and to the bank, so that no one has the opportunity to tamper with the files.
Now it's urgent
If you don't yet have a plan for the transition to SEPA and ISO20022, you really need to get moving. The process of getting this in place can take several months, and 2024 is not that far away. We strongly recommend that you check with your bank when they stop accepting Telepay. Ensure that your employees receive payroll on their account even after Telepay is shelved for good, while ensuring a secure shipment of your payroll files.
Contact us today, we're happy to help you get started