Pay.UK rolls out Request to Pay framework

Pay.UK has issued the message standards, rules and terms and condition for the development of Request to Pay services.

The messaging service enables billers to directly request funds rather than sending traditional invoices. For each request, receivers are asked whether they would like to pay in full or in part, request an extension, communicate directly with the biller, or decline to pay.

Initially scheduled for release at the end of April, Pay.UK delayed the publication of the R2P framework to avoid increasing the load on banks as they deal with the Covid-19 pandemic.

The release of the standards comes days after Visa revealed that it has successfully conducted pilot trials with over 100 billers across multiple use cases.

All told, over 400 organisations - ranging from start-ups to household name payment service providers - took part in an open sandbox to refine the framework.

Paul Horlock, Pay.UK CEO, says that organisations can now begin work on creating request to Pay propositions for commercial consumption.

"The Request to Pay Framework represents the culmination of a user driven journey that was began by Faster Payments, taken forward by the Payments Strategy Forum and we’re now excited to see come to fruition through Pay.UK with the support of stakeholders from across the industry," he says. "We’re looking forward to developers bringing Request to Pay propositions to market.”