Reversing a SEPA direct debit: rights and deadlines

In short: With a SEPA direct debit (SEPA-Lastschrift), a company collects money directly from your account with your permission. You can ask your bank to reverse such a debit within certain deadlines.

In more detail: If you gave permission (a mandate), the standard SEPA Core Direct Debit gives you eight weeks in which you can object without giving a reason. If there was no mandate at all, the deadline is considerably longer. However, reversing the debit does not automatically cancel a valid claim.

In detail

• The mandate: With a SEPA direct debit mandate you allow a payee to collect amounts from your account and instruct your bank to honour these collections.
• Identifying details: Every direct debit on your bank statement shows the creditor identifier (Gläubiger-ID) and the mandate reference, which help you work out where the debit came from.
• Eight-week deadline: For an authorised Core direct debit you can request a refund within eight weeks of the debit date without having to give a reason.
• Debit without a mandate: If money was taken without a valid mandate, you can usually request a refund up to 13 months after the debit; still, report such cases as quickly as possible.
• How it works: A reversal is usually done through online banking, the banking app or directly at your bank’s counter.
• The claim remains: If you genuinely owe the money, for example for an ongoing contract, you still have to pay despite the reversal, and reminders and extra costs may follow.
• Business direct debit: The SEPA Business-to-Business direct debit, used only between companies, does not include this refund right.
• Cancelling the mandate: To stop future debits, it is best to withdraw the mandate in writing with the payee and, if necessary, cancel the contract.
• Be careful with unknown debits: Unfamiliar debits can point to fraud or a subscription trap; check your statements regularly and contact your bank or the Verbraucherzentrale (consumer advice centre) if anything is unclear (iban-und-sepa, abo-falle-erkennen).