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Q&A SEPA - Payment cards

REALISATION OF THE SINGLE EURO PAYMENTS AREA IN FINLAND

• General
• Bank transfer
• Direct debiting
• Payment cards
• Effects on businesses  

SEPA - Frequently asked questions, January 2008, pdf 

21. What is a SEPA card?
"SEPA card" is a general name for payment cards that the cardholder can use to pay for goods and services and withdraw cash from automatic teller machines with the same level of ease everywhere in the eurozone. The card must have an EMV chip.

22. What does EMV mean?
The abbreviation EMV is short for Europay, MasterCard and Visa, which developed the international standard for card payments. Payment cards with a magnetic strip will be replaced with new chip cards that comply with the EMV standard throughout the world over the next few years.

23. What will the adoption of chip cards change?
When making a payment, the cardholder feeds the card into the payment device at the point of sale and enters the identification number of the card. This means that the use of personal identification numbers will expand from automatic teller machines to all payments made with a card. There will be no other essential changes from the point of view of the customer. Remembering and safekeeping the identification number of one's personal payment card will continue to be important.

24. Where can the SEPA card be used as a means of payment?
According to SEPA rules, the card must be a valid means of payment at least for domestic payments and payments in the eurozone. The goal of SEPA is to ensure that EU citizens can use their card in the same way everywhere in the Single Euro Payments Area. The SEPA card is valid in the Single Euro Payments Area in all shops that carry a symbol indicating that it is accepted.

25. When is a chip needed in the card?
SEPA rules require the use of a chip and compliance with EMV standard in the cards. The chips are used to prevent forgery and misuse of cards. The copying and forgery of cards with a magnetic strip, in use today, has become more prevalent in Europe. Using the chip, the cardholder can be identified and card transactions verified more safely than with the present magnetic strip technology.

26. When do the card requirements of SEPA enter into force?
According to recommendations issued by the European Payments Council, banks will start issuing new SEPA-compliant general-purpose payment cards to their customers starting from the beginning of 2008 at the latest. Even so, each card-issuing bank will make its own decision on when and what kind of cards it distributes to customers.

27. What should one do in shops where one can only pay using a domestic bank card?
Payments are made in the customary way with no changes. The number of traditional bank cards that are only valid domestically will gradually decrease. Merchants should already be in contact with their bank or the Luottokunta credit card service company and agree on the introduction of international cards.

28. What will happen to combination cards?
The national bank card feature of a combination card can be replaced with an international service. The decisions are bank specific. With the new SEPA card, the account can also be charged from abroad.

29. How can I get a SEPA card?
Banks will notify their customers of the terms and conditions for the replacement of cards. A customer can choose e.g. just a payment card connected to a bank account from among the available options, or a payment card similar to the present combination cards. The effects of the new SEPA card on the cardholder will remain minor.

30. What kind of card will banks offer?
A customer can choose a payment card that can also be used
internationally that best meets his or her needs. The selection of cards varies from bank to bank. The available cards include international Visa and MasterCard debit cards that work like a bank card, electronically certified cards such as Visa Electron, credit cards and combination cards.

31. If an international card is already in use, is some kind of new European card also needed?
The present international cards, Visa, Visa Electron and MasterCard, are already SEPA cards and work in the Single Euro Payments Area.

32. Visa and MasterCard are credit cards. What if I want a card that functions like a bank card that can be used abroad?
In addition to Visa and MasterCard credit cards, banks will offer international debit cards that function like bank cards and are connected to a bank account. Card payments and withdrawals from automatic teller machines are charged to the bank account as normal, so that card transactions are recorded as single transactions in the bank account.

33. What does a SEPA compatible card cost?
The price of the cards varies from bank to bank, so it is best to ask your own bank.

34. Can I withdraw cash using my SEPA-compatible card as I do now with my present bank card?
Yes.  The card also has additional uses. The card is accepted by all automatic teller machines in the Single Euro Payments Area that feature the symbol that indicates that the card is accepted.