What is a Bacs bureau?
The Bacs Approved Bureau Scheme is for organisations that submit Bacs Payments and Faster Payments transactions on behalf of third party organisations.
The Third Party Assurance team at Pay.UK review the appropriateness of all bureaux to ensure they meet the standards set by the Scheme.
Over half of the organisations using the service make their Direct Debit, Bacs Direct Credit and Faster Payments submissions through approved bureaux rather than submitting directly.
Organisations choose to use a Bacs approved bureau for a number of reasons:
- They may only make a small number of transactions each month
- They might be unable to fulfil all of the criteria to be able to make direct submissions themselves via the Bacs Payment System and the Faster Payment System
- They may be a newly established organisation
- They might be a small to medium sized enterprise (SME) with a relatively low turnover.
Whatever the reason, with approximately 700 approved bureaux throughout the world, accessibility to Direct Debit, Bacs Direct Credit and Faster Payments is greater than ever before.
Bureaux inspections during Covid-19
Until further notice, the majority of inspections will be undertaken remotely using Zoom. We have ensured the Zoom connection is secure and only accessible through an invitation sent to you by us. You do not need to download Zoom to use it for the inspection. If you have any question about using Zoom for your inspection, please contact the Third Party Assurance team.
Tariff and fees
A copy of the tariff and fees can be found in the Information Hub below or to the right of your screen.
Note: Bureau invoices will be sent out the first Tuesday of April in the name of Bacs part of Pay.UK and they will be available on the Bureau portal from this date. If you require portal access, please contact us. Access will only be permitted to bureau contacts that are registered with the Third Party Assurance team.
Further information
For information about becoming a Bacs approved bureaux please contact the Third Party Assurance team.