Create Direct Debits - Equals Documentation

Use the /v2/budgets/{budgetId}/direct-debits endpoint to create a Direct Debit mandate from a paper mandate — a signed physical form that authorises an originator to collect payments from a payer’s bank account. Paper mandates are the offline equivalent of setting up a Direct Debit digitally. This is useful when you need to manage mandates that weren’t created through the API. For example, if your business collected Direct Debit authorisations on paper before your integration existed, those mandates still need to be registered in the system. The reference field is the link between the physical form and the mandate record — you’ll find it printed on the original paper mandate.

This endpoint is specifically for paper mandates. Electronic mandates are set up directly by the originator through the BACS network and don’t need to be created via the API.

Create a Direct Debit mandate

POST /v2/budgets/{budgetId}/direct-debits

Query parameters

string

required

The ID of the account.

Request body

string

required

The Direct Debit reference. Maximum 18 characters.

string

The date from which the mandate should be active, in YYYY-MM-DD format.

object

required

Details about the originator.

string

required

The originator’s identification number. Maximum 6 characters.

string

required

The originator’s account name. Maximum 35 characters.

object

required

The originator’s address.

string

required

The address type. Allowable values: ADDR, PBOX, HOME, BIZZ, MLTO, DLVY.

string

required

The street name.

string

required

The building number.

string

required

The building name.

string

required

The postal code.

string

required

The city.

string

required

The country code in ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 format (e.g., GB).

Sample request

curl -i -X POST \
  'https://api.equalsmoney.com/v2/budgets/4db84122-9c4e-4607-98f7-84b2bbe02daf/direct-debits?accountId=F12345' \
  -H 'Authorization: ApiKey {apiKey}' \
  -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  -d '{
    "reference": "UTILITYCO123456",
    "processingDate": "2024-02-01",
    "originator": {
      "id": "654321",
      "accountName": "Utility Company Ltd",
      "address": {
        "addressType": "ADDR",
        "streetName": "High Street",
        "buildingNumber": "123",
        "postcode": "SW1A 1AA",
        "city": "London",
        "countryCode": "GB"
      }
    }
  }'

curl -i -X POST \
  'https://api.equalsmoney.com/v2/budgets/{budgetId}/direct-debits?accountId={accountId}' \
  -H 'Authorization: ApiKey {apiKey}' \
  -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  -d '{
    "reference": "string",
    "processingDate": "YYYY-MM-DD",
    "originator": {
      "id": "string",
      "accountName": "string",
      "address": {
        "addressType": "ADDR | PBOX | HOME | BIZZ | MLTO | DLVY",
        "streetName": "string",
        "buildingNumber": "string",
        "buildingName": "string",
        "postcode": "string",
        "city": "string",
        "countryCode": "string"
      }
    }
  }'

Sample response

If your request is successful, you’ll receive a 201 response.

{
  "id": "e8f1ef68-2957-4fb1-ba8c-b1931c3754e2",
  "budgetId": "82920c13-a88c-4e3f-b24d-1ae88e47e171",
  "reference": "TEST pro12",
  "status": "ACTIVE",
  "originator": {
    "id": "123457",
    "accountName": "Netflix Inc",
    "address": {
      "addressType": "ADDR",
      "addressLine": "Times street",
      "city": "London",
      "postcode": "EC4V 3BJ",
      "countryCode": "GB"
    }
  },
  "createdAt": "2026-01-26T10:56:26.600Z"
}

​Create a Direct Debit mandate

​Query parameters

​Request body

​Sample request

​Sample response

Create a Direct Debit mandate

Query parameters

Request body

Sample request

Sample response