Bank statement codes: what the abbreviations mean

A bank statement sets out every payment into and out of your account over a period, usually a month. To fit each line into a small space, banks abbreviate how the payment was made: DD for a Direct Debit, BGC for a bank giro credit, POS for a card payment at a shop till, DR for a debit. The codes are not there to hide anything, but they can be hard to read if you have never had them explained, and they differ from bank to bank.

The rules behind the statement itself come from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). A bank must provide or make available regular statements of account, on paper or in another durable medium, appropriate to the type of service provided¹. Each statement should also indicate the rate or rates of interest that apply to the service². Under separate regulations on payment accounts, banks must also give you a statement of fees showing the unit fee charged for each service and how many times you used it, the total fees incurred, the overdraft and overrunning interest rates applied, the total interest charged, the credit interest rates applied, the total interest earned, and the total amount of fees charged for all services during the period³. So the statement and its companion documents are meant to give you a full picture, codes included.

What bank statement codes are and why banks use them

Codes exist because of space and systems. A statement line has room for only a few characters describing how a payment was processed, and the code often reflects the payment rail or channel the money moved through, rather than the shop or person involved. A card payment in a shop, a cash machine withdrawal and an electronic transfer each travel through different systems, and the code tells you which one was used.

The statement is also a regulated document, not just a bank's convenience. The FCA's Banking Conduct of Business sourcebook requires firms to provide regular statements appropriate to the service¹, and expects the interest rates that apply to the service to be indicated in each statement². The payment account regulations add the statement of fees, with its detailed list of what must be shown, including the unit fee for each service and the number of times the service was used during the relevant period³. When you switch accounts, transferring and receiving payment service providers must provide you with certain services free of charge at your request, under the same regulations⁷.

Statements also serve purposes beyond your own record keeping. Banks are increasingly accepting online Universal Credit statements or HMRC documentation as a form of identification when opening an account⁸. Where a bank account has a code word added for security, the banking provider will not speak to anyone unless the code word is given⁹. And with packaged bank accounts, banks are meant to send customers annual eligibility statements prompting them to check whether the policies attached still fit their needs¹⁰. So a statement, or a document like it, can be evidence, identification and a prompt to review what you are paying for.

Card and cash machine codes: POS, ATM and CDM

POS stands for point of sale: a card payment made at a shop till, terminal or online checkout. ATM refers to an automated teller machine, better known as a cash machine, and the code appears next to withdrawals and sometimes balance enquiries. CDM relates to a cash deposit machine, used for paying cash into your account outside a branch.

Cash machines remain a major part of how people get at their money. Official statistics counted 536,737 entries across all ATMs and cashback locations in one 2023 quarter¹¹, and an earlier 2022 count included 66,529 entries in the group covering the Post Office, larger banks' and building societies' branches and all ATMs¹². With that many machines in use, ATM lines are among the most common on a statement.

One caution applies to cash machines: card fraud guidance advises you to check ATMs for any signs of tampering before using them¹³. A tampered machine can capture your card details, and the resulting transactions may then appear on your statement as card payments you did not make. If that happens, the advice on unrecognised transactions later in this page applies: report them quickly, because you will usually get a refund if it is fraud⁶.

Regular payments: DD for Direct Debit, SO for standing order

DD and SO are the two codes for regular payments leaving your account, and the difference between them is about who controls the payment. A Direct Debit is set up with the company being paid: that company collects the money, and the amount can change, as with a variable energy or phone bill. A standing order is set up by you with your bank: you instruct a fixed amount to go to the same account on the same schedule, and it stays the same until you change or cancel it.

Both appear constantly on statements because so many commitments are paid this way. Direct payments for care and support, for example, are normally funded with a contribution paid every four weeks by direct debit or standing order¹⁴. Even a basic bank account, which offers no overdraft, cashback, interest or other rewards, still allows the user to receive, store and withdraw money, pay bills and set up regular payments such as standing orders and Direct Debits¹⁵.

*A Direct Debit line and a standing order line as they typically appear on a statement.

The main risk with both codes is a failed payment. Bounced Direct Debits and standing orders can leave you facing heavy bank charges, so it is worth making sure there is enough money in your account when they are due¹⁶. Charges for unpaid Direct Debits or standing orders have varied widely, from no charge at all to £42⁴. One practical step is to change your Direct Debits and standing orders to go out at the same time, soon after income arrives, so they are covered when your pay or benefits land¹⁷.

If your bank changes your sort code, for example after an internal reorganisation, banks have worked together to make sure Direct Debits, standing orders or bill payments will automatically be redirected¹⁸. The Current Account Switch Service, which moves your payments between banks, is operated by Bacs Payment Schemes Ltd, the same body behind the Bacs payment system that carries many of these transfers¹⁹. The dedicated guide to Direct Debits and standing orders explains each in more detail.

Transfers in and out: BAC, TFR, IBP, CHP and OTR

These codes cover electronic movement of money between accounts. BAC indicates a payment processed through Bacs, the system behind standard electronic transfers, salaries, pensions and Direct Debits; a BAC line is typically a salary or a bill payment. TFR is a transfer, usually between accounts you hold at the same bank. IBP refers to an interbank payment, money moving between accounts at different banks. CHP indicates a CHAPS payment, the same-day high value system used for things like house purchases. OTR marks an other transfer, a catch-all for movements that do not fit the standard categories.

When you send money to a new payee, Confirmation of Payee (CoP) checks the name on the payee's account as well as the sort code and account number²⁰. CoP tells you if the name you have entered matches the account details held by the receiving bank²¹, and the regulator has consulted on extending it to Faster Payments and CHAPS transactions²². This matters for statement lines because a transfer that went to the wrong account can look perfectly normal on your statement until you check the name.

The details that make a transfer work, sort code and account number, are covered in the guide to sort codes and account numbers, and the systems themselves in bank transfers: Faster Payments, Bacs and CHAPS. When a government body asks for your account details for a payment, it asks for exactly these: claims for a repayment of import duty, for example, require payment details for a UK bank account, meaning your sort code, account number and name²³.

International codes: ITL, STF and ERTF

ITL marks an international transaction, a payment to or from an account outside the UK. STF relates to a transfer fee charged on sending money abroad. ERTF is the one people most often query: it stands for external related transaction fee, and it appears after using your card abroad.

The cost behind ERTF can be significant. Using a debit card abroad typically brings a foreign exchange fee, often around 3% of the transaction amount, plus a spending or cash machine charge, typically between £1 and £3 each time you use your card, except for euros in the EU⁵. On credit cards, you will typically pay up to 2.99% each time you use the card, a non-sterling transaction fee, and you will be charged interest on cash withdrawals straight away²⁴. The effect adds up quickly: spending just £5 with a card that charges fees could set you back £1.15, an additional 23%²⁴.

International transfers rely on identifiers you may see echoed on statements. For an overseas account, the details needed are the international bank account number (IBAN), a Business Identifier Code (BIC), previously the Bank Identifier Code, and the account number²⁵. Government bodies publish their own: HMRC gives a BIC of BARCGB22 for overseas payments²⁶, and a separate HMRC account for Child Benefit remittances gives a BIC of BARCGB22 with an IBAN for overseas bank transfer via CHAPS²⁷. Revenue Scotland publishes the SWIFT code NWBKGB2L for Bacs, CHAPS and Faster Payments²⁸.

If an international transfer goes wrong and you complain, the Financial Ombudsman Service may ask for evidence including any messages used for the transfer, such as a SWIFT message or an MT103²⁹. The guide to sending money in the UK and abroad covers the options and their costs in full.

Money paid in: BGC, DWP, CWP, DIV and NDC

BGC stands for bank giro credit, a general code for money paid into your account, historically over the counter at a branch, and now used for various credits. DWP indicates a payment from the Department for Work and Pensions, such as benefits or the State Pension. CWP can relate to Confirmation of Payee, the name-checking service described above, though codes vary between banks. DIV marks a dividend, a share of company profits paid to shareholders. NDC indicates a non-direct credit, a payment into the account that did not come through the standard direct credit system.

Payments in can come from many sources. Budgeting loans from the social fund are paid straight into your account³⁰. NS&I accepts deposits only in pounds sterling, sourced from a UK bank or building society account in your name; credit cards and money from non-UK financial institutions are not accepted³¹. So a payment into an NS&I product will have come from a UK account, and the corresponding line on your bank statement will show the outgoing transfer.

For people receiving the State Pension abroad, the payment arrives in an overseas account identified by its IBAN and BIC²⁵, and the corresponding credit line on a UK account would appear before the move. The guide to paying cash and cheques into your account covers the practical side of getting money in.

Branch, phone and Post Office codes: TLR, SBT, BSP, TEL and POC

TLR stands for teller transaction, a counter transaction handled by a member of staff in a branch. SBT and BSP relate to branch transactions and branch service payments. TEL indicates a telephone banking transaction, and POC marks a transaction carried out at the Post Office.

The Post Office remains a major channel for everyday banking. Official statistics counted 9,347 Post Office branches, including banking hubs and excluding mobile and outreach services, in the second half of 2025³². Many banks allow customers to withdraw and deposit cash at these branches, which is why POC lines appear on statements even for customers of banks with few branches of their own. The guides to banking at the Post Office and access to cash explain what you can do there.

Telephone banking is one of the channels the FCA's rules specifically recognise for operating a payment account³³. When a TEL line appears, it means the instruction was given by phone rather than in an app or branch. Where a code word has been added to an account, the banking provider will not speak to anyone unless the code word is given, which is a protection worth knowing about if you bank by phone⁹.

Branch closures have changed how these codes appear. The Access to Banking Standard is designed to ensure customers are better informed about a closure and the reasons behind it, requiring banks to make customers aware of the options they have locally to continue accessing banking services, and to provide specialist help for those who need it³⁴. Fewer branches mean fewer TLR lines and more POS, ATM and online entries, a shift covered in the guide to bank branch closures.

Cheque codes, including CUI for an unpaid cheque

Cheque lines on a statement show money paid in or out by cheque, and the code CUI indicates an unpaid cheque, one that was returned because the account it was drawn on did not clear it. If you paid a cheque in and it bounces, the credit that appeared on your statement is reversed, and the CUI line is the record of that reversal.

Cheque problems are a recognised category of complaint that the Financial Ombudsman Service can help with. The examples it lists include a cheque bouncing after being paid in, a bank not paying a written cheque or paying it after cancellation, a cheque being lost, stolen or forged, and a banker's draft turning out to be fake or going missing with the bank refusing to refund you³⁵. So if a CUI line appears and you believe the cheque should have been honoured, a complaint to your bank, and then to the ombudsman, is the route.

The timing of cheque clearance, and how long the money takes to become usable, is covered in the guide to how long a cheque takes to clear.

Charges, interest and DR: codes that cost you money

DR stands for debit. It marks money leaving your account, and when it appears next to a fee or an interest charge, it means the bank has taken that amount from your balance. Its opposite, CR, means credit, money paid in. A statement for an overdrawn account may show the balance itself as DR, meaning the account is in deficit and you owe the bank money.

*An overdrawn statement balance marked DR, with charges and interest listed as debits.

Overdraft costs are the most common DR lines beyond everyday spending. There are usually fees or interest if you spend more than you have in your account, including where there is not enough to cover a Direct Debit or standing order³⁶. nidirect, the Northern Ireland government service, warns that with an unarranged overdraft you may have to pay a penalty charge and a high rate of interest, that the bank may also charge for sending reminder letters and for Direct Debits or cheques put through the account, and that the bank may freeze the account until the overdraft is paid off; banks also charge a monthly fee and a setting up fee, so it can be an expensive way to borrow³⁷. The Bank of England notes that certain types of borrowing, such as overdrafts, revolving credit on a credit card and payday loans, charge higher interest³⁸, and debt charities describe overdrafts as carrying high interest and charges¹⁷.

The statement of fees exists precisely so these costs are visible: it must show the overdraft and overrunning interest rates applied, the total interest charged, the credit interest rates applied and the total interest earned during the period³. The guides to overdrafts, how overdraft interest and charges work and unpaid transaction fees cover the detail, and struggling to repay an overdraft covers where to get free help.

Statements from other kinds of firm follow similar rules. A firm handling a mortgage in arrears must provide a regular written statement, at least once a quarter, of the payments due, the actual payment shortfall, the debt and, where relevant, the charges incurred³⁹. A debt management plan statement must show a balance of the amount owed, including any interest charges at the beginning of the statement period⁴⁰. So the DR convention, money owed, runs through regulated statements well beyond bank accounts.

Codes vary between banks, so check your own bank's list

No single official glossary covers every bank's codes. Banks use the same broad conventions, DD, SO, BGC, DR, but each provider has its own list, and the same abbreviation can mean slightly different things at different banks. Most banks publish a code glossary in their statement guide or help pages, and staff can explain a line you cannot decode.

Statements are also worth reviewing regularly, not just when something looks wrong. Guidance on surviving an income shock suggests looking at your bank statements for the last two months, either via your bank's mobile app or using the posted versions, to see where money is going⁴¹. Some situations call for recent statements as evidence: NS&I, for savers who live outside the UK, asks for a certified copy of a bank statement issued within the last three months⁴².

If a line still does not make sense after checking the code and the shortened business name, report it to your bank quickly: you will usually get a refund if it is fraud⁶. If the bank's answer does not satisfy you, complain to the bank first and then to the Financial Ombudsman Service, which reviews complaints for free. The guides to unauthorised payments and your refund rights and scams and fraud set out the protections in full.