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EDIFACT message guide · Finance

DEBMUL Multiple debit advice

The UN/EDIFACT message a bank uses to advise an account owner, or an agreed third party, of several debits to its accounts.

Sent by
Account-servicing bank
Received by
Account owner or agreed third party
Standard
UN/EDIFACT · Batch message
X12 equivalent
No direct equivalent

What is the EDIFACT DEBMUL message?

DEBMUL is the UN/EDIFACT multiple debit advice. The directory defines it as a message sent by an account-servicing financial institution to the account owner, or to a third party agreed bilaterally in advance, that its accounts have been or will be debited for specified amounts on the dates indicated, in settlement of the referenced business transactions.

It is the debit counterpart of CREMUL. Companies that send large payment runs receive one DEBMUL confirming the debits for all the payments executed, with references that tie each debit back to the payment orders.

How the EDIFACT DEBMUL message worksDiagram of the UN/EDIFACT DEBMUL Multiple debit advice message. Account-servicing bank sends it to account owner or agreed third party. It usually follows PAYMUL. Inside the UNB and UNH envelopes, the directory D.21A requires, in the start of message: BGM (Beginning of message) and DTM (Date/time/period) and body and segment groups: the required SG4 loop with LIN (Line item), MOA (Monetary amount), the required SG5 loop with RFF (Reference) and the required SG6 loop with FII (Financial institution information). 6 conditional segment groups are listed by their trigger segment.How the EDIFACT DEBMUL message worksMultiple debit advice: who sends it, where it fits and what the directory marks mandatory1 WHERE IT FITSUSUALLY FOLLOWSPAYMULMultiple payment orderDEBMULSENDERAccount-servicingbankRECEIVERAccount owner oragreed third partyCONTRL syntax report back, if agreedUSUALLY FOLLOWED BYNo business reply expected2 WHAT DIRECTORY D.21A REQUIRESInterchange: sender and recipient IDsUNB … UNZMessage DEBMULUNH … UNTSTART OF MESSAGEBGMBeginning of messageDTMDate/time/periodBODY AND SEGMENT GROUPSMandatory group SG4 · repeats up to 9,999LINLine itemMOAMonetary amountMandatory group SG5 · repeats up to 3RFFReferenceMandatory group SG6 · repeats up to 1FIIFinancial institution information+ 6 conditional groups, starting with:RFFFIINADFCASEQAUTBlue box: mandatory segment group. Conditional groups are listed by the trigger segment that starts them; a group is sent only when its data applies.Conditional segments outside groups are not drawn.Structure: mandatory segments and groups in the UN/EDIFACT directory D.21A listing for DEBMUL. Your trading partner's implementation guide adds itsown requirements.
How the EDIFACT DEBMUL message worksDiagram of the UN/EDIFACT DEBMUL Multiple debit advice message. Account-servicing bank sends it to account owner or agreed third party. It usually follows PAYMUL. Inside the UNB and UNH envelopes, the directory D.21A requires, in the start of message: BGM (Beginning of message) and DTM (Date/time/period) and body and segment groups: the required SG4 loop with LIN (Line item), MOA (Monetary amount), the required SG5 loop with RFF (Reference) and the required SG6 loop with FII (Financial institution information). 6 conditional segment groups are listed by their trigger segment.How the EDIFACT DEBMULmessage worksMultiple debit advice: who sends it, where it fitsand what the directory marks mandatory1 WHERE IT FITSUSUALLY FOLLOWSPAYMULMultiple payment orderDEBMULSENDERAccount-servicing bankRECEIVERAccount owneror agreed thirdpartyCONTRL syntax report back, if agreedUSUALLY FOLLOWED BYNo business reply expected2 WHAT DIRECTORY D.21A REQUIRESInterchange: sender and recipient IDs(UNB … UNZ)Message DEBMUL (UNH … UNT)START OF MESSAGEBGMBeginning of messageDTMDate/time/periodBODY AND SEGMENT GROUPSMandatory group SG4 · repeats upto 9,999LINLine itemMOAMonetary amountMandatory group SG5 · repeatsup to 3RFFReferenceMandatory group SG6 · repeatsup to 1FIIFinancial institutioninformation+ 6 conditional groups, starting with:RFFFIINADFCASEQAUTBlue box: mandatory segment group. Conditionalgroups are listed by the trigger segment thatstarts them; a group is sent only when its dataapplies. Conditional segments outside groups arenot drawn.Structure: mandatory segments and groups in theUN/EDIFACT directory D.21A listing for DEBMUL.Your trading partner's implementation guide adds itsown requirements.

How to read this diagram: the top row shows who sends DEBMUL, to whom, and which messages usually come before and after it. The lower part shows what the directory D.21A itself requires: the envelopes around DEBMUL and the segments and segment groups it marks mandatory. Conditional groups are listed by their trigger segment rather than drawn in full. This is the directory's minimum, not a trading partner's requirement: a message implementation guide, such as an industry subset or a partner’s own guide, usually makes some conditional groups mandatory, restricts the codes and may use an older directory.

Expand diagram Download SVG

When it is used

  • Confirming debits for a payment run
  • Reporting multiple debits to several accounts
  • Supporting reconciliation of outgoing payments

Where it fits in the message flow

Usually follows PAYMUL Multiple payment order
This message DEBMUL Multiple debit advice

Structure

Mandatory segments in DEBMUL (directory D.21A)

In UN/EDIFACT directory D.21A, the DEBMUL message has 96 segment positions arranged in 28 segment groups. These are the segments and segment groups marked mandatory at message level, in order; a mandatory group is shown with the segment that starts it. Segments inside conditional groups are needed only when the group is used. This is the directory’s requirement, not your trading partner’s: each partner’s message implementation guide names the directory it uses, often an older one such as D.96A or D.01B where the structure can differ, makes some conditional segments mandatory and restricts the codes.

  • UNH
  • BGM
  • DTM
  • SG4 (LIN)
  • UNT

Practical example

DEBMUL in practice

A retailer sends its bank a PAYMUL with 300 supplier payments. After execution, the bank sends a DEBMUL listing each debit with its amount, value date and the retailer's payment reference. The retailer's treasury system confirms every payment as executed and investigates one missing from the advice.

Implementation

Implementation considerations for DEBMUL

  • Match each debit to the payment order line it settles.
  • Reconcile totals with the payment run and statement.
  • Plan for large messages from big payment runs.
  • Agree with the bank whether debits are advised individually or in total.

How ECOM helps

Automate DEBMUL with ECOM

Solution

Financial Document Automation

Automate invoices, remittances, payment files and bank statements from capture to posting.

Industry

Financial Services

Secure file transfer and B2B integration for banks and financial institutions.

Solution

Procure-to-Pay Automation

Automate purchasing, receiving and supplier invoicing across EDI, portals and documents.

Compare X12 and EDIFACT, or see answers to general questions in the EDI FAQ.

Related messages

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