# Direct debit funding

A direct debit funding is a process which results in an increase of the [cash balance](/products/byol/guides/payments/cash_balances/cash_balances_intro) from the end user's or business entity's IBAN specified on their mandate.

## Prerequisites

Before implementing direct debits, ensure you have:

- **Authentication scopes** — `mandates:admin`, `payments:admin`
For more information, refer to [Authentication scopes](/products/byol/concepts/api_concepts/authentication/authentication_oauth#list-of-authentication-scopes).
- **Webhook handler ready** — Set up a webhook endpoint to listen for direct debit lifecycle events.
  - Subscribe to [`DIRECT_DEBIT.*`](/products/byol/guides/payments/payments_webhooks) events.
For more information, refer to [Implementing webhooks](/products/byol/getting_started/implementing_webhooks).


It may also be useful to understand [cash balances](/products/byol/guides/payments/cash_balances/cash_balances_intro) before proceeding further with this guide.

## Lifecycle of a SEPA direct debit

The clients send a direct debit funding request on behalf of their end users.

Upvest executes the request with users' banks.

Once the funds are received, Upvest updates the end user's account group [cash balance](/products/byol/guides/payments/cash_balances/cash_balances_intro).

The settlement of funds typically takes two business days.