The key facts

  • SBP payments and e-wallet payments become irrevocable immediately after the funds are debited
  • With a card, the seller can cancel the transaction through their bank until settlement is completed — usually several days
  • Disputing a payment through SBP has been mandatory for all banks since June 30, 2023; a request is reviewed within up to 30 days, cross-border ones — up to 60

Cancellation and refund are different procedures

Only a payment that has not yet become irrevocable can be cancelled. With the Faster Payments System (SBP) and when paying from an e-wallet, this moment comes immediately after the funds are debited, so such transactions can no longer be cancelled — the money can only be refunded. Paygine fintech company product director Artem Zhuravlev told Gazeta.Ru about this. «Gazeta.Ru» was told by Artem Zhuravlev, product director of the fintech company Paygine.

Cards offer a wider window

Card payments offer broader possibilities: until settlement on a transaction is completed, which usually takes several days, the seller can cancel it through their bank. The buyer himself has no such option. A similar principle applies to transfers by account details: the transfer can be recalled with an application to the bank as long as the money has not been debited from the account; if the payment has become irrevocable, the funds can only be returned by a new transaction — a refund from the recipient.

What to do if cancellation is no longer possible

According to Zhuravlev, in this case the buyer can try to get the money back through the seller or dispute the transaction with their bank. First, the buyer should contact the seller with a demand for a refund: for goods bought online, the seller is obliged to do so no later than 10 days after the request. If the seller refuses, does not respond or disappears, the buyer has the right to dispute the payment through their bank — the seller's consent is not required for this. The application is submitted through the bank's app or at a branch, with a receipt and correspondence attached confirming the seller's refusal or lack of response. There is no point in delaying: the dispute period is limited by the payment system's rules.

Differences by payment method and review timeframes

The possibility of disputing exists not only for card payments: for SBP, such a procedure has been mandatory for all banks since June 30, 2023, although the list of grounds is narrower — for example, a payment can be disputed if the goods or services were not received. When paying with an e-wallet, the application is sent to its operator. By law, a request is reviewed within no more than 30 days, and in the case of cross-border transfers — up to 60 days. If the dispute is not resolved in the seller's favor, the buyer gets the money back, and the seller's bank debits this amount from the seller under the contract; sometimes an additional dispute-handling fee is charged.

The role of banks and new rules from 2027

The initiator of halting a transfer can be not only the sender but also the bank itself: if a transaction looks like a transfer made without the client's consent, the bank suspends it for two days. In addition, from March 1, 2027, banks will refuse to process a transfer if they detect malicious software on the client's device.