This is one of the methods of cashless payment, an alternative to payments by bank cards or electronic money .
The QR code can encrypt your bank details, as well as information about a specific purchase.
The seller shows the QR code to the buyer in electronic or printed form, and the buyer scans the code using a camera, his bank’s mobile application or the SBPey application. After that, the purchase amount is debited from the buyer’s account, which is credited to the seller’s account within a few seconds.
To set up QR code payment at your retail outlet or online store, you need to contact your bank. All major Russian banks have already connected to Fast payment system(SBP), through which you can make QR payments. If the bank where you have a current account is a participant in the SBP, you will be able to accept payments by QR code from clients of any banks that have joined the SBP.
Some banks are developing their own QR code payment services. However, when paying through these services, restrictions may be imposed. For example, accepting payments only from clients of the same bank or introducing higher fees for payments from accounts of third-party banks.
In the SBP, the maximum amount of commissions that a bank can charge a seller is limited by the Bank of Russia. And in their own services, banks can set tariffs at their own discretion.
Why connect payment by QR code?
First, let’s clarify: this is not mandatory. Sellers can decide for themselves how they prefer to pay customers.
Only companies with revenue should unconditionally accept card payments from 20 million rubles per yearMoreover, the law obliges entrepreneurs to accept payments only from Mir cards; this requirement does not apply to payments from cards of other payment systems.
Compared to card payments, QR technology has several advantages:
- More profitable. It is cheaper than accepting payments using bank cards. The commission that banks charge for acquiring sometimes exceeds 3% of the purchase amount. And payments through the SBP will cost you a maximum of 0.7% of the purchase amount, but no more than 1,500 rubles per transaction.
- Faster. After the buyer confirms the payment, the money is credited to your account within a few seconds. You will receive a notification from the bank about the crediting of the money — for example, a push notification or SMS message. In addition, the information will be immediately displayed in your online and mobile bank. Payments by bank card come to the account much later, usually within a few days.
- Easier. To accept payments via QR code, you don’t need to use special equipment. You can simply stick a QR code that the bank will generate for you at the cash register.
- More convenient for customers. To pay, the customer does not need a bank card or a phone with a contactless payment function. It is enough that the banking application or SBPey application is installed on his smartphone and a built-in camera. The phone instantly reads the QR code, the money transfer will take a few seconds. This is faster than transferring money by account or card number.
What types of QR codes are there?
Static and dynamic. The difference between them is that in the first case the buyer will have to enter the purchase amount manually , and in the second – no, because the code already contains this information:
Static code – QR sticker
This is a reusable code: it can be used for all purchases at your point of sale. It only encrypts your details, and the customer will have to enter the purchase amount manually on their smartphone.
A static QR code is suitable if you have a small retail outlet and not too many customers. You will only need to get a QR code from your bank once, print it out and place it near the cash register.
This code will be used for all sales. True, you will have to check each time whether the buyer entered the correct amount. But it is not difficult: the payment takes a few seconds, the cash register equipment will generate a receipt – and you can immediately make sure that everything is in order with the payment.
For convenience, you can set up instant push notifications about account replenishment in your banking application.
Dynamic QR code
This is a one-time code that is assigned to each specific purchase. The dynamic code contains not only your details, but also the amount to be paid. This saves time: the customer does not have to enter the purchase price manually, and the cashier does not have to check it. Therefore, large stores with a large flow of customers usually choose this type of QR code.
There are several ways to set up payment by dynamic code. For example, download a special banking application for business to your gadget and activate the generation of dynamic QR codes in it. It is better to check with your bank for setup instructions. The codes will be generated directly in the application, and buyers will be able to read them from the screen of your gadget.
Some banks offer entrepreneurs to reprogram or replace their payment terminals so that dynamic codes are generated immediately after scanning goods at the checkout. In this case, the buyer will scan the QR code from the terminal screen or from the printed invoice. But reconfiguring the terminal may be a paid service.
If you have an online store, the bank will help you embed a dynamic QR code into the product payment page on your website. The buyer will read it directly from the computer screen. This will take less time than entering card or e-wallet details.
The type of QR code does not affect the amount of commission that must be transferred to the bank from each purchase. You can choose which option is more suitable for your business.