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ISO 20022 reason code

FOCR: Following cancellation request

Returned after a cancellation request. FOCR is an ISO 20022 reason code used as a status reason and a return reason: you will see it in pain.002, pacs.004 and camt.053.

FOCR at a glance
CodeFOCR
NameFollowing cancellation request
ISO code listsExternalStatusReason1Code (status reason); ExternalReturnReason1Code (return reason)
WhereStsRsnInf/Rsn/Cd; RtrRsnInf/Rsn/Cd (pacs.004), TxDtls/RtrInf/Rsn/Cd (camt)

What FOCR means

The payment is being returned because a cancellation or recall request was accepted: this is the money coming back.

Not to be confused with: FOCR is the money coming back after a recall; the recall itself carried DUPL, TECH, FRAD or CUST. A refused recall does not come back with FOCR but as an answer (camt.029).

A reason code always comes with a status or an action: on its own it says why, not what happened. In a status report look at the status next to it (RJCT means the payment will not be executed); on a statement the returned entry tells you the money has come back.

Where FOCR appears

FOCR belongs to two of the ISO 20022 reason code lists, so it can arrive in these places:

  • Status reason (ExternalStatusReason1Code): in a payment status report (pain.002 from a bank to its customer, pacs.002 between banks) that rejects or holds a payment.
  • Return reason (ExternalReturnReason1Code): in a payment return (pacs.004) after the money has moved, and the returned entry on the account statement (camt.053) or notification (camt.054).

On the account statement, the returned amount is an entry of its own, and FOCR sits in the return information of its transaction details (pacs.004, the interbank return, carries it in TxInf/RtrRsnInf/Rsn/Cd):

camt.053.001.08 · a returned payment on the statement
<Ntry>
  <Amt Ccy="EUR">2100.00</Amt>
  <CdtDbtInd>CRDT</CdtDbtInd>
  <Sts><Cd>BOOK</Cd></Sts>
  <NtryDtls>
    <TxDtls>
      <Refs>
        <EndToEndId>INV-2026-0042</EndToEndId>
      </Refs>
      <RtrInf>
        <Rsn>
          <Cd>FOCR</Cd>
        </Rsn>
      </RtrInf>
    </TxDtls>
  </NtryDtls>
</Ntry>

What to do about FOCR

  • If you sent the payment or the collection: Match the returned entry (RtrInf/Rsn/Cd FOCR on the camt.053) to your recall request. The amount can be lower than the original when a bank charged for handling the recall.

Your bank’s implementation guide and the scheme’s rulebook (for SEPA, the EPC rulebooks) say exactly when it may use FOCR; banks do not all apply a code the same way.

Look up FOCR from a script or an AI agent

Scripts and AI agents get this code’s name, definition, where it sits and the address of this page from GET /api/v1/explain, keyless, or from the explain_code tool of the MCP server (API and MCP docs; add it to Claude, Cursor or VS Code).

REST · curl
curl -s 'https://iso20022-navigator.com/api/v1/explain?code=FOCR&kind=status_reason'