What is IMPS Reference Number

03 January, 2024

Online payment methods like Immediate Payment Services (IMPS), Real-Time Gross Settlement (RTGS) and National Electronic Fund Transfer (NEFT), have played a crucial role in India’s economy by facilitating fast and secure transactions. These services enable speedy fund transfers, where in funds are credited into beneficiary accounts within minutes or hours. Plus, these methods have reduced issues like banking frauds while improving overall efficiency of financial transactions. Of all the online fund transfer methods, IMPS is deemed ideal for instant transactions, irrespective of the fund transfer amount. Let’s understand its meaning and decode IMPS reference numbers in this article.

What is IMPS and How Does It Work?

Immediate Payment Service or IMPS is an electronic funds transfer service facilitated by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI). It is a real-time, instant payment service available 24*7 throughout the year, including holidays. IMPS enables users to conduct inter and intra-bank fund transfers. You may conduct these transfers via banking platforms like internet banking, mobile banking and phone (SMS) banking. If you do not use these platforms, you can initiate an IMPS transaction via ATMs as well.

With IMPS, your beneficiaries can receive the transferred funds in their accounts within minutes. You simply need your beneficiary’s bank account details like their bank name, branch name, account number and IFSC code. Once you input these details, you can initiate the fund transfer within 30 minutes. Also, after setting up your beneficiaries’ account details, you can send money to them within seconds, without having to input their banking details again.

Each time you initiate an IMPS transaction, the sending bank creates an IMPS Reference number once the transaction is successfully processed. Now, let us talk about this unique IMPS reference number for tracking.

What is IMPS Reference Number?

The IMPS reference number is a unique identifier assigned to each IMPS transaction. It helps banks with tracking and identifying a specific transaction in the IMPS system. When an IMPS transaction is initiated, a reference number is generated and you can use this number to track the status of your transaction or resolve any issues related to it. Essentially, the reference number helps you track your transaction and verify its authenticity.

The bank initiating the IMPS transaction typically provides the IMPS reference number to the sender or initiator of the IMPS transaction. Through the reference number, the bank essentially confirms or conveys the message that it has received your request to initiate an IMPS transaction and takes the necessary steps to transfer the money into your intended beneficiary’s account.

As the sender of the funds, you must keep the reference number safe as you or your beneficiary may require it for inquiries or future disputes resolution regarding the transaction.

How to Find IMPS Sender Details?

To find the IMPS sender details, you can do the following things.

• Check Transaction History

If you have access to internet banking or mobile banking, log in to your account and navigate to the transaction history section. Look for the specific IMPS transaction in question and locate the sender details associated with it. The sender’s name and/or account number will be displayed in the transaction details.

• Refer to Transaction Receipt or Acknowledgment

If you have received a physical or electronic receipt/acknowledgment (SMS, or email alert) for instance for the IMPS transaction, you can verify whether the sender’s details are mentioned on it. The receipt contains information such as the sender’s name, account number or phone number. In case of a physical transaction at an ATM, you can get a receipt from the ATM, which will comprise the sender’s details and the transaction number.

• Contact Your Bank

If you are unable to find the sender’s details through any of the above methods, you can also contact your bank’s customer support network or visit your branch and provide them with any available transaction or reference numbers that can help them locate the sender’s details in their records.

Initiate Fund Transfers Easily With HDFC Bank’s PayZapp

Whether you need to pay someone for money owed to them or transfer money as a gift; whether you need to pay your Credit Card or utility bills; you can manage all kinds of payments via HDFC Bank’s PayZapp app. PayZapp, in many ways, functions like IMPS, in that the funds are transferred into the beneficiary’s accounts within seconds. However, you do not have to bear any fund transfer charges, as applicable with IMPS, nor do you need the beneficiary’s bank account details. So long as you have their account-linked mobile number, you can initiate the payment.

You simply need to download PayZapp on your smartphone, register on it with your HDFC Bank-linked Registered Mobile Number (RMN) and sign in on the app. Once you sign in, you can link your HDFC Bank Account and linked-Debit Card, your HDFC Bank Credit Card (for non-account holders) or the in-built PayZapp cash wallet within the app to conduct transactions. Know more about PayZapp.

Click here for upi payment through PayZapp on your IOS phone.
Click here for online upi payment through PayZapp on your Android phone.

*Terms and conditions apply. The information provided in this article is generic in nature and for informational purposes only. It is not a substitute for specific advice in your own circumstances.