Australian ABA file reference

The ABA format,
made understandable.

A practical guide to Direct Entry files for payroll, superannuation and supplier payments—plus the field-level detail developers need.

View record structure Convert a CSV →

120characters in every record

3record types in fixed order

ASCIIplain-text encoding

Overview

What is an ABA file?

An ABA file is a fixed-width text file used by Australian banks to accept a batch of account-to-account payment instructions. One upload can contain payroll, superannuation, supplier or other bulk payments.

The file is also described as a Direct Entry or BECS file. Your bank reads each 120-character line by position—not by column headings—so spacing, zero-padding and field length matter.

Why it exists

A durable format for batch banking.

Built for Direct Entry

Structured for bank clearing

The fixed-width format gave businesses and financial institutions a consistent way to exchange high-volume credit and debit instructions.

Established business standard

Payroll and suppliers at scale

Government and business users adopted Direct Entry credits extensively for salary, benefit and supplier payments.

Still relevant today

Reliable alongside newer rails

Real-time payments have expanded, but ABA files remain a practical way to prepare and approve a controlled batch payment run.

Background: Reserve Bank of Australia—Payments System and Australian Payments Plus—BECS Direct Entry mapping guidance.

ABA record structure

Field-by-field record structure.

Select a record type to see its positions, lengths and core formatting rules.

Type 0

Descriptive record

One header line containing the sender, bank, description and processing date.

Field	Position	Length	Example	Format / purpose
Record type	1	1	0	Always zero
Reserved	2–18	17	Spaces	Blank-filled
Reel sequence	19–20	2	01	Numeric, zero-filled
Financial institution	21–23	3	ANZ	Three-character bank code
Reserved	24–30	7	Spaces	Blank-filled
User supplying file	31–56	26	ACME PTY LTD	Left-aligned, space-filled
Direct Entry User ID	57–62	6	123456	Six-digit value required or permitted by the bank
Entry description	63–74	12	PAYROLL	Left-aligned, space-filled
Processing date	75–80	6	150826	DDMMYY
Reserved	81–120	40	Spaces	Blank-filled

Exact length matters. Every line must contain exactly 120 characters before its newline. Fields are padded—not omitted—when unused.

Complete ABA file example

See the three record types together.

The colours distinguish the header, payment-detail and total records.

Example ABA file showing a Type 0 Header Record, several Type 1 Detail Records and a Type 7 File Total Record — **Example ABA file structure:** one Header Record, multiple Detail Records and one File Total Record. All names, BSBs, account numbers and payment details shown are fictitious.

Developer reference

ABA File Technical Specification.

Use the standalone reference for the full record definitions, field rules, balancing logic, permitted characters, FAQs and troubleshooting guidance.

Technical reference

Everything required to understand and validate an Australian ABA file.

A detailed, searchable specification covering every field in record types 0, 1 and 7—from exact character positions to padding and formatting requirements.

120 characters per record3 record typesFull validation guidance

ABA File Technical Specification

Direct Entry setup

APCA / Direct Entry User ID.

123456Six digits

Use the value required by your bank.

Every ABA file includes a six-digit User Identification Number. Depending on your bank and banking facility, this may be a bank-issued ID, a bank-approved default or another permitted six-digit value.

Check your bank’s instructions for the required value.
If your bank issued you an ID, enter the exact six-digit value.
Do not copy an ID from another business or banking facility.

If your bank permits a default value, use the value specified in its guidance.

After generation

Uploading the file to your bank.

Menu names vary by banking product and user permission, but the process is consistent.

ANZ

ANZ Transactive

Payments → Create Payment → Use Payment File → ABA or CSV.

Direct Entry permissions and User ID may be required.

CBA

CommBiz

Navigate to payments or file transfers, then upload a payment file for validation.

Confirm whether your facility expects a balancing entry.

WBC

Westpac Online Banking

Payments → Import file, then review payees, totals and approval status.

Standard ABA imports may be limited to 500 payments.

NAB

NAB Connect

Payments → Upload file, select the ABA file and complete required approvals.

Access depends on your organisation’s payment permissions.

Before your first live run: confirm your bank’s User ID, balancing-record and approval requirements. Portal labels can change, so use your bank’s current guide when uploading.

Troubleshooting

Common errors and how to fix them.

!BSB rejected

Leading zero removed or hyphen missing

Fix: Format the BSB column as text and use NNN-NNN.

!Account number changed

Spreadsheet converted it to a number

Fix: Format account numbers as text before pasting data.

!Amount invalid

Currency symbols or commas included

Fix: Use numeric values such as 2500.00.

!Wrong payment date

Date interpreted in a US locale

Fix: Enter and review the date as DD/MM/YYYY.

!User ID invalid

A default was guessed

Fix: Use the six-digit ID issued by your bank, if required.

Ready to create a file?

ABAFlow handles the fixed-width formatting for you.

Start with five clean CSV columns and review every value before download.

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