The “narration” or “description” column of a bank statement is full of short codes like NEFT, ACH D, NFS or MMT. Each code tells you how the money moved: by card, ATM, transfer, cheque or auto-debit.
RBI asks banks to avoid “inscrutable entries” in passbooks and statements, but codes still differ from bank to bank. Many statements print a “Legends” or “Abbreviations” box at the end. If your statement has one, it is the final word. This page explains the common codes and says which bank uses each one, where we could confirm it.
How to read one line of a statement
A typical row has: transaction date, value date, narration (description), cheque or reference number, withdrawal (debit), deposit (credit) and balance.
- Dr / Debit / Withdrawal: money went out of your account.
- Cr / Credit / Deposit: money came in.
- Balance: the account balance after that row. Each row’s balance should equal the previous balance minus the debit plus the credit. StatementDock checks this for every row when it converts a statement.
Transfers and payments
| Code | Meaning | Where you’ll see it |
|---|---|---|
| NEFT | National Electronic Funds Transfer, an RBI payment system that settles in half-hourly batches, 24x7 | All banks |
| RTGS | Real Time Gross Settlement, an RBI system for transfers of ₹2 lakh and above, settled one by one in real time | All banks |
| IMPS | Immediate Payment Service, instant transfer to another account or mobile number | All banks |
| MMT | Mobile Money Transfer, an IMPS transfer (“Insta FT - IMPS”) | ICICI Bank |
| UPI | Unified Payments Interface payment; the row usually shows the UPI ID or reference number | All banks |
| ACH D / ACH DR | Auto-debit through NACH (ACH) against a mandate you signed, e.g. an EMI, SIP or insurance premium. HDFC Bank shows ACH D- <company>; Yes Bank shows “ACH DR” |
Most banks |
| ACH C / ACH CR | Credit received through NACH, e.g. a dividend or salary paid in bulk | Most banks |
| NACH | National Automated Clearing House, the NPCI system that replaced the older ECS systems for repeated debits and credits | All banks |
| ECS | Electronic Clearing Service, debit or credit for repeated, periodic payments | Axis Bank and others |
| BBPS | Bharat Bill Payment System, a bill payment (electricity, phone, gas) | All banks |
| INF | Internet fund transfer between your own linked accounts | ICICI Bank |
| INFT | Internal fund transfer within ICICI Bank | ICICI Bank |
| BIL | Internet bill payment, or a transfer to a third party | ICICI Bank |
| BIL/ONL | Online shopping paid on a third-party website | ICICI Bank |
| CMS | Bulk payment by internet banking (ICICI). At many banks CMS means Cash Management Services, used by companies for bulk payouts | ICICI Bank, others |
| TPT | Third-party transfer (commonly reported) | Several banks |
| TRF / TFR | Transfer (commonly used for internal transfers) | Several banks |
Debit card, ATM and shopping
| Code | Meaning | Where you’ll see it |
|---|---|---|
| POS | Point of sale: you paid by card at a shop | Most banks |
| PUR | Debit card payment at a shop (POS) | Axis Bank |
| ECOM PUR | Online debit card purchase | Axis Bank |
| VPS / IPS | Debit card transaction | ICICI Bank |
| PCD | Debit card swipe at a shop (POS) | Kotak |
| NFS | Cash withdrawn at another bank’s ATM. NFS is National Financial Switch, the shared ATM network | ICICI Bank and others |
| ATM-Cash-Axis / ATM-Cash | Cash at an Axis Bank ATM / at another bank’s ATM | Axis Bank |
| ATW | Cash withdrawn at a Kotak ATM | Kotak |
| ATL | Cash withdrawn at another bank’s ATM | Kotak |
| NWD | Commonly reported as a cash withdrawal at another bank’s ATM (network withdrawal). Check your bank’s legend | Several banks |
Cheques and clearing
| Code | Meaning | Where you’ll see it |
|---|---|---|
| CLG | Clearing: a cheque that went through the clearing system | Most banks |
| INW CLG | Inward clearing: a cheque you issued was presented for payment (commonly reported) | Several banks |
| CHQ DEP / MICR CLG | Cheque deposited and sent for clearing (commonly reported) | Several banks |
| LCCBRN CMS / UCCBRN CMS | Local / outstation cheque collection | ICICI Bank |
Channels: how you made the transaction
| Code | Meaning | Where you’ll see it |
|---|---|---|
| INB / IB | Internet (net) banking | Axis Bank (INB), Kotak (IB) |
| MOB / MB | Mobile banking app | Axis Bank (MOB), Kotak (MB) |
| MBK/XFER | Fund transfer through mobile banking | Axis Bank |
| PB | Phone banking (IVR) | Kotak |
Interest and charges
| Code | Meaning | Where you’ll see it |
|---|---|---|
| Int.Pd / INT.PD | Interest paid (credited) on your savings balance | Kotak and others |
| N chg | NEFT charges | ICICI Bank |
RBI requires banks to show the reason for every charge, so a charge row should say what it is for (for example SMS alerts or a cheque return). If it doesn’t, ask your branch.
The same code can mean different things
- CMS is bulk payment at ICICI Bank but Cash Management Services at many other banks.
- Another bank’s ATM shows up as NFS (ICICI), ATL (Kotak), “ATM-Cash” (Axis) or NWD, depending on the bank.
We could not confirm some codes that appear on SBI statements and others, such as RREF, PRCR, MEDR, CWDR, TRRR and UPIAR. Check the legend on your statement or ask your branch rather than guessing. We’ll add them here once confirmed.
Turn the narration column into categories
In Excel, narrations are easier to sort and total. When you convert a statement with StatementDock, each row keeps its full narration, so you can filter for “ACH D” to list every EMI, or “NFS” to find ATM cash. For Tally, the narration goes into each voucher.