TANZANIA AUTOMATED

CLEARING HOUSE

(TACH)

RULES
2016
 PART I
PRELIMINARY
1. These Rules shall be cited as the Tanzania Automated Clearing House Title

(TACH) Rules 2015 for facilitating clearing of interbank payment

instruments and shall be binding between the participants.

2. These Rules shall come into operation on such a date as the Chairperson Commencement

of the Management Committee of TACH shall appoint by issuance of a

notice to all members of TACH.

3. Terminologies used in these Rules, unless the context otherwise requires Interpretation

are defined in the Glossary of Terms appended as Schedule 1.

4. (1) TACH shall offer the following services: TACH services

(i) clearing services which enables Payment Instructions (Direct

Debits, Direct Credits and Cheques) to be exchanged among
participants; and

(ii) generation of a multilateral net positions and submission of a

Net Settlement Instruction (NSI) to TISS.

(2) TACH services shall be restricted only to TACH members.

5. The objectives of TACH shall be to: Objectives

(i) provide efficient and effective clearing of payment instruments

presented at the clearing house;

(ii) formulate and review rules relating to the clearing procedures

between members of the TACH;

(iii) contribute to the improvement of the national payment systems;

(iv) maintain records of the TACH system and such other matters as
may be thought necessary; and

(v) maintain discipline of members in TACH operations.

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6. The Clearing Agent shall: Responsibilities of
the Clearing Agent

(i) own the TACH system and be responsible for the authorisation to
participate, the establishment and maintenance of the system
which shall include ensuring compliance with the TACH Rules;

(ii) provide facilities to ensure efficient and sound environment for

TACH operations and performance;

(iii) act as an operator for TACH system which involves managing

the technical infrastructure of the system and executing the
procedures involved in operating the TACH system;

(iv) administer the operations of the daily business cycle, manage the
creation of reports and maintain responsibility for the security of
all data, software and infrastructures including backups;

(v) at its own discretion, may delegate operations of the system to a

third party; and

(vi) administer participants in the system.

PART II
MEMBERSHIP
7. (1) TACH membership shall be open to any financial institution licensed Access criteria

by the Bank and operating in the United Republic of Tanzania which

meets the following eligibility criteria:

(i) must be a participant in the Tanzania Interbank Settlement

System (TISS); and

(ii) must maintain government securities or cash reserves to be used

as collateral.

(2) Without prejudice to the provision of (1), the Clearing Agent may
determine other criteria to be considered for a certain types of TACH
participant.

8. Application for membership shall be made to the Clearing Agent by Procedures for
application
filling and submitting an Application Form appearing as Schedule 2 of

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 these Rules.

9. (1) The Clearing Agent shall, upon receipt of the Application Form, Application
Assessment
assess the eligibility and notify the applicant of the fate of its
application.

(2) Where the application is not granted the Clearing Agent shall provide
reasons to the applicant for rejection. The applicant shall be given an
opportunity to resubmit its application considering the Access
Criteria stated under section 7.

(3) Where the application is granted the participant shall be provided

with membership acceptance notice as appearing in Schedule 4
which requires the member to comply with conditions for
participation as stipulated in Schedule 5.

10. (1) A member shall be suspended from TACH in any of the following Suspension

events:

(i) the participant is in breach of a prudential supervision

requirement and the Bank has requested for such suspension;

(ii) If the member is placed under statutory management in

accordance with the provisions of the Banking and Financial
Institutions Act 2006;

(iii) If in the opinion of the TACH Operations Committee a

member has not acted in the highest principles and interest of
the clearing and settlement process;

(iv) an event occurs which affects, or may affect, the ability of the
participant to participate in sending and receiving payment
instructions; and

(v) the participant breaches its obligations under these Rules or

the applicable procedures and fails to rectify the breach or to
provide a satisfactory justification.

(2) In suspending the participant, the Clearing Agent, may block or

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 disable on any terms the participant’s access to the TACH system
for a specified period or extension of the period taking into
account the nature of the situation.

(3) The Clearing Agent will immediately notify all participants of any
suspension by the most expeditious means available.

(4) A participant who has been suspended under this section is not
entitled to participate in TACH, but it still has a right to access its
data outside the system via a request to the Clearing Agent.

(5) A participant whose access to the TACH system is suspended or

blocked shall continue to honour obligations accrued in TACH
operations unless otherwise stated by the Clearing Agent.

(6) The Clearing Agent shall reinstate a participant, after the reasons
for suspension, blocking or disabling have been rectified. The
Clearing Agent will, as soon as reasonably possible, notify all
participants of re-commencement date for the suspended
participant.

11. A participant’s membership shall be terminated from TACH upon: Termination

(i) Withdrawal of membership;

(ii) becoming insolvent in terms of the provisions of the Banking and
Financial Institutions Act 2006; and
(iii) termination by the Clearing Agent in accordance with these
Rules.

12. A participant who wishes to withdraw as a participant in the TACH shall Withdrawal of
membership
give a thirty (30) days’ notice, in writing, to the Clearing Agent.

13. (1) A participant whose membership has been terminated or withdrawn Effect of
termination or
shall not have access to the TACH system. withdrawal of
membership
(2) A participant whose membership is terminated or withdrawn
pursuant to this section shall continue to be bound by these Rules in
respect of:

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 (i) any act, matter or thing occurring prior to the time such
termination or withdrawal takes effect or as a result of such
termination or withdrawal; and

(ii) any fees, costs, charges and expenses which may be levied on, or
which are to be reimbursed in accordance with these Rules in
respect of periods which commence prior to the time such
termination or withdrawal takes effect or which relate to any such
act, matter or thing.

(3) A participant whose membership is terminated or withdrawn is not

entitled to be repaid all or part of any entrance, operating or other fee
that has been paid.

PART III
USER ADMINISTRATION
14. (1) Each participant shall designate a minimum of three and maximum User creation and
modification
of five personnel who shall represent the participant in the system as
users.

(2) Users in the TACH system shall be created as follows:

(i) Each participant shall submit a dully filled User Access Request
Form as provided in Schedule 3 for authorisation by the Clearing
Agent;

(ii) Upon approval of the application, the Clearing Agent shall

register TACH participant as a User in the TACH system and
provide login credentials to enable nominated users to access the
TACH system as per their profile;

(iii)The nominated User of the TACH participant shall be required to

collect in person with proof of identification the login credentials
from the Clearing Agent;

(iv) The nominated User of the TACH participant shall change his
default password upon accessing TACH system for the first time;
and

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 (v) TACH Participant shall designate a Master User who will be
responsible for administration of other users.

(3) TACH users shall keep their passwords and other access methods
confidential and notify the Clearing Agent immediately by email
upon loss of password or login credentials of Master User.

PART IV
PARTICIPANTS RESPONSIBILITIES
15. The Collecting Bank shall: Responsibilities of
Collecting Bank

a) perform physical checks on the cheque presented by customers at

the counter or point of deposit which shall include :

i) validity of date;

ii) presence of signature(s);

iii) the correctness of payee’s name;

iv) the matching of amount in figures as in words;

v) presence of endorsement, and stamp duty where relevant;

and

vi) absence of pre endorsement by another bank.

vii) no alteration

b) confirm that the MICR code-line of the cheque is not tampered;

c) ensure that the cheque bears the mandatory physical security

features set out in the Cheque Standards and Specifications (CSS)
for TACH before acceptance;

d) ensure that the beneficiary account to be credited is that intended by

the drawer of the cheque;

e) ensure that all cheque deposited are stamped and signed on the rear
for all crossings using quality inks, either blue or black;

f) retain physical cheques that have cleared in TACH;

g) safely archive physical cheques received from their customers and

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 produce them to relevant authorities as and when they are required
in compliance with the requirements of the Anti-Money Laundering
laws;

h) provide undertakings to certify that the images are true copies of the
original cheque;

i) ensure that each item submitted has unique reference identification

for a particular day; and

j) maintain a cheque archive of all cheques received and store the

cheques in the archive for the statutory period of seven years.

16. The Paying Bank shall: Responsibilities of

Paying Bank

a) perform checks on the images of the cheques presented for payment

by the collecting bank; these shall include presence of a valid

i) date;

ii) collecting bank’s endorsement stamp and signature;

iii) signature;

iv) payee name;and

v) amount in words as appearing in figures.

b) perform verification of account mandates/checklist for cheques

presented for payment by the collecting bank;

c) advise fate of all cheques presented by the collecting bank by

returning all unpaid cheque images together with a reason for return
to the collecting bank within the clearing period;

d) store all collected images in an archive for the statutory period

provided under the Anti Money Laundering Framework; and

e) counter-check the validity of payment details contained in the

electronic journal against details on the corresponding image.

PART V
OPERATING TIMES

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17. (1) TACH shall operate from Monday to Friday except on public Business days and
operating times
holidays. The operating times of TACH shall be as per Schedule 6 of
these Rules.

(2) The Clearing Agent may change or modify the operating times of Change or
modification of
TACH upon occurrence of exceptional circumstances and notify operating times

participants of such changes.

(3) Files submitted for clearing by TACH participants beyond the Submission of files

clearing Cut-Off times shall automatically be input to the next

clearing session.

(4) Cheque files submitted for clearing by TACH participant beyond the
Cut-Off times of the final session shall automatically be input to the
clearing session in the following business day.

PART VI
COMMUNICATION MECHANISM
18. (1) TACH Participants shall send and receive clearing instructions Network
connectivity
through a Virtual Private Network (VPN) established between the
participants and Clearing Agent to facilitate clearing of cheques and
EFT instruments.

(2) Notwithstanding subsection (1), TACH participants shall access

TACH services by:

(i) Submitting digitally signed batch files using either Gateway or

Payment Originator (PO) module;

(ii) Submitting batch files in accordance with ISO 20022

prescribed format of the instrument message type for TACH
services as provided in Schedule 7; and

(iii) Receive batch files in a prescribed format in accordance with

ISO 20022 as provided in Schedule 7.

(3) TACH participants shall ensure that the batch files submitted are

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 correct and dully authorised for clearing.

PART VII
CHEQUE PROCESSING
19. TACH shall process cheques denominated in Tanzania Shillings or Cheques
denominations
United States Dollars payable in Tanzania by a TACH participant or by a
customer of a TACH participant.

20. (1) The Bank shall set maximum limit for the amounts of the individual Cheque Value
Limit
cheques submitted to the TACH which may be reviewed from time
to time.

(2) TACH participants shall submit individual items in a batch in

compliance with the limit set in (1) above.

(3) TACH system shall reject an individual item in the batch which has
exceeded value limit set and send a notification to the sending bank.

21. TACH shall clear cheques that comply with Cheque Standards and Cheque Standards

Specifications (CSS, 2013) issued by the Bank.

22. TACH participants shall : Cheque truncation

(i) scan cheques using high resolution cheque scanners that are
capable of capturing images as specified in Schedule 7;

(ii) generate images and data from the scanned cheques and produce
a batch file for submission to the TACH system; and

(iii)ensure to correctly fill the batch fields and the individual items
fields in the batch file.

23. TACH participants shall submit digitally signed batch files in a unified Cheque Message
Format
message format ISO20022 to the TACH system for clearing.

24. The TACH system shall receive batch files from the TACH participant, TACH system
processing batch
perform file verification process and: file

(i) Accept the batch for sorting and disbursing to respective paying

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 bank; or

(ii) Reject incorrectly filled batch or individual item fields by

returning to TACH participant.

25. (1) TACH participant who receives the batch file from the TACH Handling cheque
batch files
system shall perform verification on the received file.

(2) TACH participant shall, in case of rejection, submit a message for

unpaid items stating reasons as per Schedule 8 to the TACH system
before Cut-Off time of the clearing session.

(3) The instrument shall be considered accepted for payment if the

receiving bank did not submit any rejection message before the Cut-
Off time of the clearing session.

26. TACH System shall, during the operating hours, notify the originating Cheque rejected
items
participant for any rejected items and remove such items from the
clearing session.

PART VIII
EFT TRANSACTIONS
27. TACH shall process Electronic Funds Transfer instructions (Direct EFT

Credits) denominated in Tanzania Shillings.

28. (1) TACH participants shall submit individual EFT instructions in the EFT Value Limit

batches in accordance with the limit as set by the Bank from time to
time.

(2) TACH system shall reject individual item in the batch which has
exceeded the set limit and send a notification to the sending bank.

29. TACH participants shall submit digitally signed batch files in a unified EFT Message
Format
message format ISO20022 to the TACH system for clearing as appearing
under Schedule 7 of these Rules.

30. The TACH system shall receive the batch files from the TACH TACH system
processing EFT
batch file

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 participant, perform file verification process and:

(i) Accept the batch for sorting and disbursing to respective paying
banks; or

(ii) Reject incorrectly filled batch or individual item fields by

returning to TACH participant.

31. (1) TACH participant who receives EFT batch file from the TACH Handling of EFT
batch files
system shall perform verification and credit the beneficiary.

(2) TACH participant shall, in case fails to apply the funds transfer
instructions, submit a message for un-applied EFT instructions
stating reasons as per Schedule 8 to the TACH system before Cut-
Off time of the clearing session.

32. TACH System shall, during the operating hours, submit to the Unapplied EFT
instructions
originating participant for any un-applied instructions.

PART IX
SETTLEMENT MECHANISM
33. (1) TACH system shall compute, at every clearing session, Settlement
Instructions for
participants’ net position and generate Net Settlement Instruction. cheque and EFT

(2) The batch file containing Net Settlement Instruction shall be

submitted to TISS for settlement.

34. The Receiving participant shall credit beneficiary’s account in not more Crediting
Beneficiary’s
than two hours after receipt of payment on its TISS Clearing Account. Account

PART X
SETTLEMENT FAILURE MECHANISM
35. (1) TACH participants shall adopt Defaulter’s Pay Mechanism as Failure to settle
mechanism for TZS
failure to settle mechanism. denominated
instruments
(2) In order to facilitate settlement of the net obligation of a TACH
participant in the event of failure, TACH participants shall be
required to access Intra-day Liquidity Facility from the Clearing

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 Agent.

(3) The TACH participant shall ensure that the value of the ILF referred
in sub-section (2) shall not be less than its net settlement obligation.

36. The TACH participant shall be required to put up a USD cash reserve in Failure to settle
mechanism for
TISS clearing account of not less than its net settlement obligation in USD denominated

order to facilitate settlement of the net obligation of a USD denominated instruments

instruments submitted by a TACH participant.

PART XI
CONTINGENCY MEASURES
37. (1) Participants shall be required to have Business Continuity Plan to Business
Continuity Plan
ensure effective clearing of payment instructions which shall
include;

(i) Duplicating primary site operations to a secondary site; and

(ii) Ability to timely operate Virtual Private Network from the

Secondary site in case the primary site is not available.
(2) Participants shall periodically test their Business Continuity Plan
and maintain testing reports.

(3) The Clearing Agent shall provide contingency facility for TACH
participants to send and receive TACH files in the event participants
are facing connectivity problems on their site.

PART XII
FEES,CHARGES AND PENALTIES
38. The Bank shall charge participants the annual maintenance fees, Fees, Charges and
Penalties
transaction fees, and may impose penalties as provided in Schedule 9 of
these Rules.

PART XIII
TACH ADMINISTRATIVE COMMITTEES
39. (1) There shall be a TACH Technical Committee that shall; TACH Technical

Committee
(i) Resolve disputes among TACH participants arising from TACH

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 operations; and

(ii) Advice and recommend to the Management Committee on

TACH technical issues.

(2) TACH Technical Committee shall comprise of sixteen members as

follows:

(i) Four representative of the Bank of Tanzania;

(ii) Twelve rotating representatives, appointed by the Committee of

Management. For the purpose of continuity four new members
shall be appointed each two years;

(iii)The Bank shall provide a Chairperson and a Secretary for

the committee and members shall elect, among them a
Vice Chairperson after every two years;

(iv) A bank representative shall cease to be a member of the

Technical Committee if the bank he/she represents
ceases to be a member of the TACH;

(v) The quorum of the committee shall be any nine

members;

(vi) The decisions of the Technical Committee shall be on the

basis of a simple majority vote, with the Chairperson
having a casting vote; and

(vii) The Technical Committee meetings shall be held at

least once every three months and the minutes thereof
submitted to the members of the Technical Committee,
and the Chairman of the Committee of Management.

(3) Disputes in TACH operations shall be resolved by Technical Dispute Resolution

Committee through arbitration.

(4) The arbitration mechanism shall be as per the following procedures:

(i) An aggrieved participant shall submit a complaint to the
Chairperson of Technical Committee supported with

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 evidence of the complaints;
(ii) The Chairperson shall require the respondent participant to
submit written defence on the matter in dispute with
supporting evidence;
(iii) Upon receiving response from the respondent, the
Chairperson shall call for an Technical Committee arbitrate
the dispute;
(iv) The Technical shall deliver its determination in writing after
hearing both parties and communicate the outcome to
disputants; and
(v) The disputant may appeal to the Committee of Management
if not satisfied with the decision of the Technical Committee.
(5) The decision of the Management Committee shall be final.

(6) The Committee shall exempt from hearing any of its member who is
a party to the dispute.

40. (1) There shall be a TACH Management Committee which shall: Management
Committee
(i) Receive recommendations from TACH Technical Committee
on operations matters; and
(ii) Receive and determine appeals from TACH participants
dissatisfied with the decision of Technical Committee.
(2) TACH Management Committee shall comprise of eight members as
follows:
(i) Four representative of the Bank of Tanzania;
(ii) Eight rotating representatives of TACH participants,
appointed by the participant’s management. For the purpose
of continuity four new members shall be appointed each two
years;
(iii)The Bank shall provide a Chairperson and Secretary for
the Committee while members shall elect, among
themselves a Vice Chairperson after every two years;
(iv) A TACH participant representative shall cease to be a
member of the Management Committee if the bank

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 he/she represents ceases to be a member of the TACH;
(v) The quorum of the Management Committee shall be
any seven members;
(vi) The decisions of the Management Committee shall be
on the basis of a simple majority vote, with the
Chairperson having a casting vote; and
(vii) The Management Committee meetings shall be held at
least once in a year and any other time whenever there
is an extraordinary matter to be determined.

PART XIV
REVIEW AND CHANGES TO THE RULES
41. The Bank shall review these Rules from time to time after consultation Amendment of the
Rules
with stakeholders.

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 LIST OF SCHEDULES

SCHEDULE 1: GLOSSARY OF TERMS

“Bank” means the Bank of Tanzania as defined under the Bank of

Tanzania Act 2006.

“Business days” means Monday to Fridays excluding Saturday, Sunday and

official public holidays.

“Block” means an action taken via a TACH menu, which prevents a

specific participant from being able to send transactions or to
access the system.

“Clearing Agent” means the designated authority which undertakes the

responsibilities of managing TACH in this case the Bank.

“Collateral” means cash or financial instruments provided by a participant

collateral provider in favour of, or to the Bank by way of
security for the purpose of securing or otherwise covering the
settlement of its transactions, and where the full ownership of
the collateral remains with the participant collateral provider
when the security is established; or in full ownership for the
purpose of securing or otherwise covering the settlement of
its transactions.

“Collecting Bank” means, a bank that collects value for cheques or other debit
instruments from other banks on behalf of its customers.

“Constraining Event” means processing, communications or other failure of a

technical nature; inaccessibility (total or partial) to facilities
by means of which payments are sent and received; or
manifestation of industrial action or restraining Court Order,
which affects, or may affect, the ability of any participant to
participate to the normal and usual extent in sending and

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 receiving payments

“Contingency” means any constraining event or any other event or

circumstance specified by the Bank

“Direct Credit” means a low value credit transfer payment instruction

processed by the TACH.

“Direct Debit” means a payment instruction of an amount agreed under a

direct debit mandate collected from a customer’s bank
account by an originator (collecting bank) on request, under a
standard contract. The amounts and dates may vary from
payment to payment, subject to advance notice being given.

“Direct Debit Mandate” means a continuing but revocable authority and request
satisfying the requirements of the Rules on Direct Debit,
given, in writing, and signed or similarly authenticated with a
secure electronic signature, by a participant-payer or a payer
to the paying bank, where applicable, and to the participant-
payee or the payee that authorises such participant-payee or
payee to issue a Direct Debit Instructions (DDI) against the
participant-payer’s account or against the payer’s account at
a paying bank and that authorises, if applicable, the paying
bank to debit the account of the payer with the amount of the
DDI in case a Direct Debit Instruction is issued by the payee
against the payer’s account at the paying bank

“eToken” means a plastic USB drive, which carries an embedded chip

with memory and/or processor functions. eTokens containing
an Integrated Circuit (IC) processor are sometimes called
Integrated Circuit Cards (ICCs).

“Failure to settle means the procedure invoked to ensure settlement

mechanism” accomplishment, in the event a member fails to settle its net
clearing obligations due to insufficient funds in its settlement

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 account held at Bank of Tanzania,

“Gateway” means file interface application that facilitates transmission

of files to and from TACH.

“Intra-day Liquidity” means credit extended by the Bank for the purpose of
providing liquidity for a participant in TISS, and which credit
is extended and reimbursed within a period of less than one
business day.

“In writing” means communication by secured e-mail, authenticated faxes

or SWIFT message MT 999.

“Login credentials” means the access privileges to TACH provided by username

and password.

“Net Settlement means an instruction submitted to TISS by the TACH, which

Instructions (NSI)” contains the net credit, and debit postings, used by TISS to
settle obligations among participants.

“Open for business” means the time in the business day at which the TACH
system is ready to accept payment instructions submitted by
participants.

“Participants” means entities, which have direct access to TACH and have a
settlement account with the Bank, including the Bank.

“Paying Bank” means the bank that honours a payment instruction directed
to it by its customer.

“Payment Instructions” means request made by a participant for a payment

execution.

“Payment Instrument” means cheque and funds transfers instructions (Direct Credit
& Direct Debits).

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“Payment Station” means the functionality within the TACH participant system
which provides facilities for preparation and sending of files
of payment instructions to the central TACH System.

“Payment Originator means a facility that allows participants to capture payment

(PO) module” instruction.

“Receiving Bank” means the bank that collects an electronic transfer from
another bank for posting to a customer’s account

“Reserve” means funds set aside in TISS specifically for the settlement
of a NSI from TACH system.

“Rules” mean in this context TACH Rules and Operational Procedure

as may be amended from time to time.

“Settlement” means a mechanism by which obligations in respect of funds

transfer or in respect of payments in securities transactions
between two or more parties are finally discharged in TISS
which is irrevocable and unconditional.

“Settlement Account” means an account with the Bank, which is maintained in the
TISS by an institution subject to the rules and procedures of
the TISS system.

“Settlement Agent” means the Bank which manages the settlement processes for
a clearing system.

“Straight Through means the mechanism that automates the end to end
Process (STP)” processing of transactions of financial instruments without
intervention of any sort.

“Tanzania Automated means a virtual clearing house responsible for calculation of

Clearing House (TACH)” mutual position within a group of participants or users to
facilitate the settlement of their obligations on a net basis.

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“TACH system” means an electronic clearing system that enable files of
payment instructions to be exchanged among the system
participants, calculates the multilateral net positions and
submit a Net Settlement Instructions to TISS to undertake
settlement.

“TACH Member” means any licensed bank, which agrees to abide by these
Rules governing the operations of the TACH. The term
member includes the Bank of Tanzania as a participating
bank and as a Settlement Agent,

“TISS” means Tanzania Interbank Settlement System, a real time

gross settlement system.

“User” means a staff member or appointed agent of a participant

who is entitled, under these rules, to use the TACH facilities,
and has been issued with a secure access control.

“Virtual Private Network means a private user group on a secure network, in this
(VPN)” context, a proprietary inter-bank network implemented in
Tanzania to support the connection of the participants to the
central TACH components.

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 SCHEDULE 2: APPLICATION FORM
(Made under Rule 8)

To: Bank of Tanzania

Re: Participation in the Tanzania Automated Clearing House (TACH)

From: Name of Participant

Registered Office Address /

Principal Place of Business in Tanzania

BIC Address

Name of Contact Person:

Telephone Number:

Fax Number:

E-mail:

Preferred Start Date:

(This is the preferred date on which the
applicant wishes to be admitted as a
Participant of the TACH.)

 Cheques
Type of Service/s required:
 Direct Credits
(Tick services required)
 Direct Debits

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The above named body corporate (“applicant”) hereby applies for membership as a
participant in the TACH. The applicant agrees that if this application is accepted then subject
to and in consideration of that acceptance:

1. The applicant will observe and comply with the system rules of the TACH and the
procedures detailed in the User Manual (as defined in those rules) in force from time
to time. The applicant hereby acknowledges receipt of a copy of the System Rules and
the User Manual as currently in force.

2. The applicant will observe and comply with the requirements and directions of the
Bank and any relevant statutory authority in force from time to time relating to the
TACH operations.

3. The applicantt undertakes to not adversely affect the integrity of payment instructions
sent and received between participants or the settlement of those payment instructions
(or otherwise introduce a significant new risk into the TACH after becoming a
participant).

4. The applicant undertakes not to impair the overall efficiency of the TACH after
becoming a participant.

5. The applicant undertakes to pay the fees and other amounts payable under the Rules
by authorising debiting of their clearing account in TISS.

6. The following information is enclosed with this application to demonstrate that the
applicant satisfies the applicable requirements for membership which are contained in
TACH rules.

[list information and documents enclosed with the application]

Terms not defined in this application shall have the same meaning as those defined in the
TACH rules.

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Dated:

EXECUTED by THE APPLICANT

Signature of Head of Institution

Full name

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SCHEDULE 3: USER ACCESS REQUEST FORM
(Made under Rule 14 (2) (1))
To: Director
National Payment Systems
Bank of Tanzania

Re: Request for Authorized TACH System User

Name of TACH Participant:

From:
(Bank Name and SWIFT BIC)

Contact details of Authorizing Officer:

Name:
Business Address:
Telephone number:
Fax number:
E-mail:

Name of nominated User:

User Profile (Tick the intended user  Administrator

 Operations
profile)  Treasury
Modules
 Session
(Tick module(s) requested)  Maintenance
 Routing
 Clearing
 Reporting

The applicant and the nominee agree that if this application is accepted then subject to and in
consideration of that acceptance, to:

1. observe and comply with the Rules of the TACH and the procedures detailed in the
user manual (as defined in those Rules) in force from time to time.

2. undertake not to adversely affect the integrity of payment instructions sent and
received between participants or the settlement of those payment instructions (or
otherwise introduce a significant new risk into the TACH after becoming a user).

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 3. undertake not to impair the overall efficiency of the TACH after becoming a user.

4. request the Clearing Agent to establish the applicant’s user profile as requested for the
purpose of performing the selected TACH functions.

Dated: [ Dated: [ ]

SIGNED by THE NOMINEE SIGNED by THE AUTHORISING

OFFICER

Name: Name:

Official Seal:

FOR OFFICIAL USE

PART C : NPS [Approval from MSDS)/Supervisor SDS]

Signature Name & Designation Date

PART D: NPS [To be filled by TACH Administrator]

User ID Assigned Access level Assigned

Signature Name Date & Time

PART E: MIS [To be filled by MIS Security Officer]

Name of certificate provided

Signature Name Date & Time

*** To be filled in duplicate

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SCHEDULE 4: MEMBERSHIP ACCEPTANCE NOTICE

(Made under Rule 9(3))

Bank of Tanzania

Date

Participants Address

Dear Sir/Madam

RE: MEMBERSHIP ACCEPTANCE NOTICE

Refer to the above subject matter and your TACH membership application letter dated…….

The Bank is pleased to inform you that approval for participating in Tanzania Automated
Clearing House has been granted.

You are therefore required to comply with the TACH Rules including conditions for
participation as appearing in Schedule 5 of these Rules.

Yours faithfully,

Bank of Tanzania

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SCHEDULE 5: CONDITIONS FOR PARTICIPATION
(Made under Rule 9 (3))
The applicant shall:

i.) maintain TZS and, or USD Settlement Accounts as the Clearing Agent may
determine;
ii.) maintain VPN connection with Clearing Agent and ensure primary VPN
connection point to TACH is within Tanzania;
iii.) notify the Clearing Agent in case it wishes to change the location of its primary
VPN connection;
iv.) install and configure e-Tokens to support TACH transactions authentication;
v.) keep TACH materials confidential;
vi.) grant appropriate access with duty of care, and confidentiality for users who
require access for the proper use of the services;
vii.) use all materials in the manner designated therein and in the ordinary course of
its business, and not deviate in any way;
viii.) observe that all materials provided in connection with the services including
the access to TACH, are the exclusive and confidential property of the Clearing
Agent;
ix.) maintain Business Continuity Plan and Management for TACH operations;
x.) achieve “Straight Through Processing” (STP) between TACH system and
participant’s Core Banking System;
xi.) comply with clearing standards and protocols as provided by the Clearing
Agent;
xii.) undergo testing to demonstrate its operational capacity to participate effectively
before being connected to the live environment;
xiii.) be responsible for own expense incurred in course of its participation to TACH;
and
xiv.) provide qualified personnel with relevant equipments and tools necessary for
TACH operations.

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SCHEDULE 6: OPERATING TIMES
(Made under Rule 17)
Daily processing timetable

TACH Time TACH Session 1 TACH Session 2 TACH Session 3 TACH Session 3 TACH Session 4
( EFT ) ( EFT) (USD Cheques) (TZS Cheques) ( EFT)

Start-of-day 09:00

Open-for-business 09:00

10:00 Start-of-session

10:00 Collateral Setup

10:05 Clearing

10:10 Clearing Cut-Off

10:15 Settlement

12:20 Start-of-session

12:25 Collateral Setup

12:30 Clearing

12:40 Clearing Cut-Off

12:45 Settlement

13:00 Start-of-session

13:05 Collateral Setup

13:10 Clearing Start-of-session

13:15 Clearing Cut-Off Collateral Setup

13:20 Settlement Clearing

13:25 Clearing Cut-Off

13:30 Settlement

16:0 Start-of-session

16:10 Collateral Setup

16:15 Clearing

16:25 Clearing Cut-Off

16:30 Settlement

TACH Final Cut- 18.00

Off
TACH End of Day 18.05

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Notes:
 TACH sessions must:
o Start after TISS is open for business and
o End before TISS Initial “Cut-Off”
 Files may be submitted and approved at any time between “Open-for-Business” and “End
of Final Session”.
 Additional sessions can be added within the operating day.
 Sessions for different currencies can run in parallel with each other.
 Settlement will normally occur within a few seconds of the NSI being submitted by the
TACH to TISS and TISS will advise the TACH of the successful settlement. If, however,
in some exceptional circumstance settlement is delayed, the TACH will not end the
session nor start the next session.
 TACH shall determine the value date of the cheques depending on the time of receipt.

(i) cheques received before cheques cut off time shall be assigned value date of the next
business day.

(ii) cheques received after the cheques cut off time shall be assigned the value date of T+1

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SCHEDULE 7: INSTRUMENT MESSAGE TYPE AND IMAGE
SPECIFICATION
(Made under Rule 18)

I. INSTRUMENT MESSAGE TYPE

SN Instrument Message Type

1. Cheques pacs.005.001.02

2. Direct Credits pacs.008.001.02

3. Cheque Rejections and pacs.002.001.03

Payment Status Reports

4. Unapplied Direct Credits pacs.004.001.02

II. IMAGE SPECIFICATIONS

No. Image Type Minimum Format Compression

DPI
1. Front Grayscale 100 DPI JFIF JPEG
2. Back Grayscale 100 DPI JFIF JPEG
3. Front B&W 200 DPI TIFF CCITT G4
4. Front UV 100 DPI JFIF JPEG

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SCHEDULE 8: REJECTED CHEQUES & UNAPPLIED EFT REASONS CODES

(Made under Rule 25 (2))

EFT UNAPPLIED REASONS

AC01 Incorrect Account Number

AC04 Closed Account Number
AC06 Blocked Account
AG01 Transaction Forbidden
MD07 Customer Deceased
MS02 By Order of the Beneficiary
DC01 Beneficiary Name Incomplete/Irregular
DC02 Payer Name Incomplete/Irregular
DC03 Missing Payer Account

CHEQUE REJECT REASONS

AC01 Incorrect Account Number

AC04 Closed Account
AC06 Blocked Account
AG01 Transaction Forbidden
AM04 Insufficient Funds (Refer to Drawer)
AM05 Duplication
MD07 Customer Deceased
MS02 By Order of the Drawer
RR01 Missing Debtor Account or Identification
RR02 Missing Debtor Name or Address
RR03 Missing Creditor Name or Address
RR04 Regulatory Reason
CH01 Image Not Clear
CH02 Physical Cheque Required
CH03 Missing Verification From Collecting Bank
CH04 Checklist Required
CH05 Title of Account Irregular
CH06 Incorrect Cheque Number
CH07 Cheque Stale (Date expired)
CH08 Post – dated
CH09 Date Irregular (date style inappropriately
made)

32
CH10 Date Required
CH11 Payee name Incomplete/irregular/required
CH12 Amount in words and figures differ
CH13 Amount in words required
CH14 Amount in figures required
CH15 Amount in figures irregular – or incomplete
CH16 Banks Crossing Stamp Required (where the
bank’s stamp indicating receipt of the cheque
is required)
CH17 Stamp duty requires (for Government
cheques)
CH18 Drawer’s Endorsement Required (cash
cheques/ Open cheques)
CH19 Drawer signature Required
CH20 Endorsement Irregular (where, especially
government and institutions cheques the
endorsement is not properly done)
CH21 Cheque written in pencil
CH22 Frozen Account
CH23 Payment stopped by Drawer
CH24 Payment stopped - Confirmation Awaited
(where the beneficiary stops payment,
confirmation from the drawer is required)
CH25 Payment Stopped under Court Oder (by law)
CH26 Unable to Clear (only when bank is closed
(stops operations), and/or locked out of the
clearing)
CH27 Cheques not Drawn on us
CH28 Drawers signature differs
CH29 Not Signed in Accordance with Mandate held.
CH30 Title of Account Required
CH31 Effects not cleared
CH32 Please Represent (for Government Cheques)
CH33 Payee's official receipt required
CH34 Currency Mismatch
CH35 Alteration on Cheque Not Allowed
CH36 Amount in figures/words differ from captured
details of the cheque
CH37 Missing collecting bank’s endorsement
signature
CH38 Incorrect branch code captured

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SCHEDULE 9:

FEES, CHARGES AND PENALTIES

(Made under Rule 40)

(a) Participants Annual subscription fee:

Participants’ Annual subscription fee will be TZS 2,500,000.00

(b) Transaction Processing charges (charges for all transactions should be in TZS):

Transaction processing shall be as follows:

(i) Cheques - TZS 150.00

(ii) EFT - TZS 100.00

(c) Penalties:

(i) Delay in NSI settlement for One (1) Hour - TZS 2,000,000.00

34
SCHEDULE 10:
TRANSACTION CODES

10 Saving Bank Cheques

11 Current Account Cheques

12 Bankers’ Cheques

13 Cash/Credit transfers(Inter-bank Placements)

14 Dividend Warrants

15 Travellers’ Cheques

18 Payment/Standing Orders

19 Demand Drafts

20 Cheques issued in lieu of Pay orders

21 Gift Cheques

22 Interest Warrants

60 Cheques for use in US Dollars

35
SCHEDULE 11:

TACH ERROR CODES

Error CODE Additional Info Label
FILE_BAD_SIGNATURE DS0E TACH: Invalid signature: {0}
FILE_MANUAL_REJECT CUST TACH: File was rejected at approve
FILE_CUTOFF_REJECT CUST TACH: Unapproved file cancelled by cut-
off
FILE_TOO_LARGE R10 TACH: {0} file exceeds the maximum
allowed size
FILE_EMPTY R10 TACH: {0} not found
BULK_ISO_INVALID_FILE_FORMAT FF01 TACH: Invalid file format
BULK_CUST_REQ CUST TACH: "BULK_CUST_REQ";
BULK_RFC_BAD_AGENT AGNT TACH: RFC Bad Agent
BULK_BAD_CURRENCY CURR TACH: Invalid Currency
BULK_FILE_CURRENCY_MISMATCH CURR TACH: File currency mismatch
BULK_UNDUE UPAY TACH: Undue
BULK_SUPICIOUS SUSP TACH: Suspicious
BULK_ACCEPTED B00 TACH: Accepted
BULK_PARTIAL B01 TACH: Partial
BULK_TOO_LARGE FF01 TACH: Too large
BULK_BAD_COUNT FF01 TACH: Invalid item count
BULK_BAD_TTL_AMT FF01 TACH: Invalid total amount
BULK_BAD_CTRL_AMT FF01 TACH: Invalid control amount
BULK_ALL_REJECTED B09 TACH: All items rejected
BULK_BAD_INSTRUCTING FF01 TACH: Bad instructing agent
BULK_BAD_INSTRUCTING_BIC RC01 TACH: Invalid instructing BIC
BULK_BAD_INSTRUCTED FF01 TACH: Bad instructed agent
BULK_ZERO_AMT FF01 TACH: Zero amount
BULK_DUPLICATE AM05 TACH: Duplicate bulk
BULK_BAD_STTLMT_DT FF01 TACH: Invalid settlement date
BULK_BAD_STTLMT_NFO FF01 TACH: Invalid settlement Info
BULK_BAD_ORGNL_MSGID FF01 TACH: Invalid original MsgId
BULK_BAD_ORIGINATOR RC01 TACH: Invalid originator
BULK_INV_BULK FF01 TACH: Invalid bulk
BULK_NOT_SETTLED ED05 TACH: Bulk not settled
ITEM_ISO_CUST_REQ CUST TACH: Request by customer

36
ITEM_ISO_RFC_DUPLICATE DUPL TACH: Duplicate RFC
ITEM_ISO_BAD_AGENT AGNT TACH: Invalid Agent
ITEM_ISO_BAD_CURRENCY AM03 TACH: Invalid currency
ITEM_ISO_UNDUE MD05 TACH: Undue
ITEM_ISO_NO_MANDATE MD01 TACH: Mandate validation
ITEM_ISO_SUSPICIOUS SUSP TACH: Suspicious
ITEM_ISO_BAD_ACCOUNT AC01 TACH: Invalid account
ITEM_ISO_CLOSED_ACCOUNT AC04 TACH: Closed account
ITEM_ISO_BLOCKED_ACCOUNT AC06 TACH: Blocked account
ITEM_ISO_FORBIDDEN AG01 TACH: Forbidden
ITEM_ISO_BAD_OP_CODE AG02 TACH: Invalid operation code
ITEM_ISO_ZERO_AMT AM01 TACH: Zero amount
ITEM_ISO_BAD_AMT AM02 TACH: Invalid amount
ITEM_ISO_DUPLICATE AM05 TACH: Duplicate
ITEM_ISO_CUSTOM_DUPLICATE AM05 TACH: Duplicate Cheque Serial Number
ITEM_ISO_BAD_DATE DT01 TACH: Invalid date
ITEM_ISO_NO_CREDITOR_ADDRESS BE04 TACH: Missing creditor address
ITEM_ISO_SETTLEMENT_FAILED AM04 TACH: Settlement failed
ITEM_ISO_INV_FILE_FMT FF01 TACH: Invalid file format - {0}
ITEM_ISO_INV_ITEM_FMT FF01 TACH: Invalid data format {0}
ITEM_ISO_CUSTOMER_DECEASED MD07 TACH: Customer deceased
ITEM_ISO_CUST_GEN_RSN MS02 TACH: Customer generated reason
ITEM_ISO_AGT_GEN_RSN MS03 TACH: Agent generated reason
ITEM_ISO_BAD_BANK_ID RC01 TACH: Invalid Bank Id
ITEM_ISO_CUTOFF TM01 TACH: Cut-off
ITEM_PRTRY_CUST_GEN_RSN RR01 TACH: Product is missing {0}
ITEM_PRTRY_BAD_BIC RC01 TACH: Invalid BIC {0}
ITEM_PRTRY_BAD_IBAN AC01 TACH: Invalid IBAN {0}
ITEM_PRTRY_UNSUPPORTED_FLD MD03 TACH: Unsupported field {0}
ITEM_PRTRY_INV_DATA_FMT MD03 TACH: Invalid data format {0}
ITEM_PRTRY_INV_COUNTRY AC01 TACH: Invalid country {0}
ITEM_PRTRY_INV_ORGNL_STS_ACTION_REQ MD03 TACH: Missing original transaction {0}
ITEM_PRTRY_INV_ORGNL_STS_NO_ACTION_REQ MD03 TACH: Invalid original transaction {0}
ITEM_PRTRY_INV_ORGNL_DT_MISMATCH MD03 TACH: Date does not match with original
{0}
ITEM_PRTRY_INV_ORGNL_INFO_MISMATCH MD03 TACH: Information does not match with

37
 original - {0}
ITEM_PRTRY_CORE MD03 TACH: Core error {0}
ITEM_INV_CTGY_PURP AG02 TACH: Invalid category purpose
ITEM_INV_SVCLVL_CD AG02 TACH: SvcLvl Code error

38