Before you start
Please download the suggested API integration process flow document and use it as a reference when developing.
Kindly adhere to the Netcash brand guidelines when developing.
Programmers Guide
Refer to our Programmers guide for more detail on how to apply the required methodology in this document.
Ensure that the settings for developers are adhered to before you proceed with your implementation.
Web Service Methods
The list of Netcash web service methods can be found here.
Quick Start Guides
Quick Start Guides will help you understand this service and get you started.
Overview
Netcash offers a web service called ‘NIWS_NIF’ used to send batched DebiCheck Debit Order files to a Netcash account and then the National Payment System.
DebiCheck is a preferential debit order system requiring the bank account holder to give specific electronic permission (via their bank) prior to any debit order being processed. It does not replace Same-day and Dated debit orders but can be used as an alternative. By using DebiCheck you can obtain authentication, benefit from the preferential presentation of the debit and track the bank account over a selected period.
Read more about DebiCheck contract types and authentication options here
See the service overview here.
Click here for information on the DebiCheck Authentication – without using the Netcash eMandates.
Technical Information
NIWS_NIF is an asynchronous web service which exposes multiple methods. The method BatchFileUpload allows an external system to submit a batch file of DebiCheck Debit Orders for processing.
Netcash is compliant with the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards (PCI DSS) and does therefore not accept or store Credit Card numbers. Only tokens representing the card details and masked credit card numbers (for tracing purposes) may be submitted in this file. The system will reject any file which contains unmasked credit card numbers.
The Service
Object | Name | Description |
method | BatchFileUpload |
Parameter:
|
method | RequestFileUploadReport |
Parameter:
|
Once you have built the file call:
- Web service: https://ws.netcash.co.za/NIWS/niws_nif.svc
- Method: BatchFileUpload
- Service key: Debit order service key
Input
Requests to the web service are sent as strings.
The BatchFileUpload method requires two parameters: –
- Service key (to authenticate the method call)
- File (the batch file containing the debit order instructions)
Example
public string BatchFileUpload(string ServiceKey, string File) { // initialise client NIWS_NIF.NIWS_NIFClient client = new NIWS_NIF.NIWS_NIFClient(); // call the BatchFileUpload method equal to a string variable string Request = client.BatchFileUpload(ServiceKey, File); // close client after response is received client.Close(); switch (Request) { case "100": // Authentication failure break; case "102": // Parameter error break; case "200": // General code exception. break; default: // successful return Request; } // use response to call RequestFileUploadReport method return Request; }
Output
Successful request
If the method call was successful and the file is being processed, the web service will return a file token which is used to retrieve the load report
Example: 20000000.2550236530.0483.2.2
Unsuccessful request
If the method call fails, the web service will return an error code:
Code |
Description |
100 |
Authentication failure. Ensure that the service key in the method call is correct |
101 |
Date format error. If the string contains a date, it should be in the format CCYYMMDD |
102 |
Parameter error. One or more of the parameters in the string is incorrect |
200 |
General code exception. Please contact Netcash Technical Support. |
Unpaid reason codes
Click here for a list of unpaid transaction codes
Input File Structure
Each file has the following mandatory records:
H – Header record identifies the upload and passes instructions to the Netcash server to determine the purpose of the file.
K – Key record must follow the header record. The key record describes the transaction records which follow. The format defined in the key record is used to validate the record structure and content.
T – Transaction records follow the key record. These fields must conform to the layout defined in the key.
F – Footer record must be the last record in the file and confirms that the file is complete.
Header record (H)
Every file must contain a header record, being the first record in the file.
Record Structure
Field | Name | Type | Value |
1 | Record Identifier | AN | H |
2 | Service Key | AN | Debit Order Service Key |
3 | Version | AN | 1 |
4 | Instruction | AN | Purpose of the file |
5 | Batch name | AN | Your identifier |
6 | Action date | N | CCYYMMDD TIP: See request action date web service |
7 | Software vendor key | AN | The key issued by Netcash to identify the software origin of transactions. (only used by Netcash ISV‘s else use the default value: 24ade73c-98cf-47b3-99be-cc7b867b3080) |
Field explanations
Field | Explanation |
Record Id | “H” – Identifies the record as a header |
Service key | Debit order service key |
Version | “1” – This is the Netcash version of the file specification |
Instruction | DebiCheck – upload a batch of DebiCheck debit orders to the Netcash system |
Batch name | Use this field as an identifier of your batch. |
Action date | The date on which the payments are debited to the payers bank account. |
Software vendor key | The key issued by Netcash to identify the software origin of transactions. (only used by Netcash ISV‘s else use the default value: 24ade73c-98cf-47b3-99be-cc7b867b3080) |
Example
H C74EXXX5-5499-4663-85FB-2A6XXXXFB9EF 1 DebiCheck My Test Batch 20100331 24ade73c-98cf-47b3-99be-cc7b867b3080
Key record (K)
- The key record is mandatory and must appear in the file between the header and transaction records.
- It defines the content, order and length of the transactions records in the file. It can be likened to the column headings in a spreadsheet.
- All the possible fields contained in the subsequent transaction records are listed, even if not every transaction record contains data in all the fields listed.
- It is good practice to list keys in ascending order to assist where debugging and support are required.
Example
K 101 162 232 249 301 302 303
Transaction record (T)
- There must be at least one transaction record in the file.
- The transaction records must conform to the order of the fields as described in the key record.
(In the example above, the account reference (field id 138) is defined as the first field in the record therefore every transaction record MUST have the Budget as the first field or it will fail validation) - Every transaction record must have the same number of fields as defined in the key record (K).
- Empty fields should be replaced by a blank tab or a default value, where one has been defined.
Where fields are left empty, the Netcash system will assume spaces or zeroes for fields defined in the key record.
Example: T Acc001 AccName001 1 BankAccountName001 1 470010 0 25000000000 100
Mandatory fields
The fields indicated by are mandatory for the specified instruction.
Key |
Field name |
Mandatory |
101 |
Account reference | |
249 |
DebiCheck mandate reference | |
232 |
DebiCheck tracking days |
Optional fields
Additional data pertinent to the Debit order.
If field 162 (Debit amount) is not specified, the amount stipulated in the mandate will be debited to the account.
Specify any optional fields included in the transaction records in the key record (K).
Key |
Field name |
Mandatory |
162 |
Debit amount | |
301 |
Extra 1 | |
302 |
Extra 2 | |
303 |
Extra 3 |
Transaction fields
Field |
Name |
Type |
Value |
101 |
Account reference |
AN22 |
The unique reference for this client in your debit order Masterfile. |
232 |
DebiCheck tracking days |
N2 |
Specify the number of days to track against the client’s bank account (1 – 10) |
249 |
DebiCheck mandate reference |
AN50 |
The unique DebiCheck reference associated with the approved mandate for this client |
162 |
Debit amount |
N |
The amount of the debit (in cents) |
301 |
Extra 1 |
AN999 |
Custom user-defined data (Extra data you want returned for your internal system use) |
302 |
Extra 2 |
AN49 |
Custom user-defined data (Extra data you want returned for your internal system use) |
303 |
Extra 3 |
AN49 |
Custom user-defined data (Extra data you want returned for your internal system use) |
Footer record (F)
The footer record indicates that the complete file has been received. It must be the last record in the file. If the record is not present, the system will fail the file without processing any transaction records.
Structure
Field |
Name |
Type |
Value |
1 |
Record Identifier |
AN |
F |
2 |
No of transactions |
N |
A count of the transaction records |
3 |
Sum of amounts |
N |
The sum of the monetary amount fields (in cents) |
4 |
End-of-file indicator |
N |
9999 |
Field explanations
Field | Explanation |
Record Identifier | “F” – Identifies the record as a footer |
No of transactions | This is the count of all the ‘T’ records in the file. |
Sum of amounts | This is the sum of all the values in the 161 fields. If field 161 is not specified in the key record, this will be the sum of all the 162 fields. |
End-of-file indicator | ‘9999’ – Indicates there are no more records. |
Example
F 2 0 9999
Example of input file
H C74EXXX5-5499-4663-85FB-2A6XXXXFB9EF 1 DebiCheck My Test Batch 20131204 24ade73c-98cf-XXXX-XXXX-cc7b867b3080 K 101 162 232 249 301 302 303 T AB001123456 150000 9 NC00000021 Jones Sept Inv123456 T CD001123457 17500 3 NC00000134 Brown Sept Inv123457 F 2 167500 9999
Retrieving the Load Report
Postback option
Where the postback option in your NetConnector profile is utilised, the load report is automatically posted back to the URL specified.
Polling option
You will need to request the load report using the file token received from the BatchFileUpload method call.
Using the file token, call:
- Web service: https://ws.netcash.co.za/NIWS/niws_nif.svc
- Method: RequestFileUploadReport
- Service key: Debit Order service key
Requests to the web service are sent as strings
Example:
Example public string RequestFileUploadReport(string ServiceKey, string FileToken) { // initialise client NIWS_NIF.NIWS_NIFClient client = new NIWS_NIF.NIWS_NIFClient(); // call the RequestFileUploadReport method equal to a string variable // the same service key used for the bactch file upload string Request = client.RequestFileUploadReport(ServiceKey, FileToken); // close client after response is received client.Close(); // use response to output to UI // service will respond with the result of the file uploaded return Request; }
Output file
File content
Only errors are reported in the file. If all the entries in the file are successfully validated, the Load report header will contain “SUCCESSFUL” and there will be no detail messages.
File structure
The report is tab delimited with a linefeed character as line terminator.
Load report header (occurs once at the start of each load report)
Field |
Name |
Type |
Value |
1 |
Record identifier |
AN8 |
###BEGIN |
2 |
Batch name |
AN |
{your batch name} |
3 |
Result of upload |
A13 |
SUCCESSFUL / UNSUCCESSFUL / SUCCESSFUL WITH ERRORS |
4 |
Start time of report |
AN8 |
HH:MM AM/PM |
5 |
Batch Value |
AN15 |
TOTAL OF BATCH |
6 |
Action Date |
AN8 |
CCYYMMDD |
Load report message (occurs multiple times – once per error record)
Field |
Name |
Type |
Value |
1 |
Unique reference |
AN25 |
The unique reference you supplied in (p2) |
2 |
Line number |
AN |
Line :{line in your file where error was found} |
3 |
Error message |
AN |
The error message |
OR |
|||
1 |
Record identifier |
AN8 |
###ERROR |
2 |
Error message |
AN |
The error message |
Load report trailer (occurs once – the last line in the report)
Field |
Name |
Type |
Value |
1 |
Record identifier |
AN6 |
###END |
2 |
End time of report |
AN8 |
HH:MM AM/PM |
Upload report example (successful):
###BEGIN MY TEST BATCH SUCCESSFUL 01:59 PM R1.00 20160410 ###END 01:59 PM
Upload report example (successful with errors):
###BEGIN MY TEST BATCH SUCCESSFUL WITH ERRORS 01:29 PM R1.00 20160410 Acc Ref :XI5 Line :3 Account details could not be validated. Please check the fields Bank account type, Branch code and Account number. Acc Ref :XI5 Line :3 Bank account number has incorrect length (min 4, max 11 characters) Acc Ref :HCOS1 Line :5 Beneficiary statement reference has incorrect length (min 4, max 20 characters) Acc Ref :HCOZ1 Line :6 Beneficiary statement reference has incorrect length (min 4, max 20 characters) ###END 01:29 PM
Upload report example (unsuccessful):
###BEGIN MY TEST BATCH UNSUCCESSFUL 01:23 PM R1.00 20160410 ###ERROR: A system error occurred. Please contact Netcash R0.00 20160410 ###END 01:23 PM
Credit Card Vault Tokenization Web Service
Technical Information
The Netcash vault web service is provided for the secure storage of credit card numbers in terms of the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS). The service accepts credit card details into a secure PCI DSS compliant environment and returns a credit card token together with a masked version of the credit card number.
The credit card token is used in all transactions performed against the account in place of the credit card number. It is not necessary to request a new token each time a transaction is performed against the card. The token remains valid for the life of the card. (A new token should only be requested if the card details change). a Tokenization web service is also available to update card details.
Netcash Vault is a synchronous web service. The credit card token and masked credit card number will be returned to the calling system without the need for polling or postback.
Input
Open the page in an iFrame first, and test using Safari on Apple devices. Depending on the Mac OS/iOS version the call should work with the iFrame (it is Google Chrome and Microsoft Edge is compliant).
If the call to a OS/iOS Safari browser poses a problem; use cross site scripting errors in Safari where you may need to explicitly add the lines below to the web.config file:
<system.webServer> <httpProtocol> <customHeaders> <remove name="X-Powered-By" /> <add name="Access-Control-Allow-Origin" value="*" /> <add name="Access-Control-Allow-Headers" value="Content-Type, Accept, SOAPAction" /> <add name="Access-Control-Allow-Methods" value="GET,POST,PUT,DELETE,OPTIONS" /> <add name="Access-Control-Allow-Credentials" value="true" /> <add name="p3p" value='CP="IDC DSP COR ADM DEVi TAIi PSA PSD IVAi IVDi CONi HIS OUR IND CNT"' /> <add name="X-UA-Compatible" value="IE=Edge" /> </customHeaders> </httpProtocol> </system.webServer>
Creating the call
Ensure that you add a postback url PCI Vault screen on your system frontend, otherwise you will get a message stating that you do not have access to the page.
To get the PCI Vault service key required to use this method you need to log in into the merchant site;
- click on Account Profile
- open NetConnector
- click on PCI Vault Key
Here you will find the key but you need to also add the return url.
To do this click edit and add your return url where we need to post back the result to and then click submit.
Create a form post
<form action="https://cde.netcash.co.za/Site/TokeniseCardExternal.aspx" method="post" name="payNowForm"> <input id="PciKey" name="PciKey" type="hidden" value="PCI-VAULT-SERVICE-KEY---OBTAIN-FROM-MERCHANT-SITE" /> <input type="hidden" name="Extra1" value="Extra "> <input type="hidden" name="Extra2" value="Extra 2"> <input type="hidden" name="Extra3" value="Extra 3"> <input type="submit" value="Pay by Credit Card"> </form>
Extras 1 – 3 are not compulsory fields, only the PciKey field is.
Responses
If tokenisation is successful, the following fields will be returned:
Successful = 1 Token = Vault token for card CardHolderName MaskedCardNumber ExpMonth ExpYear Extra1 Extra2 Extra3
If tokenisation failed, the following fields will be returned:
Successful = 0 Extra1 Extra2 Extra3
Retrieve Batch Status
Click here for the Netcash Retrieve batch status file format. Retrieve Batch Status is a web service that allows a user to retrieve up to the last 10 (ten) batches uploaded to the Netcash system. The web service will return all batches, whether they were uploaded via the web service or manually created via the Netcash web site.
Netcash brand guidelines
Please refer to the Netcash brand guidelines here when using any logos, images, icons, labels, descriptions, and references to Netcash in your software.
Testing
See Testing section for more details. If you require any integration assistance contact our technical support team