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Spotlight PEPPOL BIS Billing 3.0 The EU e-invoicing mandate is here — France Sept 2026, Belgium Jan 2026, Germany 2025.

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Foundations

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Standards

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Flagship messages

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Tools

MT707 — Amendment to a Documentary Credit

Post-issuance change of an LC. Any change to credit terms (extension, amount, conditions, goods) must go through MT707, validated by all parties — beneficiary included, per UCP 600 article 10.

Purpose

MT707 carries an amendment to a documentary credit previously issued by MT700. Any modification — validity extension, amount increase/decrease, port change, documentary list adjustment, goods description change — must go through MT707. Without this formal act, the credit remains governed by its initial terms and any discrepancy can trigger refusal.

The amendment is binding only after acceptance by the beneficiary (UCP 600 art. 10c). Silence does not constitute acceptance. Until accepted, the initial terms of the :20: apply.

Tag structure

MT707 reuses the flat MT700 format with a tag subset targeting only the changed items. Main tags:

  • :20: Amendment reference (new, unique).
  • :21: Originating credit reference (the MT700's :20:).
  • :23: Amendment indicator (NREF = no reference number).
  • :26E: Amendment sequence number: 01 for the first, 02 for the second, etc.
  • :30: Amendment date.
  • Modified-specific tags: :31E: (new expiry), :33B: (delta amount), :34B: (new total amount), :44C: (new latest shipment), :45B: (revised description), :79: (narrative description of the amendment).

Key tags

TagNameUsage
:20:Sender's ReferenceUnique amendment reference.
:21:Documentary Credit NumberOriginating MT700 reference.
:26E:Number of Amendment01, 02, 03… amendment sequence.
:30:Date of AmendmentYYMMDD.
:31E:New Date of ExpiryNew expiry date.
:32B:Increase of Documentary Credit AmountIncrease amount (positive delta).
:33B:Decrease of Documentary Credit AmountDecrease amount.
:34B:New Documentary Credit AmountNew total after amendment.
:44C:Latest Date of ShipmentNew shipment deadline.
:79:NarrativePlain-text description of modifications.

Real-world example

First amendment (sequence 01) on the ACME credit: BNP Paribas extends validity from 15 August to 30 September 2026, increases the amount by USD 25,000 (new total USD 175,000), pushes the latest shipment date and adds 100 extra cartons:

text mt707-amendment.txt 
{1:F01BNPAFRPPAXXX0000000000}{2:I707ICBKCNBJXXXXN}{3:{108:LCA20260615001}}{4:
:20:LCA20260615001
:21:LC20260515001
:23:NREF
:31C:260515
:30:260615
:26E:01
:31E:260930
:32B:USD150000,00
:33B:USD25000,00
:34B:USD175000,00
:44C:260930
:45B:1100 CARTONS COTTON T-SHIRTS
(INITIAL 1000 + EXTENSION 100 CARTONS)
:79:THE FOLLOWING AMENDMENTS ARE INTRODUCED:
1. CREDIT VALIDITY EXTENDED FROM 15 AUG TO 30 SEP 2026
2. AMOUNT INCREASED BY USD 25,000 TO TOTAL USD 175,000
3. LATEST SHIPMENT DATE EXTENDED TO 30 SEP 2026
4. ADDITIONAL 100 CARTONS ART. ACME-2026-187-D
ALL OTHER TERMS AND CONDITIONS REMAIN UNCHANGED
-}
  • :20:LCA20260615001 — amendment reference (different from the credit).
  • :21:LC20260515001 — originating MT700 reference.
  • :26E:01 — first amendment (seq 01).
  • :31E:260930 — new expiry on 30 September 2026.
  • :32B:USD150000,00 + :33B:USD25000,00 + :34B:USD175000,00 — initial amount, increase, new total.
  • :44C:260930 — new shipment deadline on 30 September.
  • :79: — numbered narrative detailing the 4 changes with the standard ALL OTHER TERMS AND CONDITIONS REMAIN UNCHANGED clause.

Common pitfalls

  • Wrong :21: — must be strictly identical to the MT700's :20:. An error breaks the chaining.
  • Assumed implicit acceptance — UCP 600 art. 10c: the beneficiary must explicitly accept the amendment. Until they do, initial terms apply.
  • Non-sequential :26E: — an MT707 with :26E:03 without prior 01 and 02 is rejected by the receiving bank. Always number sequentially.
  • A vs B tags for :45: — :45B: replaces the MT700's :45A: in the amendment; this is not an MT701 continuation but a full revision.
  • Partial acceptance — UCP 600 does not allow partial acceptance of an amendment. It is all-or-nothing. If the beneficiary refuses a single change, the entire amendment is void.
  • MT700 — Issue of a Documentary Credit, the amended credit.
  • MT708 — Amendment continuation (if MT707 exceeds 2,000 chars).
  • MT730 — Acknowledgement, advising-bank acknowledgement.
  • MT799 — Free Format Message, used to track beneficiary acceptance/refusal.