The mandatory implementation of Strong Customer Authentication in the United Kingdom for e-commerce payments, including for many business travel bookings, has been delayed by an additional six months to March 14, 2022, the country’s Financial Conduct Authority announced Thursday.

SCA is designed to eliminate fraud through an additional verification process by the cardholder, such as entering a one-time passcode sent to their mobile phone. It is required in many cases for online reservations, including via corporate booking tools, when the booker pays with a plastic card, though not with lodge or virtual cards.

Most European Economic Area countries made SCA mandatory on Dec. 31, 2020. The U.K. committed to introducing SCA before it left the European Union, but this is the third time it has delayed mandatory implementation beyond an original deadline of September 2019.

The FCA said “this further 6-month extension is to ensure minimal disruption to merchants and consumers, and recognises ongoing challenges facing the industry to be ready by the previous 14 September 2021 deadline.”

The news was not welcomed by Amadeus head of commercial payments Jeremy Dyball, who urged travel providers push ahead with implementation. “The FCA’s additional six-month delay to enforcement timelines is designed to relieve pressure for the digital commerce world,” he said. 

“However, in my view, the travel industry needs to move ahead as quickly as possible with SCA. In addition to now being a legal requirement in the EU, SCA is already being implemented by card issuing banks in the U.K. as well, so any travel company looking to maximize bookings must ensure it is SCA-ready in order to ensure the highest possible acceptance rates. Any delay in delivering SCA could result in lost sales at a time when every booking counts.”