---
updatedAt: 2026-06-16T09:13:12.000Z
agentTools:
  projectIndex: https://docs.truelayer.com/llms.txt
---

# Request authentication

Learn how to authenticate Payments v3 API calls.

All payments requests (pay-ins, payouts, mandates, and refunds) need to be authenticated before you initiate the request. To authenticate payments, you need:

* public and private signing keys, which are uploaded to Console and included with your requests respectively.
* an access token, which can be used to make multiple payments and is valid for an hour.

### [Generate a payment access token](/docs/generate-a-payments-access-token)

Generate a `access_token` that you must include as a bearer header to authenticate each of your requests. You need to include the correct scopes to ensure your access token can be used for different types of payment.

<br />

<br />