Payments Law — EU payments legislation

Find EU legislative definitions

search_defined_terms

Read-onlyIdempotent

Use this to find which EU instruments define a legal term, such as payment transaction or payment account, and where their definitions differ. For definition wording use get_defined_term. A listing: term, definers and divergence flags, with no definition text. Matching is over the term itself, never the definition body. Divergence is judged on the RESOLVED text as well as the verbatim one, because several instruments defining a term by pointing at the same root agree, however differently their pointers read. Pass only_divergent to find where the corpus does not agree with itself.

Input Schema

TableJSON Schema

Name	Required	Description
`limit`	No
`query`	No	Term text to match. Matching is over the TERM only, never the definition body. Omit for the full alphabetical listing of every term the corpus defines.
`cursor`	No
`instrument`	No	Keep only terms defined in this instrument, e.g. "psd-2".
`only_divergent`	No	Keep only terms whose definers disagree — on the resolved text, the verbatim text, or both.

Output Schema

TableJSON Schema

Name	Required	Description	Default
`data`	Yes
`error`	Yes
`coverage`	Yes
`warnings`	Yes
`pagination`	Yes
`provenance`	Yes
`derivations`	Yes
`corpus_release`	Yes

Schema Changelog

Changes observed during successful MCP inspections.

Changed6 schema fields changedOct 4, 2026

addedInput schema / properties / cursor / anyOf

Added value: +[
+  {
+    "maxLength": 512,
+    "pattern": "^[A-Za-z0-9_-]+$",
+    "type": "string"
+  },
+  {
+    "type": "null"
+  }
+]

removedInput schema / properties / cursor / type
```
Removed value: -[
-  "string",
-  "null"
-]
```

addedInput schema / properties / instrument / anyOf

Added value: +[
+  {
+    "maxLength": 64,
+    "pattern": "^[a-z0-9]+(?:-[a-z0-9]+)*$",
+    "type": "string"
+  },
+  {
+    "type": "null"
+  }
+]

removedInput schema / properties / instrument / type
```
Removed value: -[
-  "string",
-  "null"
-]
```

addedInput schema / properties / query / anyOf

Added value: +[
+  {
+    "maxLength": 256,
+    "type": "string"
+  },
+  {
+    "type": "null"
+  }
+]

removedInput schema / properties / query / type
```
Removed value: -[
-  "string",
-  "null"
-]
```

Changed10 schema fields changedSep 20, 2026

removedInput schema / properties / cursor / anyOf

Removed value: -[
-  {
-    "type": "string"
-  },
-  {
-    "type": "null"
-  }
-]

addedInput schema / properties / cursor / type
```
Added value: +[
+  "string",
+  "null"
+]
```

removedInput schema / properties / instrument / anyOf

Removed value: -[
-  {
-    "type": "string"
-  },
-  {
-    "type": "null"
-  }
-]

addedInput schema / properties / instrument / type
```
Added value: +[
+  "string",
+  "null"
+]
```

removedInput schema / properties / only_divergent / anyOf

Removed value: -[
-  {
-    "type": "boolean"
-  },
-  {
-    "type": "null"
-  }
-]

addedInput schema / properties / only_divergent / type
```
Added value: +[
+  "boolean",
+  "null"
+]
```

removedInput schema / properties / query / anyOf

Removed value: -[
-  {
-    "type": "string"
-  },
-  {
-    "type": "null"
-  }
-]

addedInput schema / properties / query / type
```
Added value: +[
+  "string",
+  "null"
+]
```

changedOutput schema / properties / data / anyOf

Previous value: -[
-  {
-    "additionalProperties": {},
-    "properties": {
-      "items": {
-        "items": {
-          "additionalProperties": {},
-          "properties": {
-            "defined_in": {
-              "items": {
-                "additionalProperties": {},
-                "properties": {
-                  "cite": {
-                    "type": "string"
-                  },
-                  "defined_within": {
-                    "anyOf": [
-                      {
-                        "type": "string"
-                      },
-                      {
-                        "type": "null"
-                      }
-                    ]
-                  },
-                  "instrument_id": {
-                    "type": "string"
-                  },
-                  "qualifier": {
-                    "anyOf": [
-                      {
-                        "type": "string"
-                      },
-                      {
-                        "type": "null"
-                      }
-                    ]
-                  }
-                },
-                "required": [
-                  "instrument_id",
-                  "qualifier",
-                  "defined_within",
-                  "cite"
-                ],
-                "type": "object"
-              },
-              "type": "array"
-            },
-            "divergent_resolved": {
-              "type": "boolean"
-            },
-            "divergent_verbatim": {
-              "type": "boolean"
-            },
-            "term": {
-              "type": "string"
-            }
-          },
-          "required": [
-            "term",
-            "defined_in",
-            "divergent_verbatim",
-            "divergent_resolved"
-          ],
-          "type": "object"
-        },
-        "type": "array"
-      },
-      "next_cursor": {
-        "anyOf": [
-          {
-            "type": "string"
-          },
-          {
-            "type": "null"
-          }
-        ]
-      },
-      "total": {
-        "type": "number"
-      }
-    },
-    "required": [
-      "items",
-      "next_cursor",
-      "total"
-    ],
-    "type": "object"
-  },
-  {
-    "type": "null"
-  }
-]New value: +[
+  {
+    "additionalProperties": {},
+    "properties": {
+      "items": {
+        "items": {
+          "additionalProperties": {},
+          "properties": {
+            "defined_in": {
+              "items": {
+                "additionalProperties": {},
+                "properties": {
+                  "cite": {
+                    "type": "string"
+                  },
+                  "defined_within": {
+                    "type": [
+                      "string",
+                      "null"
+                    ]
+                  },
+                  "instrument_id": {
+                    "type": "string"
+                  },
+                  "qualifier": {
+                    "type": [
+                      "string",
+                      "null"
+                    ]
+                  }
+                },
+                "required": [
+                  "instrument_id",
+                  "qualifier",
+                  "defined_within",
+                  "cite"
+                ],
+                "type": "object"
+              },
+              "type": "array"
+            },
+            "divergent_resolved": {
+              "type": "boolean"
+            },
+            "divergent_verbatim": {
+              "type": "boolean"
+            },
+            "term": {
+              "type": "string"
+            }
+          },
+          "required": [
+            "term",
+            "defined_in",
+            "divergent_verbatim",
+            "divergent_resolved"
+          ],
+          "type": "object"
+        },
+        "type": "array"
+      },
+      "next_cursor": {
+        "type": [
+          "string",
+          "null"
+        ]
+      },
+      "total": {
+        "type": "number"
+      }
+    },
+    "required": [
+      "items",
+      "next_cursor",
+      "total"
+    ],
+    "type": "object"
+  },
+  {
+    "type": "null"
+  }
+]

changedOutput schema / properties / pagination / anyOf

Previous value: -[
-  {
-    "additionalProperties": false,
-    "properties": {
-      "complete": {
-        "type": "boolean"
-      },
-      "next_cursor": {
-        "anyOf": [
-          {
-            "type": "string"
-          },
-          {
-            "type": "null"
-          }
-        ]
-      },
-      "total": {
-        "type": "number"
-      }
-    },
-    "required": [
-      "complete",
-      "next_cursor"
-    ],
-    "type": "object"
-  },
-  {
-    "type": "null"
-  }
-]New value: +[
+  {
+    "additionalProperties": false,
+    "properties": {
+      "complete": {
+        "type": "boolean"
+      },
+      "next_cursor": {
+        "type": [
+          "string",
+          "null"
+        ]
+      },
+      "total": {
+        "type": "number"
+      }
+    },
+    "required": [
+      "complete",
+      "next_cursor"
+    ],
+    "type": "object"
+  },
+  {
+    "type": "null"
+  }
+]

First observedSep 6, 2026

TDQS

A4.5/5.0

Behavior4/5

Does the description disclose side effects, auth requirements, rate limits, or destructive behavior?

Annotations already cover read-only/idempotent/closed-world, and the description goes further by disclosing that matching is over the term and never the definition body, and that divergence is judged on resolved as well as verbatim text. That non-obvious semantic rule is real behavioral context. It leaves pagination and the limit/cursor behavior unexplained.

Agents need to know what a tool does to the world before calling it. Descriptions should go beyond structured annotations to explain consequences.

Conciseness4/5

Is the description appropriately sized, front-loaded, and free of redundancy?

Front-loaded with the purpose and the sibling disambiguation before moving to output shape and divergence semantics. It is dense but each sentence carries distinct information; only the repeated matching-over-term rule (also in the schema) is slightly redundant.

Shorter descriptions cost fewer tokens and are easier for agents to parse. Every sentence should earn its place.

Completeness4/5

Given the tool's complexity, does the description cover enough for an agent to succeed on first attempt?

Output schema exists, so return values need not be enumerated, yet the description still summarizes the listing shape usefully. The essential divergence concept is fully explained; the only gap is pagination/limit/cursor guidance for a zero-required-parameter tool.

Complex tools with many parameters or behaviors need more documentation. Simple tools need less. This dimension scales expectations accordingly.

Parameters4/5

Does the description clarify parameter syntax, constraints, interactions, or defaults beyond what the schema provides?

Schema coverage is 60%, and the description restates the query-matching rule while supplying the conceptual meaning of only_divergent (why resolved-text agreement counts) that the schema's one-line gloss does not convey. The limit and cursor parameters remain unexplained in both places.

Input schemas describe structure but not intent. Descriptions should explain non-obvious parameter relationships and valid value ranges.

Purpose5/5

Does the description clearly state what the tool does and how it differs from similar tools?

States a specific verb and resource ('find which EU instruments define a legal term') plus the distinctive scope ('where their definitions differ'). It explicitly separates itself from the sibling get_defined_term, which the agent would otherwise likely confuse with it.

Agents choose between tools based on descriptions. A clear purpose with a specific verb and resource helps agents select the right tool.

Usage Guidelines5/5

Does the description explain when to use this tool, when not to, or what alternatives exist?

Gives an explicit routing rule: 'For definition wording use get_defined_term,' and names the condition for only_divergent ('find where the corpus does not agree with itself'). When-to-use and which-alternative are both spelled out.

Agents often have multiple tools that could apply. Explicit usage guidance like "use X instead of Y when Z" prevents misuse.

All Payments Law — EU payments legislation tools Inspect

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