SEPA payment instruments

In the euro area, SEPA payment instruments for credit transfers and direct debits fully replaced national payment procedures by August 1, 2014.

Under Regulation (EU) No 260/2012 and Regulation (EU) 248/2014 payment service providers (PSPs) must fulfill certain criteria for SEPA credit transfers and SEPA direct debits from August 1, 2014. In addition, Regulations (EU) No. 924/2009 and (EU) 2019/518 were replaced by Regulation (EU) No. 2021/1230 (last amended on April 8, 2024). The following requirements must be met:

• PSPs must be reachable in accordance with the rules of an EU-wide payment scheme. All accounts reachable for a national credit transfer or direct debit must be reachable also for a SEPA credit transfer or direct debit from the entire EU.
• The IBAN is the only valid payment account identifier for national and cross-border euro transactions within the European Economic Area.
• Equality of charges: Charges for cross-border payments in euro must be the same as for comparable payments within a Member State. However, this principle does not apply to paper-based payment instruments such as checks.
• Transparency of currency conversion fees: Payment service providers must provide transparent and easily understandable information on currency conversion fees.