Sending
a payment to Europe?
From the 1st January 2006 it has been compulsory that all
payments to Europe must include a Bank Identifier Code (BIC)
and International Bank Account Number (IBAN). This is an industry-wide
initiative which aims to increase the speed and reliability
of making payments within Europe.
As of 1st January 2007 failure to provide a BIC and IBAN
may result in payments being delayed, returned or including
additional charges.
What are BICs and IBANs?
BICs and IBANs fulfil a similar function in Europe as sort
codes and account numbers in the UK ensuring that payments
can be quickly and accurately processed.
What does an IBAN look like?
IBANs usually consist of letters and numbers. Here are some
examples of European IBANs:
- Austria – AT123456789101112131
- France – FR123456789101112131
- Germany - DE123456789101112131
- Ireland - IE291234567891011121
An IBAN printed on an invoice may be prefixed with the word
IBAN e.g. IBAN AT12 3456 7891 0111 2131. The word IBAN and
the spaces are not needed when submitting an application for
an international payment.
What does a BIC look like?
Like IBANs BICs also consist of letters and numbers. They
are made up in the following way:
Bank code
(4 characters) |
Country code
(2 characters) |
Location code
(2 characters) |
Branch code
(3 characters) |
| LOYD |
GB |
21 |
A04 |
Can I make payments to Europe without a BIC
or IBAN?
No. From 1st January 2007 all customers must provide a BIC
and IBAN for the person or business to which they are sending
funds. Failure to do so may result in the payment being delayed,
returned or incurring additional charges.
Please note that Payments to countries outside Europe do
not require a BIC or IBAN.
Receiving a payment from Europe?
Do I need a BIC and IBAN to receive payments
from Europe?
Yes. When you are the beneficiary of a cross-border payment
from Europe you must provide the payer with your own IBAN
and BIC details or you may find that your money is delayed
or even returned to the payer.
How do I find my BIC & IBAN?
For both Sterling and currency accounts you can find these
on your Bank Account statement.
Is it secure?
Providing your BIC and IBAN details is equivalent to sharing
your sort code and bank account details with a third party
in the UK. Please ensure that you share only the BIC and IBAN
with the payer and under no circumstances give out any confidential
information such as PIN or memorable information that would
allow an unauthorised person to access your account.
Further details on keeping your account secure.
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