SEPA (Single Euro Payments Area)

...stands for a uniform payments area throughout the Eurozone. This makes it possible for you to send cross-border transfers and make cashless payments in Euros or in the applicable domestic currencies. Non-EU countries have also adopted this payment standard, including the countries of the European Economic Area (EEA) such as Iceland and Norway. In any event, you will need the IBAN of the beneficiary and the BIC of the beneficiary bank to ensure an optimal transaction.

The IBAN (International Bank Account Number)

...is an internationally standardised bank account number that can be used to identify three essential characteristics of a banking relationship: the country, the financial institution, and the account number. The length of the IBAN may vary from country to country, however. The IBAN is also used internationally in countries outside SEPA.

The BIC (Bank Identifier Code)

...in turn serves to unambiguously identify a bank. For your SEPA payments, it is absolutely necessary for the recipient bank to participate in SEPA.

You can individually and transparently design your SEPA payment transactions online using either classical or mobile payment methods. You will benefit from clear advantages. The standardised procedure guarantees simple, secure, and fast execution of all payments.

This means your transfer arrives quickly at the recipient – at the latest within three business days. As a beneficiary, you are treated fairly by having the full transfer amount credited to your account without any deduction of third-party fees. And you keep a clear and transparent overview of your transactions. Fees are charged by the sending and receiving banks only in regard to their own clients.

If you do not know the beneficiary's IBAN or the beneficiary bank's BIC or if that information is not included on the invoice, please ask the beneficiary. If you only have the beneficiary's traditional account information at your disposal, you can use an IBAN calculator to convert it into the required SEPA standard.

If you want to send invoices in foreign currencies to recipients domestically or abroad, use our IPI (International Payment Instruction) voucher. The IPI voucher already includes the reference number, originator data, and the IBAN. IPI vouchers can be ordered from your client advisor or our Team Service Direct at +423 236 88 11.