What is SEPA?
The Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA) is an initiative of the European Union that simplifies bank transfers denominated in euros. Although these transactions cross international borders, SEPA aims to make them as straightforward as domestic payments within individual countries.
The vast majority of euro credit transfers in SEPA, more than 20 billion every year - are based on the EPC SCT scheme. This means that the rules for making euro credit transfers in Europe are exactly the same whether the money is moved between two accounts located in the same country or in two different SEPA countries.
The scope is limited to payments in euro and can be used for payments in 36 SEPA scheme countries.
Key benefits of using SEPA for euro payments
The implementation of outgoing SEPA payments brings many advantages to every party involved in a euro payment:
Unified banking experience: SEPA facilitates the consolidation of euro payments. This brings coherence to managing transactions across different European nations.
Efficient transactions: By using SEPA credit transfers, most banks in Europe can be reached without using unnecessary intermediaries.
Less fees applied by intermediary banks: Beneficiaries will receive the full payment amount in most cases.
Which payments are eligible for SEPA Credit Transfer?
Payment currency is EUR
Beneficiary bank country is within the SEPA Zone.
Beneficiary bank is reachable via SEPA Credit Transfer
You have euro Ebury IBAN - click here to see how to ask for one
Payment amount is below EUR 560,000.00
Payments above this amount will be routed via SWIFT.
Please refer to your Payment Receipt to check the final value date.
What should I do if I experience any issues with a SEPA payment?
Please note that MT103s and UETR (Unique End-to-End Transaction Reference) are exclusively issued for SWIFT payment transactions.
An MT103 message is a type of SWIFT message primarily used to confirm payments released via SWIFT systems.
Other payment systems, such as SEPA Credit Transfers, do not provide this type of confirmation as they take approximately 48 hours to clear. If not, funds are typically returned to the remitter’s account shortly after.
If you do see delays in the credit of your payment, check that the bank details are correct and that the recipient has not received the funds yet. Sometimes, delays can occur due to processing times on the recipient's end.
If you are still experiencing issues, please send an email to operationsteam@ebury.com, contact us via live chat or reach out to your Relationship Manager.